Bilal Philips is a Canadian Islamic scholar who has been banned or deported from multiple countries. Through 2020 the opening said he was "arrested in the Philippines for 'inciting and recruiting people to conduct terrorist activities.'" Today the opening says only that he was "deported from the Philippines," with the reason dropped; terror appears 0 times in the opening now, though it survives 23 times in the body. A reader today learns he was deported from the Philippines and not that he was arrested there on a charge of inciting and recruiting people to conduct terrorist activities.
Read line by line and written up by hand.
Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-01. “terror” appeared 6 times in this article's opening at its peak. Today the opening has none; the body has 23.
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The opening as it read in 2020
Canadian Muslim teacher, speaker, author, and founder/chancellor of the Islamic Online University Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips , (born Dennis Bradley Philips , 1946) is a Canadian Muslim teacher, speaker, author, founder and chancellor of the Islamic Online University , who lives in Qatar. He appears on Peace TV , which is a 24-hour Islamic satellite TV channel.1He considers himself a Salafi who advocates a traditional, literal form of Islam.2Berger, describes him as an example of a preacher and opinion leader of the Muslim world "who clearly believes and preaches in often stirring terms that Western civilization exists in sharp conflict with Islamic civilization, but who ... stops short of openly endorsing violence." Because of what his critics call "extremist views", Philips has been banned from entering the United Kingdom, Australia, Denmark and Kenya, banned from re-entering Germany, ordered to leave Bangladesh, and arrested in the Philippines for "inciting and recruiting people to conduct terrorist activities." Philips has responded to such criticism by stating he is a moderate who does not endorse terrorism or the use of suicide bombings in Islam. Some civil rights advocates have defended Philips and criticized his deportation, claiming he is being religiously persecuted.3Radical sheik refused entry for Islamic talks .4The Globe and Mail . If Salafi means that you're a traditionalist that follows the scripture according to the early traditions, then yeah. I'm not a modernist. I'm not a person who makes his own individual interpretations according to the times Berger, J.M. "Controversial Canadian Muslim preacher accused of inciting terrorism and arrested in Philippines | National Post" .5
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 959418364.
The opening as it stood in 2005
Dr Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips was born in Jamaica , but grew up in Canada , where he accepted Islam in 1972. He completed a diploma in Arabic and a B.A. from the College of Islamic Disciplines (Usool ad-Deen) at the Islamic University of Madeenah in 1979 . At the University of Riyadh , College of Education, he completed a M.A. in Islamic Theology in 1985, and in the department of Islamic Studies at the University of Wales , he completed a Ph.D. in Islamic Theology in 1994. Since 1994 he has founded and directed the Islamic Information Center in Dubai , United Arab Emirates . He is known for his many contributions in the field of dawah , including audio lectures and books on Islam. Philips has authored over 30 authentic Islamic books and edited over 50 Islamic books, including The Ansar Cult in America , The True Message of Jesus Christ , The Best in Islaam , The Purpose of Creation and The True Religion of God .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 17966933.
The opening as it stood in 2010 6 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips is a teacher, speaker, and author, resident in Qatar.He appears on Peace TV , which is a 24-hour Islamic satellite TV channel broadcasted to many countries around the world.
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 370555494.
The opening as it stood in 2015 1 passage from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips , born Dennis Bradley Philips , is a Canadian Muslim teacher, speaker, and author who lives in Qatar. He appears on Peace TV , which is a 24-hour Islamic satellite TV channel. Radical sheik refused entry for Islamic talks .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 669493068.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023 10 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Canadian Muslim scholar and Salafist (born 1947) Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips (born Dennis Bradley Philips ; July 17, 1947 ) is a Jamaica-born Canadian Islamic teacher, speaker, author, founder and chancellor of the International Open University , who lives in Qatar.He has written, translated and commented on over 50 Islamic books and has appeared or presented on numerous national and satellite television channels, including Saudi TV , Sharjah TV, Ajman TV, Islam Channel , Huda TV , and Peace TV . Radical sheik refused entry for Islamic talks .
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1171233957.
The opening as it stood in 2025 1 passage from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Canadian Islamic scholar (born 1947) Abu Ameenah Bilal Philips (born Dennis Bradley Philips ; July 17, 1947 ) is a Jamaican-born Canadian Islamic scholar and author who is the founder and chancellor of the International Open University , who lives in Qatar.He has been described as a Salafi who advocates a traditional, literal form of Islam . He has written, translated and commented on over 50 Islamic books translated into multiple languages and available online, and has appeared or presented on numerous national and satellite television channels, including Saudi TV , Sharjah TV, Ajman TV, Islam Channel , Huda TV , and Peace TV . Throughout his career, Philips has become the subject of many controversies, resulting in him being banned from entering the United Kingdom, Australia, Denmark and Kenya, banned from re-entering Germany, ordered to leave Bangladesh, and deported from the Philippines.He was also named by the US government as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing .Despite restrictions put on him by Western states, his "ideas and activism are important in understanding Salafism" in the West and among the African diaspora."Bilal Philips as a Proponent of Neo-Traditional Salafism and His Significance for Understanding Salafism in the West" .
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Today
“terror” appeared 6 times in this article's opening at its peak. Today the opening has none; the body has 23. Read the current article and compare.
2005
2010
2015
2020
Oct '23
2025
terror
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Counts in the opening at each snapshot. Green: the word gained ground. Red: it was cut. Grey: no change.
What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined between 2005 and 2025.
Then
born in jamaica
Now
jamaican-born canadian islamic scholar and author who is the founder and chancellor of the international open u
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
