Why Islam? Stories of New Muslims

[Cordoba]

Kristine (USA)

10 years ago if you told me I would become a devout Muslim I would have laughed. Now I am proud to be Muslim and would not change my life in for anything.

It all started Sept 23, 2001. I had never met a Muslim in my life or even saw a woman wearing Hijab. I was a divorced mother of two who lived in a small town. At the time I was teaching Pre-school and days after September 11th into my classroom walk a Palistinian Muslim family. I was amazed by how friendly this family was.

And as the year progressed I saw two very different pictures of Muslims. The first was the Media picture of horrible terrorists screaming and killing. The secound was a loving gentle family that was loving and attentive toward their daughter and kind and friendly toward me and the other staff. I saw pictures of "opressed" woman in Hijab. Only to meet this childs mother and see a self confident outgoing independant woman. What people were saying was not at all what I saw.

I have always considered myself a pretty open minded person, and I wanted to be careful and not disrespect this child's families beliefs so I started looking into the religion as I had done with other students beliefs that I was unfamiliar with. Only with Islam it was different. Once I started reading I could not stop. All the questions left unanswered by Christianity were suddenly clear. At first I was in shock, how could I agree with a religion the world was claiming was so violent. I kept looking for the violent teachings every one said were there and 4 1/2 years of hard study and I still have yet to find anything that teaches violence only a beautiful religion.

A religion that has the same moral teachings I grew up but instead of unconditional forgiveness we are as I have always believed personaly responsible for our own actions. After a year and a half of study, I was more and more clear that this was my beliefs. I could spend my whole life trying to find the bad others said was there, but clearly was not or I could accept the truth, that Islam was from God. I took shahada in November of 2003 and shortly after a brother who I had met at an educational conferance 6 months earlier and who had helped in answering my questions asked me to marry him. And disptite swearing I would never marry again. I agreed to marry him and we were married very soon after. And I know of no two people who are as happy as we have been for the last 2 years.

I have continued to grow and learn with the help of my husband and the sisters from my Masjid. Both my children and I have learned to pray and the words to many short suras. And I take every oportunity to read Quran. I carry a pocket size in my Purse (in a protective case to insure it is kept properly) and take every opportunity to read it over and over. And after 30 years of a very difficult life I have a wonderful peaceful life.

All the best.

 

[Cordoba]

A Russian Lady Discovers Islam
By Elena Shromova

This is how I grew up. Pioneers, red flags, atheism, father Stalin, father Lenin, endless chain of other "fathers". Easter.. well yes, there still was a kind of Easter. We painted eggs and found it very exciting but we were forbidden to tell about it at school (the same reason—the desired title of a pioneer which unless would have been difficult to obtain).

And then everything changed. "Fathers" were "defathered" and the whole country started to search for new idols. Easy money, business, western goods. Freedom, freedom and freedom again. Church slowly gained power, slowly became in. A Mafioso with a gold chain almost dicker than his neck as well as all possible politicians and Mr. president himself didn’t fail to attend the church on an appropriate occasion. ... This was probably the time when I unconsciously started to search for God, I wanted deadly to find answers to my questions. I couldn’t live just like that, just exist without any purpose as it seemed to me.

Curiously enough I could never utter the phrase: I don’t believe in God. I just couldn’t. I felt that I did believe. Whenever somebody asked me about religion, I would almost panic and depending on a person asking would either say that that was a very personal question or I would start a discussion which would practically always end up with even more questions. The concept that I should believe without questioning didn’t satisfy me at all. I couldn’t feel anything when my questions stayed unanswered. Now I understand how desperately I wanted to love God then, I wanted to feel and to believe and to be sure and to live in peace.

After finishing University in Russia I went to continue my studies in Germany, al-hamdu lillah! ...

When I look back now, I see so many small things which like parts of a puzzle give now a full picture of my journey. My first year in Hanover—too busy with my studies, learning German and adjusting myself to a new environment to occupy myself with existential problems. Like a small drop in the sea of busy life, I remember talking to a student from Turkey. He was not really a very religious person, but this is a thing which still fascinates me about Muslims: sometimes even a non-practicing person carries unconsciously a certain feature of a good Muslim, if it is for generosity, hospitability, honesty, or just a firm belief that there is a God, often Forgiving, most Merciful, a belief which seems odd in the western consume obsessed society.

