Examples of conversion of Muslims to the Orthodox faith. Former Muslim about Islam and the path to Orthodoxy

Muslims who converted to Orthodoxy Russian Federation, according to 2006 data, make up 7% of the total number of Muslims in Russia. This is confirmed by the muftis.

Muslims who converted to Orthodoxy - an unusual trend of the Russian Federation

If Europe has long suffered from the dominance of Muslims, today everything oriental and Islamic is in European fashion: in some European countries they are thinking about changing the constitution in order to introduce Sharia law. In a number of states, legislative barriers have been introduced to avoid discrimination against the Islamic population, although, in fact, they infringe on the rights of representatives of other faiths.

In Russia, on the other hand, the opposite situation is observed, causing bewilderment among many Europeans: Muslims are converting to Orthodoxy. This trend is stable, as evidenced by the statistics and the muftis of the Russian Federation themselves.

For example, Damir Mukhetdinov, First Deputy Mufti of the Nizhny Novgorod Region, believes that in Russia the growth rate of the number of Muslims converting to Orthodoxy today exceeds that of Christians converting to Islam.

Today, a large number of representatives ethnic groups professing Islam, enter into mixed marriages, and already the children of the second generation often convert to Orthodoxy. The number of people who come to Orthodoxy is generally not related to social factors such as marriage or living environment. Basically, those who come to Orthodoxy do it consciously and systematically, having studied the theological aspects of religion.

Islam is mainly accepted by women who marry Muslims.

Mufti D. Mukhetdinov himself admits that there are only 4-5% of Muslim believers. Most are non-believers. “We would like to see everyone as Muslims, but this is impossible. True, many of our public and religious figures need big numbers for the upcoming elections. When we say that almost three and a half million Muslims live in Moscow, well, we want ... I want Nizhny Novgorod there were 500 thousand Tatars and Muslims. To say: Comrade Governor, give us not 150 thousand, but five million, so that we can spend on public and religious needs,” says D. Mukhetdinov.

Oleg Efimov, executive secretary of the World Russian People's Council, commented on the fact of the transition from Islam to Orthodoxy of citizens of the Russian Federation in an exclusive interview with KM.RU.

- How would you comment on the fact of the transition from Islam to Orthodoxy of citizens of the Russian Federation?

– Well, first of all, I am very happy about this event. I believe that this trend speaks volumes, both about political factors and, of course, deeply sacred ones. I know that many come to Orthodoxy precisely from Islam. A lot of Tatars come to Orthodoxy. Even a new nation appeared - baptized or baptized, former Muslim Tatars. This speaks of a mass phenomenon if a whole nation appears!

Then this exuberant increase in the change of religions abated and took on its present form. Now a person consciously comes to an understanding of Orthodoxy, after a long comprehension of the depths and spiritual mysteries of Orthodoxy, weighing and comparing what he saw, felt, lived in, with what he masters.

By the way, I would like to note that girls mostly go to Islam after or before marriage, and men come to Orthodoxy. This is a very revealing moment - if a woman can be persuaded, forced, then a man more often makes a decision all the same himself. Therefore, we see the manifestation of religious zeal in the highest degree. I note that those who convert to Orthodoxy after professing another religion or after militant atheism become more faithful to God, more reverent about their soul and faith.

I can state, with all due respect to Islam, that this religion is failing. Of course, one can say that the strength is not in the large number, but in the truth of the faith of people - there may be 10 people, but they sincerely and strongly believe, but the loss of wise men, the sons of God, is a serious blow to the authority of religion. Moreover, they turn to Orthodoxy exactly well educated people, the intelligentsia of Islam.

I hope that this trend will increase and Russia will become, as before, an Orthodox power.

The text is abbreviated.
KM.ru

Saint Constantine was born into a Muslim family at the very end of the 18th century. The author of the life, most likely consciously, did not keep his Muslim name for us, thereby, obviously, wanting to emphasize that he completely and completely became a Christian ... It seems that the will of the saint himself was present in such an act of the author of the life.

The childhood of the future New Martyr was not sweet. A serious illness in adolescence, a divorce of his parents, a second marriage of his mother, a cruel stepfather, a second divorce, poverty, multiple changes of residence ... It is possible that suffering prepared the ground in his heart for the perception of the word about the Cross. This is confirmed by one of the living ex-Muslims, who writes in his memoirs that it was the reflections on the meaning of suffering that filled his own life and the life of the overwhelming majority of Africans that led him to Christianity. Having no known Christians, this man came to Christ thinking only over the Koranic legends about the sacrifice of the Savior on the cross, which says that Jesus, who they call the Son of God, was allegedly crucified. The suffering that this man had to face led him to the idea that "the need for the agony of the cross seemed convincing and true in the light of our real life" ...

After numerous journeys, finding himself in Smyrna, Saint Constantine worked at the bazaar as a peddler of greenery and fruits, and for work he often had to visit the Metropolitan's house. There he met Christians and Christianity. He made friends among Christians. In communication with them, he learned the Greek language.

Once, once again entering the Metropolitan's house, Konstantin asked a familiar priest to read him something from Christian books. He fulfilled his request. The words of Scripture made such a strong impression on him that it became, although most likely not the first, but, in any case, the last impetus to the decision to become a Christian ...

We, people, despite decades of atheism, who nevertheless grew up surrounded by Christian culture and from childhood absorbed Christian concepts and categories through the very language, architecture, literature, painting, history, it is often already difficult to adequately feel all the colossal power and the power of the gospel text. To hear the Good News as the first listeners heard it, and as St. Konstantin.

The first complete translation of the New Testament into Arabic was not published until 1860. But even now, as the modern Christian Arab missionary Bessam Medani testifies: "Muslims rarely hear the Word of God in their native language, and most of them have never seen the Bible." I recall the story of the conversion of one modern Egyptian confessor of Christ - Malik, who was the son of a venerable learned sheikh, trustee and inspector educational institutions district for Islamic studies and a zealous member of the Muslim Brotherhood. It happened after Malik heard from the Christians the gospel story about the forgiven harlot. Christ's mercy and full of love words struck young man to the depths of the soul, and everything around received a different assessment in the light of these words. Something similar happened to the martyr Constantine.

Speaking about the conversion of a Muslim to Christianity, we must keep in mind that such a person is faced not only with social, but, above all, with enormous psychological difficulties. "If a Muslim leaves his old faith, then this is not only a great shame for his entire family, but first of all for him it means separation from the usual "we" - the family, with which he feels unity with all the fibers of his soul. This process is deeper and longer than we imagine, and gives rise to the temptation of complete loneliness in very many proselytes. Only the sincere love of one who believes in Christ and the strengthening Grace of God can help to overcome all this.

The life does not directly say that Konstantin broke up with his family after deciding to become a Christian, but the circumstances under which his arrest took place indicate that this break occurred at the initiative of his relatives.

The example of St. Constantine shows how difficult it was for a Muslim to be baptized in the Ottoman Empire. This meant not only a death sentence for the person being baptized, but also considerable misadventures for those who were baptized. That is why the Smyrna Christians did not dare to baptize Constantine and sent him to Athos.

