A tsakiyar karni na 19, masu wa'azin Kiristanci sun ɗauki wata manufa da ba su taɓa amfani da ita ba a baya. Ba su gamsu da makarantu, da wuraren buga littattafai, da asibitoci kawai ba, sai suka ci gaba da kafa ƙungiyoyi. A shekarar 1842, an kafa wani kwamiti domin kafa ƙungiyar kimiyya a ƙarƙashin kulawar mishan ɗin Amurka. Aikin kwamitin ya ɗauki shekaru biyar har ya yi nasarar kafa ƙungiyar da ake kira ‘Ƙungiyar Fasaha da Kimiyya’. Cikin membobinta akwai Nasif al-Yaziji da Boutros al-Bustani, waɗanda Kiristoci ne 'yan Lebanon, aka karɓe su saboda su Larabawa ne, da Eli Smith da Cornelius van Dick, waɗanda Amurkawa ne, da Kanal Churchill, wanda Ingilishi ne. Manufofin ƙungiyar a farko ba su bayyana sosai ba; tana da ɗabi'ar koyar da kimiyya ga manya, haka kuma koyar da matasa a makaranta. Ƙungiyar tana ƙarfafa manya da matasa su koyi al'adun Yamma, tana karkatar da su bisa ga tsarin masu wa'azi.

During the mid-19th Century, the missionaries adopted a policy which they had not employed before. The missionaries were not content themselves with just schools, printing shops and clinics, but went further to establish associations. In 1842, a committee was set up to establish a scientific association under the auspices of the American mission. The committee’s work lasted for five years until it had managed to establish an association called the ‘Association of Arts and Science’. Its members included Nasif al-Yaziji and Boutros al-Bustani2, who were Lebanese Christians taken on board because they were Arabs, Eli Smith and Cornelius van Dick, who were American, and Colonel Churchill, who was English. The objectives of the association at first were vague, it had the tendency to teach science to adults, as well as teaching youngsters at school. The association encouraged adults and youngsters alike to learn Western culture, orientating them according to the missionary plan.

Duk da haka, duk da babban ƙoƙarin da ƙungiyar ta yi, ta sami mambobi masu aiki hamsin kawai a dukan ƙasar Sham cikin shekara biyu. Dukansu Kiristoci ne, galibi daga Beirut; babu wani Musulmi ko Bidiyye da ya shiga ƙungiyar. An yi ƙoƙari mai girma don faɗaɗa aikin ƙungiyar da kuma sa shi ya yi aiki, amma babu abin da ya yi tasiri.

However, despite the huge efforts put in by the association it only managed to recruit fifty active members in the whole of al-Sham in two years. They were all Christians, mainly from Beirut, no Muslim or Druze whatsoever joined the association. Colossal efforts were made to expand and activate the work of the association but to no avail.

Bayan shekara biyar da kafuwarta, ƙungiyar ta rushe ba tare da samun wani sakamako mai muhimmanci ba, sai dai sha'awar mishaneri ta kafa ƙarin ƙungiyoyi. Saboda haka, an kafa wata ƙungiya a shekarar 1880, kuma aka sanya mata suna 'Ƙungiyar Gabas'. Ƙungiyar Jesuits ce ta kafa ta a ƙarƙashin kulawar Uba Henri Debrenier, Bafaransen Jesuit, kuma dukkan mambobinta Kiristoci ne. Ta bi sawun 'Ƙungiyar Fasaha da Kimiyya', amma ta dade na ɗan gajeren lokaci kafin ta rushe kamar yadda wadda ta gabace ta ta rushe. Bayan haka, ƙungiyoyi da yawa sun tasо a wurare daban-daban, amma dukkansu an ƙaddara za su gaza, kuma sun rushe kamar yadda aka saba.

The association collapsed after five years from its initial establishment without reaping any significant results except for the desire of the missionaries to establish more associations. Therefore, another association was founded in 1880 and it was named the ‘Oriental Association’. It was founded by the Jesuits under the guardianship of the French Jesuit Father Henri Debrenier and all its members were Christians. It followed in the footsteps of the ‘Association of Arts and Science’ lasting only a short time before collapsing as its predecessor had done. Afterwards, several associations sprang up all over the place, but all were doomed to failure and they collapsed as before.