So one day we talked about religions and I came up with my usual unanswered questions which almost always blocked the entire further discussion. I just couldn’t understand the concept of sin in Christianity. How can a priest forgive a sin? How could he know if I was sincere in my repenting? So I can actually sin everyday and go to the priest everyday? And if Jesus (peace be upon him) has already died for all of our sins, why not sin?

The student from Turkey was calm and quite and then said: "In Islam we say that every person is born like a clean sheet of paper. Everything that you do in your life is written down on that sheet and it is up to Allah alone to forgive or not".

I was fascinated. For the first time the discussion didn’t have a dead-end, I found an answer to my question. I was so confused before and just a simple phrase made things so clear and logical and free for understanding and feeling.

But at that point I did not go further in learning something else about Islam. ... I bought a book about the life of Prophet Mohammed (peace and blessings be upon him) and went to France for a language course. The course was good, the book was even better! I wanted to learn more.

That was quite a difficult year as I got very ill and had to be operated. But in everything is Allah's supreme Wisdom. I was very lonely and I had fear of operation but this was the point where I started to think more and more about God. Al-hamdu lillah, everything went fine and somehow I became another person after that. Everything that happened after is just a logical consequence. I think at that point in my heart I was already a Muslim.

For my studies I had an Italian private teacher for almost a year but through all the problems I lost the contact. So after having recovered I decided to continue my Italian lessons and started to search for a new teacher. One day I picked up a telephone number out of a dozens of offers which one can find on an information desk in a University. I dialled the number and a very nice Italian woman told me that she would be happy to give me lessons and was not very expensive. We arranged a place to meet and then she told me she would be easy to recognise because she was wearing a scarf.

A scarf?! Well, I was surprised, but I thought she was probably an Italian of Arabic origin or something like that. I have never talked to a woman wearing a scarf in my life. I just thought of some of those girls whom I’ve seen now and then and who seemed to be Europeans wearing scarves. I always thought they were not much educated and that they did all their men wanted them to do. Well, I didn’t know much about Islam and had my own westernised ideas of how a woman should present herself.

And then I met Nura, al-hamdu lillah. This meeting changed my whole life. I saw this woman, an Italian convert to Islam, very well-educated, intelligent, beautiful, with bright sense of humour and wearing a scarf! She had light, light in her face coming from inside, ma sha' Allah! My world was changed. I understood how prejudiced I was. We started our lessons, but, to tell the truth, we talked more about Islam than learning Italian, al-hamdu lillah!

And then I read the Qur'an. And I asked myself why didn't I do this before! This should have been the first step.

I was crying of happiness and joy because I understood at once, from the first pages, this is the truth, this is what I was searching for, this is the answer and the guidance and I don’t have to fear any more. These words went directly into my heart and I felt peace. Life has a meaning and I can do a lot to fulfil this meaning, in sha' Allah.

I remember sitting one day at my work feeling so absolutely and completely happy that when my colleagues had seen me, they would have known I had fallen in love. And I did I fell in love with Allah and Islam and the way of life He prescribed for us. And nothing on this earth can give a man this feeling of complete, incomparable happiness. Only the love for Allah and recognition of His will.

I pray, I wear hijab, I fast in Ramadan and I don’t know how I have lived without doing all of this before! What was that sort of a life, full of confusion, fear and loneliness?

Everything comes from Allah, we just need to make a small step in His direction and He will take us in His Great Mercy. I was lonely and He gave me such a nice Ummah, I was ill and He cured my heart and my soul, I was lost and confused and He gave me peace and guidance, my soul had hunger and He gave it bread.

http://www.islamonline.net/english/journey/2005/12/jour03.shtml

 

[Cordoba]

Europeans Revert to Islam for Peace: US Paper​

Islam is a message that appeals to more and more Europeans who are “looking for inner peace and reacting to the moral uncertainties of Western society”, Muslim and non-Muslim researchers told a leading US paper Tuesday, December 27.

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Although there are no precise figures, observers who monitor Europe's Muslim population estimate that several thousand men and women revert each year, The Christian Science Monitor(CSM)said.​

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Mary Fallot, who reverted to Islam three years ago after asking herself spiritual questions to which she found no answers in her childhood Catholicism, told the paper she finds the suspicion her new religion attracts "wounding".​

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"For me, Islam is a message of love, of tolerance and peace," Fallot said.​

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http://www.islamonline.net/English/News/2005-12/27/article07.shtml​

 

[Cordoba]

After Ten years of Atheism:
Dr. Jeffrey Lang Discovers Islam

As I read the Qur'an and prayed the Islamic prayers, a door to my heart was unsealed and I was immersed in an overwhelming tenderness.

