11/09/2006
IWDM Study Library
The Idea of Freedom in Al-Islam
Pt. 2
By Imam W. Deen Mohammed

00:02 IWDM: That's our real lifeline. That's the real lifeline of our people. So if we forget that, if we lose that life, we supposed to give it to our children like the ones living on the farms and the plantation, gave it to their children. They didn't leave their children without that understanding. They gave the children that understanding. 
It was Mr. Du Bois that said that, "We will progress in the measure that we are willing to teach our children to think." And he didn't mean just think anything, he meant think progress for the human life, of the black man or the black people. Think progress for the human life or the black people. So, this is what we are missing more than any other thing, I think. We are missing the traditional life. We are missing the progressive life. We have just forgot about it, we have since separated from it, so we feel no consciousness to conform to something that's truly ours. Our history and our life is ours, nobody else's. It's ours. So we don't have that consciousness anymore and so every influence in the air can reach us even the bad influence that would take us from having a good human condition to giving us a bad human condition.

01:31 Speaker 2: A question IWDM, that expression in the Quran says three words, it's much more in the Quran but I'll say it in Arabic.
adkhuluu-fis-silmee-kaaffataan,(enter into Islam wholeheartedly)2:208
[foreign language]

01:47 IWDM: Yes.

01:48 S2: And what a translation gives it into in Islam, "All the way."

01:55 IWDM: Yeah.

01:57 S2: Can you elaborate on that, sir? 

02:00 IWDM: Yes. Actually silmon or silma is from peace as you know. It's from the word peace, from the root... The root is peace, Salama. And they say Islam and that what it means, but silma means, "Enter into the state of peace or conditions for peace with your whole life." That's what it means, with your whole life. So don't just enter with your soul, your individual soul. Enter with your family, your community. Yeah, because your life extends. You're not living separate, your life is not separated from your family, your life is not separated from your community. Your life is... It belongs to your family and your life belongs to your community. So to enter into peace completely, kaafat means completely. That means don't leave out your interest in your family, don't leave out your interest in your community. Don't be satisfied until all of this is at peace.

03:16 S2: [chuckle] Yes. There's another one. Thank you for that 'cause this is been here long time to understand. You hear it all the time coming in to it [03:29]kaafat all the time, so there's a message we're understanding from that.

03:34 IWDM: Yes, completely with your whole life. First, it starts with the individual. You don't want peace just for your spiritual side. A lot of people they think that you shouldn't expect peace in this world except for your soul.

[chuckle]

03:57 S2: Yes.

04:00 IWDM: But what about peace for my interest and being able to support my family, and myself and my family without begging somebody or being on welfare, public aid, assistance or something? What about that peace I need? So every aspect of the human life wants peace. That's what Allah is telling us in Quran.

04:22 S2: Yes, sir. The other one was, probably have one too, is that there are many misconceptions about Islam in the media that gives a negative image. What is your position and how do we feel, as Muslims, how we can correct this? 

04:44 IWDM: Yes, yes, yes. Well, first of all, Islam is to be expressed in community life. Life needs opportunity for expression. And there's no better opportunity for expressing human life than community setting, the community setting. So I think, if Muslims just come into that spirit, know where they have to focus, their life in community. In time, we will make more and more contributions to our community picture. The picture of African-American or Muslim community will get better and better, it will improve more and more. And when the press sees this and others see this, they will have a much better picture and opinion of us and we'll get a better press.

05:54 IWDM: When Southern newspapers, these suburban newspapers, when they learn from us, that we are really planning our life in the suburbs, that we intend to have businesses in the suburbs, we intend to have homes in the suburbs, we intend to build homes in the suburbs. When they learned this, the newspaper came to us, came to me and to some others, and they were very excited about that, and what they gave us in their report was very favorable. It was impressive, it was good. So we can go and talk to them about ideas, ideology, and all that, but until we grow our life form in community setting, they're not going to have too much to say about us. That's good. [chuckle]

06:51 S2: Yes sir. I got it.

