THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT 

              Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.



DATE: Tuesday, October 31, 1995              TAG: 9510310014

SECTION: FRONT                    PAGE: A12  EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Letter 

                                             LENGTH: Short :   35 lines

MEMBERS ARE NOT MUSLIMS

With all the media attention surrounding the Million Man March, I feel compelled to set the record straight. Even though the Nation of Islam represents itself as a Muslim organization, members are not Muslims. Their basic beliefs and racist attitudes are in direct conflict with the very essence of Islam.

As a Caucasian American Muslim, I am often confronted with questions and concerns about the Nation of Islam. I would like to clarify the difference between true Islam and the Nation of Islam. The very first pillar of Islam is to believe that there is only one God, without partners, and that Muhammad is the last prophet of God. The Nation of Islam believes that God incarnated himself into a man named Farad Muhammad, and that Elijah Muhammad was a prophet of God. Any person who believes in this concept is not a Muslim.

We believe that God is the creator of all that is in the universe, and that the creator is unlike the creation. Also, to claim that any person after the Prophet Muhammad is a prophet is totally blasphemous.

Islam is a religion that stresses racial and social equity. To elevate one race or group of people over another is totally un-Islamic. No true Muslim can support racial bias on any level, and no true Muslim can support the Nation of Islam or Louis Farrakhan.

SUSANNAH ABU-SUWA

Norfolk, Oct. 16, 1995 by CNB