Arriving at Athos, the future martyr turns to the monastery of St. Paul asking for baptism. After consulting, the elders do not dare to do this and send him to the Kavsokalyvian skete. The Skete elders, in turn, send him to the Lavra of St. Athanasius. But even in the Lavra "for the sake of the Turkish" they do not dare to baptize a Muslim and send him to the Iberian Monastery to Patriarch Gregory V, who was there in silence (later he accepted the martyr's crown). Appearing before the saint, the young man falls at his feet and begs with tears to vouchsafe the sacrament of Baptism to him. But the patriarch does not immediately agree. For Konstantin - we must understand this! - it was a serious test. He was thrown out by the Islamic world and not accepted by the Christian! Only the sobs of a desperate young man at the last moment touch the hierarch's heart, and the patriarch orders him to return to the Kavsokalyvian monastery and prepare for baptism, which after some time he performs personally, thereby taking responsibility for everything. possible consequences to myself.

What did Saint Constantine experience after baptism? What does every person who has grown up in a Muslim environment and culture and who acquires the truth of Orthodoxy experience? As people who grew up in a predominantly Christian culture, this is hard for us to understand. The already mentioned Lamine Sanneh wrote about his feelings during the final conversion from Islam to Christianity: "it is difficult to express in words the feeling of complete freedom from the paralyzing impossibility of appeasing God." Probably, the future martyr also experienced a similar feeling of holy and spiritual freedom in the opened immeasurable sea of ​​Divine love.

So great and immeasurable was this sea that while the saint was carrying out obediences in the Caucasian Skete, the thought came to him more than once to seal his love for Christ with his own blood. However, his confessor, Elder Gabriel, did not give him a blessing for this, teaching that if it was pleasing to God, then He Himself, in the image of fate, would fulfill Constantine's desire.

Some time later, after asking for the blessings of the elders of Athos and the patriarch, Saint Constantine set off for Magnesia with the goal of converting his sister to Christianity. We can easily understand the reason for such a spiritual impulse of Constantine by referring to the example of the life of a modern confessor, the already mentioned Malik. After the sacrament of Baptism, he, overcome by love for the whole world, wrote in enthusiastic and touching terms to his family and wife about his happiness to be a Christian, about spiritual rebirth and love for God, reaching the desire to die for Him, and about love for them: "I always loved each and every one of you. But now my love for you - despite the fact that I completely, without a trace, gave myself up to love for Jesus Christ - has become even deeper, even purer, even more tender. I cannot express how much I love you. I cannot express my happiness. Share my joy out of love for me!" The response of the Malik family was a sent killer, a severe wound and a long recovery in the hospital.

St. Constantine must have been driven by similar feelings... However, he was not destined to meet his sister. On the way, in one of the ports, one official recognizes him. The further behavior of Constantine shows a sound exemplary Christian attitude towards martyrdom. He does not provoke his tormentors, not wanting thereby to tempt the Lord. Asked if he is a Turk, Constantine replies:

No, this person was mistaken, probably mistaking me for someone else, but I am a pure Christian.

Immediately afterwards, the saint buys a ticket for the nearest ship. Here he jumps into the boat, the boat sets off from the shore, swims, almost reaches the ship ... At this moment, they are ordered from the shore to return the boat and extradite Konstantin. The sailors obey implicitly. Constantine is led to the aga (judge). The following dialogue takes place between them:

Who are you, where did you come from and what is your name?

I am from afar, I am going to Anatolia, I profess the Christian faith, and my name is Konstantin.

And if there is a person who will convict you and prove that you are a Turk?

It is hardly possible, because I am a Christian.

Then an official of the Agha, an acquaintance of Brother Konstantin, gets up and "exposes" the saint.

Only then does the chosen one of God understand that the great path of martyrdom for Christ that is opening up is indeed prepared for him by God, and boldly answers:

Yes, I really was a Turk, but I was not long in the lawless Muslim faith, for my Lord Jesus Christ, in His great mercy, brought me out of darkness and led me to the True Light, now I trample your faith with all the rites that leads all its followers to eternal death.

These seeming to us simple words in those circumstances were the pronunciation of a sentence to oneself. The final conversion of a Muslim to another faith was punishable by death. In the event of such a transition, it automatically became myuboh-iddem, that is, a person who was allowed to kill everyone.

Constantine is beaten and imprisoned, and meanwhile the judge summons the Pasha of Mahsonissia to examine his case. The pasha who arrived offers the martyr to return to Islam, promising in this case to bestow upon him wealth and honors. Such a proposal is not at all a personal initiative of the pasha and is not evidence of his special generosity for the sake of returning the “fallen away” to the paternal faith. This was provided for by the Shariah. Muslim sources also report this practice. Everything that is described in the life happened strictly in accordance with the procedural system that originated at the beginning of the Arab Caliphate. Thus, the Muslim writer al-Kindi (d. 950) mentions a case related to the era of the early Fatimids: "an old Christian over the age of 80, who at one time converted to Islam, again changed his faith, and when he was asked to convert to Islam, he rejected this offer. The qadi brought this matter to the attention of the caliph, he handed over this man to the hands of the chief of police, and the latter sent to the qadi to select the four assessors necessary for his conversion to Islam. If he repents, the qadi should promise he is 100 dinars, but if he is stubborn, he should be executed. The old Christian refused, was killed, and his body was thrown into the Nile. "

Constantine also refuses and professes the Christian faith again. After that, he is first subjected to standard torture, the so-called phalanx (beating with sticks on the heels), and then, when this does not bring the expected result, he is transferred to the volunteer executioner who volunteered.

The establishment of torture in a similar way is not the result of the personal inclinations or predilections of the pasha - it was also prescribed by law. Even Abu Yusuf (d. 798), the author of the first book on Islamic law, which became a textbook for all subsequent generations of Islamic jurists, although he generally denied the possibility of any pressure on the suspect (including - any other religion considered them necessary if neither promises nor threats affected the accused.

But the fact that the pasha was not satisfied with standard corporal punishment, but handed Konstantin over to the hands of a "specialist" in torturing Christians, is an act of his personal savage will. An example of a different attitude of a judge within the same legislation is the case (martyrdom) of St. George of Militinsky (January 2/15). There, the judge was also forced to sentence the old man who had returned to Christianity to death, but with obvious reluctance and regret and without the use of torture. Often, the judges, who apparently did not want to take the blood of Christians upon themselves, declared those Muslims who came to them and reported their conversion to Christ as crazy and expelled them on this basis (for example, this was done for the first time with St. Cyprian the New (July 5/18)). It even happened that judges who disagreed with the pasha's verdict secretly released Christians sentenced to death.

The same "zealots" as the pasha, inherited by Konstantin, from time to time the punishment of God overtook even during earthly life. Thus, Michael the Syrian reports that in the 9th century one such judge, who was excessively zealous in torturing Christians who returned from Islam, was eventually thrown into prison and killed by the sentence of a Qadi. "Both Christians and Muslims suffered equally from pasha-tyrants," so there were frequent cases when, at the insistence of the latter, one or another pasha-tyrant was sooner or later removed from office.

