The Islamic Antichrist (36 page)

Could you share a bit about how you believe the Islamic Union will emerge in the years to come?

The Turkish-Islamic Union is a union of love, a union of hearts, in which every state will maintain its own identity. It will have a democratic and secular nature. It will respect human rights. It will establish an environment in which people of all beliefs—Christians, Jews, Buddhists, and atheists—can freely express those beliefs. Its foundations will be love, altruism, mutual aid, compassion, tolerance, understanding, and reconciliation. The Turkish-Islamic Union will oppose all movements that incite war and conflict and represent a power that opposes all developments that provoke war.
With the founding of the Turkish-Islamic Union, America, Europe, China, Russia, Israel, and in short the whole world, will be able to relax.
The problem of terror will come to an end, access to raw materials will be guaranteed, economic and social order will be protected, and cultural conflict will be entirely eradicated. America will have no need to send its troops thousands of kilometers away, Israel will no longer live behind walls, the nations of the EU will encounter no economic obstacles, Russia will have no security concerns, and China will have no difficulties over raw materials.
With the founding of the union, the Western world’s defense spending will decline.
The USA heads the list of military spending with a budget of some $400 billion. Then comes Russia with $60 billion and China with $42
billion. The Turkish-Islamic Union will establish an environment of global peace and security that will eliminate all conflict and tension regarding the Islamic world. It will enable many countries of the world, not just Muslim countries, to reduce their military spending. Investment on the military and armaments development will thus be diverted to such fields as education, medicine, science, and culture.
The Turkish-Islamic Union will reinvigorate commerce and strengthen the economy.
The single entity formed by Muslim countries in the political, economic, and cultural spheres will allow the more backward to progress rapidly and those with the necessary means and infrasructure to use them in the most productive manner. Economic growth will increase investment in science and technology. With economic growth, education levels in the union will naturally rise and society will develop in many directions.

How do you suspect that Turkey will emerge as the leader of this union?

There is much information in the hadiths of our Prophet (saas) to the effect that the Turkish nation will undertake a very special task in the end times. Istanbul is much noted in the hadiths. The Turkish nation is the best suited, in terms of moral values and nature, to the task, and whoever you may ask is agreed on that. The characteristic of the Turkish nation is this: it is a virtuous and religious one. It has always been the standard bearer of Islam. Such a nation has the right to be a leader. It will justly discharge that function and be an excellent leader. But this is not a claim of any kind of racial superiority. It is impossible for a Muslim to make such a claim. We are servants of Allah. Superiority lies in
taqwa
(awe or fear of Allah, which inspires a person to be on guard against wrong action and eager for actions which please Him). Anything else leads to fascism, infertility, and evilness. Allah will respond to anyone who thinks like that, and the result will be catastrophic for them.

When I talk about a Turkish-Islamic Union under Turkish leadership and supported by the Turkic states, I am referring to the moral values of the Turkish nation. Allah has created this nation to be very excellent and charged it with spreading justice to mankind and the world. It is a natural leader, resistant to suffering, troubles, and hunger; loyal, courageous, religious, morally virtuous, and honest. Anatolian people are very virtuous. Go to the Black Sea region and you will be amazed at their moral values, or to Anatolia. Go to the South East and you will be amazed. Words canot describe their hospitality, affection, respect, kindness, and honor. You cannot find that anywhere else in the world. To sum up, first, Turkey will undertake this duty as a legacy from the Ottoman Empire. Second, the model of Islam as is lived by in Turkey is an exemplary one. The rational, enlightened, and honest conception of Islam in Turkey, warm, tolerant, and not at all radical, is of the greatest importance. This is both an excellent example for the Muslim world and also an ideal model that will eliminate all doubts in Western minds. Third, all the sacred and holy relics are in Turkey. Fourth, we are at the center. We are at a key point for connecting the Turkic states and Islamic countries to Europe. We have a very-well educated and enlightened potential and are eager to assume the job. We are highly enthusiastic for it. Nobody else is as keen as us.

