Ahmaddiya - Definition and Overview

Ahmadi Muslims, or Ahmadiyya, are followers of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad. They are comprised of two subsects, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement (Ahmadiyya Anjuman Ishaat-i-Islaman). There are at least ten million Ahmadi throughout the world, with some counts being more than ten times that high[1] (http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/sects.htm).

At the end of the nineteenth century Mirza Ghulam Ahmad of Qadian claimed to be the Mujaddid, Promised Messiah and Mahdi of the age. He said he fulfilled the prophesy of the return of Jesus. He and his followers claimed that his advent was foretold by the Prophet of Islam, prophet Muhammad(peace and blessing be upon him). In 1889 Mirza Ghulam Ahmad laid down the foundation of his community, which was later on given the name of Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat. Since its inception, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jamaat's objective has been the revival of Islam.

Ahmadi Muslims' beliefs are alleged to be heretical and outside of Islam by some Sunni and Shiite scholars. They contend that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad's claim of prophethood and messiahhood violates the basic tenets of Islam (namely that Muhammad is the last prophet, and that it is Jesus Christ who returns at the end times in person, and no other), but Ahmadi Muslims use a more allegorical interpretation of the references in Islamic literature related to the “return of Jesus” and on the basis of differences in the definition of the term “prophet”.

External links

• Ahmadiyya Muslim Community (http://www.alislam.org)
• Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement (http://www.aaiil.org/index.shtml)

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