Wata sabuwar ƙungiya ta kafu a shekara ta 1857 wadda ta ɗauki wata hanya ɗan bambanta. Ba a yarda baƙi ko kaɗan su shiga ta ba, kuma dukan waɗanda suka kafa ta Larabawa ne. Ta yi nasarar tsira, har wasu Musulmi da Druze suka shiga, ƙungiyar ta karɓe su saboda Larabawa ne. Sunanta ‘Ƙungiyar Kimiyya ta Siriya’. Ta samu ci gaba saboda ayyukanta da alaƙarta da Larabci, da kuma rashin baƙi a cikin mambobinta. Mambobinta sun iya shawo kan wasu mutane su shiga, suka tara goyon baya ga ƙungiyar har mambobi ɗari da hamsin suka yi rajista a cikinta. Daga cikin ma'aikatanta na gudanarwa akwai fitattun mutanen Larabawa irin su Muhammad Arsalan daga Druze, da Hussain Bayham daga Musulmi. Mutane daga dukan ɗarikun Kiristocin Larabawa sun shiga, waɗanda suka fi shahara daga cikinsu su ne Ibrahim al-Yaziji da Boutros al-Bustani. Wannan ƙungiya ta fi duk sauran ɗorewa. Shirinta an tsara shi ne don ya karɓi dukan ɗarikun, kuma ya zama wutar tashin kishin ƙasar Larabawa. Sai dai manufarta ta ɓoye ta kasance ta mulkin mallaka da ta wa'azin mishan, an lulluɓe ta da sunan kimiyya. Hakan ya bayyana ta yaɗa al'adun Yamma da ilimin Yamma.

A new association was founded in 1857 which adopted a slightly different method. No foreigners whatsoever were allowed to join and its founders were all Arabs. Somehow it managed to succeed and some Muslims and Druze actually joined, the association accepted them because they were Arabs. Its name was the ‘Syrian Scientific Association’. It became successful due to its activities and its Arabic affiliation and also because of the absence of foreigners among its membership. Its members managed to convince other people to join and they gathered support for the association until one hundred and fifty members had enrolled in it. Among its administrative staff were some noted Arab personalities such as Muhammad Arsalan from the Druze and Hussain Bayham from the Muslims. Personalities from all Arab Christian sects joined, the most noted of them being Ibrahim al-Yaziji and Boutros al-Bustani. This association outlasted all the others. Its programme was designed to accommodate all sects and be the spark for Arab nationalism. However, its hidden objective was in fact colonial and missionary dressed in the name of science. It manifested itself in the spreading of Western culture and education.

A shekarar 1875, an kafa ‘Ƙungiyar Sirri’ a Beirut; asalinta an gina ta ne bisa wata akida ta siyasa. Ta fara yada akidar kishin ƙasar Larabawa. Waɗanda suka kafa ta mutum biyar ne matasa daga cikin waɗanda suka yi karatu a kwalejin Furotesta da ke Beirut. Dukansu Kiristoci ne waɗanda ƙungiyoyin mishan suka yi nasarar rinjayarsu. Bayan wannan rukuni ya kafa ƙungiyar, sun ɗauki ƙaramin adadin mambobi. Ƙungiyar ta bayyana, ta hanyar sanarwarta da takardunta, cewa tana kira ga kishin ƙasar Larabawa da 'yancin kai na siyasa ga Larabawa, musamman waɗanda ke Siriya da Lebanon. Duk da haka, aikinta na zahiri da shirinta na gaskiya sun karkata zuwa wata manufa daban gaba ɗaya. Manufarta ita ce shuka sha'awoyi marasa kyau da bege na ƙarya a zukatan mutane. Tana kira ga kishin ƙasa, Larabawa da Larabci, kuma tana ƙarfafa ƙiyayya ga Daular 'Usmaniyya, tana kiranta da daular Turkawa. Tana aiki don raba addini da Gwamnati, da kuma maida kishin ƙasar Larabawa tushen rayuwa. Duk da cewa ƙungiyar koyaushe tana kare Larabci, shugabanninta sun sha ambaton Turkiyya a cikin littattafansu, suna zarginta da ƙwace Khilafar Musulunci daga hannun Larabawa, da keta Shari'ar Musulunci, da cin zarafin addini. Wannan a fili yake nuna gaskiyar ƙungiyar da ainihin manufar da aka kafa ta a kanta, watau haifar da tashin hankali a kan Daular Musulunci, ƙirƙirar shakka da rashin yarda game da addini, da kafa motsin siyasa bisa ƙa'idodin da ba na Musulunci ba.

