They Question but Who Answered

Below are some of the questions that the Jewish religious leaders still ask of the time of Jesus. Through these questions they feel free to deny the Beauty of the Christ. Was it not the duty of the Christians to answer these questions. This was a serious error on the part of the church that even now after 2000 years have passed, they still can not answer truthfully their cries for answers.

(this is quoted from 'Baha'i Proofs' by Mirza Abul Fadl)

We have already mentioned that all the prophets or founders of religions have, without exception, assigned a part of their Books to explaining the coming of the Day of God, and announcing the appearance of the Face of God. Likewise, they have mentioned certain signs and tokens concerning this great Manifestation, and have described certain events and occurrences about the day of Its appearance. Some of their announcements have been couched in symbols and allegories, and some are explicity stated, according to the language of every age and cycle. Such symbolical signs are the "darkening of the sun and moon," "rending of the heavens," "falling of stars," "renewal of heaven and earth," "rise of the dead," "the passing away of former things," and other similar events. These shall be set forth in detail, in the course of our treatises, in order that the students of the Holy Books will understand, and the adherents of laws and religions may discuss them. Such signs undoubtedly need to be accepted, but the doctors of every religion, in understanding and apprehending their meanings, have relied upon their own conceptions.

Thus they have interpreted and described them in their books according to their exoteric literal sense. They have also taught them to the people in their lectures, and inculcated them in their schools and congregations until these literal meanings have seemed incontrovertible facts and indisputable points necessary to religious beliefs. These ideas have become still more firmly rooted in hearts and memories, because they have been handed down as a heritage for long periods. Whenever a Divine Sun dawned forth from the Heaven of the Command of God, and the spirit of the Invisible World shone forth from any of the Holy Dawning-places, He was denied by nations and contradicted by peoples, because the aforesaid prophecies were not fulfilled according to the ideas of the people and the signs did not appear as they expected them. In other words, not one of the great prophets ever appeared, and not one of the holy souls ever arose to found a religion by the Command of God, except these very signs and tokens were the first things through which the nations denied Him. For instance, what first caused the Jews to deny Christ was that they held that there are certain signs and tokens, confirmed and clearly written in the Book concerning the coming of the Messiah, which were not then realized; and that the non-fulfillment thereof necessarily disproved the truth of Christ's claim. When Jesus appeared, they said - "Where is the darkness of the sun"? "Where is the changing of the moon into blood"?

"Where is the falling of stars"? "When did the wolf dwell with the lamb, and the lion eat straw as an ox"? "When did the child put his hand in the adder's hole, as is clearly spoken of by Isaiah"? "Where is the changing of the heaven into brass, the earth into iron, and the rain into dust, as was prophesied by Moses"? "Where is the 'new Covenant that the Lord will make with all the Israelitish tribes'; 'assembling of them together from the north, south, east and west, after their scattering and division'; 'honoring them after their degradation and fall'; 'planting them after their extirpation'"? "Where is the 'gathering which shall never be dispersed,' the 'honor which shall never change,' and the 'planting which shall never be uprooted'"? "Where did the Lord 'restore Zion,' a restoration and building 'which shall never be destroyed,' as was prophesied by Jeremiah"? "Did all these events occur during the manifestation of Jesus, or has God deceived His servants by saying such things"? "Be this far from the Might of His Glory and the exaltation of His Beneficence and Bounty"! "Therefore all these prophecies must needs come to pass and these promises be fulfilled, even though many centuries and ages might first elapse"!