So, Konstantin was handed over to the sadistic executioner. It is impossible even to read without an inner shudder the description of those torments to which the martyr of Christ was subjected. But even among them he remained steadfast in faith. And when he, exhausted, emaciated and mutilated, shackled in chains, was brought to the pasha and asked:

Now will you tell us who you are (in regard to faith)?

The martyr said:

Untie my hands and see who I am.

Having been untied, the saint crossed himself and exclaimed:

That's who I am!

This bright, expressive act expresses all the strength of the unbending will of the martyr and all the heat of the fire of his sacrificial love for Christ.

After this confession of the Faith, the saint is scourged, put in chains and thrown into prison. At this moment, as the life tells, prayers are lifted up in all the churches of God for him.

The case of Constantine was so responsible that the Cydonian mayor does not dare to judge him himself, and sends him to Istanbul.

There he spent some time in hard labor, then - again blows on the heels, torture, imprisonment in prison. In prison he is visited by a priest, who, seeing such a young age of the confessor and "fearing the unknown end," as it is said in his life, says to him:

All right, Konstantin, confession of the name of Jesus Christ, but the torments of the Turks are terrible. Think, if the torments of the Turks frighten you, then with the help of God we will help you out of here.

What are you saying, spiritual father? - the saint answers him with surprise, - Look at my body.

And with these words, he exposes his wounds, at the sight of which the confessor involuntarily shuddered and marveled at the feat of the young sufferer.

Look, father! - said the stern martyr to him, - Do not try to redeem me with gold and gifts for freedom. God save you from this. In a few days I will finish my feat, as the Most Holy Theotokos told me about it.

And so it happened. The next day, he was again called to the judge and, as stubborn in his "retreat", was sentenced to be hanged. The execution was carried out on June 2, 1819, 40 days after his arrest.

Hanging is a type of punishment kettle, usually used in relation to criminals convicted of sodomy, incest and apostasy. Adultery was punished mode- stoning. Intentional homicide entailed quesos- the right of blood vengeance. The choice of ketla by Muslims as a punishment for Christian martyrs, probably, should have served in their eyes to their greatest humiliation and reproach.

“So that the example of Constantine’s conversion to the Christian faith would not affect others, and also, so that Christians would deprive Christians of the holy relics of a martyr who had converted from Mohammedans, the Turks did not allow anyone to take his body, considering it a shame for themselves that their former co-religionist would be revered by the Christian Church, buried him secretly in a Muslim cemetery."

A monk sent from the Kavsokalyvia skete, who collected information about the feat of the saint in Kydonia and arrived in Istanbul, could not find the place of his burial, but he managed to redeem part of the clothes in which the most radiant martyr was executed. With her, he returned to Athos, where subsequently, from touching her, several miraculous healings were revealed ...

In an exclusive interview for the portal Iranian-American Christian of Muslim origin, missionary Fred Farrokh spoke about his repentance and how to win Muslims for Christ.

How did you become a Christian. Tell us about what you experienced?

I grew up in the Muslim faith. We moved several times and ended up in the US, which is not a Muslim country. I had Muslim friends in our community, but most of my friends and classmates were Christians, however, they had no real relationship with God.

So, we believed that when earthly life ended, we would have enough good works to go to heaven. The Muslims with whom we spoke were very good, kind people, they were not involved in “jihad” and were not adherents of Islamic fundamentalism.

When I turned 18 and entered college, I began to study history and philosophy. I read many books and eventually got to the Bible. When I read this book, I discovered that Jesus Christ was not just a prophet, as we are taught in Islam, but Jesus Christ was actually God, Lord and Savior. His teachings about the forgiveness of sins, rebirth, a new essence and a new human nature were something new to me, since I had never heard of such a thing in Islam, I was taught in a completely different way. After that, my search for truth began; I was constantly tormented by one question, which, in my opinion, was and remains global problem. The problem is that the adherent of each faith is sure that only his faith is true, and all others are not. . So, Christians believe that the truth is revealed only to them, and Jews and Muslims also think ... Perhaps everyone is right to some extent, but only to some extent. However, when I began to study the Bible more deeply, I discovered that Jesus was not like everyone else and His teaching was different from the teachings of Islam or any other religion. Jesus talked about how I can be cleansed from all my sins, that by getting rid of the sinful nature, I can acquire a new essence. And the more I read the Bible, the more I got to know Jesus Christ, and I liked Him more and more.

For about six months, maybe more, I was completely embarrassed. . Perhaps this embarrassment could be called "search" in another way. As a Muslim, I was accustomed to the need to constantly pray and in my prayers I asked God to show me the right path and reveal the truth, and the more I prayed like this, the more God revealed Jesus Christ to me as the only way. I was only 19 years old at the time, and it was at that age that I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior. I probably did not quite understand everything at that time, but God was so merciful to me. I felt like I woke up from a dream and found myself in the Kingdom of God.

You know, I heard a story about how a Muslim converted to Christ by reading the Koran. Do you think this is possible?

I think it's possible. God can use anything to talk to whoever he wants to. Of course, as a rule, the Quran does not lead people to believe in Jesus Christ. There are billions of Muslims on earth who have studied the Koran for centuries, and taught Islam themselves, and none of them turned to Christ. Ordinarily, reading the Qur'an does not lead a person to believe in Jesus. However, it is possible that this book can arouse in a person an interest in the person of Jesus Christ. Everything is possible. God can use anything to speak to a person. For example, God told Abraham to look up at the stars, but we know that God usually does not speak through the stars and it is not necessary to look at the sky to hear the Lord. When people start doing this, it already becomes a cult or astrology. In Balaam's case, God used a donkey! The donkey spoke to Balaam. That is, God can use everything to speak to a person, but the fact is that we should not take this as a dogma and go to extremes.

In this case, to speak to a person, God used the Koran, but again, the Koran is not intended for Evangelism. . As a general rule, reading the Quran will only distract you from your faith in Jesus Christ. So, God was able to use the Quran, but in other cases, this is unlikely. There is a difference between what God can use to repent a person - (He can use EVERYTHING); — and what He uses in everyone's life. In the Middle East, there was such a case: one person taken prisoner was blindfolded and kept locked up for many years. All he could see during his time there were three small holes in the wall through which light came. These three rays of light began to remind him of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. He then realized that he was not alone. Of course, not everyone would take it that way, but in his case, God used just that to help him. Just like God was able to use the Quran, but usually the Quran preaches the religion of Islam and not Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, so I do not recommend people to use the Quran to bring people to Jesus.

For example, the passage in the Bible where Jesus cries out, “Lord, Lord, why did You leave me” could be used by an unbeliever as a statement that Jesus Himself was an unbeliever at times if he did not believe that God was near. But a Christian knows that this is not so. You can't take one passage of the Bible, take it out of context, and base a doctrine on it. This is not true. In the same way, it is wrong to believe that since one person was saved by reading the Quran, then the Quran helps people turn to Jesus Christ, God in the flesh, who came to earth and died on the Cross for the sins of people! In fact, for Muslims who profess Islam, to some extent it is even insulting to assume that their Qur'an preaches about Christianity.

