Z:  Do you know that some Christian sects deny the existence of Paradise and Hell-Fire and deny the Last Day altogether. Some others say that God the Father has died and others say Jesus will come down and rule the earth for 1000 years. They fabricate a lot of things.

X: God commands us not to dispute about the unseen unless we have three things, verified knowledge based on reason and logic, divine guidance and then divine texts that explains the nature of that thing. If we dispute without having these three, then we will reach at nowhere. Almighty Allah says:

“And among mankind is he who disputeth concerning Allah without knowledge or guidance or a Scripture giving light. Turning away in pride to beguile (men) from the way of Allah. For him in this world is ignominy, and on the Day of Resurrection We make him taste the doom of burning.” (Al-Hajj: 8-9)

Z: They even deny some of Allah’s Fairest Names. They deny some Names like ‘Al-Jabbar’ and ‘Al-Muntaqim’ which are mentioned in the Qur'an.

X: Almighty Allah tells us that He pledged Himself to mercy:

“And when those who believe in Our revelations come unto thee, say: Peace be unto you! Your Lord hath prescribed for Himself mercy, that whoso of you doeth evil and repenteth afterward thereof and doeth right, (for him) lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.” (Al-An’am: 54)

Therefore, most of Allah’s Names are flowing with mercy and love like ‘The Answerer, the Peace Source, the Forgiving, the Provider…’ However, He warns those who persecute others and commit wrongdoing with His other Names.

Z: Sure! When Allah punishes some sinners and unjust people, we can see that His punishment is very wise and suits the wrongdoing they have committed. We can read about many oppressors and unjust rulers who have been punished duly because of their sins.

X: This is a sign and reminder from Allah Who says:

“We shall show them Our portents on the horizons and within themselves until it will be manifest unto them that it is the Truth. Doth not thy Lord suffice, since He is Witness over all things?” (Fussilat: 53) and says: “So We took each one in his sin; of them was he on whom We sent a hurricane, and of them was he who was overtaken by the (Awful) Cry, and of them was he whom We caused the earth to swallow, and of them was he whom We drowned. It was not for Allah to wrong them, but they wronged themselves.” (Al-Anlabut: 40)

Z: I think that the punishment inflicted upon those people is a token of Allah’s ultimate justice.

X: Our lives are very short and our stay on earth is temporary and those criminals will come to know that they have been wrong all their life. They will regret when it is too late to regret. Almighty Allah says:

“And on the day when the Hour riseth the guilty will vow that they did tarry but an hour thus were they ever deceived.” (Ar-Rum: 55)

In fact, there is a big question that shows us how weak and helpless we are; who creates day and night and what will happen if this earth stops moving around the Sun? Can we push it to move? Allah says:

“Say: Have ye thought, if Allah made night everlasting for you till the Day of Resurrection, who is a God beside Allah who could bring you light? Will ye not then hear? Say: Have ye thought, if Allah made day everlasting for you till the Day of Resurrection, who is a God beside Allah who could, bring you night wherein ye rest? Will ye not then see? Of His mercy hath He appointed for you night and day that therein ye may rest, and that ye may seek His bounty, and that haply ye may be thankful.”  (Al-Qasas: 71-73)

People should ask themselves such questions to realize that they are so weak.

Z: But some people claim that there are some discrepancies in the Qur'an.

X: This is an unverified statement that has no basis indeed. We have one Qur'an and even the translation of the Qur'an is not considered to be Qur'an. Allah has pledged to protect and preserve the Qur'an from any change or alteration:

“Lo! We, even We, reveal the Reminder, and lo! We verily are it's Guardian.” (Al-Hijr: 9)

At this juncture, the train stopped again and both had to stop talking and eat some candy.