Timothy Drew was born January 8th 1886 near by Clinton, Sampson (Simpson Buck) County, North Carolina. According to "BEFORE THE FEZ- The Life and Times of Noble Drew Ali 1886-1924", Journal of Race Ethnicity and Religion, Vol 5, No. 8 (Aug 2014): by Fathie Abdat, states "From Ancestry.com ... details in the draft card verified that Thomas Drew was the same person as Noble Drew Ali even though the former’s first name “Thomas”. Above is also a 1920 Federal Census Records for Newark. note line 35 under Thomas Drew where he lives on 181 Warren St. (same address as advertising card of Professor Drew, Egyptian Adept) and his occupation as "preacher on public streets" confirming him as Drew Ali in Newark's Canaanite Temple.
The "101 MOORISH QUESTIONNAIRE" states, 011. Where was Noble Drew Ali born? In the State of North Carolina, 1886 (Note: “THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER” dated Sunday, August 15th 1993, stated that “North Carolina in 1690 reported the presence of Moors and that they are the ancestors of a people erroneously called Melungeons.” Dr. Barry Fell (Harvard University) introduced in his book ‘SAGA AMERICA" - The descendants of the Muslim visitors of North America are members of the present Iroquois (Chiroquois, Cherokee [Tsalagi, Shariqi]), Algonquin, Anasazi, Hohokam and Olmec native people [Choctaw, Washitaw]). Nevertheless, it's reported that his Aunt (Sarah Turner), who beat him often, once threw him into a blazing furnace; yet Allah saved him from the flames. Later on he ran away from home and one night while walking on the road, he heard a voice which stated, "Where thou goeth, I goeth!" It was Sarah Turner (Tunica) who raised Timothy Drew after the deaths of his parents and taught him his true heritage (history), lineage and legacy. In 1902 at the age of 16, Timothy Drew became a merchant sea mariner and traveled to Egypt where he was initiated into the Lesser Mystery Systems of the great pyramids and also traveled to Morocco, Hijaz (Saudia Arabia) and etc... where he studied Islam under some of the top Imams of North Africa. After Timothy Drew proved his Prophethood before Hierophants of Egypt, he made his only pilgrimage to Mecca and received a new name "El Hajj Sheik Abdul Sharif Ali" and charter to teach Islam in America from Sultan Abdul Aziz Bin Abdul Rahman Bin Faisal AI-Saud (1876- 1953) who was the head of the Holy City of Mecca and direct descendant of Hagar (allegory). Allegedly, in 1924, Professor Drew had a dream in which soon after he annex his name with Ali. The is not true. According to "THE MOSLEM SUNRISE - AHMADIA NEWS ABROAD shows a picture of Professor Drew, while a member of the Ahmadiyya movement, name was Maulvi Mubarak Ali, B.A. (Bachelors of Arts degree). He later become known as Prophet Noble Drew Ali. The Prophet honored the Sultan by placing his image in the first edition of the "THE MOORISH HOLY KORAN CIRCLE SEVEN." (Note: According to the Moorish Science account, at the age of 16 he befriended a band of Roma ['Gypsies'] with whom he traveled the world, although other accounts state he shipped out on a merchant seaman, became a railway express manor. He was a struggling agricultural and port laborer in Norfolk and Richmond, Virginia. "The essay “BEFORE THE FEZ: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF DREW ALI, 1886-1924” by Fathie Abdat represents one of the first academically published journal that critically examines the early roots of Noble Drew Ali before 1925 from an empirical, scientific perspective through scrutinizing authentic documents such as World War I documents, federal censuses, street directories, etc. As a result, for the very first time in American Islamic scholarship, one is able to unveil his elusive mystical past. Followers are able to glean insights into Ali’s adopted family structure in Norfolk, Virginia, his employment records as a
farmhand, longshoreman (Norfolk, Va.), porter (Richmond, Va.), port laborer and preacher (Newark, N.J.). Moorish Americans are also able to examine Ali’s early religious experimentation in Warren St., Newark, N.J. as Prof. Drew, the Egyptian Adept demonstrating his abilities as a genius proselytizer in organizing the Moorish Science Temple from the decaying ruins of Abdul Hamid Suleiman’s Canaanite Temple between 1923 and 1925. This essay also illuminates on reasons for Ali’s selection of material for the Circle 7 Koran and his early organizational maneuverings in the evolution of Moorish Temple’s names. It’s a piece of work all American Muslims need to delve into to discover the real Noble Drew Ali, by stripping the various layers of myths that has veiled his true identity for more than a century. And it is even told that he joined a circus and became a stage magician. Some researchers wonder whether Timothy Drew actually left the States at all. Well, no need to wonder. The article bear witness to this fact that he was an Ahmadi Moslem Missionary in England and opened a mission in Germany.
