Solomon's Temple

As I roll back the hands of time, the void of distorted space reassembles at a time in the past in my mind.  The setting of this scene is the driveway of a young, first generation African American and his friends.  From the other side of the looking glass mirror, the boy observed Solomon, and their friends playing basketball on a sunny, Saturday afternoon.  Summertime in Vineland was all about playing basketball, you see.  The boys had spent most of their childhood jumping back and forth from my home, Magnolia Park, and the home of Solomon Yusuf in Vineland, New Jersey.  This story is of a boy and his father, but that boy is not me, and his father was he who changed my life and the way I viewed it.  Here is the story of Solomon’s Temple.  

As the scene comes to focus, you will meet the early friends of my middle school years.  As you look around the driveway, you will see many faces, but two no more important to me than Abraham and Solomon.  As I picture myself in the moment, I think about the hours we spent outside Solomon’s house playing basketball.  Unlike at my house when we could go in and out of the house to use the restroom, get a drink, or ask my mom for food, it was different at Solomon’s home.  Solomon’s home was more than a home, but a temple purchased by his father that also served as home.  We could not go inside all day.  If we wanted a drink, we had to drink from the hose (something I did all the time as a small child, but not as much as Middle school came), and if we had to use the restroom, we had to do it outside.  Luckily, it was a wooded area.  I am sure you are wondering, “But why did you have to do all this?”

Solomon is a first generation African American.  His father, Dr. Yusuf, is an immigrant from the African nation of Nigeria.  Dr. Yusuf was born into the royal family in Nigeria, and was able to study in London, as well as other places in the U.S., and eventually settled in Vineland, NJ, where he works as a Chaplin for the New Jersey State Prison System.  Dr. Yusuf, as well as Solomon and his sisters, practice the religion of Islam.  Dr. Yusuf is a devout Muslim, following the 5 Pillars of Islam, most importantly his daily Pray or Salat.  On his magic carpet, Dr. Yusuf would face East, and pray to G-d.  From the mindset of a 11-12-year-old boy, it was a mysterious act, but nonetheless, I was intrigued and mystified by the low chanting of prayer coming to life from the lips and sword of Dr. Yusuf.   Although trips to Solomon’s home were few and far between, each time we went to his house, you could find Dr. Yusuf kneeling before his magic carpet, praying in Arabic song, the written and oral word of G-d.  

Although in the mind of my adolescent self, I did not understand the significance of what I bore witness to in Solomon’s temple, but as a 30+ year-old man, its significance in my life and how I view it bears the weight of the world in my heart.  As we move this story forward, I fast forward through my life and re-emerge in the year 2013 and inside the classroom of the university center at Cumberland County College.  Within the four walls of that classroom of just 5-6 students, was arguably the best college course I took during my tenure at Fairleigh Dickinson University.  Dr. Yusuf's presence and words took center stage as he was the professor for one of my classes called, “Religion and Terrorism.”  Dr. Yusuf is a Doctor of Religious Studies and memorized the Old Testament, New Testament, and Q’uran before he reached adulthood.  Over the next few months, Dr. Yusuf took his knowledge of the Holy Books of the 3 Abrahamic Religions and instilled that knowledge and wisdom to the eager ears of those present in the room.  As I sit here on this Sunday night, I think about one of the first things he ever taught me about Islam.  The translation of the word Islam simply means, “Peace and submission to G-d.”  As we move this story forward, let’s now examine the word jihad.  According to Dr. Yusuf, the word “jihad” means a struggle, more specifically “a personal struggle.”  When one has finally cleansed themselves of hate and oppression, then one may cleanse the world of hate and oppression.  The Q’uran references the word jihad when referring to the protection of life, as well as with the permission granted for Muslims to attack when they have been attacked first but to stop fighting when the opponent stops making war.  As the semester came to a close, Dr. Yusuf spent the last few lectures discussing quotes directly from the Q’uran to prove that it is not religion that create terrorism, but mankind’s evil thoughts and lust for power and control that has bred the concept of terrorism.  As I recite these verses in my mind as I write them, I think to myself, how can such beautiful and profound words of wisdom turn into justification for violence to continue this endless cycle of war and aggression?  What will it take to end acts of terrorism across all walks of life and religious affiliations, what will it take to end the troubles on Mother Earth?  

The Q’uran speaks of the sanctity of life.  “Don’t take life, life is sacred.  Only take life by way of law and justice.”  The Quran discusses further about the sanctity of life.  “Taking the life of one innocent person, is like taking the life of all of humanity.”  It also goes on to state, “Saving the life of one, is like saving the life of all humanity.”   The actions of modern Islamic fundamentalists simply contradict the words of the great Prophet in some ways with the killing of the innocent, in the name of a G-d that speaks of the respect of all life forms.  At the same time, the same can be said about all radicals amongst the hundreds of world religions.

Dr. Yusuf went on to speak about the Complete Diligence of a Muslim.  He spoke about how a true Muslim has an innate compass to do what is right, know what is good, and not do what is wrong.  To do so, Dr. Yusuf said, a person must: adhere to logic and reason, become educated, engage in dialogue of all cultures and religions, and be self-disciplined and hold yourself ready.  Dr. Yusuf finished the lecture that day by talking about the word Sabir, a word he associated with patience, understanding, and being resilient in your struggles.  

As he continued throughout the semester Dr. Yusuf provided a timeline of Islam from the life of the Prophet Mohammed to the present day.  Within that timeline, he connected the ideas of key figures in the early modern age that led to the terrorist acts of our time.  Like I said previously, it was not until the end of the course when he began to orally quote scripture from the Q’uran.  He said that was how many people who grow up in Muslim countries learn the Q’uran, passed down from generation to generation through oral traditions.  

Two Verses, Chapter 2 Verse 56 and Chapter 4 Verse 29, stood out to me, both parallel to that of the quotes on the sanctity of life.  The theme of these two verses is the root cause of the taking of most innocent life on this Earth.  The former states, “there should be no compulsion in religion,” while the latter states, “Those who believe, do not squander your wealth, do not use it for bad things.”  As I let those words between quotations resonate within my conscious thought and open mind, I think about all the people of the world who wish to divide it based on their differences, without realizing one can blend without breaking one’s foundation of principles.  How can the difference of opinion of others fill you with such rage is what I ask myself sometimes?  No better than compulsion of religion is that of a man who wishes to bring war and strife to the world through the use of one’s wealth.  I pity a man who knows not love for man, but only love for hate, power, and greed.

And so now we have come to a crossroad in this journey from Solomon’s Temple to this very moment as I put thought to key typing away at the very words you see.  Religion and money are the two things they say you should never talk about, yet we find ourselves in a world where money drives people to commit sin to acquire it, and religion has driven man to think that the sacrifice and killing of innocent lives is a way of doing G-d’s work.

From Dr. Yusuf to the countless Muslim families that I have encountered in my young life, I have yet to meet a single family that was not of good faith, humble, honest, and carried themselves with integrity.  From the early days witnessing Dr. Yusuf in deep prayer, I learned the power and influence of prayer in healing oneself and growing closer to my Creator so that I too may learn wisdom and live in accordance with His Law much like I saw Dr. Yusuf do with such passion and energy.  

As I close my eyes, I picture a scene in my mind, a dream of a past conversation.  It was Dr. Yusuf and I walking from the building to our cars in the adjacent parking lot one spring evening.  As we both approach our cars, he looks at me and says, “Listen, you must always give Sean.  No matter what the world does with what you give it, never let it stop you from giving.”  Those very words, to this day, have had one of the most profound impacts on my life, my perception of the world, and my faith in G-d.