all hath now been heard around the world, and
the fame of it hath gone forth to the ends of the earth. It is because of
this that foes, both from within and from without, have turned themselves
with subtlety and craft to spreading slander. It is clear that such a
place as this would be exposed to danger, for there is no defender here,
none to arise and take our side in the face of calumny: here are only a
few souls that are homeless, hapless, held captive in this stronghold. No
champion have they; there is none to succour them, none to ward off the
arrows of lies, the darts of defamation that are hurled against them: none
except God.

It behoveth you to ponder on all those well-beloved ones who hastened to
the holy field of sacrifice, those precious souls who offered up their
lives. Bear ye in mind what streams of sacred blood were poured away, how
many a righteous heart was commingled with its gore, how many a breast was
the target of tyranny's spear, how many a chaste body was ripped to
shreds. How then could it be right for us even to think of saving
ourselves! To curry favour with stranger or kin, and make a show of
compromise! Should we not, rather, take the pathway of the righteous, and
follow in the footsteps of those great ones gone before?

These few brief days shall pass away, this present life shall vanish from
our sight; the roses of this world shall be fresh and fair no more, the
garden of this earth's triumphs and delights shall droop and fade. The
spring season of life shall turn into the autumn of death, the bright joy
of palace halls give way to moonless dark within the tomb. And therefore
is none of this worth loving at all, and to this the wise will not anchor
his heart.

He who hath knowledge and power will rather seek out the glory of heaven,
and spiritual distinction, and the life that dieth not. And such a one
longeth to approach the sacred Threshold of God; for in the tavern of this
swiftly-passing world the man of God will not lie drunken, nor will he
even for a moment take his ease, nor stain himself with any fondness for
this earthly life.

Nay rather, the friends are stars in the high heavens of guidance,
celestial bodies in the skies of divine grace, who with all their powers
put the dark to flight. They break down the foundations of malevolence and
hate. They cherish but one desire for the world and all its peoples:
well-being and peace. By them, the ramparts of warfare and aggression ar