his great day of honor, we
thank Allah (God) for his (Prophet Muhammad�s,
Peace Be Upon Him) birth into the world, and thanking Allah that he
(the Prophet) had a heart so attuned to Allah (God) that it pleased
Allah (God) to give him the final revelation that would be given to
the world before its judgment. We thank Allah for a perfect example
in him (the Prophet), and we thank Allah (God) for his (Prophet
Muhammad�s) sunnah (way). I�m honored to speak of him today, and I
shall speak of him probably in a different way than you are used to
hearing of him. Although there are no words that are good enough to
describe the beauty of such a human being, yet, he is not glorified
by words. We honor him best by being Muslims; and we honor him best
by performing our duty to Allah (God) and our duty to our fellow
man.
I would like to read from Surah Al-Baqarah, the 127th verse or
ayat. It reads: "And when Abraham and Ishmael raised the foundations
of the House: Our Lord, accept from us; surely Thou art the Hearing,
the Knowing. Our Lord, and make us both submissive to Thee, and
(raise) from our offspring, a nation submissive to Thee, and show us
our ways of devotion and turn to us (mercifully); surely Thou art
the Oft-returning (to mercy), the Merciful. Our Lord, and raise up
in them a Messenger from among them who shall recite to them Thy
messages and teach them the Book and the wisdom, and purify them.
Surely Thou art the Mighty, the Wise."
This is a prayer that Abraham and Ishmael prayed after they had
raised the foundation of the ancient House, Kabah, which is our
Qiblah (Spiritual Center). He prayed that they would be made
Muslims, but also that from their offspring a nation of Muslims
would be raised. It is very important to understand this
terminology, "Show us our way of devotion." They used the possessive
pronoun "our" way of devotion, that "our" way of devotion will be a
little different from the ways of devotion given to those before us.
"And turn to us mercifully." This is a very, very beautiful
prayer that Allah heard from Prophet Abraham, and we know that the
answer to Abraham�s prayer was born in Arabia in 570 A.D. They
called the nation in which he was born Arabia, but he was commanded
by Allah (God) not to build a nation called Arabia,
but to build a
Nation of Islam. He was called by Allah (God) to build one nation
into which he would invite all of humanity regardless of their race,
ethnicity, color, or their religion. He brought the revelation that
would unite all of the diverse elements of religion, because this
Qur�an answers with clear arguments that which would bring all of
the religions into oneness. So his mission was first to unite the
Arabs, purify the Arab and make the Arabs bearers of witness of the
presence of Allah (God) in this Qur�an and the presence of Allah
(God) in a servant named Muhammad (PBUH); and that they should be
witness bearers of this great event to the entire world of human
beings. That was a great assignment for the Arabs and a great
assignment for the Prophet.
This book, Qur�an, was revealed to the Prophet over a 23 year
period, but no ayat (verse) of this Qur�an was revealed absent a
context. And every context imaginable was addressed in this Qur�an,
so that in the cyclical nature of history, as we constantly repeat
history, this book would answer in every age the problems that human
beings would face.
This book is to be recited. This book is to be studied. But, this
book is to be implemented. It must be acted upon in the context of
what we find in our countries and in the world in which we live.
Islam is not a stagnant religion. Yesterday�s understanding of
the Divine Word of Allah (God) may not be sufficient to answer the
pressing needs of humanity today. Therefore, a deeper, more profound
understanding of the Qur�an must be reached by those who would serve
Allah (God) because it is clear that our present understanding of
this Qur�an is insufficient. If our understanding of the Qur�an were
sufficient, we would be a power in the world to make the world in
the image and the likeness of Islam. (Submission to the will of
God), But the world is making Islam in its image and after its
likeness.
Beloved brothers and sisters, the Prophet (PBUH) was born in
Arabia, but he envisioned a nation without boundaries. He envisioned
a nation that every human being on this Earth could find true
brotherhood in the faith of the belief in the Oneness of God and the
Oneness of the human family. This was his desire, and this will be
accomplished. Don�t say "Insha�Allah" (meaning, God Willing),
because this book is His Will and His Will is going to be done
whether we do it or fail to do it. If we fail to do it, Allah (God)
already has said, "I will bring another people in your place."
The 30th surah of the Qur�an, the 41st Ayat (verse) reads:
"Corruption has appeared in the land and the sea on account of that
which men�s hands have wrought that He may make them taste a part of
that which they have done, so that they may return."
"Return" means that someone has gone astray or away from the
path, and corruption has appeared to take them off the path, and
Allah (God) is going to make them taste a part of what they have
done so that perhaps they may return to the path of the Prophet that
they have turned away from.
What is meant by "corruption has appeared in the land and the
sea"? We live in a world where the Earth is corrupted by poison. The
air is corrupted. The water is corrupted. I�m sure that the Prophet
was talking about a time when the Earth would be poisoned and the
land and the sea and the air would be poisoned. Man, in his
technological advancement, is advancing, but not according to the
active Will of God, but, instead, by the permissive Will of God.
Man�s technology needs to be perfected, but it�s going to take a
righteous scientist to perfect the work of unrighteous scientists.
