Farrakhan Delivers Address On Michael Jackson

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Details are emerging for the first time about Michael Jackson's relationship with Minister Louis Farrakhan – a friendship that endured for more than two decades.

As CBS 2 reports, Farrakhan delivered an address Sunday morning about the death of the venerable King of Pop at Mosque Maryam, the Nation of Islam headquarters, at 7351 S. Stony Island Ave.

Minister Farrakhan spoke of counseling the pop superstar during a deep depression. Jackson often told Farrakhan that he had never had a childhood.

"When he met with Shirley Temple Black, they both sat down and cried together, because Shirley Temple Black was a childhood star that I remember as a little boy and you know, when you're gifted like that, you don't have a childhood," Farrakhan said.

Jackson also spoke of his strained relationship with his father.

"I told Michael, don't be angry with your father," Farrakhan said, "because even though you didn't have pillow fights and sleepovers, those who had pillow fights and had sleepovers – they're the ones buying your records and they're the ones coming to see you. You had a purpose for your life."

Minister Farrakhan also spoke of how Jackson transformed the pain he felt into creative genius. He said Jackson was born into this world for a purpose, one greater than his music. He added that there was an irony in the words the singer chose for his final tour – "This Is It."

"Michael, then, was on his way to the cross, because Michael had touched the hearts of people all over the world," Farrakhan said. "Michael touched the hearts of every race, every culture, every ethnic group, every tribe."

Minister Farrakhan also spoke of a lecture the singer gave at Oxford University in England, which showed he was coming to terms with the relationship he had with his father. In his speech, Jackson spoke of seeing his father's harshness as love, honoring his dad and no longer judging him for things he'd done in the past.

Farrakhan's speech was entitled, "The Crucifixion of Michael Jackson and All Responsible Black Leadership."

Jackson had several ties to the Nation of Islam.

He used Nation bodyguards during his prosecution on child molestation charges.

Also, at one time his brother Jermaine Jackson, who converted to Islam in 1989, had predicted that Michael Jackson would follow suit.

WBBM 780 / Flying Angel