Friday. It has been many weeks I have not prayed at the Northgate Mosque. During this quarter, because of my Friday class that lasted at 1.20, I always go to the Islamic House for the Friday Prayer. Today, I didn't have a class and I went to the Northgate Mosque.
The preacher today was brother Ibrahim, an Afro-American. I am not sure if he is an American born or an immigrant; but he speaks both English and Arabic fluently. He was possibly born here but speaks Arabic as his first/family language.
Anyway, what makes me think today is not his origin, but his position as a preacher and his black skin.
When I was listening his interesting khutbah, I just felt as if I was sitting in the seventh century masjid with Bilal bin Rabah speaking about Islam to Arab listeners.
In the seventh century, it was absolutely a revolutionary experience to find a community that see human being equally without any racial baggage. In the seventh century it made no sense to find a black teach other race. But Islam taught its way. All human being are equal before God. What would distinguish them are their deeds. Those who are fear of Him and act in accordance of His words are more respectable in the society and in the hereafter than those do not.
In such ways I am proud of being Muslim, a believer of revolutionary religion that promotes equality of all human kind. At the same time, I will not forget to extend my respect to this country, America, that it finally can reach the same value, 12 centuries after Bilal called Muslims to the masjid of the Prophet. This country reached the value through its civil movement and without religious guidance. It was a great achievement that I will not fail to appreciate.
Learning from these different experiences, I believe that both religion (revelation, divine guidance) and human ratio might achieve a same value. It is seemingly only a matter of time to reach a same point.
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