"And surely this your community is one community, and I am your Lord, so keep your duty to Me. But they became divided into sects, each party rejoicing in that which was with them. So leave them in their ignorance till a time."(Holy Qur'an 23: 52-24)
One of the Hon. Minister Louis Farrakhan's greatest desires since 1977(31 years ago) is to see the unity of black Christian(other faiths too) and black people who claim the Islamic faith. The brother minister has specifically tried to show us the oneness and commonality of the faiths we claim. There has been a degree of misunderstanding with regards to Minister Farrakhan's preaching in Churches and quoting the Bible. Some think The Hon. Minister Louis Farrakhan is a confused Muslim when he says, "I am a Christian, as well as a Muslim."
At the conclusion of the 7th article in the series, My walk with Farrakhan, it is hoped that my black Christian family may have a better understanding concerning the mission of The Hon. Louis Farrakhan.
Islam is submission to the will of God
The word Islam, due to the actions of some Muslims, has become associated with "terrorism" "fanaticism" "evil" "backwardness" and other bad connotations. Some find it hard to believe the root meaning of Islam is peace. The religion of Islam teaches us that there is only one God called ALLAH and that our life must be one of submission to his will for human beings. By our submitting to God's will and following the five main principles of Islam, we begin to enter into peace with God, self and fellow human beings. Our religion can be discussed more specifically, but I wanted to give a brief overview of Islam for the purpose of the article.
The theme of One God runs through the Old Testament and the New Testament of the Bible. The Old Testament(Deut 6:4) teaches, "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord."The New Testament(Mark 12:29) teaches: Jesus answered, "The foremost is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord."
The Holy Qur'an(2:136), scripture of Muslims, says the follow in support,
"Say: We believe in Allah and(in) that which has been revealed to us, and (in) that which was revealed to Abraham, and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the tribes, and (in) that which was given to Moses and Jesus, and (in) that which was given to the prophets from their Lord, we do not make any distinction between any of them and to Him do we submit."
From the oneness of ALLAH(God) we are now being introduced to the oneness of the prophetic community. We are taught in Islam that all of the prophets taught the same basic message. That one message is obedience to God's will. Also, each prophet taught the principles of prayer, charity, faith, family life, being kind to neighbors and fasting. The Holy Prophet Muhammad(Peace be upon him) taught us 124, 000 prophets have been raised among humanity in different times and none of them disagreed. Why didn't they disagree? They were raised up by God in different times, different societal circumstances yet they preached God is One.
The Holy Qur'an(5:44-48) appeals to the Jews and Christians to not be divided by the revelation of the Qur'an,
"Surely We revealed the Torah, having guidance and light. By it did the prophets who submitted themselves(to Allah) judge for the Jews, and the rabbis and the doctors of law, because they were required to guard the Book of Allah, and they were witnesses thereof. So fear not the people and fear Me, and take not a small price for My messages. And whoever judges not by what Allah hasrevealed, those are the disbelievers."
And further The Qur'an says,
"And We sent after them in their footsteps Jesus, son of Mary, verifying that which was before him of the Torah; and We gave him the Gospel containing guidance and light, and verifying that which was before it of the Torah, and a guidance and an admonition for the dutiful. And let the People of the Gospel judge by that which Allah has revealed in it. And whoever judges not by what Allah has revealed, those are the transgressors."
Finally speaking of the unity within the prophetic community, The Qur'an says,
"And We have revealed to thee the Book with the truth, verifying that which is before it of the Book and a guardian over it, so judge between them by what Allah has revealed, and follow not their low desires, (turning away) from the truth that has come to thee. For everyoneof you We appointed a law and a way. And if Allah had pleased He would have made you a single people, but that He might try you in what He gave you. So vie one with another in virtuous deeds. To Allah you will all return, so He will inform you of that wherein you differed. [Note: The book mentioned being revealed is the Qur'an.]
I pray that my effort in these quotes will be understood. I am trying to create a context which to understand the ministry of Minister Farrakhan and his efforts to unite both Muslim and Christian.
Why Jesus must be understood
At this time the die hard black Christian may say, 'Yeah all that sounds good, but you must come by my Jesus to be saved.' Or 'Jesus is the only way to salvation, my friend.'
I will say in defense, we must have greater understanding. The Bible teaches us,
"Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding." (Proverbs 4:7)
There is a difference between what Jesus(peace be upon him) taught and what Christianity teaches. Also, our present understanding of God, Jesus and Christianity came via our former slave masters and their children.
Jesus taught that God(his father) was One. However, Christianity teaches a trinity of God's. Jesus taught of the supremacy of his father, God, over him. However, Christianity made Jesus equal with God and a God himself. Jesus said, 'I come not to change the law or the prophets, but to fulfill.' However, Christianity teaches that all the former prophets were sinners and in certain respects the former books are devalued.
What has been accepted as the teachings of Jesus(Christianity) are actually the interpretations of his teachings according to men. These interpretations were formulated and passed via vote at the Nicene council in 325 A.D.
According to Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia,
"The First Council of Nicaea, held in Nicaea in Bithynia (present-day Ä°znik inTurkey), convoked by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in 325, was the first Ecumenical council of the Christian Church, and most significantly resulted in the first uniform Christian doctrine, called the Nicene Creed...... The purpose of the council was to resolve disagreements in the Church of Alexandria over the nature of Jesus in relationship to the Father; in particular, whether Jesus was of the same substance as God the Father or merely of similar substance. St. Alexander of Alexandria and Athanasius took the first position; the popular presbyter Arius, from whom the term Arian controversy comes, took the second. The council decided against the Arians overwhelmingly (of the estimated 250-318 attendees, all but 2 voted against Arius). Another result of the council was an agreement on when to celebrate the Resurrection, the most important feast of the ecclesiastical calendar...... The Council of Nicaea was historically significant because it was the first effort to attain consensus in the church through an assemblyrepresenting all of Christendom. "It was the first occasion for the development of technical Christology."
