An Example of Noble Character

events will unfold in ways that affirm the truth of God’s religion, not in ways that negate it. This prophecy has been consistently fulfilled across all historical periods. On a purely intellectual and historical level, this affirms that the Quran is indeed the revealed word of God. For, no one other than God has the power to make such a definitive pronouncement about the course of history—and in fact, no one in history has ever dared to make such a bold and decisive statement about it. In this brief discussion, I will mention three major events in world history. These are events that initially appeared to be revolutions opposing religion. But in terms of their long-term outcomes, they turned out to be revolutions that ultimately supported it. These three revolutions are: freedom, science, and secularism. 1. The present age is an age of freedom, whereas all previous eras were marked by restrictions on expression. In every human community, whether large or small, in every part of the world, and at every point in history, some form of control over speech and writing has always existed. Some form of censorship has appeared in all communities, small and large, in all parts of the world, at all stages of history (Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol. 3, p. 1083). This general restriction on freedom of expression meant that religious scriptures were never subjected to open criticism. Due to this prohibition on critical examination, the differences between one religious scripture and another never became clear on purely scholarly grounds. The only