number of the beast

This calls for wisdom: let him who has understanding reckon the number of the beast, for it is a human number, its number is six hundred and sixty-six.
-The Revelation of St. John, 13:18

Today's date is 6/6/06 according to the Gregorian calendar which, based on the above Bible verse, has a certain sinister theological significance for some folks. I will accordingly, share six different comments that sort of fit under the general umbrella.

1. The remake of The Omen (a film about the anti-Christ as a child) is opening in theaters today. The filmakers are definitely trying to capitalize on the whole 6/6/06 co-incidence. I was surprised that they even attempted a remake. Along with The Exorcist and Rosemary's Baby, the original Omen is one of the scariest movies I've ever seen. It is definitely a horror classic, as is and in my opinion, it holds up pretty well over the years. On the other hand, I wouldn't say the same thing about the other two films in the trilogy which were really dated. I definitely think that The Omen II and the Final Conflict would be improved with a more contemporary feel.

2. One of the things that appeals to me about how the Quran treats certain subjects is that it just sticks to the essentials. This is especially true about eschatology ("last things"). We are told that there will be a Last Day and that our deeds will be weighed in the end. And these events are described in vivid cataclysmic terms which move and inspire individuals to refelction and action. But the Quran doesn't give the kind of details which would encourage useless speculation on the subject. (like the Left Behind series, or the Omen movies, etc.)

At the same time, I should be the clear that the above comments are specific to the Quran. If we go to the hadith, we can find a basis for a pretty rich and detailed Islamic eschatology which includes the Dajjal (the false Christ) the Second Coming of Jesus, the Mahdi, Gog and Magog, and even Islamic versions of the Beast and the Rapture doctrines as well. I would just argue that they are less central, at least in Sunni Islam.

3. The Revelation of St. John is at times a hard text to decipher. And Christians haven't really been able to agree among themselves on how to interpret it. The terms Amillenialism, Premillenialism and Postmillenialism are often used to describe different Christian understandings of the end-time. One of the more interesting interpretations is known as Preterism which holds that many or all of the Biblical prophecies about the endtimes were essentially fulfilled in the First century. Under this interpretation, the Revelation of St. John is more like a coded political tract than the surrealist nightmare of the literalist. For the Preterist, the book is about the end of the Mosaic dispensation, the destruction of the temple, the fall of Jerusalem and the persecution of the early Christians by the Romans. In fact, according to some calculations, Nero's name can be seen to correspond to the number 666.

4. In both Hebrew and Arabic, there are conventions which allow letters to be given numerical values. And so in Jewish and Muslim cultures, there is a tradition of taking texts and "doing arithmetic" on them to see another level of meaning. In the case of Hebrew this is called gematria. In Arabic it is called abjad. Those who utilize gematria might argue that if two words from the Torah have the same numerical value it could indicate connections between the related concepts. And a common use of abjad (the most common I've seen, anyway) would be the use of "786" as an abreviation for "Bismillah Ar-Rahman, Ar-Rahim" (In the name of God, the most Merciful, the most Compassionate) in order to avoid writing the name of God. (Not unlike how orthodox Jews use "G_d" in writing).

Also, somewhat controversially, Rashad Khalifa claimed that he had used a similar method to uncover a mathematical miracle in the Quran which establishes its divine origin. He is a controversial figure, mainly for three reasons: 1) he took a "sola scriptura" approach and ended up emphasizing the Quran to the exclusion of the hadith. 2) He believed in his own method so much that when it turned out some sections of the Quran didn't fit his theories, he rejected those verses instead of rejecting his theories. And 3) In the end, he himself claimed to be a rasul, a messenger of Allah after Muhammad (saaws).

I think it is possible to find a number of interesting mathematical facts one can mention about the Quran, and if that helps sustain and strengthen someone's faith then masha Allah. But in general, moderation and caution are also important, especially if the mathematical methods lead to questionable conclusions.

5. Early followers of the Bab (A Persian religious figure who claimed to be the Mahdi, and who is considered a forerunner by the Bahai Faith) were also into abjad. If you are interested in Babi/Bahai issues, apparently there are some Babi abjad-related prophecies
which the Bahai faith failed to satisfy. At least, that's the argument some Babis make.

