04/06/2008
IWDM Study Library
MEETING OF SCIENCE AND RELIGION
Pt. 1
By Imam W. Deen Mohammed



00:03 Imam W. Deen Mohammed: Allahu Akbar, peace be unto you, all of you. Assalamu alaikum.

00:08 S?: Wa alaikum assalaam.

00:09 IWDM To our radio listening audience, we are very pleased that we are able to be present here today for this live broadcast. The theme or topic is a meeting of science and religion is occurring to dispel myths. I remember my father being given a tape. I was put out of the Nation of Islam, that's what we called it, "Put out of temple," back then we'd say, "He was put out of the temple," for questioning the idea of God that we all identified with. I had already been put out once and they heard me in an interview, that is some of the believers of the temple, heard me on the radio being interviewed by an African-American sister, a Christian sister, and she was just asking me what kind of concerns I had and I told her that I was writing, I said to her, "I am writing a book." And she said, "Yes, tell me what is it about?" And I said, "It's about the burden of myth on the American people." And believe me, that audience, I'm sure didn't respond like my father responded.

02:00 IWDM When they played that tape in his presence, in fact, he wouldn't hear it until I was present. I was present on Sunday, as we normally would go from the temple or go from wherever we were, to the house of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad with staff people to hear the Honorable Elijah Muhammad's comments at the table, to officials, his staff, and other matters that he thought he should bring to our attention at the dinner table. After we got through with the meal, just about finished with everything, I think coffee was being served, he said, "Son," speaking to me, "We want to play that tape." And I never get scared because I don't intentionally do any wrong, and if I hadn't intentionally done any wrong, what should I fear? Nothing. So anyway, the consequences, whether good or bad, will be good for me. If I have done good and not guilty, and I'm a good person and God loves me and I love him, I have nothing to fear. So, anyway, that means if you throw me in the fire, the fire is good for me, if that's what God wants, the fire be good for me.

03:35 IWDM Okay, so he said, "Play that tape". So my nephew, and the grandson of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, was a very faithful servant for my father, over the years, aging and having some sicknesses. He was very helpful, he was always like a male nurse on hand to help my father. So he was the one that my father told to get that tape. He said, "Play that tape". The supreme captain was there, assistant supreme captain, the regular staff, house office staff was there. The old secretaries that worked directly with the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, and he put the tape on, and my mother was there. Normally she was always there at the table. So she's sitting at the far end of the table. They played the tape and my father heard the tape about myths being the burden on the American people. Mythological gods were my exact expression. I said, "Mythological gods is the burden, pardon me, on the American people."

05:18 IWDM At one point... Now he had been sickly, and everybody is thinking, "Let's go easy with him, he's been sick and everything." and he wasn't acting sickly he was talking and showing strength, looked like he was strong, health wise. I think he was enjoying his better days at that particular time. Anyway, at one point he stands up, I mean and stands up better than I can stand up right now because I got this back giving me a little problem. So he stands up at the table, he said "My son got it." his exact words. "My son got it." And I'm wondering what he's talking about, 'cause I wondered what had impressed you so much that you say I got it. And it took me some time to understand what he said because I thought it was just conversation and certainly it was conversation in deep water, mythological gods. I knew it wasn't a play pool for children, but it was deep water. I knew that much. So anyway, he looked at my mother while still standing and she was sitting and smiling. He said, "Clara, isn't this what we wanted?" And she smiled and she nodded her head like this, "Yes". So, what I'm coming to you today with is really a continuation of that interest I had to inquire into the culture, nature of our culture, and see just where it came from and what is it made of, and where the problem is? 

07:25 IWDM So anyway, let me continue now. We're hearing on the news and educational materials or publications, regular magazines, the magazines that come out like Life, Times, Newsweek and other magazines, we're hearing in many areas now of news and media, we're hearing about the coming together of science and religion. Religion and science is being recognized now as not being against each other, but actually belonging to each other. And with this occurrence, myths are being dispelled that we couldn't understand before in the culture, tied either myth or tied directly to myth, now are being uncovered, now are being understood. Gradually, for most of us, we're not even familiar with what's going on because we are not situated in society to be in touch with such occurrences or such happenings. These things pass by with the great majority of the people. Even a great majority of the educated people, it passed by them. But that is exactly what is happening, the meeting of science and religion, where religion is beginning to express its scientific composition, or its scientific design.