I don't think so... For a Christian, the only sacred Book that he should study and read should remain the Bible.

But what if a person is interested in a given religion or reads it to bring the gospel to Muslims?

In this case, I will say that we must know the faith and teaching of any person to whom we seek to bring the Gospel. If you want to reach the Hindus, you must know what Hinduism preaches. And, accordingly, if you want to reach Muslims, you must know what Muslims believe. So yes, it's very important. But there are also many cases where people ministered the gospel to Muslims without even knowing the Qur'an.

There is an opinion that the worst thing that can happen to a Muslim is conversion to Christianity. Can you elaborate on this?

The fact is that the teaching of Islam claims that Islam is the best of all religions. So, conversion to Christianity means conversion back. In many Muslim countries, when we talk about Christians, we don't assume what we mean when we think about who Christians really should be. So, for many Muslims, a Christian is a person who can drink alcohol, eat pork, commit adultery, and the like. As unfortunate as it may seem, this is their opinion.

2017, . All rights reserved.

“For 20 years I observed all the rites and laws of Islam”

The subject of this conversation is a white American named "George" (his real name is not given for security reasons) who became a Sunni Muslim at the age of 14, studied at the madrasah to become an imam, studied the Koran (part of which he memorized), Arabic, Islamic theology, history, "hadith" (tradition about the sayings and deeds of the Islamic prophet Muhammad) and Islamic law. After 20 years, he left Islam and consciously accepted Orthodoxy.

In a conversation with the host of the program on "Ancient Faith Radio”it was about the theology of Islam, common misconceptions of Muslims about Christianity, the differences between orthodox Islam and the Nation of Islam (a religious-nationalist radical organization of African Americans in the United States), about slavery and the attitude of Islam towards it, about what jihad is. And of course, about George's unusual path to Orthodoxy.

"I was looking for discipline"

– Lately Islam is one of the main topics of news and media reports. Today we are talking with a former Muslim, George, who has recently become Orthodox Christian(we spoke to his confessor and he confirmed George's whole story). George, before the interview, you told me that as a teenager you began to study various religious and philosophical teachings.

– Yes, I was interested in some Eastern spiritual traditions – Buddhism and Hinduism. I also read a little about philosophy, I was especially fascinated by the school of the Stoics. I quickly lost interest in Buddhism and Hinduism, and although at the age of 12 or 13 I was quite receptive to new ideas, these two religious systems seemed too strange to me. I felt that there is no truth either in Hinduism with its polytheism, or in Buddhism with its denial of God. I believed that God exists and He is one.

– Why aren't you interested in Christianity?

“I didn’t see anything of value in the Christian currents that were available to me, whether it was jumping and screaming televangelists assuring viewers that they could “buy” a path to the Kingdom of Heaven, or the constant hypocrisy and complacency of the people I met every day. I did not see Christianity that could offer something significant. Of course, I misunderstood Christian theology then. The idea of ​​the Holy Trinity seemed too confusing, and the Western understanding of the crucifixion of the Savior and the redemption of mankind by Him were only tricks so that people would not convert special attention their shortcomings and made no effort to improve their lives.

– What particularly attracted you to Islam?

“Islam offered exactly what I was looking for—discipline. And a more or less understandable theology… It seemed that Islam historically did not have such baggage as Christianity: slavery, racism, fanaticism, crusades, inquisition and intolerance towards everyone – all of which Christians have been accused of for centuries. In a spiritual sense, Islam offered worship to God that involved your voice, mind, and body, "rather than just waving your arms in the air while shouting and singing." Finally, in Islam there is a practice called dhikr, which translates as “remembrance”, “keeping in mind”. Practitioners of dhikr try to clear their mind of everything and think only of God. They repeatedly repeat short prayers designed to help them be in the presence of God. But, of course, at the center of Islam is prayer, that is, a prayer performed five times a day, which is obligatory for every Muslim.

Islam and slavery

– So, from the age of 14 you started going to the mosque. What was the contingent there at that time?

– Mostly they were African Americans, as well as people from the Middle East and Asia.

“According to a survey done a few years ago, 59% of US converts to Islam are African Americans. Why do you think so many African Americans convert to Islam?

“Some of the reasons for African Americans to convert to Islam are similar to those for which I and many non-African Americans converted to this religion in my time. I have already said about this. But in African-American communities, the situation is more unique. Based on my own experience, conversations with people and reading literature, I can say that the conversion of many African Americans to Islam is seen as an attempt to return to their culture, which they lost when their ancestors were captured, taken into slavery and taken to the Western Hemisphere, and as a result deprived of original traditions and identity. This is a way to get rid of the Eurocentrism imposed on them. Christianity has become synonymous with the oppression and oppression experienced by African Americans in the West.

– But it was Islamic slave traders who went to Africa, took Africans as slaves to sell to Europeans… Isn't that so?

– Yes, the Islamic slave trade began in the 7th century with the rise of the Islamic empire and continued in some places until the 20th century, for example, in Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan, where cases of human trafficking are still recorded. The Arab Islamic slave trade covered vast territories, including East and West Africa south of the Sahara (the main supplier), Central Asia, the Mediterranean and even Eastern Europe. The slave trade spread as far north as the British Isles and Iceland. Early America fell victim to Muslim slave traders from the so-called Barbarian Kingdoms, independent Islamic states that existed along the coast of North Africa.

I would like to say that Islamic law does not allow the taking into slavery of Muslims who were born free. Only Muslims born as slaves and non-Muslims taken captive are allowed to be taken. This explains the fact that most of the slaves were residents of territories bordering Islamic empires, including, of course, Christians.

– Today we see how ISIS and other radical groups capture, enslave, sell women and not only... Are such practices allowed in the Koran and hadiths?

- Yes. They are prescribed in a certain way by the Qur'an and Hadith. ISIS and other groups view their atrocities as a holy war. Everything women-non-Muslim women captured by them become their property, even if it is married women. The Qur'an calls such captives the words "what your right hand". In ayat (verse) 24 of the fourth Sura we read: “Married women are forbidden to you, except for captives who were captured by your right hands, captured during the war with the infidels.” I have quoted a portion from a lengthy passage that talks about women with whom a Muslim is allowed to have sexual relations.

There is also a quote from Sura 33 verse 50, which says on behalf of Allah himself: “O Prophet! We have made lawful for you your wives, to whom you have paid their reward, and [slaves] whom your right hand has taken possession of. I can give many more examples, but I think you already see how the holy books of Islam approve of the commission of atrocities.

Of course, a Muslim can argue with me and say that these verses refer only to the historical events of the time of Muhammad. But the problem is that Islam looks at the Qur'an as the unchanging and eternal word of Allah. So if the entire Qur'an is absolutely perfect, being the infallible word of Allah directly dictated to Muhammad, how can it apply only to a specific event or moment?