6. And finally, I'm still reading Foucault's Pendelum. I just finished a passage where the narrator is trying to guess the password on his friend's computer (and the friend happens to be a religious fanatic of sorts) and so one of the possibilities he tries is 666. The book is interesting but a little slow-going. Umberto Eco is a dense writer and he makes me want to check Wikipedia every other page in order to make sure I "get" all the terms and references.

UK Submitters: Mathematical Miracle of the Koran
The Straight Dope: What's up with 666, the "mark of the beast"?

more on perennialism

I haven't written about Perennialism for a couple of months now. But yesterday I found a page called The Le Floch Report which linked to an earlier Grenada piece on the subject. As far as I can tell, The Le Floch Report is a traditional Catholic site which promotes views similar to Traditionalism/ Perennialism but ultimately wants to reject it. The site also links to other pages which give a different perspective on Perennialism, especially as it relates to Catholicism. Personally Perennialist views and authors (S.H. Nasr, Martin Lings, Charles Le Gai Eaton, and others) appeal to me but I still wouldn't consider myself a card-carrying member.

Basically, I believe that God is eternal and that the human condition (including our basic spiritual needs) is more or less unchanging. So if a religion truly satisfied those needs thousands of years ago, then it should still be able to "work" today. If a religion was ever true, then it is "always" true. That is a bit of an oversimplification, but that's where my sympathies are. (see for example, qurbani)

summit of latino and african american race relations

(From Adisa's blog)
For Immediate Release
Media Contact:
Najee Ali (323) 350-1065

FIRST ANNUAL SUMMIT OF LATINO AND AFRICAN AMERICAN RACE RELATIONS


Who: Reverend Al Sharpton, National Action Network
Christine Chavez, Granddaughter of Caesar Chavez
Gloria Romero, State Senator, 24th District
Roosevelt Dorn, Mayor of Inglewood, CA
Eric Perrodin, Mayor of Compton, CA
Leticia Vasquez, Mayor of Lynwood, CA
Najee Ali, Project Islamic Hope
Earl Ofari Hutchinson, Political Commentator
Victor Field, Publisher, Latino Publications

What: 1st Annual National Summit of Latino and
African American Relations

When: Saturday, June 3, 2006
7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Media Check-in Open At 6 p.m.

Where: Omar Social Hall
1025 Exposition Blvd
Los Angeles CA, 90008
Vermont & Exposition

Public
Information: Free of cost to the public. Early arrival suggested.

Background:

LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles is experiencing a low level race riot between Latinos and Blacks. With racially motivated fights in the prison system and the public schools, the tensions among Latinos and Blacks has elevated to an all time high with the very real potential of spreading.

This dialogue, hosted by the Reverend Al Sharpton and Christine Chavez, is a first step in addressing the issues that are equally important to both groups immigration, jobs, and gang violence

so many books, so little time

I got a Border's gift card back in December. A few months ago I used half of it and got Amina Wadud's book on the Quran and Women (which I'm still in the middle of) and the very Grenada-esque "Black Crescent: The Experience and Legacy of African Muslims in the Americas" by Michael A. Gomez. (when I finish it I'll definitely have to comment on here. I'm kind of excited because a large chunk of the book deals with Brazil and the Caribbean where apparently more of a Muslim identity was able to survive among the kidnapped Africans, at least in the beginning)

Yesterday I went to Border's again and almost used up the gift card. I got "Foucault's Pendelum" by Umberto Eco (I'd heard of the book before but now that it's being marketed as a "thinking man's Da Vinci Code" I got more interested. ... Yes, I realize they are pandering but I guess I'm a sucker for that sort of thing). I also got "Islam, Fundamentalism and the Betrayal of Tradition" which is a collection of pieces by Western Muslim scholars and "The African-American Writer's Guide to Successful Self-Publishing" (in case I ever get around to writing a book).

personal note

I realized I haven't had too many "religious" entries in a while. Even the few "Muslim" entries have been more political than spiritual. It's probably a reflection of how in my real-life I'm getting caught up and distracted in the dunya. Some of my worrying taken up by legitimate obligations which I should take more seriously. Some of it is nonsense. InshaAllah, I'll be able to put first things first, and second things second. Keep me in your dua.

