http://www.themodernreligion.com/ugly/frustrations.html
Frustrations of Converts, Complacency of the Ummah
We proudly claim that we are Muslims but it is an insult to Allah and Islam if we forget that along with being Muslim comes certain responsiblities (to others). Living in Islam is not just about you and God. It is also about how you interact with other creations of God. That is also Ibadah (worship). How sincere and true is our worship of God if we pray every prayer fully 5 times a day but when a new Muslim turns to us for friendship, we become judgemental and assume they cannot be worth as much as "us born Muslims." They say a man's true nature is revealed when he is confronted with dealing with those who are of no direct importance to him. How do you treat those who are not important to you?
Allah will judge us according to our contribution to the image of Islam and to inviting those who are searching toward Islam. The world will be quick to judge Islam according to how we Muslims behave and how we Muslims lead our lives. If a person is dishonest, greedy and racist, we look around him/her to see who his friends are, who his colleagues are, what his religion is, etc. When a Muslim behaves badly, it is natural for people to assume that Islam cannot be as great as we claim it is, if it cannot even change a man for the better.
Allah's plan will never falter, and nothing will destroy Islam but we cannot take this as a cue to be complacent. When a person approaches you and you have the opportunity to help him or give dawah, grab the chance. Saying "no" because you have no time, or you assume the person "is not seriously worth helping", or that "I don't have time for things that don't benefit me directly", may satisfy you in the short run but think about how you will answer Allah on the Day of Judgement.
I would like to introduce the experiences of three converts, who experienced great difficulty getting accepted into the Ummah - because of their race or the fact that they were converts perhaps (and hence, not the real thing?)
Please don't overlook this! We may tell ourselves, "Oh we're nice to converts, we help them when we can." but in reality, little things we do (or don't do) may be affecting many people around us. We need to open our eyes and really see and think about what a small but kind gesture could do. Ideally, we should be inviting these people to become part of our families but if you are not ready for that, at least think about gradually building up to it.
1. "Since my conversion two years ago, I have known a lot of disillusionment and anguish, not with Islam, the theology, to which I am committed, but with the Muslims I tend to come into contact with in real life and online. READ IT HERE!
2. "My First Year As A Muslim". An open letter from Jeremiah D. McAuliffe, Jr., Ph.D. to the Pittsburgh. READ IT HERE!
3. The story of an American girl called Zainab where, without going into details, she makes clear that she has faced outright hostility from born Muslim men who turned her family against Islam after her female Muslim friends had initially created a good impression. READ IT HERE!
Frustrations of Converts, Complacency of the Ummah
We proudly claim that we are Muslims but it is an insult to Allah and Islam if we forget that along with being Muslim comes certain responsiblities (to others). Living in Islam is not just about you and God. It is also about how you interact with other creations of God. That is also Ibadah (worship). How sincere and true is our worship of God if we pray every prayer fully 5 times a day but when a new Muslim turns to us for friendship, we become judgemental and assume they cannot be worth as much as "us born Muslims." They say a man's true nature is revealed when he is confronted with dealing with those who are of no direct importance to him. How do you treat those who are not important to you?
Allah will judge us according to our contribution to the image of Islam and to inviting those who are searching toward Islam. The world will be quick to judge Islam according to how we Muslims behave and how we Muslims lead our lives. If a person is dishonest, greedy and racist, we look around him/her to see who his friends are, who his colleagues are, what his religion is, etc. When a Muslim behaves badly, it is natural for people to assume that Islam cannot be as great as we claim it is, if it cannot even change a man for the better.
Allah's plan will never falter, and nothing will destroy Islam but we cannot take this as a cue to be complacent. When a person approaches you and you have the opportunity to help him or give dawah, grab the chance. Saying "no" because you have no time, or you assume the person "is not seriously worth helping", or that "I don't have time for things that don't benefit me directly", may satisfy you in the short run but think about how you will answer Allah on the Day of Judgement.
I would like to introduce the experiences of three converts, who experienced great difficulty getting accepted into the Ummah - because of their race or the fact that they were converts perhaps (and hence, not the real thing?)
Please don't overlook this! We may tell ourselves, "Oh we're nice to converts, we help them when we can." but in reality, little things we do (or don't do) may be affecting many people around us. We need to open our eyes and really see and think about what a small but kind gesture could do. Ideally, we should be inviting these people to become part of our families but if you are not ready for that, at least think about gradually building up to it.