(Timotheos) meaning "Honoring God". The name Drew is of Welsh origin and means "Wise". Ali (Arabic: علي, ʿAlī) is a name, from the Arabic root ʿ-L-Y which literally means "high" or "Elevated". Therefore his name means "Honoring God, who is Wise, High and Elevated." The Prophet has been with us always. Here he is in the Ahmadiyyah movement under his name Maulvi Mubarak Ali. The MST of A is the culmination of the great works of the Asiatic Brotherhood, the Mahdist
movement, the Ahmadiyyah movement, the Moorish Zionist Temple, the Canaanite Temples, and etc... (see Aseer, the Duke of Tiers).
Timothy Drew as train expressman Old Canaanite Temple 1913 Newark NJ
1911
In 1906 Timothy Drew was a train expressman called a Pullman Porter working for Illinois Central B & O Railroad, also known as Mainline of Mid-America Railroad. He was raised in a Baptist church and moved to Newark, New Jersey in 1907, and attempted to build a militant Christian organization to combat racism and segregation. This group was known as the Drew Baptist Movement. Drew had to compete with the growing influence of major black churches such as the African Methodist Episcopal Church (first Bishop Henry Mc'Neal Turner was a relative of the Prophet) and the Black Baptist church. Drew soon discarded the notion of founding a Christian organization and turned to the new concept of Islam. Between 1908 and 1910, it is alleged Timothy Drew return from the east to the states and joined the Prince Hall Masons (PHO) (read, "ISLAM IN THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN EXPERIENCE" by Richard Brent Turner). Timothy Drew became a Noble of the Ancient Egyptian Arabic Order Mystic Shrine. But unlike others, he became attached to the principles, creed and faith of the ONE GOD principal as taught by Prophet Mohammed (read, "WHO IS PROPHET NOBLE DREW ALI?" by Chief Minister Dr. Ra Saadi El). In fact, the “Black Shriners” had sometimes been referred to as “Moorish Nobles,” and apparently even capitalized on the association in American culture of the image (in its more favorable manifestations) of the Moor with physically and sometimes morally strong, free blacks. In 1912, he united himself with two other individuals: one by the name Sulaiman Mohammed, the other Emir Abdul Karim El of Morocco (his Masonic-Shriner Brothers...to form a Masonic Temple you need three individuals). From there he received certain books, lessons, and knowledge to think on greater things. Muhammed al-Ahari speaks on the founding of the Canaanite Temple. "In 1905, Drew Ali met an Egyptian, Dr. Sulaiman, and invited him to come back to the United States with him. By 1913, Timothy Drew had also become a high level Shriner and a member of the Grotto under Dr. Sulaiman's Medina-Mecca Temple, prior to the establishment of the Canaanite Temple. However, in the same year — the Canaanite Temple — with Dr. Sulaiman Mohammed, Emir Abdul Karim El and Professor Drew was established" ("ABDUL HAMID SULEIMAN AND THE ORIGINS OF THE MOORISH SCIENCE TEMPLE" by Patrick D. Bowen). Professor Drew began his teachings of law and history in the 1st floor Barber Shop at the corner of the building. R. Dixon El, the Owner, became His first Adept and often taught when the Prophet was on the road. Moorish Men became the founding Sheiks of the Temple and later brought their women and children to the meetings. The temple grew rapidly and was moved upstairs to the 2nd floor and by 1913, the (Old) Canaanite Temple was born from this union on May 1, 1913, Newark, New Jersey (Jerusalem). The Canaanite Temple building was located in Newark, New Jersey. The address of that building was: Seven Rutgers Street corner 12th Avenue, and West Market Street (see above picture). (Note: The late J.A. Rogers of Helga Rogers Publications was also one of Professor Drew's students and wrote about the sciences he learned in "FROM SUPERMAN TO MAN." There also came Father Divine, Daddy Grace, "God", and etc. who had come out of the earlier attempts to establish the Faith of Mohammed). Suleiman’s assistant was a twenty-two-year-old man named Wali(d) Abdul Farrad Muhammad Ali who lived at 332 Halsey St. in Newark, and had conducted meetings for the group. Professor Drew's was challenged by Wali(d) Abdul Farrad Muhammad Ali (same name used by David Ford-El