Black-Latino Relations and the Public Discourse

Blackprof.com: Black-Latino Relations and the Public Discourse by Tanya Hernandez summarizes and nuances some of the bleaker visions of Black-Latino relations in the future.

celebrating puerto rico's black heritage

Seeingblack.com: Celebrating Puerto Rico's Black Heritage by Alma Abreu is a piece about "El Museo de Nuestra Raiz Africana" (the Museum of our African Roots) located in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico, is where you can learn about the African cultural influence of Puerto Rico.

chavez brings hope to afro-venezuelans

Seeingblack.com: Chávez Brings Hope to Afro-Venezuelans; Ambassador Gives New Meaning to African Art by Karen Juanita Carrillo

understanding pickaninnies and improving the race

Understanding Pickaninnies and Improving the Race by Troy Peters is a piece from The Black Commentator about the Memin Pinguin Mexican stamp issue which I found while looking pieces on Afro-Latino invisibility (for the last entry).

"that's wells, not ellison, in case you feel like being cute again."

Speaking of Afro-futurism,, it comes up in an interesting way in Mission: Impossible 3. Lawrence Fishburne plays the role of Theodore Brassel, the head of the IMF (Impossible Mission Force). He actually had me cracking up in the theater. In his big scene, he goes off on Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and Musgrave (Billy Crudd) in a hilarious piece of "dialogue" which made him sound like an erudite version of Eddie Murphy's boss in Beverly Hills Cop.

At one point, after describing how the central villain (played by Philip Seymour Hoffman) has been difficult to catch and is an "invisible man" Fishburne says to Crudd: "That's Wells, not Ellison, in case you feel like being cute again."

I'm sure I'm over-analyzing this (at least, I wouldn't claim that the author of the screenplay had any of this in mind) but I think it's more than just a coincidence that Ralph Ellison's novel about an African-American man who is hidden and ignored and H.G. Well's science-fiction novel about a man who is literally invisible share the same title. Invisibility (secrecy, hiding) is a major component of the Black condition. For example, Afro-Latino invisibility is almost a cliche at this point.

Check out: Afro-Colombians:'Invisible' People Strive to Survive War, Racism by Saeed Shabazz, Mestizaje and the Mexican Mestizo Self: No hay Sangre Negra, So There is No Blackness by Taunya Lovell Banks, In Peru, Afro-Descendants Fight Ingrained Racism, Invisibility by Angel Paez and then invisibility blues and tuning out blackness

But it actually goes deeper than that... a few years ago I wrote a poem which started off with the 'joke' that from time to time, all the Black people in the world have secret meetings where we review and plan for all the various manifestations and expressions of Black culture. (e.g. "we decide what sounds will drip down from ghetto blasters to suburban frat parties for the next ten years") And in the middle of working on that piece I started to come up with example after example of how secrecy and hiding show up as themes in black history. (e.g. "we hid pyramid construction instructions in hieroglyphics and guarded them with mummy curses", "we hid getaway plans inside of gospel hymns" "we hid orishas under white-washed saints" etc.) In a Western context (especially under slavery) where Black existence is precarious, it makes sense that we would place a premium on being able to communicate among ourselves without being understood by others.

In working on this poem, what really surprised me is how far back it was possible to take this idea. We can even go back to the most ancient Black man of the Western Canon, namely Noah's son Ham, and read these themes into his story. Specifically, Ham's 'original sin' was that he "uncovered his father's nakedness", in other words, he revealed something which should have remained hidden, and as a result his descendents were cursed with slavery. And so for me, Ham's parting advice to his children was "Not every true thing need be told".

Of course, the above description only goes so far, and is only true from a certain vantage point. I wouldn't want to essentialize and romanticize Black invisibility. We should just acknowledge that it plays a large role, but then ultimately move past it.

the wrath of farrakhan

I've been thinking more about Star Trek and Afro-futurism these days and so I thought I'd share this blast from the past... An old In Living Color sketch called: The Wrath of Farrakhan

jesus isn't magic

Even though this comes from a "Christian" perspective, I really liked the piece Jesus Isn't Magic by Karen Horst Cobb. She presents a Jesus (as) free from a lot of the typical theological baggage and is concerned with bringing about real change, both in the soul and in the world.

the native orientalists aka "it's easy out here for a sell-out"

Al-Balagh: The Native Orientalists: The Muslims America Loves on why there is a well-funded niche for brown apologists for Western supremacy.

best of friends, worlds apart

Best of Friends, Worlds Apart is about two men, best friends from Cuba, Joel and Achmed, one black, one white, and how their relationship changed when they got to the US.

