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Many people ask me how a preacher or priest in
Christianity can ever go to Islam, especially considering all the negative
things that we hear about Islam and Muslims everyday. Some people are simply
curious, while others take a profound exception to my “conversion” to Islam. Some
have asked how I could have turned my back on Jesus, or if I truly understood
the Holy Ghost, and some even questioned whether or not I considered myself as “born
again” or had ever really been saved at all. These are good questions to which
I will offer answers to at the end of this writing. I would like to thank
everyone for their interest and offer my humble story, God Willing.
One very nice Christian gentleman asked me in
email why and how I left Christianity for Islam. This is more or less a copy
of the letter I sent to him.
Introduction
My name is Yusuf Estes now, but in years past my
friends used to call me Skip. I have preached Christianity and worked in the
entertainment and music industry since I was a boy in the 1950’s. My father
and I have established music stores, TV and radio programs and outdoor
entertainment for fun (and profit). I was a music minister and even used a
pony ride and entertained the children as “Skippy the Clown.”
Once, I have served as Delegate to the United
Nations Peace Conference for Religious Leaders. Now I am a retired former
Muslim Chaplain for United States Bureau of Prisons, Washington, DC. and I join alongside many American Muslims, working with Muslim students and youth
organizations as well as schools for Muslim children. As such, I travel around
the entire world lecturing and sharing the message of the Christ of the Quran
in Islam. We hold dialogs and discussion groups with all faiths and enjoy the
opportunity to work alongside rabbis, ministers, preachers and priests
everywhere. Some of our work is in the institutional area, military,
universities and prisons. Primarily our goal is to educate and communicate the
correct message of Islam and who the Muslims really are. Although Islam has
grown now to nearly tie Christianity as the largest of religions on earth, we
see many of those who claim Islam as Muslims that do not correctly understand
nor properly represent the message of “Peace, Surrender and Obedience to God”
[Arabic = ‘Islam’]
Dear me, I am afraid that I got a bit ahead of
myself. I was trying to give a bit of background of our work perhaps to see if
it would in anyway benefit those who may being going through what I experienced
while trying to resolve some of the issues of Christianity.
How It Happened
This may seem quite strange, while we perhaps
may share a few different perspectives and concepts of God, Jesus, prophethood,
sin and salvation. But you see, at one time I was in the same boat as many
folks are today. Really, I was. Let me explain.
Born a Strong Christian
I was born into a very strong Christian family
in the Midwest. Our family and their ancestors not only built the churches and
schools across this land, but actually were the same ones who came here in the
first place. While I was still in elementary we relocated in Houston, Texas in 1949 (I’m old). We attended church regularly, and I was baptized at the age of 12
in Pasadena, Texas. As a teenager, I wanted to visit other churches to learn
more of their teachings and beliefs. The Baptists, Methodists, Episcopalians,
Charismatic movements, Nazarene, Church of Christ, Church of God, Church of God
in Christ, Full Gospel, Agape, Catholic, Presbyterian and many more. I
developed quite a thirst for the “Gospel” or as we say; “Good News.” My
research into religion did not stop with Christianity. Not at all. Hinduism,
Judaism, Buddhism, Metaphysics, native American beliefs were all a part of my
studies. Just about the only one that I did not look into seriously was “Islam”.
Why? Good question.
Music Minister
Anyway, I became very interested in different
types of music, especially Gospel and Classical. Because my whole family was
religious and musical, it followed that I too would begin my studies in both
areas. All this set me for the logical position of Music Minister in many of
the churches that I became affiliated with over the years. I started teaching
keyboard instruments in 1960 and by 1963 owned my own studios in Laurel, Maryland, called “Estes Music Studios.”
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