How do you perceive that both the people and the leaders in Iran would respond to an Islamic Union led by Turkey? Do you believe that they would willingly go along with such an arrangement?

Our Iranian brothers are completely willing. If Turkey proposed it today they would agree at once. Iran will never be concerned over Turkish leadership, and that is clear from recent developments. As you know, President Ahmadinejad recently visited Istanbul, during which he prayed behind a Sunni imam at the Sultanahmad Mosque. In his statement he said, “The political message I am sending here is very significant.” What
does a Shiite leader praying behind a Sunni imam mean? It means, “If the Turkish-Islamic Union is established I will go along with the Sunnis, I will pray behind the Sunnis and accept their leadership.” And it means, “I support the Turkish-Islamic Union.” Another important event was Iranian and U.S. officials meeting together in Ankara under Turkish mediation. Iran has stated it wants Turkey to act as an intermediary and has expressed its pleasure at that. That means they trust Turkey’s justice, honesty, sincerity, and neutrality. People who trust in those will also trust in Turkish leadership and want it to be to the fore. Because the foundation of the Turkish-Islamic Union will mean the salvation of Iran, too. It will bring security and well-being to Islam and totally eliminate all tensions.

Once the caliphate is established, will it be acceptable for the ummah to wage war against any nations that refuse to accept Islam?

The leadership that will emerge with the establishment of the Turkish-Islamic Union is a spiritual one, one that will provide a spiritual leader for the whole Islamic world. There is no question of establishing a caliphate in the historic sense. Islam is not a religion of war and violence. It is a religion of peace. Allah states in one verse of the Qur’an as:

You who believe! Enter Islam totally. Do not follow in the footsteps of Satan. He is an outright enemy to you. (Surat al-Baqara, 208)

There is no compulsion in Islam. It invites people to adopt moral virtues using love, compassion, and kind words alone. Muslims have to extend invitations, not force people to embrace the faith. Everyone is responsible for his or her own self desires. Qur’anic moral values require Muslims to avoid war and all forms of conflict and to be reconciliatory, resolving disputes by negotiation and discussion. War, according to the Qur’an, is only to be resorted to when obligatory, and is an
“undesired obligation” to be waged within human and ethical bounds. Believers always prefer peace and reconciliation when problems arise, and have a responsibility only to wage war for the purpose of self-defense if attacked by the other side.

Another verse describes how there are evil people who start wars, and how Allah does not like such corrupt types:

Each time they kindle the fire of war, Allah extinguishes it. They rush about the earth corrupting it. Allah does not love corrupters. (Surat al-Ma’ida, 64)

The distinguishing feature of Islamic communities is that they are moderate and well-balanced, and use kind words to command people to do good and avoid evil. The founding aim of the Turkish-Islamic Union is to establish a climate of peace in which disagreements can be resolved by reconciliation and rational means. When the Turkish-Islamic Union is established, terror and conflict will come to an end in a matter of moments, and all the world will live in peace.

Do you perceive the present global economic meltdown as contributing positively to the rise of global Islamic power?

A great economic crisis is one of the portents of the coming of Hazrat Mahdi (pbuh). This is revealed in the hadiths of our Prophet (saas):

(Before the coming of Hazrat Mahdi [pbuh]) THE MARKET WILL FREEZE AND EARNINGS WILL DECLINE. (
Portents of Doomsday
, 148)

Before the coming of Hazrat Mahdi (pbuh), TRADE AND ROADS BETWEEN NATIONS WILL BE CUT, and strife among people will grow. (
Al-Qawl Mukhtasar fi Alamat-al Mahdi al-Muntazar
, 39)

Everyone will complain of LOW EARNINGS and the rich will be respected for their money. (
Portents of Doomsday
, 146)

Business will be bad. Everyone will complain, “I cannot sell anything, I cannot buy or earn anything” (
Portents of Doomsday
, 152)