Love became more permanent and real than the earth beneath my feet; its power restored me and made it so that even I could feel love … I was happy enough to have found faith in a sensible religion. But I never expected to be touched by such intoxicating mercy. ...

During his senior years at the NotreDame Boys High, a Catholic school, he formed certain rational objections against belief in the existence of a Supreme Being. Discussions with the school priest, his parents, and classmates could not convince him of the existence of God, and to the dismay of the priest and his parents, he turned into an atheist at the age of eighteen.

He was to remain so for the next ten years, throughout his undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral studies. It was a little after his becoming an atheist that he first saw the following dream ...

Ten years later in his first lecture at the University of San Francisco, he met a Muslim student who attended his mathematics class. He was soon to develop a friendship with him and his family. Religion, however, was not the topic of discussion during the time he shared with that Muslim family, and it was much later that one of the family members handed to him a copy of the Qur'an.

He was not looking for a religion. Nevertheless, he started reading the Qur'an, but with a strong prejudice. ...

http://www.islamonline.net/english/journey/2006/01/jour01.shtml

 

[Cordoba]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,Serif]Ann Spaulding (USA)[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,Serif]One day my daughter came to me and asked me if she could revert to Islam. She had a very scared look on her face as she knew that I was a strong Baptist woman.[/font]

[font=Times New Roman,Times,Serif]I only said, "Oh! Why?"[/font]
[font=Times New Roman,Times,Serif][/font]
[font=Times New Roman,Times,Serif]She told me that the lady she had been talking to told her to ask my permission because of what the Qur'an states about the importance of the mother. I questioned her to make sure she knew what she was talking about. She just sat there with a very scared look on her face, afraid of what I might say! Sure enough, she understood Islam very thoroughly. I then confessed to her that I had also been studying Islam. This came as a surprise to her.[/font]
[font=Times New Roman,Times,Serif][/font]
[font=Times New Roman,Times,Serif]A few weeks later, after she had introduced me to her Muslim friends, we took our Shahadah (Testimony of Faith) together. We said the statement of faith in front of a group of 12 ladies at a friend's house. Allah Akbar! It was July 2001.[/font]
[font=Times New Roman,Times,Serif][/font]
[font=Times New Roman,Times,Serif]It is amazing how many people take different journeys and end up at the same place.[/font]

http://www.islamonline.net/english/journey/2006/02/jour01.shtml

 

[Cordoba]

Jennifer Fayed (USA)

I soon enrolled in college and when I met Muslims, I would anxiously ask them about Islam. "Why do you wear a scarf? What do you believe in? Who is this Muhammad whom you always talk about?" Some had answers, but on the most part people didn't know how to answer me. Most of the Muslim girls I did knew didn't wear the scarf and would say that wearing it was a choice and that they were not that knowledgeable about Islam.

I felt that no one was able to give me answers, so I turned to the Internet for answers. There I found out about Islam. I couldn't believe that God (Allah) had sent another prophet after Jesus (peace and blessings be upon him). I knew God couldn't have put me and everyone on this earth without answers to our many questions, such as, "Why we are here?​

http://www.islamonline.net/english/journey/2006/02/jour02.shtml

A tremendous sincere experience in search of the Truth.

 

[Cordoba]

A British Politician's Journey to Islam

I suppose my journey toward Islam began when I first went to Egypt and, as a tourist, visited a Mosque. The Adhan — the call to prayer — had begun and I was struck by its beauty.​

It is fair to say my heart responded to it in a way that, at the time, I did not understand. Then, I knew little about Islam, but each time I visited Egypt I learnt a little more. I talked to several Egyptians about their religion, and bought a copy of an English translation of the Qur'an. The little bits I read made a lot of sense to me, and the more I learnt about Islam, the more admirable it seemed to be. The more Muslims I met, the more I admired them.

But I was still in thrall to my own ego, my own Western way of life, and by two other things which prevented me from fully appreciating Islam and investigating it further. First, my life-long belief in Nature: the belief that we somehow belong to Mother Earth in a special, almost pagan, way and that our own consciousness is the consciousness of Nature.

Second, that it was our nation, our national culture, which defined us and which therefore, was of supreme importance. But, in my heart, I always felt a universal, honorable, compassion, as I always felt the need to be aware of the numinous, the sacred. Many times in my life I believed this "numinosity" derived from God, the supreme Being — while at other times I believed it derived from Nature, from the cosmos itself: from what I often termed "the gods".

