In a multitude of reports, the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم declared, “There will never cease to be a group from my nation victorious upon the truth, unharmed by those who will oppose them, until Allah’s decree comes to pass.”336 So many religions have come and gone, and yet he صلى الله عليه وسلم boldly expressed that despite all the corruption and moral degradation, true believers in Islam will endure.

Even when the adversity involved in preserving Islam will be tantamount to “grasping onto a burning coal,”337 Muslims will always exist who value their faith over their lives, and hence the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم further described them in another hadith by saying, “The Hour will not commence until a man passes by the grave of his brother and says, ‘I wish I were in his place.’”338 Ibn Baṭṭ āl (d. 1057) explains that this will not be due to any suicidal ideation, but rather an anxiety that the prevalent evils and the strength of their adversaries may cost them their religion.339