This economic crisis is one of the most important signs of the end times and, according to the hadiths and the Qur’an, will be long-lasting. There are many references to the end times in Surah Yusuf in the Qur’an. The way the Prophet Yusuf (pbuh) attached great importance to agriculture and livestock raising also has a figurative sense. It also stresses the number seven. The crisis began in 2007, a year ending in seven, and may continue for seven years, ending in 2014. At the heart of the crisis lie high interest rates, lack of trust in Allah, fear—in other words the idea that bad things will happen tomorrow, saving money and goods away, not spending, not helping the poor, not distributing money, and general parsimony. If money is distributed, the money supply is activated and production is stimulated. But when money is held back, so are goods, and production is stalled, and the system as a whole dies. This stems from the selfishness of some people. Interest must be abolished, and interest rates have indeed fallen to nearly zero percent in the world as a whole. The Bank of England has announced it is thinking of moving to a no interest system. Taxes must also be reduced. We need high demand in the markets and people need to be freed from this state of panic. In other words, they must spend the money they have saved up, and that has to be encouraged. In that event, the market will automatically be reinvigorated, production will be easier because interest rates have fallen, and manufacturing will be easier with low taxes. Such troubles and difficulties are of course means whereby people turn to religious moral values. They bring about a climate of solidarity, love, and altruism. There is good in everything that Allah creates, and there is also much wisdom in this crisis. One of them may be that people will turn to religious moral values. Allah knows the truth,
insha’Allah
.

What changes do you perceive the United States will undergo within the next ten years?

I expect America to become more religious in the next ten years. Love for the Prophet Jesus (pbuh) will grow. Belief in creation will dominate the USA. There may be a contraction in industrialization. Economic difficulties may continue, but there is also good in this,
insha’Allah
.

Presently, there are various peace deals that seem to be in the works involving Israel and other parties. Do you think that Turkey will be the nation that is finally able to make such a peace treaty take place?

Turkey has recently been following a very active and successful policy,
masha’Allah
. It is a sign that Turkey will be an important element, a leader, in future world politics. The meetings between Syria and Israel, the steps taken for the foundation of the Caucasian Alliance, the bringing together in Istanbul of the leaders of Pakistan and Afghanistan, and all such developments are proof that Turkey will lead the way to love and peace. But the salvation of Syria, Israel, and Palestine will basically be enabled by the foundation of the Turkish-Islamic Union. And that is what they want, too. Leading Israelis say, “In Ottoman times you governed the region with ten privates and a sergeant, while we are unable to with all our troops.” They look back to the old Ottoman times. Syria openly wants to join with Turkey, and if an official proposal were made, Syria would sign up within a week. Iraq is already a river of blood. But if Turkey assumed the role of older brother it would immediately become a truly heavenly place. The problem would be totally resolved. Everyone can see that. Delegations coming from Palestine always propose it and they all demand it. Turkey’s playing the role of older brother has become of crucial importance to the region. There is a vacuum in the region, one that only Turkey is in a position to fill. And that is a human, ethical, and religious duty. It is a duty that Turkey wants. When the Turkish-Islamic Union is
founded, the whole Middle East will be a paradise; Israel and Palestine will be at ease and as free as possible. It will be a salvation for the peoples of Palestine and Israel. Everyone will be freed from the problem of terror and violence. An age of total peace and security will dawn. That is why I can say that the foundation of the Turkish-Islamic Union is the most urgent issue facing the world.

Have you ever had the chance to discuss your beliefs about the Mahdi, Jesus, and the Islamic Union with fellow Turkish intellectual Fethullah Gulen? As far as you know, do you and Gulen share similar beliefs on most of these issues?

I do not know Fethullah Gülen personally, so we have had no chance to talk face-to-face. But he is a highly respectable, gentle, virtuous, modest, polite, and immaculate person. Like all the people of the Sunna, Fethullah Gülen refers to Hazrat Mahdi (pbuh) in terms of love and joy in his works and addresses. He describes how the Mahdi will appear and how the Prophet Jesus (pbuh) will return to Earth. He educates and encourages Muslims. He is also instrumental in very good works,
masha’Allah
.