1. "Since my conversion two years ago, I have known a lot of disillusionment and anguish, not with Islam, the theology, to which I am committed, but with the Muslims I tend to come into contact with in real life and online. READ IT HERE!
2. "My First Year As A Muslim". An open letter from Jeremiah D. McAuliffe, Jr., Ph.D. to the Pittsburgh. READ IT HERE!
3. The story of an American girl called Zainab where, without going into details, she makes clear that she has faced outright hostility from born Muslim men who turned her family against Islam after her female Muslim friends had initially created a good impression. READ IT HERE!
Vastaukset 5
Vanhimmat
Olen useaan otteeseen kehottanut muslimeja keskustelemaan, en koskaan copypastaamaan enemmän.
ole täällä käännyttämässä ketään.Oletkos sinä?
Täällä on sana vapaa jos jokin mättää ja minä postaan tänne sen mikä minua mättää.
Se mikä minua mättää on teikäläisten ja muslimien vääristyneet ja kummalliset käsitykset islamista.
Onhan niitä Muhammetteja vieläkin vaikka kuinka paljon.
Joka on pauhannut tästä samasta ongelmasta palstalla ?
Ja minut on haukuttu tästä syystä niin muslimien että muidenkin puolesta.Näköjään tämä on yhtä yleistä maailmalla kuin minunkin elämässäni on ollut.
Minä en ymmärrä sellaista musliminaista joka tätä ei ole huomannut tai hyväksyy tälläisen ja vieläpä väittää tätä naisen omaksi syyksi.
In the subsequent months, I started an Islamic Student Alliance at my University, and along with others started a Mosque and Islamic weekend school in the place where I lived.
Things are excellent, however, I have encountered a number of difficulties. I quickly found out that being a single American converted female in the community is often not met with joy. Although many Muslims welcomed me, I have come to realize there is an inherent hatred among many Muslims for Americans, and especially for single, white, female Americans. I encountered resentment from the type of person who enjoy referring to American women as cheap - to put it politely. Next, I encountered brothers who made unwanted advances, thinking I suppose, since I am American, they could be free in their manners. When I asked them to leave me alone, they decided to became an instant enemy. I am not going to tell you what they did, because it will only harm Islam. However, it was significant to say the least.
My familial response to my conversion:
The rude response however was difficult to understand, and very troubling for my family. Their impression of Muslims had been the same as 95% of Americans, that they are crazy terrorists. However, when my family met my girlfriends, they changed their opinion to a positive one. Then, when mean-spirited brothers did their best to make my life difficult, they reversed their opinion. They did this rightly so. I have not written here some of the bizarre behavior that occurred because I do not think it will serve any benefit to Islam. Suffice to say, if anyone else had been in their shoes, they would agree with them.
My future Islamic plans:
Everyone has a different role in Islam, i.e., some are scholars, teachers, aids, Imams, etc. All are good and all are necessary. I will say with certainty, I will not be a scholar or a person that endeavors to find every rule in existence to follow in Islam. From my prospective, I will simply do my prayers, follow basic tenets, and endeavored to, "Do unto to others as I would have them do unto me."
In the future I would like to work in the administrative area of Islam. This is an area where Islam is struggling. I have learned a lot about how to make a religious entity successful from my previous study and of churches. I am also very interested in working within children's education, as my love is here. In addition, I would like to work with assimilating other converted sisters. I do not want other sisters to have to go through the hardship I did to stay a Muslim. I did not understand why people would ask me if a guy had converted me to Islam, because that was such an illogical notion. Now I realize why this is usually the case. It is very very hard for a converted sister to stay in the community, unless some kind family in the community practically adopts her as their family. Allah does something so good in converting an American sister who is searching for the Right path, and pettiness or inexperience or ignorance often destroys it. A support program is necessary for the converted sisters.
Presently a woman who is writing a book about the conversion experience of ten sisters, asked me for my story. I have been writing the details, and as of yet I have decided that it will not favorably benefit Islam. My experience is much more colorful and difficult than I have mention here, however the juicy details are irrelevant to this forum and not beneficial to anyone concerned.
http://thetruereligion.org/modules/xfsection/article.php?articleid=315