later on, but some speculated that they were two different persons) and in 1916 while teaching Arabic classes at Canaanite Temple in Newark, New Jersey, him and Professor Drew got into a dispute where he claimed the Professor Drew was teaching a version of Islam that was watered down. Here is the account according to Bro. Claudas M. El in his book “THE BIOGRAPHY OF THE MOORS,” “Later as time went on, the Prophet’s accomplishments were temporarily stopped. He received his first of many troubles to be faced him. A New Comer came into the picture. He was an Arab named (Farrad Muhammad…a Syrian Egyptian man named Walid Abdul Farrad Muhammad Ali) from a Moslem Middle Eastern Country of Arabia who came to Newark teaching Arabic. Being that the Moslem religion and the National side was new to the followers of Noble Drew Ali, the Arabian became more interesting to most of the people. The Prophet never taught a foreign language to his followers. He taught the people in the language they knew all their lives, English, a language that has been with the people since slavery time; 134 years ago or so. The Prophet’s followers began leaving the Canaanite Temple, following a foreign stranger they knew nothing of. The Prophet spoke to some of his followers elaborating on the event that had taken place. He told the gathering how the foreigner had come in and scattered his children, (his followers). The Prophet predicted that something would over take the Arabian for what he had done.” However, based on the latest information, it may not have been Walid Abdul Farrad Muhammad Ali, but the 'Arabian' known as Dr. Suleiman Mohammed. Nevertheless, this split caused the the disbandment of the Canaanite Temple and the formation of the "MOORISH DIVINE MOVEMENT" under its umbrella the"Holy Moabite Temple of Science of the World" (also called the "Moorish Holy Temple of Science of the World") on May 1st, 1916 (the same year of 1916 the "so-called" Jewish people established the Zionist Movement). According to various sources, a few members of "Holy Moabite Temple of Science of the World" began taken issue(s) with Professor Drew and by 1919, Professor Drew and several members moved from Newark, New Jersey to Chicago, Illinois and re-established the "MOORISH DIVINE MOVEMENT," the name used on the official seal (later known as the Moorish National Divine Movement of North America, the Moorish National and Divine Movement, and / or the Moorish Divine and National Movement). Even so, unofficially, the members still referred to the movement as the Moorish Holy Temple of Science of the World (read, "ENCYCLOPEDIA OF AFRICAN AND AFRICAN-AMERICAN RELIGIONS" by Stephen D. Glazier, and "THE MUQARRABEEN FILE BOOK VOL 1" by Brother R. Edwards-El, A.S.D.M., Author Brother J. Barnes-Bey, Co-Author).
By 1926, the "Moorish Holy Temple of Science of the World" would become incorporation under the name "Moorish Temple of Science" (also by this time unofficially called "Allah's Temple of Islam"...this name would later go on with various members to become the "Nation of Islam"), which had been set aside in 1925. However, it was not until November 29, 1926 that the Articles of Incorporation were filed Essentially, making it a civic corporation of the State of Illinois. Remember, the states retained sovereignty at this time and thus, the Moorish Temple of Science was established before the "New Deal" of 1933 under President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the 501c3 under President Lyndon Baines Johnson. Therefore, the "Moorish Temple of Science" had its own jurisdiction, as a sub division of the City of Chicago (private sector), just like the Catholic Church (Vatican City) did a year later to be incorporated within the City of Rome, Italy. This is the importance of the Certificate of Corporation #10580, known as the Charter. In fact, the first nationality cards, as well as, the adept chambers were formed under the original (civic) corporate status and it was in these adept chambers Moors were instructed and sent out with the learning truths of the Prophet Noble Drew Ali, who were instructed to teach our people and erect temples in the name of the Moorish Holy Temple of Science of the World, (officially, the Moorish Temple of Science) between 1926-1928 (Sheik D. Hubbert-Bey).
