'We are there in faith, but how much faith is in us?'

By Edin Urjan Kukavica

There is, by Dostoevsky, Fyodor Mikhailovich, in The Brothers Karamazov, a story about the Grand Inquisitor; it is rarely mentioned, it was never quite to the liking of church authorities, so it was almost forgotten, and only a few who wish to point out the utter futility of the violent, bloodthirsty, bestial fervor of contemporary "puritans" who want to "free" faith from everything that sustains, strengthens, empowers faith... everything that, if you will, makes faith, pull it out of the dust of the past.

In that story, in short, Ivan, an agnostic, tells his brother Alyosha, who has become a monk, a tale from the 16th century according to which Jesus Christ, Isa son of Mary (peace be upon them both), had returned, not at the end of time nor in Sham al-Sham (Damascus) but precisely then and there, in the 16th century and in Seville, wishing to visit his followers there where, "just yesterday, at a magnificent bonfire, in the presence of the king, courtiers, knights, cardinals, and lovely ladies of the court, the Grand Inquisitor suddenly burned almost a hundred heretics ad maiorem gloriam Dei (for the greater glory of God)." He appeared quietly, imperceptibly, without fanfare and trumpets, just like the first time, but, surprisingly, everyone recognized him. The people wept and kissed the ground he walked on, children threw flowers before him, singing and shouting: "Hosanna!" (Welcome!)

He stopped in the vestibule of the Seville Cathedral, just as an open white child's coffin was being carried in: inside, on flowers, a seven-year-old girl, the only child of a distinguished citizen. "If it is you," the weeping mother fell at his feet, "then resurrect my child!" The procession stopped, the coffin was placed at his feet. He looked with compassion, and his lips quietly uttered: 'Talitha kumi!' and the girl got up..." Amidst the shouts, moans, blessings, and celebrations of God, the Exalted, who granted His messenger another miracle before the eyes of the whole world, the Grand Inquisitor walked across the square in front of the church. Not in the cardinal's robes in which he had burned opponents of the Roman faith before the people yesterday, but in an old, rough monk's habit.

His dark assistants and servants and holy guard followed him. He frowned his gray, thick eyebrows, his gaze flashed with a sinister flame. He extended his finger and ordered the guard to arrest him.

The same people who had just been shouting praises to the Creator and savior lowered their heads before the Inquisitor, parted for the guards, and they, amidst the grave silence that ensued, laid hands on God's messenger and led him away like a prisoner to a narrow and dark vaulted dungeon in the old building of the Holy Office.

The day passed, the dark, hot, and "dead Sevillian night" set in, the air filled with the scent of "laurel and lemon." In the deep darkness, the heavy iron dungeon doors opened, and the Grand Inquisitor entered the dungeon, a candlestick in his hand. He stopped at the entrance and stared for a long time into the savior's face. "Is it you? You?" he asked, and when he received no answer, he quickly added: "Don't answer, be silent. And what could you say? I know all too well what you will say. ... Why have you come to disturb us? Because you have come to disturb us, you know that yourself. ... And tomorrow I will condemn you and burn you at the stake as the worst heretic, and the same people whose feet you kissed today will rush tomorrow, at my signal, to drag firewood to your stake, do you know that?" (F. M. Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov). In short, Jesus Christ did not pass the test of orthodoxy before the one who knew faith better than the one who brought it.

How to become and remain a believer even after the honorable Ramadan, or how to recognize a believer even when they are not fasting? Easily; a believer never forgets that the Messenger of Allah Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) said: "Praise be to Allah. We praise Him; we seek His help and forgiveness; we seek refuge in Him from our vices and evil deeds! Whomsoever Allah guides to the Right Path, none can lead astray, and whomsoever He leaves in error, none can guide to the Right Path."

"After my death, do not revert to disbelief, killing one another. I leave you in trust something by which you will not go astray as long as you hold onto it: the Book of Allah (the Qur'an) and my Sunnah. O people, you have only one Lord and one ancestor. You are all from Adam, and Adam is from earth. The most honorable among you in the sight of Allah is the most pious. An Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab, nor a non-Arab over an Arab, except in piety."

"Man! You can never reconcile belief and treachery. How can you be a Muslim when your neighbor is not safe from you?! And how can you be a believer if the rest of the world is not safe from you?! He who is not trusted has no belief, and he who does not keep his promises has no faith. He is not a believer whose neighbor fears his evil. Man! You are not in true faith until you find fault with others, and you are not without them yourself. Therefore, first remove your own fault and leave others and their faults. But know, you will never be able to remove all your faults, so it is most important that you dedicate yourself to them and deal with them. And if you wish to be just, then do not investigate the faults of others, and Allah, the Exalted, will be pleased with you."

"Doers of good in this world will be doers of good in the Hereafter, and doers of good are recognized by their sincerity in speech, safeguarding trusts, fulfilling obligations, humility, visiting relatives, compassion for the weak, doing good, good upbringing and behavior, abundance of kindness, and spreading knowledge. Allah, the Exalted, will forgive their sins because of the good they have done to His creatures. But, man, do not deceive yourself with the claim that a person is with whom he loves. You will not be with the doers of good until you act like them."

Abdullah ibn 'Amr said: "A time will come when people will perform Hajj, pray, and fast, and there will be no believers among them!" A believer knows that "understanding is the vessel in which knowledge is kept, and that knowledge leads to action, and action leads to good. Passion leads to sin. Wealth is the disease of the arrogant. This world is a marketplace where the Hereafter is bought. A believer guards against "a pious person who is ignorant and a scholar who is a debauchee, for they are a great trial for everyone." A believer always remains the same, regardless of time and situation. He remains unbreakable in faith, with one and the same face and on one path. A hypocrite changes according to time and circumstances, looking only to his own benefit, not hesitating to cheat others. The practice of a believer confirms the truth of his words, his public life confirms his private life, and his presence reveals his absence.

A believer knows that "faith does not consist of appearing to the world as a believer while deceiving oneself with vain desires. True faith is that which is deeply etched in the heart and which is confirmed by good deeds, and that "he who has no humanity has no faith."