Warith Deen Mohammed
| Warith Deen Mohammed | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Leader of the Nation of Islam | |
|
In office February 26, 1975 – 1976 |
|
| Preceded by | Elijah Muhammad |
| Leader of the American Society of Muslims | |
|
In office 1976 – August 31, 2003 |
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| Director of The Mosque Cares | |
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In office 2003 – September 9, 2008 |
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| Succeeded by | Wallace D. Mohammed II |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Wallace D Mohammed October 30, 1933 Hamtramck, Michigan, U.S. |
| Died | September 9, 2008 (aged 74) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Resting place |
Mount Glenwood Cemetery, Thornton, Illinois, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Spouse(s) |
Khadijah Siddeeq-Mohammed |
| Relations | Dr. Akbar Muhammad, PHD, Jabir Herbert Muhammad |
| Alma mater | Muhammad University of Islam |
| Occupation | Imam, Religious Reformer, Muslim Scholar, Businessman |
| Religion | Sunni Islam |
Warith Deen Mohammed (born Wallace D. Muhammad; October 30, 1933 – September 9, 2008), also known as "W. Deen Mohammed" or "Imam W. Deen Muhammad", was a progressive African American Muslim leader, theologian, philosopher, Muslim revivalist, and Islamic thinker (1975–2008) who disbanded the original Nation of Islam (NOI) in 1976 and transformed it into an orthodox mainstream Islamic movement, the World Community of Al-Islam in the West which later became the American Society of Muslims. He was a son of Elijah Muhammad, the leader of the Nation of Islam from 1933 to 1975.
He became the national leader (Supreme Minister) of the Nation of Islam in 1975 after his father's death. As a result of his personal studies and thinking, he had led the vast majority of the members of the original NOI to mainstream, traditional Sunni Islam by 1978. With this merger, he oversaw the largest mass conversion to Islam in the history of the United States. He rejected the previous deification of Wallace Fard Muhammad, accepted whites as fellow-worshippers, forged closer ties with mainstream Muslim communities, and introduced the Five Pillars of Islam into his group's theology.
Splinter groups resisting these changes formed after Elijah Muhammad's death, particularly under Louis Farrakhan, who in 1981 would revive the name Nation of Islam (from Final Call) for his organization. Farrakhan's NOI and previous Final Call claim direct continuity from the pre-1976 NOI.
Mohammed was born Wallace Delaney Muhammad on Yeman Street in Hamtramck, Michigan in 1933. In 1980 he changed his name to Warithuddin Muhammad, Warith Deen Muhammad, which translates to 'Inheritor of the Religion of Muhammad'. His parents were Clara and Elijah Muhammad, both highly active in the Nation of Islam (NOI), the organization that preached a form of Black nationalism and its own version of Islam. From 1934 until his death in 1975, Elijah Muhammad led the Nation.
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