“This is very interesting, especially in light of the conversion of many African Americans to Islam in our time. Indeed, before Islam, the history of Christianity was closely connected, including with Africa.

- Yes. Christianity has been deeply rooted in Africa since the very beginning of church history. And in the Gospel of Matthew we find that the Lord Himself with His Most Pure Mother and righteous Joseph fled to Egypt. We also find an Ethiopian whom the apostle Philip meets, as mentioned in the book of Acts. Alexandria is one of the oldest Patriarchates. We have such great saints of the Church as Athanasius of Alexandria, Anthony the Great, Moses Murin, Mary of Egypt, Blessed Augustine and many others. It is a crime in my opinion that the rich history of Christianity in Africa has been forgotten, and I dare say that it has been deliberately set aside by the Christians of the Western churches.

– What are the essential differences between the teachings of the Nation of Islam and Louis Farrakhan, the current leader of this organization, and “orthodox Islam”?

- There are a lot of differences. But the most stunning thing is this: The Nation of Islam believes that the black man is divine, and the white man is genetically created by the mad scientist Yakub (the Arabic form of the name "Jacob"), who allegedly was born in Mecca and created a pale devilish race "through scientific experiment on the Greek island of Patmos. Yakub allegedly did this after he quarreled with God. This provision alone is enough to make it clear that the ideas of the "Nation of Islam" will not be recognized by orthodox Islam.

– Does this mean that followers of the Nation of Islam are not recognized as members of orthodox Islam?

- Of course not.

"I tried to be pious"

– Coming back to your story, what did it take for you to officially become a Muslim at 14?

- Very simple: it took the proclamation of the shahada - a formula outlining the two main tenets of Islam: "There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his prophet."

– And is that all that needs to be repeated in the presence of imams and other witnesses?

– It was necessary to have at least two adult male Muslim witnesses.

– Did other white Muslim converts go to the mosque with you?

Yes, there were several. One of them is now a co-founder of a national Islamic organization, which has been widely reported in the press for last years. However, I was then something unusual for them, given my very young age and the fact that my conversion to Islam was not preceded by any Muslim missionary work. It seems that among the white Muslim converts there were more women. According to my observations, marriages with Islamic men who emigrated from other countries contributed to this.

- And from the age of 14 you began to try to live a pious life as a Muslim. How strictly did you follow the rules, and what were your practices like?

“I didn’t think of myself as pious. You correctly said: I tried to be pious. I wanted to get closer to God. It can be said that I was much more strict with myself than the average Muslim born in this faith. This is a common occurrence among people who have converted to a faith in which they were not brought up - at least for a while they will be especially diligent.

I wanted to fully immerse myself in Islam. I studied everything I could. Therefore, at the age of 18, he left his hometown and moved to another state to study in an Islamic madrasah (seminary). He stayed there for three years. Studied Arabic grammar, Koran, hadith, Islamic law and history. In addition, he prayed five times a day. He also read additional prayers, which, although encouraged, were not obligatory. I fasted in the month of Ramadan and fasted throughout the year outside of Ramadan. I observed all the prescriptions in food, in self-purification, refrained from extramarital sexual intercourse and even tried not to shake hands with a woman, not to look her in the face if it was not my relative.

A large part of the life of a Muslim is the observance of the Sunnah. The Sunnah tells about the deeds of Muhammad and prescribes every aspect of the life of a Muslim: how to eat, sleep, drink, dress, speak, use the toilet, even how a married man punish his wife. I tried with all my heart to observe everything that I could.

How did Christian heresies affect Islam?

George, I think many Christians would agree that the Quran and Islam in general misinterpret Orthodox Christianity. What currents of heretical, non-Orthodox Christianity did Muhammad encounter in his life and where did he get these ideas from?

—Most Muslims tend to group all those who call themselves Christians—even sectarians like Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses—into a single homogeneous group. Pre-Islamic Arabia, especially the area where Muhammad was born, known as the Hejaz, was predominantly pagan. But Christian minorities also lived in the region. Muhammad's biography contains several instances of his encounters with Christians. It is difficult to say how Orthodox their beliefs were. But judging by the Qur'an, the Hadith, and their misunderstanding of Christianity, it can be assumed that at least some of these Christians were heretics.

As a young man, Muhammad accompanied his uncle named Abu Talib to Bosra (Syria). There Muhammad met a Christian monk named Bahira. This Bahira noticed that wherever Muhammad went, a cloud covered him. The monk called Muhammad to him and told him that God had chosen him as the last prophet.

Islamic sources claim that Bahira had copies of the "original gospel, free from errors and additions", which allegedly contained prophecies about the coming of Muhammad. Bahira, according to some sources, was associated with another monk named Sergius, who, according to some sources, was a Nestorian, and according to others, an Arian. Based on my knowledge of Arianism and Nestorianism, I would say that Muhammad was influenced by Arianism with its denial of the deity in Christ - the Muslims treat the Savior in the same way.

From other stories about Muhammad, we learn that when he received the first revelation in the cave, supposedly from the angel Jabrail, he became embarrassed and afraid, so that his first wife, Khadija, took him to her cousin. Her cousin's name was Waraqa ibn Nawf; he was a Christian, and according to some sources, a Nestorian priest. When Muhammad told him what had happened to him, Waraqa replied that he (Muhammad) was the last prophet foretold in the Scriptures. There are other testimonies about the meetings of Muhammad with Christians, but they all have the same theme: Christians allegedly confirm that Muhammad is the last and greatest prophet, that this was allegedly predicted, but since Christians and Jews changed the texts of their Scriptures, then the prophecies about the coming of Muhammad were removed or changed.

– According to Muslims...

Yes, according to Muslims. According to another account, the Byzantine emperor Heraclius (610–641) recognizes Muhammad as the true long-awaited prophet and says that all Christians should convert to Islam. Interestingly, some verses of the Qur'an were directly taken from the Apocrypha. One obvious example is a passage from the so-called "Gospel of Infancy" by the Apostle Thomas, which says that when Jesus was a boy, He made clay birds, breathed life into them, and they began to make noise and fly. Now let's compare this story with verse 110 of the fifth Sura of the Qur'an: “Then Allah will say: “Isa, remember the blessings that I gave you and your mother: I strengthened you with the Holy Spirit, you spoke to people from the cradle [when other children do not yet speak ], and in his mature years he had indescribable eloquence; I taught you writing, wisdom, Torah and the Gospel; from clay you sculpted the likeness of a bird, breathed life into it, and it immediately became a living bird with My permission.

- This is very similar to the apocryphal text of Thomas. Good point. Preparing for our conversation, I am among heretical currents IV century found an Arab sect called the Collyridians, who worshiped the Virgin Mary as a goddess. Some Muslims believe that the Qur'an objects to this particular sect because the Qur'an understands the Trinity as Father, Mary, and Son.