For decades, I wavered between these two versions regarding the origin of the sacred. Because of this awareness, these feelings, I was not as many people — and journalists in particular — believed me to be: some sort of fanatical political extremist who 'hated' people. And yet it is true to say that I was perhaps too arrogant — too sure of myself and the understanding I believed I had achieved — to give in to this compassion, this awareness, and accept I was simply a humble creation of an all-powerful supreme Being. Instead, I believed I could make if not a significant difference then at least some difference to this world, based on my own beliefs and understanding.​

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http://www.islamonline.net/english/journey/2006/03/jour01.shtml​

 

[Cordoba]

[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]Jusuf (Slovakia)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]I always strived to be someone else, until I found myself through my discovery and acceptance of the faith in One God.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]But let me start my story at the beginning and share it with you as it unfolded. I was born 26 years ago in a town in central Slovakia. I lived there during my early childhood according to the spirit of the times. I did not become interested in religion and the belief in God until I was about 10 years old. ...[/FONT]​

[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]The book that opened for me the door to the study of the teachings of Islam and the Divine Message that God had left for humanity through the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was the historic work of Ibn Khaldun, Al-Muqaddima. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]Through this book, I gradually became familiar with the words Allah, Prophet Muhammad, Qur'an, Sunnah, and so on. I started to discover the teachings of Islam and I gradually started to "be."[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]I came across Al-Muqaddima when I was in high school. I was a young person who, in addition to seeking fun, something that the young people typically do, began to discover myself, the meaning of human existence, and my relationship with the Creator. I longed to know more, to know God, the Qur'an, and myself.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]Shortly before finishing high school, I started to think about what I should do next. My parents — especially my mother — wanted me to go on to the university to become a lawyer, an economist, or a doctor. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]Fortunately — or rather thanks to God — they did not insist. At that time I had made my decision. I wanted to study Islam. I wanted to leave home for a country where Islam was alive and present in its daily form.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]My aim was to go to Egypt and study at the famous and respected Al-Azhar University. But the events took a different turn so I could write this story today. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]Perhaps out of fear or perhaps out of a sense of responsibility and dedicated love for my parents, I put conditions on my departure. I decided to send in my university application to the department of political science and law, intending to leave as planned should I not get admitted.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]I didn't spend much time preparing for the entrance exam, hoping I would not get in. But today I'm convinced that it was God's will for it to happen otherwise. I ended up studying political science. Paradoxically, I received the highest score in the entrance exam and instead of going to Egypt, I went off to study in the "Rome of Slovakia" (the town of Trnava). ...[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]Four years had passed and I had to choose my dissertation topic. I had quite a few ideas, but in the end I chose to write about Islam in Europe.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]I began to work on it. I returned to the study of Islam. I was rediscovering things that I had frivolously thrown behind me a few years before. When writing my dissertation, I wanted to meet some real Muslims in an effort to get to know Islam at a more intimate level, not just from books. I had managed to contact an Islamic organization based in Slovakia. ...[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]My dissertation turned out well and I successfully completed my studies. I was a university graduate who did not know what he wanted to be. What next? I again thought about Egypt, about Islam, and about life. Soon enough after finishing school I had managed to find a job — I became a teacher. Working with students — many of whom were my age — felt almost like the student life all over again.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]Work, fun, and nothing else. After maybe a year, I realized that I was going down the very same familiar path, in the direction in which I had already once treaded. In May 2004, I decided to end this life. I longed to be finally what I wanted to be and what I was — a Muslim.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]In the fall of the same year I decided to try fasting during the month of Ramadan. My friends made fun of me, my colleagues at work were perplexed, but I managed to complete this test with success. I had learned the Shahadah (testimony of faith in Islam) and I often repeated it to myself — either out loud or in my thoughts. But I was scared to move any further.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]Finally, after a long period of hesitation, I decided to call my friend Muhammad, whom I had not seen for two years. I met with him shortly before Christmas 2004 with an intention to convert. I spent the following month reading stories of converts and pondering over how such a step would change my relationship with others, especially with my family.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]After returning from the Christmas break, in front of the packed prayer hall in Bratislava, I finally recited my Shahadah on the day of Eid al-Adha celebration in 2005. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]Looking into the eyes of dozens of Muslims, brothers from different parts of the world, I finally felt that I am "what I am supposed to be and not what I am not, as it often tends to be the case." I was extremely happy and remain so until today. I have realized that since I already am created by God, I want to be a Muslim. [/FONT]

http://www.islamonline.net/english/journey/2006/03/jour03.shtml
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[Cordoba]

Abdul Wahid Pedersen (Denmark)

For many years after this decision I was a freethinker. I did not associate myself with an "established religion." I was a confirmed believer that there is a power greater than all of us, which had to be found in all and everything. I believed in the One and was uncompromising in accepting anything less than a God without partner, all-pervading, an energy unbound, without limit or name. ...

