The Theology of time is a compilation of twenty lectures given by Elijah Muhammad, Messenger of Allah, between the periods of June 4, 1972 and October 29, 1972.
The setting was the dedication of Temple #2, Chicago, IL, wherein the Messenger was the keynote speaker for the next twenty lectures. This was very significant in light of the Messenger being forbidden up to that time to speak. He stated that Allah had forbade him to come out until it was time.
Excerpts from the lecture series were put into the Muhammad Speaks Newspaper; however, the entire transcript was not published until the early 90’s by the former secretary of the Nation of Islam.
This early edition was published in the form of a subject indexed format, which made for easy reading; however on drawback was that where there was no significant quantity of subject matter, certain aspects were omitted. These omissions were in part the reason why the whole transcript in its entirety was published by Secretarius MEMPS.
First published in 1997, Minister Nasir Hakim compiled each lecture as there were taught by the Messenger and this method was considered best; for the Messenger himself stated, “Since the time is helping me make manifest so much of what I am teaching, I want to...give it to you...but can’t do that until I get you on the first step. I got to go step by step to the first step to get you to see, but once you see you will be like the donkey Balaam was riding. Remember, the donkey had never had [a conversation] with an angel. He was confounded to see an angel standing before him; teaching him the knowledge of what he was carrying on his back.
“Allah is making manifest the truth all out in the streets, all around you and above you, so we don’t have to go after it like we did 40 years ago....What I’ve been saying is only to shape you for listening to the real thing that I want to give you. I have just now got up to the steps of what I intend to teach you...and seeing that you do not know these steps that I am taking, I build them all up one by one to you, then when I get you up to the floor, you can take a seat and sit down.”
This mean and method used by the Messenger not only confirms the importance completeness, but how the teaching was delivered as well. The exceptions of omissions and easy reading created by the former secretary’s attempt, was at the expense of the rule. This can be similarly characterized when reflecting on the rules of mathematics. Although one knows how to add, subtract, multiply, use square roots and substitutions without adhering to the rules of math, the wrong answer is highly likely. Whereas, if one were addressing an equation which deals with all the above, then if square roots aren’t solved first, the answer will be wrong, because that is the rule of math. Likewise, if the method in which the Messenger gave the message is omitted, then possibly where one ends up may not be where the object of the teaching is intended. This is the major reason a full compilation as the Messenger taught it is produced.
This lecture series represent one of the most comprehensive overviews of the Messenger’s work ever compiled into one body of knowledge. Based on such profundity, Minister Nasir Hakim included many footnotes citing all biblical and qur’anic scriptures as possible. This compliment of scholarship gave even more weight to how important it is for this book to be made part of one’s library.