[chuckle]

06:54 Speaker 3: Yes. Brother IWDM, in terms of your topic about freedom, I have the Bible quote, according to the Bible...

07:03 IWDM: Yeah.

07:04 S3: John the Baptist baptized Jesus, then it says "The Heaven opened up and the Spirit came down to him like a dove." Would you be able to... Would you communicate that to us? 

07:17 IWDM: Yes, yes, yes. Yes, I recall reading that somewhat myself in the Bible. John the Baptist symbolizes, as I understand it, he symbolizes one who wanted to awaken and arouse the senses in the person, arouse, awaken and arouse their senses. And Jesus, according to John the Baptist, was really too high in his mind, in his opinion of the person, Christ, Peace be on Christ, Jesus, He was really a little bit too high. Wasn't comfortable for Jesus to even accept the... I mean, for John the Baptist, to accept to baptize Jesus. But Jesus...he instructed him, so he, he had to do it. He had to baptize Jesus. So I think it's put there just to say, when Jesus as a... Human sensitivities, human sensitivities were called upon to awaken our respond, that His sensitivities was not on Earth, was not down here with us, they were up in the Heavens. And a symbol of that for His sensitivity was a dove, that He's really a messenger of Peace. [chuckle] The dove is used to carry messages. The messenger, bird. Yes.

09:16 Speaker 4: IWDM, I have one last question for myself. And that was, we often speak about Muslims, Christians, and Jews in terms of that we have connections with each other. How do people of faith find common ground with each other in their faith? And what do they need to do to find scriptural connections with each other? 

09:49 IWDM: Yeah. First of all, we need to study if we're going to live together, and we are, we're not going to have a planet where we can go to, "Enough of Muslims". We're going to have to live with one another. So since God has put us together, we have to live with one another. Then the first thing for us to do is to study what is responsible for my life. Study what governs my life. So for us it's the Quran and Muhammad the Prophet. For the Christians it's the Bible, mostly the New Testament and Christ Jesus. So we Muslims who want to have dialogue and working relationships with Christians or Jews, we should feel obligated to study or read what governs their life with respect and not with prejudices. And some of us are not prepared to do that, so they should not head up such an effort. If they have an interest, they should follow those who head up such an effort, who are free and not restrained by envy or jealousy, or dislike for Christians, or any kind of negative thing. Those that want should head up such an effort and the same thing from the Christians and Jews side, the side of the Christians and Jews. When they want the dialogue with one another and with us as Muslims, we should make sure that there is at least a welcome by all parties, for one another, for each other, and also for what governs their life.

12:00 IWDM: And then be honest and open. Our acquaintance could grow stronger. Now, how does acquaintance grow stronger for anybody, a friend or anybody? It grows stronger when you experience each other, living with each other or having some dealings with each other. So the acquaintance should grow stronger and stronger. At first, it should be just talking about similarities for faith, similarities for faith. We believe in the same God, we believe in angels, we believe in revealed scriptures, we believe in all these all similarity. It should start with just faith. But then, at some time, our embracing each other upon our common faith, common faith in God and etcetera, should progress to our aspiration. What do you want in this neighborhood, what do we want in the United States? Do we want similar things for ourselves and our children? Yeah. So we should begin to address our aspirations.

13:15 IWDM: What do Christians want? What is the life and freedom that Christians want in America, what Jews want, what Muslims want? We had a newcomer, so we had to tell them what we want, right? We had to tell them what we want. And lastly, we have to be willing to tell them that our scriptures take issues with Christians and Jews. We have some issues, and we want to have a good feeling being your neighbor, and we can't have that good feeling being your neighbor not disclosing to you things that will not make you that happy with us, but necessary to come out because when everything comes out, you have better chance for better relations. If a husband and a wife keep secrets from each other and just reveal nothing to each other but that they know each other going to love, something is going to bring out something. Some situation, some event, some happening, is going to bring out what they're hiding one day. And now they got not only what they were hiding working against them, being comfortable with one another, but they got deceit also working against them being comfortable with each other. So let's not deceive each other. Let's put the truth on the table. [chuckle]

