Dr. Stephen Finley
One of the most important episodes we have presented. Our Living Legend, a scholar of religious theory, makes sense of African-American religion and culture in a way that you won’t get anywhere else. He explains why we misunderstand the Nation of Islam, the Mother Wheel and what we don’t remember about Martin and Malcolm. An episode for all “races.”
Count Time Podcast Living Legend Dr. Stephen Finley
Selected quotes and notes from Count Time Podcast with LD Azobra Interview with Dr. Stephen Finley
Good evening. Good evening. Good evening it’s 4:00 PM. Stand up it’s count time, time for every man and woman to stand up and be counted. Welcome to another edition of Count Time podcast. I am brother LD Azobra. Thank you for joining us today.
This is another one of these great days. Awesome guest. He is one of our Living Legends. He is truly a legend. He’s an author, professor. He’s got so many different titles. And he’s also now the chairman at LSU, the African African American and Studies program that had just become a full fledged department. A year ago. I think I was at the ceremony when you all made that the launch program.
SF
That’s right. You sure were.
LD
Which was done first class. And you had your mentor there to speak. So that was a wonderful event. So we got here today, Dr. Stephen Finley. Welcome to Count Time.
SF
Thank you, Brother LD. And thank you for being in my home, and I hope you feel welcome.
LD
Oh, man, I truly do. Thank you for having me here today. You’ve got so many different dynamics that we could come from here, but we’re going to focus on this wonderful book that you’ve written.
SF
Yeah, well, I don’t know if I’m quite a living legend, but I appreciate that.
LD
We are excited to have you here because there’s so many different and also it’s the time of let me see, your book is written it’s about the NOI? And I’m curious. Let me first ask you, are you a practicing Muslim?
SF
No, this is all research for me.
LD
It’s all research. You’re not a practicing Muslim? You’ve never been part of the Nation of Islam?
SF
Never. I have friends in the Nation of Islam, many of whom are also professors and scholars, by the way, but a few others are just members of the Nation of Islam who are actually pretty significant, like Ilya Rashad, who I consider a friend, who’s part of the research department of the Nation of Islam. And he has written a book himself, as members of the Nation of Islam often do, on the Nation of Islam and UFOs, and that’s how we connect it.
LD
But this book here is on a whole other level. I appreciate that the title book is in and out of this world, and it really is how you say that it’s celestial material and Extraterrestrial Bodies in the Nation of Islam is the secondary title. So, I mean, we got to figure out what all that means.
SF
I hope I can unpack that for you.