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Foreword
As a former minister and
elder of the Christian church, it has become incumbent upon me to enlighten
those that continue to walk in darkness. After embracing Islam I felt a
dire need to help those who have not yet been blessed to experience the
light of Islam.
I thank Almighty God,
Allah, for having mercy upon me, causing me to come to know the beauty of
Islam as taught by Prophet Muhammad and his rightly guided followers. It is
only by the mercy of Allah that we receive true guidance and the ability to
follow the straight path, which leads to success in this life and the
Hereafter.
Praise be to Allah for the
kindness shown to me by Shaykh 'Abdullah bin 'Abdul-'Azeez bin Baz upon my
embracing Islam. I cherish and will pass on the knowledge gained from each
meeting with him. There are many others who have helped me by means of
encouragement and knowledge, but for fear of missing anyone, I will refrain
from attempting to list them. Sufficient it is to say that I thank Almighty
God, Allah, for each and every brother and sister that He has allowed to
play a role in my growth and development as a Muslim.
I pray that this short work
will be of benefit to all. I hope that Christians will find that there is
yet i hope for the wayward conditions that prevail over the bulk of
Christendom. The answers to Christian problems are not to be found with the
Christians themselves, for they are, in most instances, the root of their
own problems. Rather, Islam is the solution to the problems plaguing the
world of Christianity,as well as the problems facing the so-called worldof
religion as a whole. May Allah guide us all and reward us according to the
very best of our deeds and intentions.
Abdullah Muhammad al-Faruque at-Ta'if, Kingdom
of Saudi Arabia
Beginnings
As a young boy I was raised
with a deep fear of God. Having been partially raised by a grandmother who
was a Pentecostal fundamentalist, the church became an integral part of my
life at a very early age. By the time I had reached the age of six, I knew
all too well the benefits awaiting me in Heaven for being a good little boy
and the punishment awaiting in Hell for little boys who are naughty. I was
taught by my grandmother that all liars were doomed to go to the Hellfire,
where they would burn forever and ever.
My mother worked two
full-time jobs and continued to remind me of the teachings given to me by
her mother. My younger brother and older sister did not seem to take our
grandmother's warnings of the Hereafter as seriously as I did. I recall
seeing the full moon when it would take on a deep reddish hue, and I would
begin to weep because I was taught that one of the signs of the end of the
world would be that the moon would become red like blood. As an eight year
old child I began to develop such a fear at what I thought were signs in
the heavens and on earth of Doomsday that I actually had nightmares of what
the Day of Judgement would be like. Our house was close to a set of railroad
tracks, and trains passed by on a frequent basis. I can remember being
awakened out of sleep by the horrendous sound of the locomotive's horn and
thinking that I had died and was being resurrected after hearing the sound
of the trumpet. These teachings were ingrained in my young mind through a
combination of oral teachings and the reading of a set of children's books
known as the Bible Story.
Every Sunday we would go to
church dressed in all of our finery. My grandfather was our means of
transportation. Church would last for what seemed to me like hours. We
would arrive at around eleven in the morning and not leave until sometimes
three in the afternoon. I remember falling asleep in my grandmother's lap
on many occasions. For a time my brother and I were permitted to leave
church in between the conclusion of Sunday school and morning worship
service to sit with our grandfather at the railway yard and watch the
trains pass. He was not a churchgoer, but he saw to it that my Eamily made
it there every Sunday. Sometime later he suffered a stroke, which left him
partiallyparalyzed, and as a result, we were unable to attend church on a
regular basis. This period of time would be one of the most crucial stages
of my development.
Rededication
I was relieved, in a sense,
at no longer being able to attend church, but I would feel the urge to go
on my own every now and then. At age sixteen I began attending the church
of a friend whose father was the pastor. It was a small storefront building
with only my friend's family, myself, and another schoolmate as members.
This went on for only several months before -the church closed down. After
graduating from high school and entering the university I rediscovered my
religious commitment and became fully immersed in Pentecostal teachings. I
was baptized and "filled with the Holy Ghost," as the experience
was then called. As a college student, I quickly became the pride of the
church. Everyone had high hopes for me, and I was happy to once again be
"on the road to salvation".