Note: James Lomax-Bey was a director (trustee) on the 1926 paperwork for the Moorish (Holy) Temple of Science, but was not a director on the paperwork for the Moorish Science Temple of America.
In other words, the Moorish (Holy) Temple of Science (of the World) or MTS is the Secretary of State "official" name operating as a 508, a church, NOT as a 501c3, a business and the Moorish Science Temple of America (MSTA) done at the county recorder's / register deed's is the "assumed business" aka "DBA" name.
In the "MOORISH LITERATURE" - "MOORISH LEADER'S HISTORICAL MESSAGE TO AMERICA", Prophet Noble Drew Ali states..."We organized as the Moorish Temple of Science in the year of 1925. and were legally incorporated as a civic organization under the laws of the State of Illinois... November 29th. 1926... "Since the work of the Moorish Science Temple of America was largely religious, the organization has been legally changed to a religious corporation and an affidavit to this effect has been properly filed in the Cook County Recorder's office in Illinois"... The name Moorish Temple of Science was changed to the Moorish Science Temple of America, May 2, 1928, as a special meeting was called by July 20th 1928, the first Governors / Sheiks of the Temples (the Supreme Grand Council) were named as the new board of directors for the now Moorish Science Temple Of America. On August 1, 1928 at 2:52 P.M. the affidavit known as our Authority or form 1099 was filed in the County Clerk's office as notification of the reorganizing of the Temple (forced to make change) changing it’s status from a civic organization to a religious organization (on paper) this was in accordance with the legal requirements of the Secretary of the State of Illinois"... Noble Drew Ali, Prophet shut them down in 1928, on August 1, when he had the Express Trust Recorded ... He was the first Moorish-American in the Western Hemisphere to proclaim our sacred heritage (Our Birthrights is the Legacy of our Foremothers and
Forefathers) and that's what the Prophet transferred into the Express Trust after he created the lawful estate (1925-26) / legal corporation (1928) in the land. He did it by way of the Settle Land Act of 1925 and later in 1928 through the Revised Hurd Statutes of the Religious Corporation Act of 1872. Once again, I must note, "The MSTA Moorish Science Temple of America is not solely a religious organization (unless you decipher "religion' to mean re-alignment in all matters, heaven and earth), it was first set up as a civic organization. It's a part of the MDNM Moors Divine and National Movement of the world. Have you not read or heard from where we derive our power and authority, or Islamism and Moslem Law? This "Our Authority" record placed the corporate STATE OF ILLINOIS on notice accordingly for their files, not to ask for permission. It is an "affidavit of organization" on form 1099 as an INDEPENDENT contractor. Not a 501 c 3."
(Note: Below, the name Moorish Holy Temple of Science was still used. Thus, the civic side was never meant to be abandoned and this is obviously seen in the following two flyers, the first to the left states... "THE MOORISH HOLY TEMPLE OF SCIENCE" dated May 16, 1927 and the second to the right states... the "MOORISH SCIENCE TEMPLE OF AMERICA" 'AND' the "MOORISH HOLY TEMPLE OF SCIENCE" dated September 15th to the 20th, 1934... six years after the establishment of the "MOORISH SCIENCE TEMPLE OF AMERICA" in 1928; five years after the passing of form of Prophet Noble Drew Ali and the same year (1934) as the Charles Kirkman-Bey's established "MOORISH SCIENCE TEMPLE OF AMERICA, INC").
Grand Sheik Hommett Anderson-El
The late Grand Sheik Hommett Anderson-El said, "When I became a member, in March 1928, the Charter on the wall in the meeting hall read Moorish Holy Temple of Science of the World. Our Nationality cards read Moorish Holy Temple of Science of the World. Later on in the year of 1928, The Prophet said that he 'had to strike his Charters.' By that, in most of his Temples he had a strip of paper, which read 'Moorish Science Temple of America; and this was pasted on the Charter, covering up Moorish Holy Temple of Science of the World. There was a few Moorish Charters that he did not touch; one in Chicago, one in Charleston, W. Va., and at that time, the questionnaire and The Koran read, Moorish Holy Temple of Science.'"
