Rashad Khalifa
Rashad Khalifa (
November 19,
1935 –
January 31,
1990) was an
Egyptian who moved to the
United States in
1959 where he obtained a PhD in
biochemistry. He later became a US citizen. He founded the religious group called
United Submitters International (USI), a group which considers itself to be the
true Islam, but prefers not to use the terms "Muslim" or "Islam," instead using the English equivalents: "Submitter" or "Submission." Submitters believe Khalifa was a messenger of God.
He worked as a science advisor for the
Libyan government for about one year, after which he worked as a chemist for the United Nations' Industrial Development Organization, then became a senior chemist in Arizona's State Office of Chemistry in 1980.
[Article from Skeptical Inquirer by Martin Gardner Sept-Oct, 1997]Specific beliefs of the USI include: the dedication of all worship practices to God alone, upholding the Quran alone, and rejecting the
Islamic traditionalist
hadith and
sunnah attributed to Muhammad. For many years he attended "Masjid Tucson" [
1] in
Arizona, USA.
Khalifa's son
Sam Khalifa played
major league baseball for the
Pittsburgh Pirates.
Starting in
1968, Khalifa used computers to analyze the frequency of letters and words in the Qur'an. In 1974 he claimed that he discovered an intricate numerical pattern in the text of the Qur'an involving the number
19 mentioned in
chapter 74 of the Qur'an, [
2]. He published several books on this subject. More information about the numerical pattern in the Qur'an can be found at [
3].
Khalifa was initially well-received throughout the Muslim world upon his mathematical discoveries embedded in the text of the Quran. Prominent Shaykh
Ahmed Deedat referred to him as a "great servant" of God in his book based on Khalifa's discoveries "Al-Qur'an: The Ultimate Miracle." However, as early as 1976 he became the target of defamation when he made several claims that appeared heretical according to traditional Muslims - such as:
* The vast majority of the Bible is God's truth
* All worship must be devoted to God alone; no human beings play any role as partners or intercessors at God
* All worship practises must be devoted to God alone; no human beings may be mentioned besides the name of God in proclaiming faith or during prayer
* His role as the "Messenger of the Covenant"[
4]
According to an article in the
Tucson Citizen, in June 1979, he was accused of sexual assault, sexual abuse, and sexual contact with a minor. The article reported that the accuser, a 16-year-old-girl, testified at a hearing that Khalifa sexually molested her while recruiting her for a
United Nations Aura research project. There was no evidence of intercourse found when the girl was examined at a local hospital. Khalifa pled
No contest to all charges.
On
January 31,
1990, Khalifa was stabbed to death at "Masjid Tucson" [
5].
CBS News reported that Muslim extremist
Wadih El-Hage was "connected to the 1990 stabbing death of... Rashad Khalifa [who] was hated by Muslim extremists [that were] opposed to his teachings. His murderer was never caught, but El-Hage, who was indicted for lying about the case, called the assassination "a good thing" [
6].
Submitters believe that:
* The true Judaism, Christianity, and Islam will be consolidated into one religion - complete submission and absolute devotion to God alone
* The existing religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam are severely corrupted and will simply die out, citing the recent exposure of false religionists in the USA, and the removal of such anti-freedom barriers as the Berlin Wall, the Iron Curtain, and the Bamboo Curtain.
Submitters also cite the fact that there was no evidence to substantiate the sex allegations made against Khalifa in 1979, and say that the details reported in the
Tucson Citizen article are based on mixed and contradictory testiomony.
*
United Submitters InternationalSubmitters
*
Submission.info*
Masjid Tucson*
Video Footage of KhalifaMuslims
*
Rashad Khalifa and the Number 19*
Rashad Khalifa - 20th Century Hadithist?*
Rashad Khalifa's Cult* R. Khalifa,
Quran: Visual Presentation of the Miracle, Islamic Productions International, 1982. ISBN 0934894302
* R. Khalifa,
Quran: The Final Testament, Islamic Productions International, 1989. ISBN 1881893030
* R. Khalifa,
The Computer Speaks: God's Message to the World, Islamic Productions International, 1981. ISBN 0934894388
* R. Khalifa,
Quran, Hadith, And Islam, Universal Unity, 2000. ISBN 1881893049.
* Y.Y. Haddad and J.I. Smith,
Mission to America; Five Islamic Sectarian Communities in North America, University Press of Florida, 1993. ISBN 0813012163.