I attended church every
time its doors would open. I studied the Bible for days and weeks at a
time. I attended lectures given by the Christian scholars of my day, and I
acknowledged my call to the ministry at the age of 20. I began preaching
and became well known very quickly. I was extremely dogmatic and believed
that no one could receive salvation unless they were of my church group. I
categorically condemned everyone who had not come to know God the way I had
cometo knowHim. I was taught that Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) and God
Almighty were one and the samething. I was taught that our church did not
believe in the trinity but that Jesus (peace be upon him) was indeed the
Father, Son and Holy Ghost. I tried to make myself understand it even though
I had to admit that I really did not fully understand it. As far as I was
concerned, it was the only doctrine that made sense to me. I admired the
holy dress of the women and the pious behavior of the men. I enjoyed
practicing a doctrine where women were required to dress in garments
covering themselves completely, not painting their faces with makeup, and
carrying themselves as true ambassadors of Christ. I was convinced beyond a
shadow of a doubt that I had finally found the true path to eternal bliss. Iwould
debate with anyone from a different church with different beliefs and would
totally silence them with my knowledge of the Bible. I memorized hundreds
of Biblical passages, and this became a trademark of my preaching. Yet,
even though I felt assured of being on the right path, a part of me was
still searching. I felt that there was an even higher truth to be attained.
I would meditate while
alone and pray to God to lead me to the correct religion and to forgive me
if what I was doing was wrong. I had never had any contact with Muslims.
The only people I knew that claimed Islam as their religion were the
followers of Elijah Muhammad, who were referred to by many as the
"Black Muslims" or the "Lost-Found Nation." It was
during this period in the late seventies that Minister Louis Farrakhan was
well into rebuilding what was called "The Nation of Islam."
Iwentto hear Minister Farrakhan speak at the invitation of a coworker and
found it to be an experience that would change my life dramatically. I had
never in my life heard another black man speak the way that he spoke. I
immediately wanted to arrange a meeting with him to try to convert him to
my religion. I enjoyed evangelizing, hoping to find lost souls to save from
the Hellfire - no matter who they were.
After graduating from
college I began to work on a full-time basis. As I was reaching the
pinnacle of my ministry, the followers of Elijah Muhammad became more
visible, and I appreciated their efforts in attempting to rid the black
community of the evils that were destroying it from within. I beganto
support them, in a sense, by buying their literature and even meeting with
them for dialogue. I attended their study circles to find out exactly what
they believed. As sincere as I knew many of them were, I could not buy the
idea of God being a black man. I disagreed with their use of the Bible to
support their position on certain issues. Here was a book that I knew very
well, and I was deeply disturbed at what I deemed was their
misinterpretation of it. I had attended locally supported Bible schools and
had become quite knowledgeable in various fields of Bible study.
After about six years I
moved to Texas and became affiliated with two churches. The first church
was led by a young pastor who was inexperienced and not very learned. My
knowledge of the Christian scriptures had by this time developed into
something abnormal. I was obsessed with Biblical teachings. I began to look
deeper into the scriptures and realized that I knew more than the present
leader. As a show of respect, I left and joined another church in a
different city where I felt that I could learn more. The pastor of this
particular church was very scholarly. He was an excellent teacher but had
some ideas that were not the norm in our church organization. He held
somewhat liberal views, but I still enjoyed his indoctrination. I was soon
to learn the most valuable lesson of my Christian life, which was "all
that glitters is not gold." Despite its outward appearance,there were
evils taking place that I never thought were possible in the Church. These
evils caused me to reflect deeply, and I began questioning the teaching to
which I was so dedicated.
Welcome to the Real Church World
I soon discovered that
there was a great deal of jealousy prevalent in the ministerial hierarchy.
Things had changed from that to which I was accustomed. Women wore clothing
that I thought was shameful. People dressed in order to attract attention,
usually from the opposite sex. I discovered just how great a part money and
greed play in the operation of church activities. There were many small
churches struggling, and they called upon us to hold meetings to help raise
money for them. I was told that if a church did not have a certain number
of members, then I was not to waste my time preaching there because I would
not receive ample financial compensation. I then explained that I was not
in it for the money and that I would preach even if there was only one
member present... and I'd do it for free! This caused a disturbance. I
started questioning those whom I thought had wisdom, only to find that they
had been putting on a show. I learned that money, power and position were
more important than teaching the truth about the Bible. As a Bible student,
I knew full well that there were mistakes, contradictions and fabrications.
I thought that people should be exposed to the truth about the Bible. The
idea of exposing the people to such aspects of the Bible was a thought
supposedly attributable to Satan. But I began to publicly ask my teachers
questions during Bible classes, which none of them could answer. Not a
single one could explain how Jesus was supposedly God, and how, at the same
time, he was supposedly the Father, Son and Holy Ghost wrapped up into one
and yet was not a part of the trinity. Several preachers finally had to
concede that they did not understand it but that we were simply required to
believe it.