15:04 S2: Brother IWDM, in reference, you mentioned a few minutes ago, you mentioned Carter G. Woodson. He was talking about freedom. In that book that Carter G. Woodson, he wrote 'Miseducation of the Negro'. And he mentioned in the book that the only person that was educated would go to the church would be the ones that was looking for money or to line their pockets. So would that statement would be something that would be helping the church and the people who was being educated not to go there? How do you think that would fit in with what someone like Carter G. Woodson who was trying to bring the people up to a certain level intellectually? 

16:08 IWDM: Yeah. Well, I can't agree with that opinion. I know that there are many people who will see an opportunity to make a comfortable life that is financially, with money, materially if they step into the role of a preacher or leader of a church. And I'm sure a lot of them have been attracted to become leaders in the church for that reason. But I know that the better church leaders that have kept the church alive for all these many, many generations were not going into the church because of the money that they could get. They were going so that they could serve humanity under God. That's what I believe, and a lot of them, very intelligent, educated. They graduated from college and universities. And then they went to divinity school and got their divinity school qualifications too. So I can't agree, but I can understand that expression and I don't take offense to such an expression. Why? Because we know especially today, we have too many people that's claiming to be interested in telling us all about God and how to get ourselves ready for God, to meet God.

18:13 IWDM: And their lifestyle is a lifestyle of hustling people, people who hustle, the ignorant people, the lifestyle of people who hustle the ignorant masses and their principles are not there. The real principles of a religious person or a religious leader, we don't see them shining in that. They are not illuminated by virtues and decency and honesty and truth. We don't see that when we look at them. We see show business, and we see money collected at the end of the show. I can understand that kind of criticism of the church leadership. And you know that we hate to knock anybody, but we know that from, it doesn't have to be Christianity, for Islam too, and Christianity. We find a good percentage of the leaders uneducated and not established for their intelligence. [chuckle] So there is a problem, no doubt.

19:47 S2: Would that be a hinder or slow-back in the growth, or should I say in the gain for African-Americans, particularly of achieving their goal of freedom? 

20:06 IWDM: Yes, I do believe that. Because in the earlier history when we had leaders really making great contribution to the betterment of African-American life and conditions, those leaders were intelligent, they're known for their intelligence, and most of them were educated. If they weren't educated, they were in situations to be educated and doing the best they could to get more education, whereas that kind of motive is not so popular now. And I think that has a lot to do, I think you're correct, it has a lot to do with the deteriorating community life and moral life and spirituality of our people.

21:00 IWDM: Well, I appreciate the comments, your questions and comments. I think they have been very helpful for this presentation, very helpful. And I would like to take the last few minutes that we have to address this life that has gotten separated, that got cut off from the life line of our people, the lifeline of our people. When I say lifeline of our people, I'm talking about the best tradition, the best performances we have in our time that we have been in America as a people. I'm addressing that separation from that, that cutoff from that, the absence of conscience as to what that did for us to bring us to where we are today as a free people in the United States.

22:03 IWDM: And I would like to make a strong appeal to our people at home, to the parents, uphold decency. Stand up for decency. Don't let yourself be so burdened at home with the work you have to do to get ready for work and the work you have to do to keep the home like you want to keep it. Don't let two jobs burden you so much that you can't have a word in defense of decency when it's necessary. If you see your children or your house getting nasty, speak out against it. You see the behavior of persons in the family getting nasty, speak out against it. Even if it means being hated by the household, speak out against it. Because real friendship is standing up for what's good for a person, not ignoring what's bad for a person and seeing them go to hell or to the garbage can and not try to stop it.

23:02 IWDM: Thank you very much, and peace be unto you. We pray God we'll meet again soon, and we'll be addressing a subject of interest, one of the major issues for this time and community life. Peace be unto you. As-salamu Alaykum.

[background conversation]
