the Word of God, and its way is to wage the ‘greater jihad’ with one’s own soul, and to guide others. Ninetynine per cent of the endeavours of this blessed society are not political. They are rather turned towards good morals and moderation, which are the opposite of politics, and other lawful aims. For very few societies have adopted this as their function, although its value and importance is immense. Only one out of a hundred of its members will be connected with politics by way of offering guidance to politicians. Their swords are decisive proofs. And just as their way is love, so will they encourage the love included in the seed of the brotherhood between believers to grow, like a tree of Tuba.

F i f t h G r o u n d l e s s F e a r : Is there not the possibility that the Europeans will be perturbed by it?

The Answer: Those who consider this to be a possibility are themselves perturbed. For it is refuted by the Europeans praising Islam in lectures(25) and describing its elevatedness, in the very centres of their bigotry. Also, it is not they who are our enemies; what has in reality brought us this low is opposition to the Shari‘a, which is the result of ignorance, thus preventing us from upholding the Word of God; and poverty and its fruits of immorality and bad conduct; and conflict and its products of strife and hatred; the attacks of our Union are directed at these three enemies.

In the Middle Ages, Islam was compelled to be bigoted and hostile in the face of the Europeans’ savagery,

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(25) This alludes to lectures given by Bismarck, Carlyle, and others.