- Exactly! There is one interesting tradition, most likely associated with the Collyridians. A few years before Muhammad's death, when he returned victorious to Mecca (the famous "Conquest of Mecca"), he first cleared the Kaaba (Islam's most important sanctuary in Mecca) of hundreds of idols found inside and out. According to legend, Mohammed entered the Kaaba and ordered that all idols be thrown out of it and all images destroyed, but the image of Christ with the Virgin, surrounded by angels, should be left. Later, however, he reluctantly removed this image. So the presence of a picture of Christ with the Virgin in a pagan temple of that time may well indicate the presence of a heretical group like the Collyridians.

- It turns out that Muhammad mistakenly believed that Christians worship three Gods: God the Father, Mother Mary and the Son Jesus, and not one God in three persons? Of course, Orthodox Christianity rejects this idea of ​​tritheism, that is, that God is trinity in essence (the three persons of the Holy Trinity are three Gods).

– Yes, I would say that it is. One of Muhammad's biographies mentions the arrival of a delegation of Arab Christians who came to talk to him. The narrator reports that Christians were arguing about the nature of Christ, and then writes: “They claim that He is the third of the Three, because God says: “We created, We commanded, We created and We decreed”, and they say: “If He was One, I would say: I created, I created, and so on, ”but He is He, that is, God, Jesus and Mary.

In the Qur'an, verse 73 of the fifth Sura is just related to this statement. It sounds like this: “Verily, those who said: “Allah (God) is the third of three” have fallen into disbelief.”

– Similarly (correct me if I'm wrong) the Qur'an rejects the paternity of God the Father and the sonship of Jesus in the Christian sense. Muslims believe that, according to Christian belief, God the Father enters into a physical relationship with Mary for the birth of God the Son. Of course, this extreme error has nothing to do with Christian teaching.

- Yes exactly. Concerning this, verse 88 of Sura 19 of the Qur'an says: "And [some] said: 'The Most Merciful has a child.'" This misunderstanding arose from the belief of the polytheists of Arabia that angels and even their idols came into being through some physical contact of God. Therefore, I think Muhammad could understand the term "Son of God" in a purely human way, through the concept of sexual reproduction. Consequently, many Muslims began to think that Christians believe in the conception of the Son from the Father in a human way. Of course, this is a completely ridiculous and blasphemous understanding.

– Yes, Muslims also deny that Christ was crucified on the cross. The Koran nowhere speaks of Christ's atoning sacrifice, of His sufferings for the salvation of mankind. Here is one of best quotes confirming this - Sura 4, verses 157-159: “The wrath of Allah fell upon them for their lies: they said that they allegedly killed Isa, the son of Maryam, the messenger of Allah. But he was not killed by them and was not crucified, as they imagined. They just imagined it all. They thought they had killed and crucified the prophet himself. In fact, they killed and crucified another who looked like Isa. Then they themselves argued whether Isa was killed or another. They are all in doubt about it. They do not have any knowledge about this, but only assumptions. They weren't sure they had killed him. They didn't kill him. Allah raised Isa to Himself and saved him from his enemies. He was not crucified and he was not killed. Indeed, Allah is Almighty, Great and Wise in His deeds! And, verily, there is no one among the People of the Book who did not understand the truth about Isa before his death - that he was a servant of Allah and His messenger. They believed in him, but it was too late - the time had already passed. And on the Day of Judgment, Isa will testify against them that he is the servant of Allah and His messenger and that he conveyed the Message of his Lord.

– Yes, you are absolutely right! I can also add that, according to some Islamic commentators, God changed the appearance of Judas Iscariot to look like Christ. Thus, in their opinion, not Christ, but Judas was crucified ...

The Quran nowhere speaks of the redemption and saving sacrifice of Christ, because Islam denies that Jesus is the Son of God. The followers of Islam do not recognize the Deity of Christ, do not recognize the purpose of His incarnation and our salvation through Him. The whole formula of salvation in Islam comes down, by and large, to the proclamation of the shahada (“There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is His prophet”) and good deeds.

Teaching of non-love

– As we know, Christianity is based on love. In a conversation before our interview, you mentioned that in Islam there is no teaching about the love and mercy of God towards humanity or the unity of God with man. On the contrary, the relationship of man and God can be characterized as the relationship of a slave and a master. Please tell us more about this.

- To understand how a Muslim or a Muslim woman will see their relationship with God, it is important to know what is the purpose of the creation of man in Islam.

In verse 56, sura 51 of the Qur'an, it says: “I did not create jinn (invisible spirits) and people so that they bring Me any benefit, but only so that they worship Me. But worship benefits them.” And verse 7 of sura 11 says: “He is the One who created the heavens and the earth in six days, when His Throne was on the water, in order to test whose deeds will be better.”

I think these two verses as a whole show how Islam understands what man was created for. The first is to fulfill what God needs: to be worshiped in accordance with Islam; and the second is participation in a kind of competition: who will do the most good deeds. These two thoughts are often repeated in the Qur'an and Hadith. Thus, a person is obliged to worship God and thereby appease Him, and also to prove that he is worthy of God's mercy: if he proves, he will be rewarded. This is the purpose of human life. All this contrasts strongly with the way the purpose of creation and human life is understood in the Orthodox Christian teaching, according to which a person is called to communion and union with God, to be a partaker of Divine love and become a god by grace.

– You also told me that you would characterize God in Islam, i.e. Allah, as a tyrant.

- Yes. It's hard to explain for a short time but I'll try. According to the Qur'an, Allah guides whom He wills to the straight path, and whom He wills He leads astray (this phrase is repeated countless times). Now I will bring one famous quote Muhammad said: “A man asked: “O Messenger of Allah, is it possible to distinguish the inhabitants of paradise from the inhabitants of fire?” The prophet said, "Yes." The man asked, “So why do people try to do good deeds?” The Prophet replied: “Everyone will do that for which he was created (or: that which was made easy for him).”

Another passage is devoted to how the fetus is formed in the womb of its mother. “Forty-two days after a drop of semen is in the womb, Allah sends an angel to her, who gives her a preliminary appearance and creates hearing, sight, skin, flesh and bones in the fetus, and then says: “O my Lord, boy or a girl? - and your Lord decides as He wills, and the angel writes. Then the angel asks: “O my Lord, what will be the duration of his life?” - and your Lord says what He wills, and the angel writes it down. Then the angel asks: “O my Lord, what will be his lot (heaven or hell)?” - and your Lord decides as He wills, and the angel writes. And then the angel leaves with a scroll in his hand, without adding anything to it and without subtracting anything.

I think these two quotes show the fatalistic aspect of Islam. Sura 7, verse

179 of the Qur'an says: "We have created many jinn and people who will enter hell on the Day of Judgment." We see that among the people created by God, many are specially created for hell. And this is repeated many times in the Quran. "Fear the Fire, the kindling of which are people and stones." From all of the above, we can conclude that in Islam we are not dealing with a just God. Instead, we are taught that the Creator designed everything as a mechanism where no one, including God Himself, can deviate from a precisely set program.

Everything is subject to fate, and to such an extent that the things we perceive as the result of our free will, in fact, were prescribed for us. According to Islam, humanity is given the illusion that it has free will, when in fact there is no free will. Therefore, any judgment about the love and mercy of such a God can be considered insignificant and even ignored.