At the age of 21 I left Denmark to travel the world with a close friend. It was not with any spiritual search in mind, only a desire to move.

We traveled through Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. Our guiding principle on our journey was to live by the natural laws of Yin and Yang. We applied it to our diet, which was strictly vegetarian, and to our movements throughout the trip. We supported each other, helping each other in the harmonious and inspiring way that came to our hearts. ...

During our travel we naturally came to live among people of many different cultures and religions. This inspired in me a desire to know where I fit into the scheme of things. What was my religion? And where did I belong? I felt that now I needed to define myself and the meaning of my life in a more specific way.

As I said earlier, at the age of 17 I had reached some kind of conclusions about my religious beliefs; at least I knew what I was not, but until then I had not spent much time and thought pondering on what I might be. ...
At one point I went to a nearby stream to refresh myself and while I was there by the water, it suddenly struck me that if I wanted to get closer to God, I could do it immediately. All I had to do was to surrender. This thought came, as I was flat on the ground, reaching down for water. And from being a normal situation of reaching for water, this posture suddenly became my first prostration for God. I found myself for the first time head on the ground in front of the Creator, submitting to the one and only God, Allah! ...

Upon my return to Europe I did not bring much of my Hindu practice with me. The only thing I kept as a practice was yoga. ...

I moved into the countryside in Denmark where I spent a lot of my time tending the garden. I tried to turn my attentions towards the Lord in everything I would do. From time to time I would retreat to my room sitting there quietly in a cross-legged position, praying and seeking His guidance. I was afraid of asking anybody for guidance because I knew that the world is full of crooks and conmen who could easily take me for a ride, green as I knew that I was.

Therefore I just kept asking God. I would talk to God and say, "If You are there, You can hear me. If You are there, You can see me. If You are there, You know my needs. I am blind, deaf, and dumb and I don't know what is good for me, and what is not. Give me a way. Open a door for me. Give me guidance!" To my friends I would often speak about God and the eternal principle of God. And being a musician, I wrote songs about my longing for God.

http://www.islamonline.net/english/journey/2006/03/jour04.shtml​

 

[Cordoba]

French Coach Troussier Reverts to Islam​

"I want to keep my feelings for myself," said Troussier.​

Famed French soccer coach Philippe Troussier and his wife Dominique have reverted to Islam in the Moroccan capital where they live, sources close to the couple confirmed Thursday, March 23.

"Troussier is no longer Philippe, he has taken the name Omar and his wife is no longer Dominique but Amina," the French-Moroccan daily L'Opinion reported Thursday.
A source close to the couple confirmed the reversion to Agence France-Presse (AFP), adding that the ceremony took place last Friday.

The widely-travelled Troussier, 51, is former coach of the Moroccan national team and French club Marseille.

He also had spells in charge of South Africa, Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Qatar and Japan, whom he guided to the second round of the 2002 World Cup.

"Wonderful Surprise"

L'Opinion hailed the reversion as "a magnificent and wonderful surprise."
"Welcome Omar and Amina to the Kingdom of the All Powerful, the Kingdom of the Truth," it wrote.

"As Muslims we are happy to see such a strong and well recognized personality as Philippe Troussier become part of this religion of peace and tolerance."

The newspaper added that when contacted Troussier said he "did not want to elaborate too much on the subject."

"I want to keep my feelings for myself," Troussier was quoted as saying, adding: "as you see things evolve ..."

The Moroccan Evening newspaper reported that the couple have adopted two local girls Selma and Mariam.

http://www.islamonline.net/English/News/2006-03/24/article01.shtml

All the best.

 

[Cordoba]

An American Woman Finds Her Way Home​

By Linda Al-Saigel​

Feb. 23, 2006
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Where does one begin to tell a story that has been written since the beginning of one's life? I can only share the parts that I remember, the parts that Allah so gracefully presented to me. ...


I then went off to study at a university in California. When I completed my studies, I remained in California to work for a year. ...