When I first skimmed this article I thought it was a gimicky human-interest story, but after rereading it, I saw that it was more nuanced than that. It gets into both the positive and negative aspects of race relations in Cuba and looks at the factors which can "guide" Cuban immigrants (whether black or white) to find a place in the US' system of racial identity.

The article made me think of an uncle who once told me that white Cubans were the most racist people on Earth. I would have expected a piece like this to oversimplify and paint a picture of two best friends living in a racial utopia coming to the US and suddenly growing apart. But the article did a half-way decent job of showing that many of the attitudes held by white Cubans in Miami weren't just a result of Americanization but came with them in their luggage (especially when presenting the perspective of Bill Brent, the former Black Panther living in Cuba).

terms of use

If you happen to be in the Detroit area, you should definitely check out the 555 Gallery. They recently completed a show called Mensaje Latino and their two upcoming shows are Urban Alchemy and Terms of Use. I would especially plug Terms of Use because I know a few of the featured artists (and I'm not certain but they might even put up an image I posed for). Anyway, the gallery is run by some good folks and if you are in the area you should give them some support.

(Actually, the guy posing in the above picture is a pretty cool and amazing artist in his own right named Umi Vaughan. He's from Oakland but last I heard he was chillin' in Cuba, presumably working on an anthropology doctorate. If I get my thoughts together I'll say more about him, an interesting guy. Se hizo santo!).

daara j brings rap back to its african roots

Boston Globe: Senegalese trio Daara J brings rap back to its African roots

Despite the urgent nature of the material, ''Boomerang" is brimming with optimism. Daara J -- which means ''school of life" -- weds buoyant Afro-Cuban rhythms, crisp hip-hop grooves, and soulful R&B vocals to lyrics that tumble out in a celebratory cultural stew of French, English, Spanish, and their native Wolof.

The album's title refers to the group's belief that hip-hop was, if not born, at least seeded in Africa. ''When we were taken from Africa to be slaves and sent to all parts of the world, a form of rap called tasso, which is rhythm-based storytelling, already existed," explains Freddy. ''When it left the motherland, it remained dormant for a while. And then one day it was awakened. African-Americans forgot where it originally came from. It was a natural evolutionary process for it to come back to Africa, where we have developed it further!"

Grenada's past:
african hip-hop
rappers rhyme for change in senegal
in bleak projects, emerging culture

an apology to james yee

Common Dreams: To Muslim Chaplain James Yee: I Am So Sorry by Rosa Maria Pegueros is a sincere and heart-felt piece but also interesting in its perspective. An American (Latina) is apologizing to an American (Asian, Muslim) for the sins of her (his, our) country.

While Yee was stationed in Guantanamo as a chaplain to the detainees, he was charged with spying, threatened with the death penalty, put in solitary confinement, and tortured until the Army decided to drop the charges. He subsequently resigned his commission. If you are unfamiliar with his story, I urge you to listen to him or read his account at Democracy Now! . He has just published a book about his experiences called For God and Country: Faith and Patriotism Under Fire.

juan cole on the da vinci code

I'm a little surprised at myself that I didn't make this comparison before. In DaVinci Code as Parable of American Modernity, Juan Cole points out that the premise of the Da Vinci code (that Jesus got married and has modern-day descendants) is basically the situation which Muslims are in with regard to Muhammad (saaws). Where Jesus' daughter Sara, and Muhammad's daughter Fatima both have very strong associations with the sacred feminine.

Grenada's past:
islam and the divine feminine
kerry descended from the prophet muhammad?

guantanamo suicide attempts

Truthout: multiple suicide attempts among prisoners at guantanamo

the religious left is back

Truthout: Religious Liberals Gain New Visibility by Caryle Murphy and Alan Cooperman is a story from the Washington Post of some recent trends and developments aomng religious liberals.