1977-September-30

Muslim Journal

Faith Is Fundamental For Growth

By Imam W. Deen Mohammed

I feel comfortable with my religion because I have faith in God, and I believe in things that are greater than I am. I know there is a limit to how far I can follow even good sense. But Almighty God can lead me eternally if I will only have faith in Him. In the beginning of the Holy Quran God says: This Book, there is no doubt in it. It is a guide to those who want to go straight. There are many people who doubt God. They ask, 'Well, why hasn't God helped me?" My question to you is, "Have you made up your mind to go straight?"
In the early days of human history when man was called "primitive," man was threatened by apes, wild dogs, jackets, and creatures of all types. Man had to run to safe shelter.

The wild beast of the early days had man on the run, hiding in caves and tree tops, etc. Yes, we know, even today, we can still find some primitive spots like that where the wild beasts have man on the run. But if we look carefully all over the earth today and examine the make-up of the earth to determine who is the "boss" on earth, we find that man has the "bad" ferocious ape in a cage. Man now takes his children to the zoo to look at the beasts. Man says, "Hey, throw him something, son. Throw him a peanut." The ape or the huge bear may stand seven or eight feet tall, weighing as much as four or five men or more. Yet man's son goes to the zoo and says, "Daddy, pretty little bear, give me a peanut." The son throws the peanut to the bear and the bear backs up and catches it in his mouth.

This same species once frightened man. Look at man. He does not have saber teeth; his teeth are even. Man cannot frighten anything with his teeth. Where are man's claws? He doesn't have any. Instead, man has little tender fingernails that can hardly scratch a baby. Man is the frailest of all the rulers of the jungle, but he is the ruler.
God has exalted something above physical power. God has raised intelligence above physical power and has put the jungle (the world) into the hands of the intelligent man. Shouldn't that tell them not to give themselves to brute power? Do not worship brute power; do not think you are impressive because your muscles are hard. Do not think you are remarkable because you can "whip" a knife or shoot a gun. Those extraordinary creatures who used all power and no intelligence were put out of business thousands of years ago. They were massive in size, and they had very small brains and even less intelligence.

So it is man's superior mind, with the use of his intelligence that enabled him to survive and become the controlling force in the world. Let's look at P.T. Barnum (Phineas Taylor) who did not have the brute physical powers of the ape, bear, gorilla, tiger, lion or any other once ferocious beast. P.T. Barnum is the legendary showman and founder of the present Barnum and Bailey, Ringling Brother's Circus. God raised intelligence above physical, brute power which put jungle creatures under the rule of man. P. T. Barnum has shown the whole world what control man has over fierce animals with his tame lions, tame bears and dancing elephants, that no matter how faithless we are, none of us can deny the existence of a greater force controlling this universe.

All of us will acknowledge the existence of something. It is something greater than we are. Who made man the ruler of the jungle? God did—by giving him the highest level of intelligence.
Some of you will say, "Oh! I believe in myself. I do not believe in any God, but I believe in the material world." Well, we will start with what you believe in. Do you believe in the philosophy or principle of mathematics, chemistry or electronics? Are you so wise in your belief in these particular fields that you deny what has not been proven to your satisfaction in every other field? I stand on faith in God and in God's leadership. Can the learned disprove what I stand on? The learned of the world do not ask that we prove what they stand for, but they ask that we prove what we stand for.

The learned devise their own rules for proving what they stand on and they apply those same rules to us. The scientist reasons, compares and concludes on the basis of what he has examined from one end to another. Yet, some scientists want to deny the religious person the same freedom to conclude that he, too, has found something. Not with physical hands, eyes, but I felt something inside. I recognized something in the heavens and earth. I have heard something in the recesses of my soul and I believe that this is real.
When a baby comes to the world, does he understand complicated theories and formulas?

A baby senses the sentiments of the heart of the human being. A baby senses the warmth, love and tenderness of a mother. A baby senses that a great power has put someone here who cares to look after him. A baby's faith is more faithful than the sunrise in the morning. Life begins in faith. A baby's cry is a signal. Mothers respond. The tiniest noise from a baby often signals mother into service. If the baby is wet and uncomfortable, the diaper is changed. Under pressure to fulfill her service to her own, mother might drop the wet diaper on the floor. God did not tell the mother to take care of the floor first. God told mother to take care of the baby.
I am telling you these things to show you that we have no excuse to disbelieve in God. God has made so many ordinary things so obvious and clear. All you have to do is see them and believe.
Have faith, It is fundamental in nature.

Yours in service to Allah, Wallace D. Muhammad