This appeared in headlines of AOL home page this morning. What is amazing at this moment (votes change every second) was of the 32, 027 votes casted, 45% of them had someone in the family converted and 7% actually converted. i.e., 52% converts within the friendhip circle. Of the 40, 330 respondents, 64% said the girl should stay in Florida and not sent to her parents. What about your circle?As a Muslim what would you do? i) Get angry ii) Demand that the girl return to her parents and iii) demand that she converts back.
Think about this from a religious point of view; God imparts his wisdom through Qur'aan that there is no compulsion in religion, simply put; no one can force anyone to believe what one does not want to believe. Islam is about human nature, Prophet Muhammad understood human behavior and communicated that faith is about free will. "Kill the apostate" was an idea cooked by the Kings, rulers and dictators to muffle down dissent and force people to behave. The punishement for treason is death in most places, we should clearly distinguish between treason and apostasy, they are not the same thing.
This phenomon of conversion will become common among Muslims, particularly among the second generation, at this time in the western nations eventually but every where. It is a teen thing to rebel, and only through love and freedom you can retain your child in your faith or you are going to run them off. No one should interfere in your life, it is your choice, seeking freedom is human fitra (nature) and it will continue.
Mike Ghouse
http://www.worldmuslimcongress.com/
ORLANDO, Fla. (Sept. 15) - An investigation by Florida authorities has found that there were no credible threats to a teenager who ran away from her Ohio home because she says she feared for her life after converting to Christianity from Islam.
A summary of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigation into Rifqa Bary's allegations was unsealed Monday. The probe found no reports of threats against Bary in Florida or Ohio.
'We Want Her Back'Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda, Orlando Sentinel / MCT6 photos An investigation by Florida police found no credible threat to an Ohio teen who ran away from home. Rifqa Bary said she fled to Florida because she feared her Muslim parents would kill her for converting to Christianity. The 17-year-old has been placed temporarily in a Florida foster home.
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'We Want Her Back' Rifqa Bary, 17, is at the center of a dispute that stretches from Ohio to Florida. She ran away from her Ohio home in July, fearing her parents would harm her for converting to Christianity. She was raised in the Islam faith. Her parent say they love their daughter and would never hurt her.
The 17-year-old girl is in foster care in Orlando, where a judge is deciding whether she should be returned to Ohio. The girl ran away from her parents' suburban Columbus home in July, saying she feared being killed for changing religions.
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Islam and Christianity are very common in terms of religion. They believe in 1 God, look up to religious leaders such as Prophet Mohammad and Jesus. Muslims however are more strict and obey islamic teachings from the Qur'an which should idealy be followed by all because the Qur'an exists in this world so that it can guide people to health and to the right path. Christianity however follows the Bible, where the teachings are more or less similar. Muslims are taught to obey the Qur'ans teachings where as Christians do not necessarily follow the Bible but live being known as a Christian. I cannot understan why this girl would leave a well adapted religion. She obviously learnt from others and chose freedon over religion. Dropping Islam will allow her to get drunk, disobey Islam and be free in terms of leading her own life.
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ReplyDeleteHi to all!
It is a sad day, at least for me, to hear such a thing happened. If the young lady in question is of sound mind and body and that is really her own choice with no coercion from ANY source by ANYONE, then I think the parents must learn,FAST!, to adapt how to cope with this. They will I believe, no doubt, blame themselves in the beginning, BUT, if they search their memory as far back as they can, and could not found any true lack of guidance on their part, at least in imparting "iman"(faith) and knowledge of Islam to their daugther, they then must learn how to accept what has happened. I am not a parent, so I could only imagine the sorrow they felt if Islam is anywhere nearly as dear to them as it is to me.That she is,if she was,a good person, REMAIN a good person regardless of her religion now, then at least they are not totally at a lost here. Especially if she was before her conversion, cos' then it can be said that at the very least, Islam DO shape her for the better. It's just that somehow, for some reason, her faith in Allah S.W.T. did not last.
Not all is lost forever tho'. To her parents, IF they somehow read this, DO NOT harm her in any way. She MAY have made a brash decision due to something that is not truly long-lasting and perhaps thru' advises and talks, find out WHAT made her wants to convert? Why believe in a Triune-based God system when believing in THE One true God is the correct path? Is it just a fling? Don't give up hope on her yet, if ever, just don't force her. Remember if our beloved prophet Muhammad S.A.W. can be so loving and kind to his non-Muslim kin,then surely so can you. Do not lose hope yet. My bestest of regards to you and your family. Be safe,be happy, be strong - maybe God is testing YOUR iman to him? there COULD be a rainbow at the end of all this. However, even if there is none, you can STILL remain thankful servants of Allah S.W.T. that He did not try out YOUR 'iman' in the same fashion!!!!
Wassallam.