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Sariya Islam, Ex-Catholic, India
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Description: A story of an Indian convert who has been a Muslim for more than 13 years.
By Sariya Islam
Published on 18 May 2009 - Last modified on 18 May 2009
Viewed: 5938 (daily average: 4) - Rating: 4.8 out of 5 - Rated by: 28
Printed: 271 - Emailed: 8 - Commented on: 3
Category: Articles
> Stories of New Muslims
> Women
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 My story starts in 1979 when God bought me into this world into a
very religious and spiritually aware family. We were Orthodox Roman Catholics
before our reversion to Islam. My family being quite well to do was actively
involved in Church and Parish affairs. And so we had, and still do have
Priests, Nuns and Missionaries (They still try their antics, but we know how to
handle them) as part of our family. My grandfather has even built a church in
our native Kerala, India. But my family was one that stuck to its ideals, we
loved our Creator albeit misguidedly and always tried to be good human beings.
We prided ourselves to be pious people and the best among us was my mother.
There were many times when our Parish priest would make her an example to the
other ladies. She—my Mom was a model Christian Woman. She read the bible
regularly and practiced her religion devoutly.
Well, to begin with, my mother had a few spiritual
experiences which resulted in a deep sense of dissatisfaction with her
religion. She turned to the Bible for answers but this only led her further
away from all that she had earlier held sacred. During those days a lawyer named
Mr. Ibrahim Khan was working with my parents as a substitute legal advisor,
this was only for a short period of time, since our regular lawyer was on
vacation and my parents needed urgent legal advise on some business matter.
Being a knowledgeable Muslim he introduced Islam to my Mom and she accepted
Islam within a few weeks of being introduced to it. I was around 13 then.
My situation was quite confusing (to say the least),
being the eldest child. The family separated because Mummy felt her marriage
had become null and void. I hated Islam because I believed it had broken up my
family. My father left us and went away. I felt it was everything that the
media made it out to be (Astagfirullah ), though funnily, I was rather
fond of the Adhan. I hated Islam then and felt that I could be anything but a
Muslim. But, I had tremendous respect and love for my Mummy. And I couldn’t
understand why she did something like this. I wanted to understand what was it
that had attracted her—an educated, cultured lady—to something as medieval as
Islam. Ultimately I asked her one-day and her answer was very simple. “Read the
Bible Page to Page”
It was then that I began my Journey of Discovery. I was
very young, but God gave me the maturity to understand what I read. I found so
many inconsistencies and mistakes in the Bible. I found things mentioned in the
Bible, which Christians did not follow. I found things, which I felt, were not
logical. I found covenants which were broken. I found clear mention of the Holy
Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him). But I was very stubborn and refused to
accept the truth. Well, I continued to study Christianity and slowly started
digressing to comparative religion but always refused to study Islam. Around
that time my Mom sent me a letter with both the transliteration and translation
of Surah Al–Ikhlas written in it and this became an obsession for me. I recited
it as well as its translation throughout the day—over and over again. It was
like a tasbih for me.
When at last no other scripture could satisfy me, I turned to the holy Quran
and was completely bowled over! This was the truth I was searching for! Here
were the answers to all my questions! I knew then that I had found my destiny.
It had taken me two years of study but I was thankful. I was around 15 then, or
perhaps a little older.
I subsequently, reverted at the Bombay Airport! I had gone to receive Mom and I wanted her to witness my Shahadah. She later confided
that she had prayed to God to give me Hidayah, so that where she had no other help,
she would have the support of her eldest daughter. And God had granted her
wish. Allahu Akbar.
My brother and sister were very young and they sort of
followed in my footsteps and accepted Islam. We had to make Hijrah to Bombay, since we had fears that people would try and separate us—the three kids from Mummy.
We knew that in Kerala we would never be able to practice our deen. Bombay was the only option we had and we took it and MashaAllah, the blessings that
God showered on us! The Muslims here accepted us with open arms. We learnt
Arabic, we completed our studies, and we now have our own wonderful home, Alhamdullillah.
Daddy came back to us, though he is sadly still a Roman Catholic. But we love
him a lot and he is part of all our decisions. He is learning Islam and has
tremendous respect for our deen, our ways and Islamic life. He is our support
pole and even though he is out of Islam has bought us up without interfering in
our faith, always protecting us and being there for us, a lot like the Holy Prophet’s
(peace be upon him) uncle Abu Talib. The rest of my extended family is still
staunchly opposed to Islam, though they have come to terms with the fact that
we shall always be Muslim, InshaAllah. We do at times get mails that
would like to re-convert us to Christianity, though these mails are getting
fewer as the days pass.
Recently we went to Kerala to visit my grandparents for
a short holiday and it felt rather great to visit a place we had earlier fled
as children. We were strong with the strength of our imaan—the imaan given to
us by God and thanked Him for letting us return victorious. Perhaps someday we
will establish a Masjid and Islamic study centre there, InshaAllah.
Today, it has been more than 10 years since we have been
Muslims but it feels like we were always been Muslims.
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