Al-Islam Christianity and Freemasonry [Paperback]

Mustafa El-Amin (Author)

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Mustafa El-Amin was born in Newark, N.J. in 1957. He was introduced to, and accepted the teachings of the Nation of Islam, under the leadership of the Hon. Elijahh Muhammad, in 1972. Upon the death of Hon. Elijah Muhammad in 1975, Mustafa made a smooth transition of accepting the leadership of Imam Warith Deen Mohammed, and the pure teachings of Al-Islam based upon the Holy Qur'an and the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad Ibn Abdullah.

Product Details

• Paperback: 214 pages
• Publisher: New Mind Productions; 1st edition (June 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0933821050
• ISBN-13: 978-0933821057
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,416,162 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Solid Presentation On Islamic Thought, But Weak Examination Of Freemasonry, August 12, 2006

By 

Rashied K. Sharrieff Bey "Magus of Luxor" (New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Al-Islam Christianity and Freemasonry (Paperback)

I bought and read El Amin's book many years ago, right after its publication by New Mind, owned by Armiyah Nu'Man, a friend and Brother of many years acquaintance. El Amin wrote a cogent explanation of Islam, especially in the nature of the Nation of Islam and its role in the social uplift of Black people in the difficult social milieu of North America. His critique of the difference between the Nation as a social movement and Islam as a religion or faith tradition/practice is creditable. His examination of Freemasonry, however, leaves much to be desired.

Although he did consult with Masons in his research, his conclusions are problematic, in that because El Amin does not have a firsthand experiential knowledge of Freemasonry, there are many inaccuracies in his presentation of it, and this is largely because he has had to rely on perceptions, interpretations, extrapolations, implications, and inferences drawn by Masons not as deeply informed about the sciences and gnosis of Freemasonry or Islam as they might or should have been for the scope of this particular literary attempt.

Masons in America are vastly Christian in faith and practice, particularly in the Prince Hall Masonic community, with whom Mr. El Amin consulted. It was Prince Hall Masons who were at the forefront of the Civil Rights movement, beginning as long ago as late 18th century Boston right up to the present day. Prince Hall Masons were at the founding of the AME Church, the Underground Railroad, and several other efforts for social uplift, and even Elijah Muhammad, the leader, teacher, and guide of the Nation of Islam, self-reported his own Masonic membership (though as yet, I have been unable to substantiate this with documentation). There is a heavy Christian texture to Masonry as practiced by the vast majority of Prince Hall Masons.

Consequently, for all the great social efforts by the Prince Hall and "mainstream" (historically Caucasian) Masonic communities, they have almost exclusively examined an experience of Freemasonry as seen and understood through Christian eyes. This is not a bad thing; it does, however, mean that there is more to the Masonic picture than is evidenced by El Amin's approach, and elements are missed because of that perceptual filter of his consultants, and the absence of a Muslim Mason on El Amin's consulting team to balance the outcome. Because of Mr. El Amin's unfamiliarity with the gnosis of Freemasonry, and his consultants' unfamiliarity with Islam, there are definite gaps in his attempt to transmit the interface between the two.

Muslims have been a part of Freemasonry for longer than the Order began to be publicly known. Some of its brightest luminaries have been Muslim. Abd-al-Qadir Ulid Mahiddin Al Jazairi, the exiled 19th century Amir of Mascara, Algeria and a freedom fighter against French colonization in the early and mid-1800s, was a Sufi scholar of profound intellectual and spiritual depth and power, and produced an astounding body of work in his lifetime, amongst which is an invaluable translation of Fusoos al-Hikam, or Bezels of Wisdom, the greatest work of Ibn 'Arabi, a Sufi scholar of particularly great renown in 13th century Moorish Spain. Abd-al-Qadir was proposed by French Masons who were members of the Respectable Lodge "Henri IV" of the Grand Orient of France; they sponsored al-Qadir for Masonic initiation after a particularly heroic act he took during a Damascus riot that saved some 12,000 lives - all of them Christian, despite his own five-year imprisonment by the French government some years before.

The ceremony was led by delegation, and on June 18th, 1864, al-Qadir was initiated in Les Pyramides, a French Lodge located in Alexandria, Egypt, and holden to the Grand Orient of France. Three of his sons subsequently followed him into the Craft. To both his Muslim and Masonic Brethren, Abd-al-Qadir was known both before initiation and after as a deeply dedicated and brilliant Muslim scholar, and a leader of great personal integrity. In discussing the Order with his Sufi Brethren he once stated that, in his words, Masonry was "the most admirable institution on earth, in the tariqah (initiatic Path) of the European in an outframe (framework) to bring closer the East and the West". What did he know that El Amin has missed?

As a Muslim of 32 years' practice, and a Mason of 18 years' study, and a nearly equal length of time teaching the Craft as a Past Master, author, and lecturer, I would love to have given consultation to Mr. El Amin; I'm certain he'd have a different outlook if he knew how much Masonry owes to Islamic science, mathematics, medicine, collegiate education, and philosophy - its gift to a renascent Europe.

El Amin has given a place to start one's study, but rather than being the capstone of the work, it is a somewhat disoriented cornerstone, and the serious student of Freemasonry will need to continue to dig and examine, though the book is useful in helping to develop solid and thoughtful questions.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fact mixed with bias, July 27, 2001

By 

Andre M. "brnn64" (Mt. Pleasant, SC United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Al-Islam Christianity and Freemasonry (Paperback)

This book is good for what truths it contains, but should be read with a careful eye. This book is written with a heavy pro-Islamic point of view and he makes Islam seem flawless, so the section of Islam should be read with that in mind. However, some of his criticisms of Christianity, particularly his observation that the preachers themselves do not beleive what they are telling the masses is DEAD ON TARGET and should be taken into consideration, as he gives STRONG evidence to back up that point. As for his section Freemasonry, from what I have gathered some of that is well documented, although his claim that much of it is to keep people from learing the truth about Islam is somewhat far fetched. In either case, read this deservedly controversial book with an open mind.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Literary hop scotch (save your money), August 29, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Al-Islam Christianity and Freemasonry (Paperback)

Mr El-Amin makes an cursory examination of a systems the requires much more than just make one or two points from what can be questionable sources and then adding his own assumptions and interpretations. Throughout the book he uses contradictary sources that usally only applies to one particular point, never attempting make any logical connection between points.