We sat in the middle of the church listening to the sermon. The priest who was giving the talk noticed us in the pews. He began to stare as he spoke from the pulpit, and I became uncomfortable with his glares of recognition and determination. I looked at Sister Agnes and said, "Why is he staring at us?" She said, "I am not sure, but we will question it after the sermon."

When the sermon ended, we walked towards the priest, but to our surprise he was racing towards us even quicker. Moving people aside and excusing himself, he finally reached us and before we could get a word out, he pointed to me and said, "You have been in my visions for 2 weeks, you are in a far-away land with brown sand, mountains, and you have a black cover on your head with children all around you. You are a teacher or something, I am not sure." He continued, "When I saw you sitting there, I could not lose you, I had to tell you of my visions." I felt strange but also very relieved at the same time.

It was during this time that I decided to venture out and look at other religions to find fulfillment and grow more as a human being. I visited a Baptist church which also Christian, I read about Buddhism, I read the Torah, I went to Scientology meetings — I did it all. While I did find all of the faiths to be very interesting, they were not feeding MY soul. And that being my true happiness, with such spiritual turmoilI decided to move back to Arizona, my home. ...

Sometime later, I was asked by a girlfriend to be a witness at her wedding. She was Mexican and was marrying a gentleman from the Middle East. It was something new for me, but I felt honored by being asked to be a witness. It was there that I learned about the Muslim marriage ceremony. The people who were performing the ceremony were so nice and their wives and sisters were so kind and hospitable.

There was a joint admiration between the people and myself. I felt at home with these strangers. One of the women commented to me that "you feel like someone I have known for years." I felt the same. The ladies invited me to come to their home for a visit the following week. I went a few times and enjoyed their company. They never mentioned Islam much, but it lived in their hearts, so they really did not have to. I knew what had attracted them to me — the submission to Allah they had within them.

Meanwhile, dreams began to occupy my sleep. The first dream I had was of Prophet Jesus (peace be upon him). He was holding a silver chain that was hanging from the sky. There was a hole between us. Jesus was on one side and I the other. Jesus swung the chain towards me and said, "You have one more step to take, grab the chain." I felt fear, fear that if I took it, I would not wake up and death would greet me. I still had so much living to do and was not ready to take such a step. I said, "I am afraid, Jesus." He responded with a kind face and smile and said, "With time."
In the meantime, I began to attend classes about Islam. I was still attending services and gatherings at a Catholic church. I was making comparisons and began to really see what this Islam was all about. After all, I had never heard about it, and the Arabs and the Middle East were as foreign as Russia was to us at that time. The world was not small like it is today. Islam was not discussed at that time. I realized how the Old Testament, the Torah and the Bible all told the same stories, but in different ways and with different words, yet the message was the same, subhan Allah.

Another dream visited me, it was a vision more than a dream. Moses (peace be upon him) appeared in a picture that I had hanging in my bedroom. That is why I am not sure if I was dreaming or just seeing things. He smiled and told me, "Follow your heart." I was frightened by the vision, so I either woke up or came to my senses quickly. I questioned what had just happened. I haven't shared the experience with anyone because I am still not sure what exactly happened. You might be asking, "How can she give names to these faces?" I can't, that part was already in my heart. I knew who they were when they appeared, there was no question about it.
I went on with everyday life and continued to study Islam and attend a Catholic church. Then another dream came as I was nearing my decision to take the vow of becoming a Muslim. It was Jesus again. This time he had plane tickets in his hand. He said, "Linda, you have to take this trip." I cry as I write this because the dream is still so clear in my heart. He said, "Don't be afraid, but you have to make this journey." I asked, "Where am I going?" He responded, "On a plane, and don't worry I will be sitting right behind you." I took the tickets from his hands and said, "OK." The dream ended.

I continued learning how to pray and attended Islamic conferences — I felt at home. That is the only way I can put it. I might add that during all of this, my mother was by my side. Because she was a protective mother, she wanted to make sure her 21-year-old daughter was making a clear decision. After having attended a few meetings with me, my mother said, "Linda, you fit in with this group of people. I feel your peace." That is a lot, coming from a mother.

It was time. The next dream presented itself. I was sitting in a forest on a big boulder. It was dark, but there were sun rays shining through the trees. A hooded prophet with a brown cloak walked towards me, his face was bowed down so I couldn't see his face, there was only a shadow where his face should have been. Again, I knew it was Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). He walked towards me and reached his hand out to me. I reached out and placed my hand lightly, palm down, on his, and we walked away towards the light. The dream ended and my life began.