- What you have just told about, by the way, echoes the teachings of John Calvin about predestination. You also told me that in Islam the ideas of love and mercy are very different from what we find in Orthodoxy. Can you explain this to us?

– One such difference can be found by asking any Christian familiar with the Holy Scriptures: Does God love sinners and non-Christians? The answer will be: "Of course, yes." A Christian can quote many quotations from the New Testament, for example: “But God proves his love for us by the fact that Christ died for us while we were still sinners” (Rom. 5:8). And, of course, these words: “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another; as I have loved you, let you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35).

Unfortunately, for centuries and up to the present time, the gospel covenants about love have not been implemented by many Christians, for which, of course, we will be responsible. But I am now talking about the difference between the sacred texts of Christianity and Islam.

Sura 2, verse 276 of the Qur'an says: "Allah does not love any ungrateful (or unbelieving) sinners." And here is sura 3, verse 32: “Say:“ Obey Allah and the Messenger. And if they turn away, then surely Allah does not love the unbelievers.” And here is the previous verse of the same sura: “Say: “If you love Allah, then follow me, and then Allah will love you and forgive you your sins.” We see that, according to Scripture, love in Christianity is real, unconditional, truly Divine love, which any average Muslim would laugh at (and I laughed at one time). In Islam, love is conditional, conditioned. In Islam, Allah has 99 names, or properties, and only one of them sounds like "loving". But in the Bible, through the Holy Spirit, we know that God is love, that He created us only out of His infinite love, redeemed us through His Son, and enabled us by grace to be His children and call Him our Father.

"Islam limits God"

– Yes, in Islam and Christianity we observe completely different spirituality and character. George, would it be fair to say that in Islam you still had no experience and life in faith, but only following prayer rules, observing fasts, Islamic law and just obedience?

Yes, I fully agree with this statement. In Islam, there is a trend called Sufism, which contains the doctrine of the unity of man with God, but the ideas of Sufism in relation to traditional Islam are considered in best case controversial, and some even heretical and blasphemous. Since there is no doctrine in Islam about God dwelling in His creation through the Holy Spirit, it is impossible to know God in this religion. When the Qur'an says that God is close to His creation, this is meant metaphorically. Good example- verse 16 of sura 50: "And we are closer to him (man) than the neck vein." This means that God is close to us through knowledge, but there is no question of the real presence of God next to His creation. Even the statement that "God is everywhere" is highly controversial throughout Islamic theology. It would be more accurate to say that in Islam God is omnipresent by knowledge and not by His essence; He is above the Throne with His essence.

– Were there positive sides your life in Islam?

– Yes, I firmly believe that Islam gave me the direction in life that I needed so much. He gives this direction to many people today. It is unlikely that anyone will argue that it is bad if your life is built around faith in the one God, around prayer, fasting and works of mercy. Especially if we compare this life with the alternative that the surrounding world offers us - a life without any knowledge of God and without high morality.

The problem with Islam, in my opinion, is that it hinders the spiritual growth of a person. I believe that without recognition, faith and confession of the true God, who revealed Himself in the Holy Trinity, a Muslim involuntarily limits God and creates an idol, and this limitation is reflected in the worldview of a person, in his vision of his neighbors. I think that the way a person sees God influences his life and outlook on the world.

– Looking back at your life in Islam, can you say that this life was devoid of experiential knowledge of God?

– “Experienced” knowledge of God was very little. I believed that God exists, that I should worship Him, but, as mentioned above, the Islamic idea of ​​God does not allow a person to know Him. The God of Israel did not fully reveal Himself to people and was not known by people in fully. But everything changed with the incarnation of the Word of God - our Lord Jesus Christ, and this was the greatest event in history and a huge step forward for mankind. But then six centuries pass, and Muhammad appears, who (in a sense) turns the course of history back by denying the incarnation of the Son of God and His saving ministry. In essence, Muhammad brought his followers back under the rule of law and deprived them of the knowledge of the truth about God as revealed in the only begotten Son of God and the Holy Spirit.

- You told me before the conversation interesting thing: observing the external prescriptions of Islam, inside they felt like a kind of "monster". Tell me more.

- Oh yeah. Islam places so much emphasis on the observance of external rites that the need for spiritual development and growth is often ignored. Lack of spiritual growth affects how we treat our fellowmen. It happened to me and I saw that the same thing happened to so many other people. I felt such deep self-satisfaction within myself that I observe all the external rites and laws of Islam. And this self-satisfaction grew into real hypocrisy. All this reached such proportions that I began to look down not only on non-Muslims, but even on those who loved me and cared for me all my life. In the end, I turned into a monster ...

—Summarizing, is it possible to conclude that Islam instills in believers a sense of hypocrisy, when they begin to condemn and criticize other people instead of loving them?

– Yes, this is possible. And I saw it with my own eyes more than once, it happened to me too. Sura 5 verse 51 says: “Believers, do not take Jews and Christians as an avliya (close friend, close friend). Some of them are avliya for others. Who among you will take them as patrons, he is one of them. Oppressors and tyrants [obvious sinners] the Almighty does not guide on the right path. Such verses form a system of relations in believers: "we - they." Hence the fanatical zeal for the sake of being on the right (in Islam: "straight") path, as well as distrust, paranoia and contempt for any non-Muslims and even some fellow believers.

Peace or War?

- Now let's talk about something else. Many argue that Islam is a religion of peace, the word "jihad" means only spiritual struggle, and groups like al-Qaeda and ISIS simply cover themselves with religion. There is a lot of talk about this today. What have you personally heard about jihad and the teachings of the Koran "behind the scenes" on this topic?

– The word “jihad” primarily means struggle in the general sense, but also in the military and spiritual sense. However, in most cases, when referring to jihad in Islam, a military meaning is implied. In the Qur'an and the Sunnah, a special word is used: "kital", that is, "fight", "battle".

I do not believe that the groups you mentioned are just hiding behind religion. In the holy books of Islam one can find many places where their atrocities are justified. But it is not easy to interpret these texts unambiguously. Some put them in the context of historical events when the Koran was written, and that they supposedly have no relevance for Muslims in our time. However, others believe that the Qur'an is the eternal and unchanging Divine Word, no part of which can lose its relevance.

"Behind the scenes" about Most of the Muslims I met were indifferent to Islamic terrorists. They will neither praise nor especially condemn the deeds of the radicals. And public condemnation of Islamic terrorists is extremely rare for me. Even if you start talking about the indifference of Muslims to these events, they will become defensive and remember, for example, the crusades to justify the atrocities of terrorist groups. In this regard, it seems to me a little strange that some Christians, including the late Pope John Paul II, still apologize for the crusades. How often do we hear public condemnations by Muslims of the horrors that their fellow believers have done in the name of Islam? Turkey still denies the Armenian genocide, and Saudi Arabia - the birthplace and center of Wahhabism - is notorious for all kinds of human rights violations, and nothing is being done about it.

- George, would you call the radical terrorist activities of the groups we are discussing their personal radical choice? Or is this the norm, according to the teachings of Islam?