In 1875, the ‘Secret Association’ was formed in Beirut; it was actually based on a political concept. It began encouraging the concept of Arab nationalism. Its founders were five young men from amongst those who had been educated in the Protestant college in Beirut. They were all Christians whom the missionary parties had managed to affect. Following this group’s formation of the association, a small number of members were recruited by them. The association seemed to be calling, through its declarations and leaflets, for Arab nationalism and political independence for the Arabs, especially those in Syria and Lebanon. However, its actual work and its real programme was concerned with a different objective entirely. Its aim was to cast strange desires and false hopes into people’s hearts. It called for nationalism, Arabs and Arabism and encouraged animosity towards the ‘Uthmani State, calling it the Turkish state. It worked towards separating religion from the State and towards making Arab nationalism the basis of life. Despite the fact that the association always championed Arabism, those in charge referred repeatedly in their literature to Turkey accusing her of snatching the Islamic Khilafah from the Arabs, of violating the Islamic Shari‘ah and of abusing the deen. This clearly demonstrates the true nature of the association and the real objective for which it had been founded, i.e. to cause unrest against the Islamic State, to create suspicion and scepticism about the deen and to establish political movements based on non-Islamic principles.

Abin da tabbas ne game da waɗannan motsi shi ne cewa ƙasashen Yamma ne suka fara su. Su ne suka kafa su, suka sa ido a kan ci gabansu, suka kuma tafiyar da su. Haka kuma sun rubuta rahotanni game da ayyukansu. Misali, jakadan Birtaniya a Beirut ya aika da saƙon waya ga gwamnatinsa a ranar 28 ga Yulin 1880, yana cewa, "Takardun juyin-juya hali sun fara yawo, ana zargin Midhat ne tushensu, duk da haka yanayin ya kasance cikin natsuwa. Cikakken bayani a cikin wasiƙa."3

What is in fact a certainty concerning these movements is that they had been initiated by the Western powers. It was they who established them, monitored their progress and managed them. They also wrote reports about their activities. For instance, the British consul in Beirut sent a telegram to his government on 28th July 1880 saying, “Revolutionary leaflets have come into circulation, Midhat is suspected to be the source, despite this, the situation remains calm. Details in the post.”3

Wannan waya an aika ta ne biyo bayan wata takarda da aka rarraba a titunan Beirut aka kuma liƙa a bangon garin. Ba da daɗewa ba bayan waya, sai aka aika wasiƙu da yawa daga jakadun Birtaniya a Beirut da Damascus. Wasiƙun suna tare da kwafin takardun da ƙungiyar ta rarraba, saboda haka ya kamata a ɗauke su a matsayin rahotanni game da motsin da aka kafa a kwalejin Furotesta wacce ta fara ayyukanta a al-Sham. Ayyukan ƙungiyar sun fi bayyana a al-Sham, ko da yake sun gudana a wasu yankunan Larabawa masu yawa, kamar yadda ya nuna abin da kwamishinan Birtaniya a Jeddah ya rubuta wa gwamnatinsa a shekara ta 1882; a cikin rahoton game da motsin Larabawa ya ce: "Duk da haka, labari ya isa gare ni cewa ko a cikin Makkah kanta wasu masu ilimi sun fara magana game da 'yanci. Da alama a gare ni daga abin da na ji cewa an tsara wani shiri da nufin haɗa Najd da ƙasar da ke tsakanin koguna biyu, watau Kudancin Iraƙi, da naɗa Mansur Pasha a matsayin sarki, haka kuma haɗa 'Asir da Yaman ta hanyar naɗa 'Ali ibn 'Aabid ya yi musu mulki."4

This telegram was despatched in the wake of a leaflet distributed on the streets of Beirut and posted on the walls there. The telegram was soon followed by several letters sent by the British consuls in Beirut and Damascus. The letters were accompanied by copies of the leaflets which the association had distributed and should therefore rightly be regarded as reports on the movement set up in the Protestant college which began its activities in al-Sham. The association’s activities were more evident in al-Sham, although they took place in other predominantly Arab areas as demonstrated by what the British commissioner in Jeddah wrote to his government in 1882; in a report about the Arab movement he stated, “However, news has reached me that even in Makkah itself some intellectuals have begun talking about freedom, it seems to me from what I have heard that a plan has been designed aiming at uniting Najd with the land between the two rivers, i.e. the South of Iraq, and appointing Mansur Pasha as ruler, as well as uniting ‘Asir and Yemen by appointing ‘Ali ibn ‘Aabid to rule over them.”4

Ba Ingila kaɗai ce ke da sha'awa ba, Faransa ma ta nuna sha'awa sosai.

Britain was not the only interested party, France also displayed a great deal of interest.

