Omar

Let's see how long you can tolerate this type of life.

At last, Abu Jandal! I have been always saying:

isn't it time for you to free yourself of your father's shackles!

Yes, I've at last broken free of my father's shackles.

I am free of my father's shackles.

Hardly a few of them returned when many more have broken loose.

Yes. Yes.

When they were few, we feared the consequences.

Now we should be more apprehensive. We better come up with a strategy.

What we feared was that the Abyssinian king might side with them

and this could affect our trade there.

Our strategy, then, should be to win over the Abyssinian king

and turn him against them.

How can this be achieved when he has been kind to them and granted them security?

They have turned away from both our religion and his.

He has bishops whom he is keen to please.

How about sending him some of us who are articulate and good in debate.

To urge him to strike against our relatives?

No, but to return them to us so that we deal with them.

Who can undertake this task?

At last, your time has come, Amr.

And soon your time will come, Abu Sulaiman.

I don't want it coming soon.

Your majesty!

My friend, Amr Ibn Al-Aas No formalities among friends.

The king's condescension is an honour and a favour.

Hide from Makkah. You know what I like, Amr.

Sit down, Amr. Have you rested after your long journey?

How couldn't I have done when I am at the king's palace?

Amr, have you come on business or as an immigrant?

God forbid that I should come to you like those men who have broken away from us.

You mean you haven't adopted their religion.

Were I to choose a religion other than that of my people,

I would have adopted your religion, Sire.

But these lads have abandoned their people's religion

and did not follow yours.

They invented a religion which neither you nor we know.

Amr, is that what you have come to me for? To denounce them?

I have been sent to you by the chiefs of their people. These are their fathers,

uncles and clansmen, requesting that you return these lads to them.

They are better aware of what they take against them.

But they speak differently.

Would you think, your majesty, that they would tell you what condemns them?

You have known our chiefs and elders, or some of them.

They have been carrying business in your land, buying and selling,

bringing benefit to your land and ours.

You have experienced their sincerity and honesty.

Have they ever lied to you?

These people who have come to my land, favouring me over all others

will not suffer injustice.

You, the Arabs,

are well known for keeping your pledges of protection.

A man may extend protection to the murderer of his own uncle

and no one would harm him.

Do you want me to do what you consider beneath your moral values?

How come, Amr?

You have been our elders' favourite long before these people have come to you.

This is how this business and friendship between you and us have come to flourish.

Is it fair, Sire, that our elders should lay a solid foundation,

then these people who have berated their fathers and denounced their elders

should enjoy what their elders did

while they accuse them of ignorance and disbelief?

By God, I wouldn't hand them over until I have called them here

and asked them in front of you about what you are saying about them.

No, your majesty. I appeal to you by God not to do so.

Why not Aren't you saying the truth?

Am I to be tested with them, your majesty.

Am I to be placed with them at the same level?

Aren't they your blood relations? How could you be different?

In every community there are low individuals. These are the lowest of us.

No way. By God, you have to prove your case.

If they are as you say, I will hand them over to you.

If they are not, I will protect them

and will treat them kindly as long as they stay in my land.

It is Amr Ibn Al-Aas, the master of resources and tricks.

Falsehood cannot have any argument against the truth,

even though he may be resourceful.

What shall we say to the man tomorrow when we attend him?

It is as they said: we left our people's religion and didn't embrace Negus's faith.

By God, we will only say what we know, and what our Prophet has told us,

regardless of the consequences. We shall not lie and shall not dodge.

Jaafar, you are the Prophet's cousin. You be our spokesman.

Your majesty!

Peace be to you, Sire.

You know what your friend says about you.

Tell me about this religion of yours by which you broke away

from your people's faith and adopted neither my faith, nor any other.

Sire,

in our recent past we were ignorant people: we worshipped idols,

ate carrion, committed all sorts of sins, didn't maintain ties with our kinsfolk

and behaved badly to our neighbours. Our overruling maxim was 'might is right'.

This continued to be our situation until God sent us,

from among ourselves, a messenger whose good name,

honesty, sincerity and integrity were well known to us.

He called on us to believe in God, the one and only God,

to be united in His worship, and to stop worshipping all idols

which we and our forefathers used to worship alongside Him.

He commanded us always to speak the truth

and be honest, and to be good to our relatives.

Yes, Sire. He urged us to be good to our relatives

and neighbours, to preserve life and shed no blood, to refrain from sin,

perjury, robbing the property of orphans entrusted to our care,

and making false accusations against honourable women.