Cases of adultery and
fornication went unpunished. Some preachers were hooked on drugs and had
destroyed their lives and the lives of their families. Leaders of some
churches were found to be homosexuals. There were pastors even guilty of
committing adultery with the young daughters of other church members. All
of this coupled with a failure to receive answers to what I thought were
valid questions was enough to make me seek a change. That change came when
I accepted a job in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
A New Beginning
It was not long after
arriving in Saudi Arabia that I saw an immediate difference in the lifestyle
of the Muslim people. They were different from the followers of Elijah
Muhammad and Minister Louis Farrakhan in that they were of all
nationalities, colors and languages. I immediately expressed a desire to
learn more about this peculiar brand of religion. I was amazed with the
life of Prophet Muhammad and wanted to know more. I requested books from
one of the brothers who was active in calling people to Islam. I was
supplied with all of the books that I could possibly want. I read each and
every one. I was then given the Holy Qur'an and read it completely several
times within four months. I asked question after question and received
satisfactory answers. What appealed to me was that the brothers were not
keen on impressing me with their knowledge. If a brother did not know how
to answer a question, he would tell me that he simply did not know and
would have to check with someone who did. The next day he would always
bring the answer. I noticed how humility played such a great role in the
lives of these mysterious people of the Middle East.
I was amazed to see the
women covering themselves from face to foot. I did not see any religious
hierarchy. No one was competing for any religious position. All of this was
wonderful, but how could I entertain the thought of abandoning a teaching
that had followed me since childhood? What about the Bible? I knew that
there is some truth in it even though it had been changed and revised
countless numbers of times. I was then given a video cassette of a debate
between Shaykh Ahmed Deedat and Reverend Jimmy Swaggart. After seeing the
debate I immediately became a Muslim. (To view this debate click here –
requires RealPlayer)
I was taken to the office
of Shaykh 'Abdullah bin 'Abdul-'Azeez bin Baz to officially declare my
acceptance of Islam. It was there that I was given sound advice on how to
prepare myself for the long journey ahead. It was truly a birth from
darkness into light. I wondered what my peers from the Church would think
when they heard that I had embraced Islam. It was not long before I found
out. I went back to the United States for vacation and was severely
criticized for my "lack of faith." I was stamped with many labels
- from renegade to reprobate. People were told by so-called church leaders
not to even remember me in prayer. As strange as it may seem, I was not
bothered in the least. I was so happy that Almighty God, Allah, had chosen
to guide me aright that nothing else mattered.
Now I only wanted to become
as dedicated a Muslim as I was a Christian. This, of course, meant study. I
realized that a person could grow as much as they wanted to in Islam. There
is no monopoly of knowledge - it is free to all who wish to avail
themselves of the opportunities to learn. I was given a set of Saheeh
Muslim as a gift from my Qur'an teacher. It was then that I realized the
need to learn about the life, sayings and practices of Prophet Muhammad . I
read and studied as many of the hadlth collections available in English as
possible. I realized that my knowledge of the Bible was an asset that is
now quite useful in dealing with those of Christian backgrounds. Life for
me has taken on an entirely new meaning. One of the most profound attitude
changes is a result of knowing that this life must actually be spent in
preparation for life in the Hereafter. It was also a new experience to know
that we are rewarded even for our intentions. If you intend to do good,
then you are rewarded. Itwas quite different in the Church. The attitude
wasthat "the path to Hell is paved with good intentions." There
was no way to win. If you sinned,then you had to confess to the pastor,
especially if the sin was a great sin, such as adultery. You were judged
strictly by your actions.
The Present and Future
After an interview by the
Al-Madinah newspaper I was asked about my present-day activities and plans
for the future. At present, my goal is to learn Arabic and continue
studying to gain greater knowledge about Islam. I am presently engaged in
the field of da'wah and am called upon to lecture to non-Muslims who come
from Christian backgrounds. If Allah, Almighty, spares my life, I hope to
write more on the subject of comparative religion.
It is the duty of Muslims
throughout the world to work to spread the knowledge of Islam. As one who
has spent such a long time as a Bible teacher, I feel a special sense of
duty in educating people about the errors, contradictions and fabricated
tales of a book believed in by millions of people. One of the greatest joys
is knowing that I do not have to engage in a great deal of dispute with
Christians, because I was a teacher who taught most of the dispute
techniques used by them. I also learned how to argue using the Bible to
defend Christianity. And at the same time I know the counter arguments for
each argument which we, as ministers, were forbidden by our leaders to
discuss or divulge.
It is my prayer that Allah
will forgive us all of our ignorance and guide us to the path leading to
Paradise. All praise is due to Allah. May the peace and blessings of Allah
be upon His last messenger, Prophet Muhammad, his family, companions, and
those following true guidance.
Location: TheTrueReligion
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