Prophet Noble Drew Ali organized the Moorish Science Temple along lines similar to Masonic lodges, with local temple branches and “Adept Chambers” teaching the esoteric wisdom derived from the secret circle of Eastern Sages, the Master Adepts of Moorish Science. "The faith of Islam practiced by those, who are members of the Moorish Science Temple of America is liken to that of a Sufi degree of Islam" - The Moorish Science Temple of America 1928. In the Moorish Divine and National Movement our Religion is Islamism, that Old-Time Religion. In the "101 MOORISH QUESTIONNAIRE" 017. What is our religion? Islamism. 018. Is that a new, or is that the old time religion? Old time religion. In the "ORAL STATEMENTS AND PROPHECIES OF PROPHET NOBLE DREW ALI," He stated, "You (Moors) don’t recognize Islam because it is yours"... "Your religion is Islamism, something you live everyday." In "SUFISM", by Hazrat Inayat Khan states, "Sufism originated from the ancient school of Egyptian mysteries, a school which existed even before Abraham (allegory), the father of three great religions: Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Those who know Sufism from superficial writings, and, sometimes, from translations of the Arabic or Persian literature, are apt to think that Sufism is the mystical side of Islam. In reality, it is not true. Sufism existed before Mohammed, before Jesus Christ, before Abraham (allegories)." Read "AFRICAN AMERICAN RELIGIOUS CULTURES" by Anthony B. Pinn, Stephen C. Finley, Torin Alexander, it states, "The Moors teach that Al-Islam is the translation of the wisdom of the Egyptian (Kemetic) System into the Arabic language [which is more than 68% Medu Neter] by the Prophet Mohammad (allegory)...When Ali taught he called (it) Islamism. Islamism was to be understood as much older than al-Islam, the "Old-Time Religion" that descends from the ancient mystery systems of Kemet (Egypt). The mysteries of Kemet represents humanity's (modern) earliest recorded understanding of God or the Divine, and as such it is the foundation of all the world's religions." The esotericism (called in Arabic tasawwuf) of Islam is today identified with the Sufis (a word commonly thought to come from the Arabic suf meaning ‘wool’, after the woolen hair by early Muslim mystics). Sufism is not a religion (in the traditional sense), and ultimately exists above and beyond all labels. It is said Sufism is older than Islam and that it really had no beginning. In the words of Sir John Glubb Pasha: "Sufism cannot be defined in words, nor can it be comprehended by the human intellect. It can only be imperceptibly 'caught' or imbibed by association with a Sufi master." Sufi masters are also renowned for communicating with their followers through dreams. There are numerous stories of Sufi saints appearing in a disciple's dreams and using telepathy to direct followers to undertake a special mission. The Sufi master is revered by his disciples for being in contact with a level of higher consciousness, his mission on Earth directed by higher powers. Studying the lives of some of the greatest Sufi masters we often find them to be wandering holy men (& women) whose actions are usually misunderstood by orthodox believers. The shrines of Sufi masters are centers of trance dancing, exorcism, and miraculous healings. The Sufi tradition is integral to Moorish Science (read, "THE MASONS AND THE MOORS" by Mehmet Sabeheddin).
