The story of how I
reverted to Islam is a story of plans.
I made plans; the
group I was with made plans, and Allah made plans. And Allah is the Best of
Planners.
When I was a
teenager, I came to the attention of a group of people with a very sinister
agenda. They were and probably still are a loose association of individuals who
work in government positions but have a special agenda — to destroy Islam. It
is not a governmental group that I am aware of, they simply use their positions
in the US government to advance their cause.
One member of this
group approached me because he saw that I was articulate, motivated and very
much the women’s rights advocate. He told me that if I studied International
Relations with an emphasis in the Middle East, he would guarantee me a job at
the American Embassy in Egypt. He wanted me to eventually go there to use my
position in the country to talk to Muslim women and encourage the fledgling women’s rights movement.
I thought this was
a great idea. I had seen the Muslim women on TV; I knew they were a poor
oppressed group, and I wanted to lead them to the light of 20th century
freedom.
With this
intention, I went to college and began my education. I studied Quran, hadith and Islamic history. I also studied the ways I
could use this information. I learned how to twist the words to say what I
wanted them to say. It was a valuable tool.
Once I started
learning, however, I began to be intrigued by this message. It made sense. That
was very scary. Therefore, in order to counteract this effect, I began to take
classes in Christianity. I chose to take classes with this one professor on
campus because he had a good reputation and he had a Ph.D. in Theology from
Harvard University. I felt I was in good hands. I was, but not for the reasons
I thought. It turns out that this professor was a Unitarian Christian. He did
not believe in the trinity or the divinity of Jesus. In actuality, he believed
that Jesus was a prophet.
He proceeded to
prove this by taking the Bible from its sources in Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic
and show where they were changed. As he did this, he showed the historical
events which shaped and followed these changes.
By the time I
finished this class, my religion had been destroyed, but I was still not ready
to accept Islam.
As time went on, I
continued to study, for myself and for my future career. This took about three
years. In this time, I would question Muslims about their beliefs. One of the
Individuals I questioned was a Muslim brother with the MSA [Muslim Students’
Association]. Alhamdulllah, he saw my interest in the deen, and made it a
personal effort to educate me about Islam. He would tell me about Islam at
every opportunity which presented itself.
One day, this man
contacts me, and he tells me about a group of Muslims who were visiting in
town. He wanted me to meet them. I agreed. I went to meet with them after Isha
[night] prayer. I was led to a room with at least 20 men in it. They all made
space for me to sit, and I was placed face to face with an elderly Pakistani
gentleman.
Mashallah, this
brother was a very knowledgeable man in matters of Christianity. He and I
discussed and argued the varying parts of the bible and the Quran until the
fajr [dawn prayer]. At this point, after having listened to this wise man tell
me what I already knew, based on the class I had taken in Christianity, he did
what no other individual had ever done. He invited me to become a Muslim.
In the three years
I had been searching and researching, no one had ever invited me. I had been
taught, argued with and even insulted, but never invited.
So when he invited
me, it clicked. I realized this was the time. I knew it was the truth, and I
had to make a decision. Alhamdulillah [All praise be to Allah], Allah opened my
heart, and I said, “Yes. I want to be a Muslim.”
With that, the man
led me in the shahadah [the testimony of faith] – in English and in Arabic.
When I took the shahadah, I felt the strangest sensation. I felt as if a huge,
physical weight had just been lifted off my chest; I gasped for breath as if I
were breathing for the first time in my life.
Alhamdulillah,
Allah had given me a new life — a clean slate — a chance for Jannah [Paradise],
and I pray that I live the rest of my days and die as a Muslim.
Ameen.
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