Let me stop and say this. I am in no way trying to weaken the faith of any true Christian nor am I trying to "diss" Jesus(Peace be upon him). I will add that what is called Orthodox Islam or Sunni Islam is an interpretation of the teachings of Prophet Muhammad(Peace be upon him) and a perversion of what the man originally taught. I wanted to clear that up, so I wont lose my Christian family and abort our coming to greater understanding.
According to both the Bible and the Qur'an Jesus is given special mention as a servant of Almighty God. We are taught that he prayed, gave charity, spoke the truth and fasted. We are told that he believed in and represented one God to his followers and the general public. We don't find in Jesus' own words any support for the doctrines that his name have been put on.
All Muslims, regardless to sect, are taught to love, honor and revere Jesus as an honored servant of Almighty God. We do not pray to Jesus or worship him in any way, shape or form. We find great inspiration in his stand for what is right during his time on Earth.
My black Christian family must not worship Jesus, but rather follow Jesus and submit to the will of the Father, Almighty God. Remember, the slave master didn't introduce us to Jesus to make us better human beings, but to make us better slaves for them.
In a Book titled "What if Blacks didn't exist?" by author Felix Ehui the Author differentiates between the "Christianity" practiced by the Europeans and the "Christianity" practiced by those under her oppression. He explains it as:
"Since slavery, there have always been two kinds of Christianities in America: the one that Europeans control and the one that tries to be true to its African roots."(pg.22)
Can Muslims and Christians unite?
The Hon. Minister Louis Farrakhan made a call for 1 million men to show up in Washington D.C. for the purpose of atonement and reconciliation with God and each other. The amazing thing is the majority of those who came identified themselves as Christians. On that day, Muslims and Christians prayed together, laughed together, ate together and prayed together in the oneness of Almighty God. The message of Minister Farrakhan on that day was go back to whatever house of worship you are in and make it better, more responsive to the needs of the community.
The Hon. Minister Louis Farrakhan made a call for 1 million men to show up in Washington D.C. for the purpose of atonement and reconciliation with God and each other. The amazing thing is the majority of those who came identified themselves as Christians. On that day, Muslims and Christians prayed together, laughed together, ate together and prayed together in the oneness of Almighty God. The message of Minister Farrakhan on that day was go back to whatever house of worship you are in and make it better, more responsive to the needs of the community.
Minister Farrakhan commonly goes into churches to help clarify our misunderstanding of Jesus and to help foster unity between us by focusing on the principle of obedience to God. He teaches us that a true Muslim is a Christian and a true Christian is a Muslim. How can this be? The followers of Muhammad are seeking oneness with God by submitting to his will and following his servant, Muhammad. The followers of Jesus are seeking oneness with God by submitting to his will and following his servant, Jesus. Therefore, if both are seeking the way to God, but through different men, why shouldn't we work to understand each other and love one another.
During a speech titled "Self Improvement The Basis For Community Development" Minister Farrakhan spoke on our ultimate unity:
"Tonight, there are Christians and Muslims praying together, singing together, seated together. Why? Because Farrakhan does not come into the Valley to divide people who believe in God, but to show those who believe in God that, if you truly believe in God and seek to understand what you believe, you find a way to connect things that appear to be diverse and different. Because, if we can connect Indians and Mexicans and Blacks, who appear to be different (and whites), then what can you do to connect Hebrews, Muslims, Christians. It should be easier to connect those who believe in God than those who are culturally and racially different. Tonight, we are going to overcome all of that."
There are too many Churches, Mosques and other places of worship in the black community, yet our neighborhoods reflect a hellish condition instead of Godliness. In the word community we find unity and in the word unity we find the meaning one. There is One God and one prophetic community, so let us not be divided in these perilous times.
In my walk with Min. Farrakhan he has taught me to love all of my black brothers and sisters whether they prescribe to my beliefs or not. He has given me an ecumenical understanding of God and his word which allows me to interact and work with my Christian brothers and sisters in harmony.
We shouldn't even let there be division over the various names we call the one true God. The Holy Qur'an gives and answer to this potential diving issue
Say: Call on Allah or call on the Beneficent. By whatever (name) you call on Him, He has the best names.(HQ 17: 110)
Repetition is a great teacher, so I will close this article with the Quranic verse I opened it with.
"And surely this your community is one community, and I am your Lord, so keep your duty to Me. But they became divided into sects, each party rejoicing in that which was with them. So leave them in their ignorance till a time." (Holy Qur'an 23: 52-24)
The black community is in need of Godly black men and women who are willing to struggle the way the prophets did to make a better reality for our elders, children and women. We don't have to stop being who/what we are to recognize a brother or sister who believes in Jesus, Muhammad or both.
Thank you for reading these few words!
Copyright2008©Mustafaa Muhammad
Mustafaa Muhammad is an "African American" who is a follower of the Islamic faith. Through independent religious studies developed an ecumenical view of the world's religions and the people of God. And while he is devoted to Islam as his faith he is at home in the Church(or other religious institutions) as he is in the Mosque.
He has been featured on the Radio, Newspapers, public speaking events and at Mosques/Churches telling his story and offering his understanding of Almighty God's plan for salvation.
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