1978-September-15

Bilalian News

The Believers and Deceivers

Chief Imam Wallace Deen Muhammad

With the Name Allah (In the Name of God), the Gracious, the Compassionate.
As-Salaam-Alaikum

All praise is due to Almighty God, the guardian evolver and sustainer of all the worlds. The blessings and peace be upon Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah to us all.

O Allah, guide us, forgive us our faults, and grant us the blessings of faith. I bear witness there is no deity except Allah and I bear witness Muhammad is His Servant and His Messenger. Peace be upon him, his descendants, his companions, the righteous servants, all of them, and upon us in America and throughout the world:

The strength of this community did not come in the '60s, it came in the '30s, in the '40s and in the '50s. It began to go down in the '60s. When the early '70s came, the true power of the Nation of Islam was almost impossible to find.

What do I mean by true power—? Respect for a Supreme Being in your life, love for the Brothers and the Sisters, a desire out of love for each other to share what we have with each other, meekness, unity, hatred for materialistic show.

In the '30s, the '40s and the '50s, if a Muslim saw you showing off material wealth, they would automatically come to the conclusion  that you were not a true member of the Nation of Islam.

But something happened, and suddenly there were in the leadership as many Super Flys as there were real ministers. In time, the leadership of the Nation of Islam became a Super Fly leadership.

People showing one face on camera and another off camera. They took money from the dope business, from the narcotic business, from prostitutes, even from bank robbers.

I'm not saying this was the case for all of the ministers under the Honorable Elijah Muhammad during the '70s, but it was a problem that hurt and crippled all of us.

No one could really live the life that the Honorable Elijah Muhammad wanted us to live because of the pressure that was on us, the heavy burden that was on us — the burden of carrying people who didn't join the Honorable Elijah Muhammad for higher morals, for unity in, Brotherhood, for equality of the Brothers and the Sisters, but people who joined the Honorable Elijah Muhammad so they could show off. Show off their false sense of superiority under black skin. Show off their ability to rob poor people.

I used to see them peel their bankroll in the eyes of the poor people, flipping through the bills. Even slap us in the face with their big bankroll.

Where did they get that bankroll? They got it from the innocent, sincere supporters of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. Not because they wanted to be wealthy, but because they thought that's what God wanted them to do.

There were many sincere ones who came to the Honorable Elijah Muhammad because they felt that this was a man who asked us to come to a virtuous life, who asked us to come to high morals, who asked us to put down filth and un-cleanliness, who asked us to throw out cigarettes, wine, liquor and the pig.

They said this man is asking us to clean up our life; this man says, "No! You can't come to God with crime on you. You can't come to God with sin on your hands. You can't come to God in filth" — this man must truly be from God.

This man comes out and is not afraid to say that evil is evil no matter where it may be. This man says the Caucasian man is the devil, his nation is evil, his race is evil, his rule is evil, the Caucasian race is a race of devils — this man must be a man of God.

Those people were converted, they believed in God. They were converted because they believed in God. They believed that the Honorable Elijah Muhammad couldn't say those things unless God inspired him to say them.

That's why they accepted the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, It was not simply because they wanted to be black and proud. It was because they wanted to be black and proud and they wanted to be followers of God. They wanted to be believers in God.

They wanted to follow God's way. And the Honorable Elijah Muhammad was demanding that they stand on a higher moral plane, demanding that they clean themselves up, demanding that they stand up against the pig that Christianity says is okay, against the whiskey that Christianity said was okay, against the cigarettes that Christianity said was okay, even against the white man that Christianity said was okay — stand up against it if it is wrong.

Those people came to the Honorable Elijah Muhammad because they didn't believe a man could be that bold, that independent, that truthful in pointing out evil without God inspiring him. That's why they came to the Honorable Elijah Muhammad.

Why have I said all of that? To explain to you, all of my success. The Honorable Elijah Muhammad baited people with materialism, but he also baited them with truth. He used the bait of materialism for those who wanted materialism. The Honorable Elijah Muhammad said, "Come, follow me — the God that missioned me said that if you follow me, He will give you plenty money, good homes, friendships in all walks of life."

Now wasn't that a powerful bait? Who needed good homes more than we did? Who was shut out from friendship in societies of the world any more than we were? We hungered for identity, for a place with societies of the world.

The image that we had been given of Africa made us feel that we were too big, too proud, too civilized, too American, too good for Africa. I'm not talking to you 1960 people, I'm talking to the 1950 and 1940 and 1930 people. They understand what I'm talking about.

We had no place in any nation, no place in Arabia, no place in Africa, no place in Asia and no place even in America where we were being born, reared and bred like cows, mules, dogs and donkeys.

He knew that there was a people if you gave them a place, they would give you their all. The Honorable Elijah Muhammad said, "Look. Nobody wanted you, but Allah and me."

Allah is the perfect being. Allah is all righteous, truthful — no imperfections in Allah. Allah is Supreme and Perfect without any imperfections.

O Allah. Make us of those who purify themselves and of those who repent, and guide us in your path. Amen.

Peace be to you.
Your brother in service to Allah,
Wallace Deen Muhammad