Many people fear a cult when they hear of a new prophet. How can this be cleared up?

By clarifying what the finality of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) means. His law is perfect, valid for all people and until the end of time. A servant from his own community who adds nothing and takes nothing away does not violate this and founds no new religion.

Confusion is like fog. Until it lifts, you cannot see clearly. So it helps to ask calmly where the fear comes from. Often it does not come from one’s own study but from what has been handed down from earlier generations. Even among scholars there are very different ideas about what the finality of the Prophet means.

The Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) brought a law that is perfect, valid for all people and lasting until the end of time. None of it can be cancelled. This is his finality. Someone born in his community who follows him word for word and receives a high rank from God changes nothing about this. Just as a son does not lessen his father’s rank, such a servant does not lessen the rank of his master.

Something else is worth noticing. Many who consider a prophet after the Holy Prophet (saw) impossible are at the same time waiting for the return of Jesus (as). Yet he was a prophet sent to the Children of Israel, within the community of Moses (as). If a prophet came from an earlier community, one who did not receive his rank through obedience to the Holy Prophet (saw), then finality really would be touched.

A cult can be recognised by the way it leads away from the source and sets up its own teaching. A true servant of the Holy Prophet (saw) leads back to the Holy Qur’an and to the Prophet’s example. Whoever keeps this in mind can examine the matter calmly and without fear.