09:38 IWDM Certainly, it is spiritual, but the spiritual has to be established, and the spiritual cannot be established unless it is established through the spiritual... I mean, pardon me, through the material, through the material. For God made Adam and he was existing according to Genesis already, but he made him for a second time. And when he made him for the second time, he gave him a mate, a female mate, so he would bear children on Earth and have a future on Earth, and he couldn't do that without utilizing the material or reality. So God told him that he made all the things that had been formed by God or created by God to be of use and utility for Adam and the future of human beings on this planet Earth, descendants of Adam. The word "black" as given in Islam should be understood by Muslims, especially in America where "white" and "black" have become troubling language. And it has been going on now for about over 300 years, well over 300 years, and even after gaining civil rights, full rights of citizenship, civil rights and full rights of citizenship, this problem continues, white and black.

12:00 IWDM White and black. Obviously, we're not using this language correctly, we're doing it unintentionally or intentionally. We're not using this language that identify one people as white and other people as black. The word "black" as given in Islam, we're going to be discussing that, or trying to understand that. The Nation of Islam's temples in North America and I'm using this language because all of this has a lot to do with the Nation of Islam's presence in the United States of America. The Nation of Islam's temples in North America using the language, exact language that was used back then influenced many who were identifying as Negroes and colored people to change to identify themselves as black or black people.

13:04 IWDM The dictionary meaning for the term black will connect with science, religion, and also with informal language. However, we cannot go to the dictionary and find the explanation and religion for the term black. It is felt that since the term black was made popular in America by the religious following of Elijah Poole Muhammad, I said that to recognize his family roots. Do you know his name was Poole? Raise your hand if you know his name. Aah, practically all of you, 97 and 7/10 of you, no. All right. We have an obligation to acquaint ourselves with the meaning for Islam and to publish the meaning in North America, where the term "black" gained popularity because of the teaching and work of Honorable Elijah Muhammad.

14:16 IWDM Islam, the religion of humanity. Islam is the religion of the black man. That's what we were taught as members of the Nation of Islam by the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, the student of professor Fard, the one he called God or Allah in the person. It is important that we not condemn before studying Fard's language and researching this word black. A quick look at what is understood to be Islam throughout the world is what we have to recognize. And when we recognize that, we see that as far as a definition of what is Islam, the Nation of Islam and the world community of Muslims were at odds and further apart than church is from the Islam that the Honorable Elijah Muhammad presented. We were closer to the church as religious people than we were to true Islam as practiced throughout the world by Muslims.

15:45 IWDM There are reasons for that, don't forget I said, "Don't be quick to condemn." So we want to have a quick look at what is understood to be Islam throughout the world. Examining... Also, we want to examine what some religions have used to justify white supremacy. Hints of racism in religious myth, the deity of Rama, Noah's three sons. In the far east, Rama has influenced the way Far Easterners look at us. In America, the story of the three sons of Noah has influenced the way the church, the white church, looks at us. Islam definition for the term black as applied in religion, let's look at that seriously. "The Browning of America." this caption appeared some time ago on the cover of Ebony magazine. During the campaign for the office of president of these United States, CNN special, "Black America" has gone out to millions in this country and overseas.

17:23 IWDM One would think this special is supporting two Americas: One black, one white. Black America suggests or it says that these people who are the same race as Obama, they represent one America. And obviously the conclusion is, the whites represent the other. Being that Obama identified as a black man, he identifies as a black man and he's identified as a black man by CNN and the media and the American people, this black man is conducting the most impressive campaign ever by Democrats or Republicans. So being that Obama is identified by the media as a black man and is, in that particular picture, as one campaigning for the office of president of the United States, the wording chosen by this CNN special could be saying something about the nature of the American people. At this point, we would like to address the American people as a people of faith in Allah and as liberators of humanity. Now we know the ugly America, but what I'm addressing now is America, the beautiful. The meeting of science and religion is occurring to dispel myth or precious myth or as I said in that tape many years ago that Honorable Elijah Muhammad had them play with me being present to hear what I was going to be charged with, [chuckle] the myth of mythological gods.

