2001-August-31

The Muslim Journal

Justice In Islam: How Close Are We Muslims To Western Democracy?: Part 9

Imam W. Deen Mohammed

(Imam W, Deen Mohammed gave the following address on June 16, 2001, in Detroit, Mich., at Orchestra Hall.)

A human being is a creature of intelligence and goodness. We are to appeal to your goodness and to your intelligence. And a human being can be deceived in his heart and in his mind. So Allah G-d says; Think not that the creation of man is a bigger creation than the creation of the world." What is He saying to us? He is saying that you have not the power to resist the world, if the world comes against you.

You cannot as a human being match the world. You can be good and from a real good Christian or Muslim family, but if the world continues to grow against your life that you have been raised to protect, after a while the world is going to become so big in its influence that it is going to start taking members of the family. Man is not bigger than the world.

Our children come up in the world and see television and all of the things that are popular and go into the streets and hear what is popular. There are drugs out on the streets, guns are available and everything that you are telling them that is wrong is made so easy for them to get, it's made accessible. So the world is a stronger voice than your voice at home and is a bigger power than you. The world is going to overcome them and take them away from you. Not only will the world take our children, it will take over adults also.

The mama may never have taken drugs, but now the daughter is taking drugs. The son may never have seen his father as an alcoholic, but now the son is becoming an alcoholic. The world is taking them away. G-d made the world to sensitize us. G-d made the world to tell us what is right and wrong. Listen to what I am saying.

If Satan didn't take over the world, the trees and grass would never make drug addicts out of us. This natural environment will not make a drug addict out of us. It takes Satan to do that. Why do I blame it on Satan? Our Holy Book says: "Surely, intoxicants and gambling and games of superstition are the works of the devil, Satan. Stay away from them." I am coming from my Holy Book. This is not just me talking. I don't give anything, unless I can stand upon it in my religion. And we are to fight the schemes of Satan.

Knowing that the world is too big for us, what is it telling us? It is not speaking to the common people. It is speaking to the learned leaders in the society and saying to them: "Look, G-d created the natural world to support human life and to sensitize human life in a good way. But Satan has another idea."

In our religion, it is reported that our Prophet Muhammed (PBUH) said that G-d wanted the Angel Jibril, the archangel called Gabriel, to see His creation and what was going to come about. After G-d showed His creation to Jibril, the angel said: "My Lord, how can anyone go wrong in such a wonderful creation?" Then G-d instantly showed Jibril the creation, after Satan had changed it. And Jibril said: "My Lord, how can anyone go straight in such a creation?"

That is telling us that once Satan reorders the world, we are helpless. We know a few of us can survive, for G-d always saves a few souls. But who knows when we will go.

If we can't do anything about this to change it, then we are also gone. To simply not like what has happened isn't enough, if you can't change it. So Satan has finished you, too.

It is saying to man, who has put himself in the position to be responsible as a guardian for society, that man as a creation cannot manage this world if this world is turned against him. And Satan has the power to turn it against you. You can only manage if you have G-d with you on your aide. G-d is bigger than the world, and G-d can manage the world. If you accept to have G-d on your side, then you can manage the world, even though Satan is trying to use it against you.

G-d says: "And fight the schemes of Satan." And what are the Christians told? "Rebuke Satan, and he will run from you." So what is this idea about, to leave Satan alone? G-d's people are prepared to do battle with Satan. He is the enemy of all people, of all human beings.

Don't think of him as the enemy of G-d, for G-d doesn't have any enemies. An enemy does not matter to G-d, for you can't affect Him anyway. Tb yourself you may think of yourself as an enemy of G-d, but He says: "What enemy? I don't have any enemies. You are your own enemy." So we need to see G-d correctly also. We make G-d cheap, as if G-d is worrying about Satan. G-d worries about nothing, but He wants us protected and to have our good life.

G-d calls us His servants, addressing all human beings in the Qur'an as "Oh Servants of G-d." And He says: "And I have not created men or jinn, except that they serve Me." The purpose for our existence on this earth is to serve our G-d. It doesn't mean in rituals. It means to serve G-d with your soul, with your intelligence, with your whole life.

This is another place in which we differ with this Western idea of freedom and democracy. We come to Jumuah and are told that when the call to Jumuah prayer service is made, that we are to leave off business. The businessman is ordered by G-d that when the call to Jumuah service is made, he has to close shop and stop selling and hurry to the Jumuah prayer, the congregational prayer. This is Islam.

The same chapter in the Qur'an on Jumuah goes on to say: "When the Jumuah prayer service is over or concluded, disperse or go back into the avenues of business." Allah, G-d Almighty, is telling us that business is necessary for the life and progress of society, but it is not the higher value. The higher value is devotion to your G-d. When you are asked to come and devote your attention to your G-d, then close up your shop.

One day out of the week for prayer service is not a day of rest. Our rest is in our productive work. If you want to rest, then work and produce. The more your reserves increase, the more your property grows, the more you rest.

Understand Muslims, we don't believe in one day of rest. We believe in seven days of work and that is our rest. You see that some of us can’t recover from a weekend off from work, so we are not going to rest.

I can't speak to Satan directly, so you tell Satan that we are not going to rest. We Can Not Stop Now! I want you all to join me and other good religious people of the great religions on this planet to wage a battle, a war, on the schemes of Satan. We are not looking for him, for we know he is in his works. And we are going to hit his works.

Mr. Fard asked, "How many ducks will it take to dry up this water source of his?" There is wisdom in this. At the end of the world, the beast is seen in the water, in the lake. It means that he is in the innocent sensitivities of human beings. So Mr. Fard said in his lessons that he was going to dry up this lake. The teachings that Fard gave to the Hon. Elijah Muhammad had a big part in drying up this lake — the lake that Satan was ruling and occupying.

Our poor black people were suffering and suffering, and everybody else had everything and they had nothing. But our poor black people were told: "Love your enemy. If he hits you on one side, then turn the other check. If he asks you to go one mile with him, then go ten miles."

They are in misery and have had their freedom to life and liberty taken away from them, and they are being preached at to love and forgive. That is the beast in the lake.

To be continued

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