1985-May-24

Muslim Journal

Muhammad Speaks

Imam W. Deen Muhammad

(Editor's note: The following timely excerpt is from "Imam W. Deen Muhammad Speaks from Harlem, " Volume II.)

The Muslim Focus

OUR FOCUS is our faith and community life. We are not just any community, we are a distinct community. We have a precious Muslim life to live and to guard. To do it we need more than just faith, but the beginning is faith. You can't get what is coming after if you don't have what is required first, and that is \ roper faith. Once you have proper faith, then we are fit vessels for the knowledge that God wants us to have.

That brings us to the need to grow knowledge. A Muslim community cannot be a "good times" community. You know most religions sell the common man on "good-time" religion — "Hey come on, let's go down to service, we are gonna have a good time.” They didn’t say, “We are going to conquer any of the problems we have in our neighborhood.” "Come on, let's go down to service, Sister, we are going to have a good time. I'm told that God and the Spiritual Silver Eagles are coming to save you...we gonna have a good time."

So here is an angel, supposedly, in the church doors: "Come you burdened, heavily ladened, lay your burdens down here and rest here, let's have a good time." And there is the one out in the street in Harlem, "Come baby, lay your burdens here, we're gonna smoke up a good time/' What's the difference? Then there is another one at the night spot saying, "Come on in baby, we gonna have a good time!" What is the difference? All of them are appealing to blind urges in the human nature.