Bismillah, FYI
Thanks to Brother Abdul-Raoof Mustafa for sharing this article.
What advice does Bey have for the young men of today?
I would say be together, be men; be together, love one another, dont pretend to.
Peace, Curtis Sharif
Houston, Texas
| Joshua Bey Talks of Life as Black-American Muslim Rabia Abdullah & Umar Abdul Salam, Arab News | ||||||
MAKKAH, 11 January 2006 Joshua Bey was born 1910 in Ocean City, Maryland, and converted to Islam in 1932, the year his grandmother came to visit from New Jersey with a book written by Nobel Drew Ali (the founder of the Americas first Black-American Muslim society) entitled The Black Moor. At 95, Bey is one of the oldest of the estimated 2.5 million Hajis participating in this years pilgrimage. He recounted to Arab News his long life as an African-American
Muslim. I became Muslim, accepting Islam when I was 22 years old, said the slim, distinguished-looking gentleman who looks not a day over 70. Speaking in his clear, smooth voice, he described his close relationship with some of the leaders of the Black-American Muslim movement in the 20th Century. In 1949, I joined Elijah Muhammad and the Nation of Islam. During the years when Malcolm X was alive the movement prospered. Back then the brothers and sisters stayed in close contact with each other, said Bey. I moved to Detroit and lived there for 31 years. In 1975, I joined with W.D. Muhammad and am still with them now. We sat there captured by the sweet tones as the present history of Islam in America was gently told to us by one of the makers of its history. Bey said that the leaders of the Nation of Islam introduced African-Americans to the faith. Elijah Muhammad brought us along and taught us many things from the Quran. W.D.
taught us about the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), prayer and the Sunnah. We learned about Islam step by step, he said. Bey then described how he felt about his first trip to Makkah: It makes me so happy to see so many Muslims in one place. His trip here had him leaving from Philadelphia to New York to Jeddah. He has plans to see Egypt after Haj. When asked how he felt when told all the scary stories about coming to Saudi Arabia, he said he shrugged the concerns off. I threw all the negative thoughts out of my head, he said. I wanted to come. I was not going to let nobody talk me out of coming. I have been stabbed three times and poisoned two times and I am still here. Allah wants me here. When asked why he became a Muslim, Bey described what it was like to live in an America that upheld Christian values, but also harbored hate groups, such as the Klu Klux Klan. Bey describes how his grandfather learned to survive under
the hostile climate of a pre-Civil Rights America. The Klu Klux Klan would beat and kill blacks back then but they didnt beat my grandfather. He told them, God would bless me to kill you if you bother me or my family. They said he was crazy, and left him alone, said Bey. My people were good Christians, they had honor, which meant they treated everybody the same, black, white, Christian, or not. (My parents) thought I would become a Christian preacher, but I believe Allah had something more than Christianity for me. He then told us about his father. My father never had an education but he was a born mechanic. He could fix any car. My father told me that man was not supposed to be afraid of nobody but God. After a moments silence he went on, Ever since I could remember I was looking for something that didnt stop until I found Islam. ... I was born Christian but I was always looking for something more than Christianity. We
overheard that Joshua Bey knew Malcolm X. Bey said that the famous, outspoken Nation of Islam activist (and founder of the Organization of Afro-American Unity), who was assassinated in Harlem in 1965, knew all of his 11 children by name. When we asked about what kind of work hes done, Bey responded by discussing the value of work. You know some men liked to sit around and talk about Islam, but I was a worker. I worked all my life. I have worked at the steel mill, I have worked as a chef never could just sit around. What advice does Bey have for the young men of today? I would say be together, be men; be together, love one another, dont pretend to. |
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{Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided.}
(Holy Quran-16:125)
{And who is better in speech than he who [says: "My Lord is Allah (believes in His Oneness)," and then stands straight (acts upon His Order), and] invites (men) to Allah's (Islamic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I am one of the Muslims."} (Holy Quran-41:33)
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "By Allah, if Allah guides one person by you, it is better for you than the best types of camels." [al-Bukhaaree, Muslim]
The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said, "Whoever calls to guidance will have a reward similar to the reward of the one who follows him, without the reward of either of them being lessened at all."
[Muslim, Ahmad, Aboo Daawood, an-Nasaa'ee, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah]
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