May I just say, that as early as I can remember, I have always asked Allah to be my guide and to take me where He wanted me to be. I am only His servant. I am here to learn the importance of His presence within. Believe!

http://www.islamonline.net/english/journey/2006/02/jour03.shtml​

 

[Cordoba]

University of Kansas professor

Dr. Jeffery Lang
By Annabelle O’Hara

Now a mathematics professor at the University of Kansas and author of three books on Islam, Lang came to speak to students about his conversion to Islam in 1982. The event was sponsored by the Rumi Club, a campus organization that aims to emphasize interfaith dialogue and bridge the differences between Muslims and non-Muslims. ...

“It was like having a conversation with the Scripture,” Lang said, remembering his experience of reading the Quran for the first time. “I asked a question, and a few lines later, I would find an answer.”

Why is there suffering? Why did God banish us from heaven if he loves us so much? Why did he not make us angels if he wanted us to obey his will?

These questions, which Lang had wondered about since childhood, were answered for him as he continued to study the Quran. He said Islam was constantly challenging his perceptions and opening his eyes to things he did not see before.

“Suffering plays a major role in what life is all about,” Lang said. He added the Quran stresses reason, intelligence and spiritual growth, and believers grow closer to God through suffering.

Lang, the author of Losing My Religion: A Call for Help and Even Angels Ask: A Journey to Islam in America, also said people should strive toward love and compassion, qualities shared by God. It is only through choice that we can understand the power of a virtue such as forgiveness, Lang said, and that is why God gave people free will.

The audience was mostly Muslims, who said they were inspired by Lang’s story to make them think about their religion from a new perspective.

/snipped out anecdote/
Faten Gharib, sophomore math major and vice-president of the Muslim Student Association, said hearing other Muslims’ stories helps her educate others about Islam.

“I think each person sees it in their own unique perspective,” she said. “This helps me as a Muslim to teach dawah (spreading the faith).”

As for Lang, he said his experience with his father made him a survivor and he would not be where he is today if he had not found Islam.

http://www.diamondbackonline.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2006/04/20/44476f2b327a0

 

[Cordoba]

From America to Egypt
A Catholic Woman Discovers Islam​

By Amber Acosta ​

May 7, 2006
​

Al-Azhar Mosque​

Why did I become Muslim? I can clearly remember the day I officially converted at Al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, I came right from the state of Connecticut (US), but what lead up to that day remains as a somewhat subconscious, yet continuous quest for God.

http://www.islamonline.net/english/journey/2006/05/jour01.shtml​

 

[Cordoba]

An American Teenager Discovers Islam​

[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]I lived in a very small Texas town called Wylie. When I was about 12 years old, my English teacher was special: She was from Turkey. Now, anyone who knows Wylie knows that in those days this was extremely unusual. [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]The teacher had come to my small town on an exchange program. Of course she never spoke with my class about religion, but it was enough at the time just knowing her. She got us involved in a pen pal project with students from Turkey. My pen pal's name was Yasemin. I still have a card she sent me, with a picture of mosques and churches side by side. The significance of this was not apparent to me at the time, but it was just one among many signs that God had chosen for me.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]During this period of my life, I yearned to be close to God, to please Him, and to receive His love. [/FONT]

http://www.islamonline.net/english/journey/2006/05/jour02.shtml​

 

[Cordoba]

The new face of Islam
The phenomenon of educated, white, middle class English converts to Islam

Caroline Bate (UK)​

At first she tried to resist. She did not want this to happen. She was not that sort of person. After all, there were no gaps in her life, no spiritual ache, she did not need support or direction. But she kept reading and it kept making sense.

​

​

'I had absolutely no expectation or desire to end up where I am,' she says. 'It was almost with trepidation that I kept turning the pages and the trepidation just increased. I kept thinking: "OK, where's the flaw? Where's the bit that doesn't make sense?" But it never came. And then it was like: "Oh no, I can see where this is leading. This is disastrous. I don't want to be a Muslim!"

