Hussein Abdulwaheed Amin, Ex-Catholic, Ireland (part 1 of 4): Introduction and Personal Background
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Description: And Irish Catholic who has loved in some Muslim countries decides to research Islam due to a relationship with a Muslim woman and discusses what he finds.
By Hussein Abdulwaheed Amin
Published on 26 Nov 2007 - Last modified on 16 Dec 2007
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Category: Articles
> Stories of New Muslims
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Introduction
I have written my story of conversion to Islam mainly
for the benefit of other (would-be) western converts, especially those who,
like myself, come from a genuinely religious Christian background. Whilst
Christianity and Islam have much in common, there remain fundamental
differences about which no compromise is possible, principally concerning the
Christian doctrine of Trinity and the belief that Jesus is divine. Moving from
being a practicing, sincere, if somewhat intellectually dissatisfied Christian
to embracing Islam is therefore in some respects a major theological journey.
As someone who has already undertaken that journey, I hope that my travelogue
may in some way help smooth the path of those who follow. The following
hadeeth (saying of Prophet Mohammed) comes to mind:
“Once a man, who was passing through a road, found
a branch of a tree with thorns obstructing it. The man removed the thorns from
the way. God thanked him and forgave his sins.” (Saheeh Al-Bukhari)
Through detailing my own experiences for the benefit of
others of a similar background, I would like to think of myself as removing
some of the figurative thorns which obstruct the road from Christianity to
Islam.
I converted to Islam before I became Internet-aware and
had to do all the research for myself. It was essential to me that my
investigation of Islam result in intellectual and theological satisfaction. I
trust that others from a similar background to mine will find that some of my
experiences along the path from Christianity to Islam serve as useful pointers
and starting points for investigation in their own spiritual quest.
My Personal Background
I converted to Islam in October 1998 when aged 31. I am
originally from Ireland where I was born into a practicing Catholic family, but
I have spent nearly all my adult life abroad. In the mid to late 1990’s I was
in love with a Muslim lady whom I had met whilst in an Islamic country. I knew
that if I were interested in marrying her, I would have to convert to Islam, as
Muslim women are prohibited from marrying outside their faith. I did not at
all welcome the prospect of having to become a Muslim. In fact, although I knew
very little about Islam the religion, a particularly negative experience I had
just had of working in a different Muslim country had, if anything, rather
soured my opinion of things to do with Islam and reinforced whatever general
western disinclinations I may already have felt. Nevertheless back in Europe during the spring and summer of 1998, I read all the text books I could find in
college and public libraries about Islam (factual accounts, textbooks, mainly
by non-Muslims) and discovered, somewhat to my surprise, that I could agree
with 90% of the religion without any difficulty. I actually became rather
enthusiastic. I realized that I had been making the mistake of judging Islam
by the behavior of some of its more unsavory nominal adherents rather than by
the theological and moral teachings of the religion itself.
Jesus - Son of God?
Where I did have a real problem, though, was with the
role of Jesus. I had been brought up a Catholic Christian, believing in the
Holy Trinity of God the Father, Jesus the Son plus the Holy Spirit - three
persons in one god. Islam rejects this and teaches the absolute oneness of God
(Tawheed) and specifically that Jesus, though a great prophet, was only human
and not divine.
“O People of the Book [Christians and Jews]! Commit no
excesses in your religion: Nor say of God aught but the truth. Christ Jesus the
son of Mary was (no more than) a messenger of God, and His Word, which He
bestowed on Mary, and a spirit proceeding from Him: so believe in God and His
messengers. Say not “Trinity”: desist: it will be better for you: for God is
one God: Glory be to Him: (far exalted is He) above having a son.” (Quran 4:171)
“Christ the son of Mary was no more than a messenger; many
were the messengers that passed away before him. His mother was a woman of
truth. They had both to eat their (daily) food.” (Quran 5:75)
“[Jesus] said: Surely I am a servant of God; He has given me
the Book and made me a prophet.” (Quran 19:30)
“In blasphemy indeed are those that say that God is Christ the
son of Mary.” (Quran 5:17)
“They do blaspheme who say: ‘God is Christ the son of Mary.”
But said Christ: “O Children of Israel! worship God, my Lord and your Lord.’” (Quran
5:72)
“And behold! God will say: ‘O Jesus the son of Mary! Didst
thou say unto men, worship me and my mother as gods in derogation of God?’ He
will say: ‘Glory to Thee! Never could I say what I had no right (to say).’” (Quran
5:116)
Islam preaches pure monotheism. The absolute
fundamental of Islam is that God alone (what Christians refer to as God the
Father) is the sole deity. Surah 112 of the Quran is quite explicit about
this:
1. Say (O Muhammad): "He is Allah, (the) One.
2. "The Self-Sufficient Master.
3. "He begets not, nor was He begotten;
4. "And there is none co-equal or comparable
unto Him."
What was I to do? This was so alien to me. I certainly
could not betray Jesus.
In terms of religious belief and practice, my own
personal situation was that I had mainly ceased going to Sunday Mass for some
years, in large part due to annoyance at the political, non-religious content
of many Sunday sermons. (I much preferred the short, non-obligatory, weekday
Masses where I could concentrate without distraction or annoyance on feeling close
to God, as no sermon is preached.) Yet on a theological level I remained a
committed Catholic (as opposed to Protestant) within the context of
Christianity. For example, within the ring fence of Christianity, based on my
study of the Gospels, I believed in the doctrines of transubstantiation and
apostolic succession. However, I had serious doubts about the validity of
Christianity per se, specifically with the doctrine of Original Sin and the
consequential need for the blood sacrifice of Jesus, Son of God, as a spiritual
redeemer of souls in atonement. Both these concepts are unknown and alien to
the Judaism from which Christianity is supposed to be derived. Nevertheless the
notion of Jesus as Son of God, had been so deeply ingrained in me that it was
extremely difficult for me to countenance any other interpretation.
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