20:33 IWDM One of the pharaohs of Ancient Egypt was established as a powerful ruler. No one could disagree with him without taking a risk, a great risk, of being killed or driven out of Egypt. On the prophet be peace, Prophet Abraham refused to recognize the authority of the Pharaoh over the authority of Allah. Pharaoh placed himself above Abraham's respect for divine authority and he warned Abraham of consequences. Pharaoh's position was that Egypt was like no other place on Earth and Abraham would not be able to find knowledge, science and guidance for his mind and heart in any other place. Pharaoh's attitude caused him to see Abraham as a lost soul without guidance. Abraham disagreed. Speaking to Pharaoh, Abraham said, and I'm giving you a quote from the Qur'an, from the bible or holy book of the Muslims, "The one who created me will guide me." This Pharaoh has been preserved in history as a lesson to worshippers. "Who then," I'm quoting again from our holy book, "Who then is more oppressed than him who fabricates a lie on Allah to have the people go about ignorantly in error? Certainly, Allah does not guide the society of oppressors". Qur'an, Chapter 6, Verse 141.

22:46 IWDM Continuing, questioning religious myth. For attending the major issues in prophecy this is the end of time that we are living in right now. The sacred word personified along with this anatomy of bones has come into America with the people of the book, Jews and Christians followed by the Muslims whose book is the Qur'an. Knowledge without understanding is as a social issue of bones without any meat on them. Quote, this is a Bible quote, "Son of man, can these dry bones live again? Prophesy to the four winds." Back to the holy temples of Islam in North America, in fact, the first sentence is, "Islam, the holy temple of Islam in the wilderness of North America."

24:02 IWDM Just in case some of you all don't know what wilderness is, it's where there are a lot of wild life. Now, again, the temple of Islam, "You must learn how to put your mathematical theology in its proper terms." This come from the lessons, a workbook and assignments to members or students of the Nation of Islam under Mr. Fard for the first two years or almost three years, and thereafter, under the leadership of the Honorable Elijah Muhammad. Like some members in the Temple of Islam, following my heart, my heart refused to have my mind engage bold flagrant contradictions charged to divine, to God and to divine order and authority. In time, my desire to have it right drove out sentimentalism to have reason serve my need for better understanding. Teaching that I previously did not favor in the Nation of Islam were now getting my attention. And you should've favored everything. How many of you all favored everything? You favored the Honorable Elijah Muhammad saying that the black man is superior to the white man. You favored the Honorable Elijah Muhammad saying That you have been deceived by the white devil." [chuckle]

25:58 IWDM So, you favored a lot of thing. But I never saw too many trying to explain Yakub's history. [chuckle] Teaching that I previously favored or did not favor was now getting my attention. Example, blacks made the devil. Well, you don't have it quite right. Yakub made the devil, but the same people that said Yakub made the devil say Yakub is a black man. The black man is all righteous. I'm giving you what we were taught. The Nation of Islam's teaching is fraught with, loaded with boldly presented contradictions. We can't deny that. It was done intentionally to wake us up one day. Another quote from that time and that material, lesson material. "The white race is a race of devils." Now, that's one that Honorable Elijah Muhammad used a lot. "You are a race of devils." Oh, he said it like he meant it. And another quote from that time and that teaching. They, meaning the white folks, They are "born devils."

28:03 IWDM Professor Fard chose to do his work among poor black Americans by presenting himself as his own words, "The son of man." Now, if Mr. Fard was ever approached by anybody to answer for saying that, I know him, I knew him very well, and I know him very well. Although, the record in history will say we never met. Okay. So, anyway he wouldn't say that, he wouldn't admit that. He would pass it off with a joke or something but he did say that. And he went further than that. He said, "We were brought here by the traders, slave traders, and deprived of all knowledge of our past, and there was no way of any help coming to us or help did not come to us until "The coming of the son of man in the person of WD Fard." That's the lessons. That's what we received back then. And it came from Mr. Fard himself, Professor Fard himself. So, we know that he intended for us to see him as the son of man.

29:46 IWDM Now, church people, my father, was not a person that supported going to church. My mother was a strong church person. And the father of my father was a preacher having his own congregation. He was named Waali later, but his name was William Poole. William Poole. Later, he became known in the temple of Islam by the name as Wali Muhammad, and they called him Father 'cause he was the father of my father. The believers mostly called him father. They called him Father Muhammad.
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