Caroline Bate is 30 years old, blonde, blue-eyed and pretty, with a soft Home Counties accent. She has a degree from Cambridge (she studied Russian and German before switching to management studies) and works for an investment bank in the City. ​

She is Middle England's dream daughter or daughter-in-law. And though she has yet to make her formal declaration of faith in Allah and the prophet Mohammed - a two-line pledge called the Shahada - she considers herself Muslim. She ticked the box on a form recently. It felt good, she says.​

London Evening Standard, March 15, 2002

http://ww.islamfortoday.com/england01.htm​

 

[Cordoba]

[FONT=verdana,Arial]Why I decided to submit?[/FONT]
[FONT=arial, helvetica]8/5/2006 - Religious Social - Article Ref: IC0408-2411[/FONT][FONT=arial, helvetica]
Number of comments: 82
By: Angela Collins
IslamiCity* - [/FONT]


[FONT=Verdana,Arial,Helvetica]

[FONT=Verdana,arial]To listen to the audio essay by Angela Collins ..[/FONT][FONT=Verdana,arial]
Click Here [FONT=Verdana,Arial] [/FONT][/FONT]Real Player Required
[FONT=Verdana,arial][/FONT]
[FONT=Verdana,arial]I accept that I cannot control the events that occur in my life or in the lives of others.

Islam is the only religion that communicates total submission to our Creator, the Creator of all people and of all things. As a Muslim I know that everything I do first begins with an intention and then I must transform that intention into an effort in order to carry out what has already been decreed. This wisdom defines my path to be a better person to myself, my family, my community and to all of my brothers and sisters here on earth.

In essence Allah (the one God) opened my heart, Islam gave me the direction, and now I live to serve out the guidance lent by my Creator for happiness here on earth and if Allah wills, in the hereafter.
[/FONT]
http://www.islamicity.com/articles/Articles.asp?ref=IC0408-2411

[/FONT]

 

[Cordoba]

Angela Collins (USA)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhPloat5suc

 

[Cordoba]

Toviliani Tezyana (Italy)
[FONT=Arial,Geneva,Verdana,Sans-Serif]Moroccan Manners Gateway to Islam[/FONT]

CASABLANCA — It is the good behavior, altruism and friendly manner of Moroccans that attracted Italian Toviliani Tezyana to Islam and start a new lease of life.

"I start reading the Noble Qur'an in Italian and was moved by its teachings thanks to the well-behaved Moroccan employees at my restaurant," Tezyana told IslamOnline.net Tuesday, December 26.

Born to a Catholic mother and a Protestant father, it was up to Tezyana to choose for herself either of the two Christian schools when she reached 18.

But she chose Islam later after a long soul-searching journey when she visited Morocco at an invitation from one of her Moroccan employees.

"I really admired this faith, which pays undivided attention to manners and behavior," she said. "I miss this sense of fraternity spreading out in Morocco, this friendly look that warmly welcomes you as soon as your plane touches down."

Tezyana says the words are poor to describe her feeling when she reverted to Islam in Morocco at Oqba Inb Nafei mosque in Casablanca.

"It is a tremendous feeling I have never experienced before," she said, describing the moment when she announced the Shahadah at the mosque.

"I feel as if I am born again," added smiling Aisha, in her hijab and a loose gown.

Mecca for Reverts


The Oqba Ibn Nafei mosque has indeed become a mecca for Muslim reverts visiting Morocco from all the world over, receiving almost every Friday a newcomer in the attendance of well-wishers, who listen attentively to their journeys to Islam.

"The mosque is known for its weekly reversion ceremonies as it is almost the only mosque in the country to receive new Muslim reverts, who traditionally seek state bodies to register their reversion to the Muslim faith," mosque imam Ezzudin Tawfiq told IOL.

"People flock to the mosque from the four corners of Morocco to see the new reverts and heartedly congratulate them," he added.

The mosque traditionally receives reverts after the weekly Friday prayers, which draw a large number of worshippers.

"Brothers and sisters, we have today a new sister who came to our mosque to announce the Shahadah (testimony of faith)," said Tawfiq, introducing Tezyana, who announced the Shahadah last Friday, December 21.

"I testify that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) is His messenger," Tezyana said enthusiastically.


http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?c=Article_C&cid=1165994223487&pagename=Zone-English-News/NWELayout

 

[Syzygy]

I am actually considering converting to Islam, too. I use a copy of the Qu'ran published by islamusa.com (the Noor Foundation). Is this a good translation?

I bet you guys forgot about me, huh? Sorry for the long absence!

 

[Cordoba]

Hello Sygyzy:

I'm not familiar with the Noor Foundation translation of the Qur'an.

I do however highly recommend the Saheeh International translation used on the Qur'anic Quotes thread:

http://www.islambasics.com/view.php?bkID=120

If you have any questions, please let us know

Peace and all the best