It�s going to take a righteous Nation to correct the wickedness of
this present world.
There�s a verse in the Bible that says: "Behold, I make all
things new." It says, �There will be a new heaven and a new Earth,
and the former things shall pass away." The Honorable Elijah
Muhammad taught us that it meant that there was corruption in the
political system and corruption in the religious system. And because
corruption has been in the political and the religious spheres, the
people suffer because of corrupt leadership. Muslim political
leaders have adopted ideologies and philosophies that may not
necessarily be in harmony with the Teachings of the Prophet or the
Teachings of the Holy Qur�an. Religious leaders�imams and
sheikhs�have come up under these political leaders and they have
preached a watered-down Islam for fear of persecution by the
political leaders who have gone astray from the Teachings of the
Holy Prophet. Let�s agree with truth.
My brother that spoke before me mentioned that he was a Sunni
Muslim. His brother is an Ishmaeli Muslim, and I�m sure we�re among
Sufi scholars who have tried to dig very deeply into the esoteric
meanings of the Qur�an. But I have never seen that name "Sunni" or
"Sufi" or "Hanbali" or "Hanafi" or "Shii" in the Holy Qur�an.
Prophet Abraham didn�t say, "Make me a Sunni." He didn�t say to
Allah (God), "Make me a Sufi." He said, "Make us submissive to Thee
and from our offspring, raise up a nation submissive to Thee." The
Qur�an says, "They did not become divided until after revelation
came to them, splitting up their religion into sects and parties,
each one rejoicing in what they had due to envy."
We must deal with this because the Umma (community) of the
Prophet is one Umma. It�s not saying that you can�t be Sufi and a
Muslim, or Sunni and a Muslim, but you must not exalt your specific
difference over the Umma. You must subordinate your specific idea to
the oneness of the community. If you fail to do this, then you and I
are guilty of working for Shaitan (Satan) to divide the Muslim Umma,
brother against brother, due to our faulty interpretation or
understanding of the Qur�an and the Prophet and His Way, Peace Be
Upon Him.
We have to admit that Allah (God) Chose the Arabs, and their
condition was deplorable. And do you remember in Surah Abasa (80th
Chapter of the Qur�an titled "He Frowned"), the Prophet was speaking
to some highly placed people and a blind man was tapping his way up
to the Prophet and disturbed his conversation. The Prophet frowned
because he evidently was getting his point over and this man
interrupted him. And then Allah revealed this surah titled "Abasa"
or "He Frowned" and He says: "He frowned and turned away because the
blind man came to him. And what would make thee know that he might
purify himself or be mindful so the reminder should profit him. As
for him who considers himself free from need, to him thou dost
attend. And no blame is on thee if he purify himself not, and as to
him who comes to thee striving hard and he fears, to him thou payest
no regard. Nay, surely it is a reminder so let him who will mind
it."
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) united the Arabs and the Arabs brought
the message of Islam to the whole world. Yet, the Holy Prophet in
his Hadith said, "The sun that rises from the East, you will see it
rising from the West." Did he mean that the (physical) sun, 853,000
miles in diameter, was going to rise from the West? Or did he mean
that the light of Wisdom that has always come out of the East and
shone westward, that in the last days of the world a light would
come out of the West that would shine back eastward. Then Prophet
Muhammad [PBUH] said he heard the footsteps of Bilal going into
paradise ahead of his own. What did he mean? Do you think that Bilal
(a Black man who was the caller to prayer) could enter Paradise
ahead of the Prophet Himself? I don�t think so. Nobody goes ahead of
the Prophet. He makes the way for us. I believe he was saying that
his community, entrusted with the responsibility of spreading the
message, fell victim to Shaitan (Satan) and started attending to
those who felt free of need. So you go to Europe, you spend a lot of
time there, but your work is minimal. You come to America, you spend
a lot of time with those who feel free from need, and your work is
minimal. But a blind man is tapping his way up because he wants
relief from oppression. That blind man happens to be Black and from
him you turn away.
You don�t know how to handle the Black man in America, who has
been destroyed by 400 years of slavery. You can�t teach him the way
you teach. He will never hear you because you do not know how to
reach a mind that has been destroyed. So Allah (God) had to raise
somebody up among us that would know how to reach us with the
message of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). You may not have understood
Elijah Muhammad�s approach, but I think if you dig deep, you would
say, "Boy, what skill!" He came to a people that White people had
taught were inferior because of our color.
You say Islam does not deal with color, but I beg your pardon.
Islam deals with everything, but Islam never exalts one color over
another. But something has happened to the Umma, and the Prophet saw
it before he left us. He spoke to it in these words: "There is no
superiority of the Arab over the non-Arab, and there is no
superiority of the White over the Black." And then he admonished the
community that, if one should come to you whose face is as Black as
soot and his hair like dried raisins, but if he speaks the Wisdom of
God, you should accept his leadership.
Let�s follow the sunnah (way) of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), and
honor him and love him by bringing the world to this magnificent
faith. I love you, Muslims. And I thank Allah to be one among the
most beautiful Umma in the world, the Umma of Islam. But this Umma
must be purified, and it must be made better so that Allah�s Favor
will come to us again.
Thank you.