He also commanded us to devote our worship to God alone,

ascribing to Him no partners of any sort.

We gave him a favourable response, believed in him

and followed these Divine commandments he conveyed to us.

Our people, however, assaulted us and tortured us

to compel us to revert to idolatrous worship

Having been overpowered, oppressed and denied the freedom to practice our faith,

we sought refuge in your country, choosing you in preference to all other rulers,

hoping that in your refuge, Sire, we would suffer no injustice.

Have you learnt something of his revelations?

Yes, Sire.

Then read it to me.

In the name of God, the Lord of Grace, the Ever-Merciful.

"Zachariah!

We bring you the happy news of (the birth of) a son whose name shall be John.

Never have We given this name to anyone before him.

said: 'My Lord! How can I have a son when my wife is barren,

and I am well advanced in years?'

He said: 'Thus it is. Your Lord says, "This is easy for Me;

even as I had earlier created you when you were nothing.'

said: 'My Lord! Give me a sign.' He replied:

'Your sign will be that for full three nights (and days) you will not speak to people.'

He then came out to his people from the sanctuary and signified to them

to extol God's limitless glory by day and by night.

: 'John! Hold fast to the book with strength.

We granted him wisdom while he was still a youth,

as well as, by Our grace, compassion and purity;

and he was (always) God-fearing, and kind to his parents.

Never was he haughty or rebellious. So peace was upon him

on the day he was born, and on the day of his death,

and will be on the day when he shall be raised to life again."

This comes from the same source as Jesus's revelations.

You may leave now.

By God, I will never hand you over to anyone.

I will have no one scheming against you.

Amr, is this what you call idiocy?

I thought you were wise and bright.

No. By Him who sent down the Gospel, your wisdom hasn't failed you,

but you are stubborn.

Amr, your people have chosen you for this mission

as they are aware of your intelligence, sound argument and your mastery of debate.

Do not let us down.

Allow me a second round, your majesty.

Just one more round before you make your final decision.

Won't you give up? Why didn't you say today all you want to say?

I am only human. I recalled that they are our own relatives

and I felt compassionate towards them.

I then looked at your face and I felt you were in sympathy with them.

I realized that even my best argument won't cut much ice with you.

Give me another chance tomorrow,

and I will give you what is enough to exterminate them all.

Woe to Amr! What does he want?

We thought he put his argument and we put ours.

Tomorrow we'll know.

Now, Amr. These are your own people. They have come back.

What do you have to say today?

Your majesty, they say something very serious about Jesus.

Ask them about him.

You've heard what your friend has said. What's your answer?

Our view is that taught to us by our Prophet (peace be upon him):

"Jesus is God's servant and messenger. He is His spirit and His word

delivered unto virgin Mary."

What you have just said about Jesus does not go beyond the truth

by the width of this stick.

You may go now. You are safe in my land.

Whoever harms you will be brought to justice.

I would not harm any one of you for a mountain of gold.

Give this man his gift back. I don't need it.

God did not take a bribe from me when He gave me my throne back.

I won't take a bribe or appease people in a case of His.

Sire, you heard from us what we believe about Jesus, son of Mary.

Wouldn't you ask Amr hat he says about him?

It is you, Amr, who follow neither these people's faith nor mine.

Well. You can tease me as you please. You were not the one to face what I faced.

People here were always saying that

it will be only a matter of time and Amr would bring them all back, tied in chains.

Amr can lure the whales in the sea to come to Makkah.

Didn't I tell you once that

you are half way to success when you put your cleverness where it is applicable!

Our elders were unfair to me

when they sent me to seek the extradition of our people

when they revere those whom Negus reveres,

such as Jesus and his mother, Zachariah and John.

Both of them denounce idol worship. How can I win against all this?

Wasn't the camel I gave you as an offering enough for you

to support me in my difficult position?

Ayyash, Salamah. - Umar!

How did Abu Al-Hakam release you?

My mother continued to refuse to speak to him

ever since he imprisoned me with Salamah. When she saw him, she would cry,

wail and slap herself on the face.

He took pity on her and released me with my brother Salamah.

Does Abu Al-Hakam take pity on anyone?

For all his faults, he loves his mother.

Besides, he is sure that we won't immigrate to Abyssinia,

since no one is immigrating these days. He accepted our firm pledges on this.

How happy I am to see you both.