The initiation methodology of ancient Moorish Science was designed to provide the necessary instruction and guidance for the use of the tools that would lead the apprentice toward mastery of the physical, mental/psyche (soul) and spiritual planes. These keys, for the higher functions and laws of the universe, were imprinted, via frequency, into the minds of the adepts to foster the understanding of the greater gnosis that created, governed and guided the universe and its cosmic cycles. The elect, of the “visible order” of the “Revealers of Light,” that encompassed this great body of knowledge were termed, by the ancients, “the ones that death had forgotten.” Names and titles for these elect illuminaries differed depending upon the language and degree (phase of consciousness) earned by worthy initiates and adepts of the Mysteries of ALLAH (UR RA). An example of this can be found in the title and seat of Melchizedek and Imhotep. In Hebrew, Melchizedek is defined as the King of Righteousness and Peace (Hebrews 7:1-3), just as Imhotep is defined in the Kemet (Egyptian) mysteries as the King of Peace. This seat, power and title, like most attainment phases in the “Hierarchical Command,” is available for those worthy entities that have completed their phase work in their respective consciousness quadrants. This is evidenced by the (allegorical) initiation of Yashua (Jesus), the Christ into the ancient order of Melchizedek (Note: Christ and Melchizedek are one and the same...Supreme Consciousness) as mentioned in the book of Hebrews 7:15-24 and in "THE AQUARIAN GOSPEL OF JESUS THE CHRIST" by Levi Dowling... The esteemed scholar and researcher Dr. George G.M. James in his monumental book titled, "STOLEN LEGACY" that was written in 1954, wrote about the Egyptian Mystery Schools, which he maintained that a complex system of neophyte initiations were developed and worked in Kemet (Egypt). Freemasons or Masonry - As veiled in the Coptic Gnostic Egyptian text, the term Pree-Messen (Freemason) meant “Sons of Light.” These“Sons of Light” are the same divine entities identified in the "MOORISH HOLY KORAN CIRCLE SEVEN" as the “Revealers of Light.” (Dr. John G. Jackson (1972) in “MAN, GOD, AND CIVILIZATION”… stated that the term Free Mason was traced back to the ancient Khametic empire (Egypt). It comes from a combination of two Khametic words Phre [the Sun] and Mas [a Child] meaning “Children of the Sun” and / or “Sons (and Daughters) of Light”. These two words combine to make the word Freemason. The term originated in Egypt and proves that the first Freemasons were ancient Africans (Afrakanu). It also shows that the order originated in Africa. Frank C. Higgins also defines Freemason the same as above, and he has it as Phre-Messen (from Egypt) [Higgins, 1923]. A Freemason is supposed to be an adept or master of the ancient esoteric knowledge of the arts, sciences, mathematics and other great aspects of learning of the old world). The ancient super scientists were the ones that left the Earth with codes written in astrological ideographs, sacred language hieroglyphs and codified measurements and mathematical ratios. This is evidenced by the "HOLY QUR'AN" of Mecca being coded with the mystic number 19 which is connected with the great pyramid and other great structures of the galaxy, which are encoded with the mystic mark of 19.5 degrees. As demonstrated and hidden within the great and sacred text of this Earth, the greater Gnosis of the “Higher Life Intelligence” was never lost, but veiled in code from those that were “ruffian” in mind. The operative science of the "Revealers of Light" was designed to teach the initiate how to press past the material boundaries to free him/herself from the prison of matter and the wheel of Karma (Zodiacal Wheel) to further ascend and connect themselves to the greater universal temple as a "Perfect Ashlar" within the temple's structure. Under the umbrella of Moorish Science is the department, currently known as Masonry in this age and time. However, the Masonry of today does not reflect the higher life intelligence gnosis, as that science, ancient Masonry was and is for the liberation of the spiritual Man from the fetters of flesh, not for the subjugation and suppression of the ancient wisdom to oppress the minds of masses from self mastery and planetary ascension. (This is the reason why Prophet Noble Drew Ali said, "I have come to pull the covers off all secret societies... The Preachers and the Masons will be the last to accept the truth and the last to come in [to the oneness of being a pure nation])" The greater Gnosis and instruction from the hierarchical command was and is available for those that are willing to submit to the cosmic laws of ALLAH (UR RA) and surrender to the divine path of the higher intelligence, contained in “Self.” However, it must be known that greater Gnosis is only bestowed upon the eager and willing adepts that are loyal and disciplined enough to “earn” that level of knowledge, as nothing comes without a price, test or process of distillation. To be deemed worthy to manifest and carry the message of the greater Gnosis of ALLAH (UR RA), the apprentice must first experience the greatest of all mysteries: The Job Mysteries...(read, "THE ESOTERIC CONNECTION BETWEEN THE MOORISH "REVEALERS OF LIGHT" AND THE MASONIC "SON OF LIGHT" by Z. A. El).
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