
DATE: Saturday, August 2, 1997              TAG: 9708020287

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B3   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY NIA NGINA MEEKS, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:  103 lines

FORMER NAACP CHIEF CARRIES UNITY MESSAGE FROM NATION OF ISLAM

The words will filter into South Hampton Roads in but a few days. The messenger will be Nation of Islam minister Benjamin F. Muhammad. The message is that of peace - attainable by placing God front and center.

Muhammad - once known as Benjamin F. Chavis, the United Church of Christ minister who formerly headed the NAACP - will speak at several venues during his Tuesday stop in Hampton Roads.

That morning, he'll be featured ``On the Line with Cheryl Wilkerson'' at 10 a.m. on 92.1/107.7 FM-WSVY. Later, Muhammad will speak at Providence United Church of Christ in Chesapeake as part of an interfaith dialogue. The day will wrap up with an evening rally at the Berkley Community Center in Norfolk.

``This is the first time he's been here since he changed,'' WSVY's Wilkerson said. ``I think it's important people find out what he's about and what his goals are.

``I think they will eagerly anticipate and await his talk. I don't think he'll let them down. Maybe people will take the time to listen to what he has to say. It's never a dull moment.''

Hampton Roads is the mid-point of Muhammad's 120-city tour to prepare the masses for the annual Day of Atonement on Oct. 16. The end result will be economic development, independence and unity, but only after people return to their knees in prayer, Norfolk NOI representative Minister Shelton Muhammad said.

``We're trying to revive the community in obedience to God,'' Muhammad said. ``In that obedience, we can be more successful in uniting and uplifting the community. We're reaching out to everyone: Jews, Christians and Muslims.''

As of Friday, though, the news of the visit had not trickled throughout the faith community, including some churches, synagogues and the United Jewish Federation of Tidewater. A press conference is set for Tuesday afternoon to expand on the goals of Muhammad's visit.

He rose to prominence in the late '60s as a civil rights leader. In 1993, Muhammad took the helm of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People as its executive director. A financial scandal led to his ouster in 1994; he was accused of using some $300,000 in NAACP funds to settle a sex discrimination case.

He joined Louis Farrakhan as a planner for the Million Man March on Washington in 1995. The United Church of Christ suspended his license in February after he announced that he was joining the Nation of Islam. He now serves as an aide to Farrakhan.

``We don't use the term `conversion,' '' Shelton Muhammad said. ``We try to stay away from it because it's divisive. It's not about conversion.

``Our objective in the long term is the unity of the community. That's what God demands of all of us. He's not interested in what we call ourselves. He's interested in action.''

Unity has been the call from Farrakhan since the Million Man March. At the recent World Islamic People's Leadership conference, he called upon all sectors of the Muslim world to come together.

An ideological rift long has divided Orthodox Muslims and the Nation of Islam. Charges of anti-Semitism and sexism continue to plague Farrakhan and his decades-old Nation.

Founded in the '30s by W. Fard Muhammad, the Nation of Islam is a group of mostly black men and women who gather in national mosques and study groups. Self-reliance is its chief credo. Headquartered in Chicago, the organization runs ``The Final Call'' newspaper, schools and other ventures.

The Islamic Society of North America welcomed the Nation of Islam's message of revival, so long as it leads ``to the path of true Islam,'' the society's secretary general, Sayyid M. Syeed wrote to Farrakhan. ``It will help remove the doubts that have developed in certain minds about the alleged racial interpretation that does not belong to Islam,'' Syeed said.

Such distractions must be resolved if the work at hand is to be accomplished, the Rev. Alexander Jamison said. He pastors Providence United Church of Christ and presides over the Southern Region of Ministers for Racial, Social and Economic Justice.

Muhammad's visit is a great opportunity to solve common problems, Jamison said.

``There are lots of things to celebrate between the Christian church and Protestant faith and the Nation of Islam,'' he said. ``There are things they are doing, things we're doing. Rather than keep trying to recreate the wheel, let's work together.

``We can spend all day and talk about differences. Issues such as economic development, educational development, teen-age pregnancy and especially the effect of the welfare reform in our community are affecting the African-American residents of our community, whether they are Baptist, United Church of Christ, Muslim, Nation of Islam or Seventh-day Adventist.''

Response to Muhammad's visit among religious leaders has been mixed, Jamison said.

Still, he said he believes in Muhammad, regardless of which path he follows to Glory.

``I've known Ben Chavis for a long time,'' he said. ``I still feel very strongly about his commitment to justice, peace and equality for all our people, particularly African Americans.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo

Benjamin F. Muhammad will speak in Hampton Roads on Tuesday. As

Benjamin F. Chavis, he was ousted as NAACP director.

Graphic

IF YOU GO

What: Minister Benjamin F. Muhammad, formerly Chavis, will speak

in South Hampton Roads as part of his national tour.

When/Where: 12:30 p.m. Tuesday at Providence United Church of

Christ, 2200 Vicker Ave., Chesapeake; 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Berkley

Community Center, 89 Liberty St., Norfolk. A $3 donation is

requested. Seating is limited at both engagements.

Why: To talk about the oneness of God in preparation for the

annual Day of Atonement, Oct. 16.