A cikin shekara ta 1882, wani jami'in Faransa a Beirut ya bayyana damuwar Faransa da cewa, "Ruhin 'yancin kai ya yaɗu sosai, kuma na lura a lokacin zamana a Beirut irin jajircewar matasan Musulmi wajen kafa makarantu da asibitoci da farfaɗo da ƙasar. Abin da ya cancanci a ambata a nan shi ne cewa wannan motsi ba shi da wani tasiri na ɓangaranci, ƙungiyar tana maraba da zaman membobin Kiristoci kuma tana dogara a kansu don shiga cikin ayyukan kishin ƙasa."5

In 1882, one of the French officials in Beirut voiced the French concern by saying, “The spirit of independence is well spread and I noticed during my stay in Beirut the dedication of Muslim youths in establishing schools and clinics and in reviving the country. What is worth mentioning here is that this movement is free of any sectarian influence, the association welcomes the membership of the Christians and relies on them to participate in the nationalist activities.”5

Wani Bafaransa daga Baghdad ya rubuta cewa, "A duk inda na je, na tarar da irin wannan ra'ayi na kiyayya ga Turkawa, a daidai matakin ko'ina. Amma game da tunanin fara wani aiki na gama-gari don kawar da wannan yanayi da ake matukar ƙi, wannan yana kan tafiya sosai. A sararin sama iskar motsin Larabawa tana ƙara ƙarfi kuma tana shirin fitowa. Wannan jama'ar da aka zalunta na dogon lokaci suna shirin shelanta matsayinsu na halitta a cikin duniyar Musulunci, su kuma jagoranci makomar wannan duniya."6

A French national wrote from Baghdad, “Everywhere I went I was faced with the common feeling, on the same scale, of hatred for the Turks; as for the concept of initiating a collective action to get rid of this much hated situation, this is very much under way. In the horizons a wind of Arab movement is gathering strength and is about to be born. This people who have been oppressed for a long time are about to proclaim their natural status within the Muslim world and direct the destiny of this world.”6

Ishin wa'azin a cikin sunan addini da kimiyya ba a iyakance su ga abin da Amurka, Faransa da Birtaniya suka fi mayar da hankali a kai ba kawai, a'a sun shafi yawancin ƙasashen da ba Musulmi ba, har da Rasha ta Sarki (Czarist Russia) wacce ta aika da tawagogin wa'azi, da Prussia (Jamus) wacce ta aika da ƙungiyar 'yan'uwa mata (zuriyar Carodt) don shiga sauran tawagogin. Duk da bambancin ra'ayi tsakanin tawagogin wa'azi daban-daban da wakilan Yammacin Turai game da tsare-tsarensu na siyasa, waɗanda suka yi la'akari da muradunsu na ƙasashen duniya, manufar ta kasance iri ɗaya: yada Kiristanci da yada al'adun Yamma a Gabas, tare da tada shakku a zukatan Musulmi game da addininsu, har su ƙi shi, su kalli tarihinsu da raini, yayin da suke kai su ga yabon Yamma da salon rayuwarta. Masu wa'azin sun gudanar da wa'azinsu bisa tsananin ƙiyayyarsu ga Musulunci da Musulmi. Sun raina al'adun Musulunci da salon rayuwarsa, kuma sun ɗauki Musulmi a matsayin mutane masu koma baya da ɗabi'ar daji, wanda har yau ra'ayi ne marar kyau da kusan kowane Bature ke riƙewa. Sakamakon da suka samu yana bayyana a yau a yawaitar kafirci da mulkin mallaka a ƙasashenmu.

Missionary work in the name of religion and science was not merely confined to the focus of the attention of the US, France and Britain, but extended to most of the non- Islamic states, including Czarist Russia who sent missionary expeditions and Prussia (Germany) who sent a group of ‘sisters’ (the nuns of Carodt) to participate with other missions. Inspite of the difference of opinion among the various missions and Western delegates regarding their political programmes, which took into consideration their international interests, the objective was the same; the preaching of Christianity and the spreading of Western culture in the East coupled with the arousal of the suspicions of the Muslims towards their deen, pushing them to resent it and to regard their history with contempt whilst leading them to praise the West and its way of life. The missionaries carried out their preaching according to their great hatred of Islam and the Muslims. They dispised the Islamic culture and its way of life and they regarded the Muslims as backward barbarians, which still remains the ill-considered opinion of nearly every European. The results that they achieved are reflected today in the concentration of disbelief and colonialism in our lands.