“Given the sheer number of passages in the sacred texts of Islam that endorse violence against non-Muslims, and the historical reality that shows that Islam has used force and terror to spread itself from the very beginning, I don’t know what any other conclusion can be other than one: Yes, this is the norm for Islam, not the exception. Even more, in order to better understand Islam, it should be looked at less as a religion than as a political movement heavily influenced by the pagan and Bedouin culture of the Mohammedan era, with a touch of Judeo-Christian overtones to give it legitimacy in Arabic. the world.

H and the way to Christ

– Let us now return to your path to Orthodoxy. I know that your mother (to her memory eternal) died quite early - at the age of 50, when you were still very young. How did this event affect your relationship with Islam?

Yes, it shocked me, as you can imagine, and forced me to ask myself difficult questions. Islam is absolutely clear about the afterlife of non-Muslims. I was horrified at the thought that my mother, who loved God and was one of the most loving and kind people I have ever known, should be condemned to eternal torment just because she was not a Muslim.

On the evening of the day she died, I went to the mosque to pray, think and find peace. There he met his fellow believers and told them about what had happened. Instead of condolences, the first thing I heard was the question: did she convert to Islam? When I said no, the reaction was, “Oh, what a pity. But we think it was the will of Allah.”

I felt extremely disgusting. But this is how Islam teaches, I thought, how can I argue with it. There is only one thing left: if I start to doubt Islam, then something is wrong with me. I tried my best to drive away these thoughts, but they did not weaken.

– So you began to move away from Islam and from religion in general?

– Of course, it wasn’t like I got up one morning and said: that’s it, I’m done with Islam, I’m forgetting it once and for all. No, it was a gradual process that took years.

For a long time I looked at life only through the eyes of Islam. He devoted himself entirely to the teachings of Islam and faith in God according to Islam. Sometimes he even prayed that it would be better to die right now than to die outside of Islam. Islam had such a huge impact on my soul and mind, and suddenly I began to lose it all. I began to give up everything that defined me. But before that, I was not just a believing follower of Islam, but even studied to be an imam - an Islamic cleric. He taught Islam, preached it, invited other people to Islam - and suddenly he himself began to turn away from it ... As a result, he ended up with a strong sense of bitterness: both in relation to Islam, and to religion, and to that period in life.

“There is a huge void in my life. I spent so much time looking for God and I thought I had found Him, but in the end I came to the conclusion that I was wrong. I felt mental and spiritual exhaustion. I felt betrayed by God. There was only darkness inside. I continued to believe in some higher power, but my faith in the true Personal God was shaken. I didn’t know how to return the previous state, and maybe I didn’t really want to.

– It is fair to say that you have experienced a major crisis of faith.

– Why do you think?

– After the death of my mother, the events of 9/11 and their consequences, my struggle with Islam and with life in general, I suddenly began to look at the world in an adult way. As the apostle Paul says: “When I was a child, I spoke like a child, thought like a child, reasoned like a child; but when he became a man, he forsook childish things” (1 Cor. 13:11). It can be said that I grew out of Islam, its rituals, laws and the idea of ​​God. I felt that all structure and discipline was meaningless if it didn't lead to something, but I didn't yet have a clue where it should lead to.

– Tell what happened in you and how you came to Christ.

“I was in a state of uncertainty. It seemed that he was spiritually dead, and his personal life was full of hatred and unspeakable malice. I did not pray for a very long time and I thought that if I start praying, then what is the use of it? What will I say? How will I approach this matter? And is there anyone listening to me? I began to read books on philosophy, as I did in my distant adolescence, trying to find at least some meaning in everything and, perhaps, to answer the questions myself. And then one day I saw an unusual dream (it must be said that until now I did not attach any importance to dreams and visions). In that dream, I felt the presence of Christ. I did not see Him, I only felt that He was near. It was as if He wanted to bring me closer to Himself, but I kept pushing Him away, rejecting Him—and then I heard a sob. When I woke up, I didn't know what to do with it. I did not consider myself spiritually experienced to interpret such dreams.

At first, I did not attach any importance to this strange dream. But, after some time, walking along the street, I suddenly, for no reason at all, began to repeat the Lord's Prayer. Before that, I had not learned it by heart. Later, while at home, I physically felt that some kind of force was squeezing me and pulling me down. I began to cry loudly. He fell to his knees at the edge of the bed and covered his face with his hands. Then something affected me, and words escaped from my chest: “Jesus Christ, if You are here, then help me!”

A few months later I saw the Apostle Paul in a dream. Paul went to Damascus, as described in the Acts of the Apostles. And suddenly I saw him fall to the ground. I looked into his face, but instead of Pavel's face, I suddenly saw mine! Then I realized that all this cannot be a mere coincidence. I felt that something had to be done, although my mind told me to weigh everything and come to rational solution. However, something inside me said: tell your mind to shut up and listen to your heart for once in your life!

– Now tell us how you learned about Orthodox Christianity and what brought you to Orthodoxy after more than 20 years of being in a religion hostile to Christianity.

“After everything I've been through, I still don't know what to do. Didn't know where to go. I was not interested in any of the thousands of Christian sects. I wasn't looking for emotional excitement, I needed something real.

I remember visiting the state fair where we live with my girlfriend (she has since become my wife and a rare example of Christian love, patience, kindness and understanding). We stopped next to a Christian stall where they were handing out Bibles. I approached, told about myself, and they gave me a copy of the Bible, suggesting that I also read the "sinner's prayer." The people seemed nice, but there was something wrong with them. An inner voice told me to keep looking.

Reading the New Testament, I began to wonder if the historical Church had been preserved somewhere. All the Christian denominations around me claimed to be called the Church proper. Having lived in Islam, I valued religious tradition and historical continuity, but I did not see this in any denomination. Catholic Church seemed the only church, which retained contact with the apostles and the first Christian communities. However, on a number of issues I had an internal disagreement with Catholicism.

Somehow I typed in an Internet search engine following words: "the ancient Christian Church, the first Christians." I began to look at the results, and my attention was drawn to the site of one Orthodox jurisdiction. The site had a quote from the book of the Acts of the Apostles: “For a whole year they gathered in church and taught a considerable number of people, and the disciples in Antioch for the first time began to be called Christians” (Acts 11: 26). I finally saw the connection between the historical community of believers in Christ and a specific place. I was intrigued and wished to know what this Church believes in, what its connection with the first Christians and the features of worship. I began to read more about the Orthodox Church, its doctrine, rituals and history. Then he said to himself: “This is what Christians should be!” And since then, he repeatedly repeated: "What a pity that I did not know about this Church many years ago."

The more I learned, the more it became clear. I must say that one of the teachings of Orthodoxy that really captured me is the doctrine of theosis, that is, “about about zheniya" man by grace. It became the center of the life of a Christian. I then contacted the local priest Orthodox Church, met with him and about a year later became catechumens.

"Faith in God cannot be purely intellectual"

– What brought you to Orthodoxy in the first place: a spiritual experience connected with the person of Christ Himself, or also an intellectual search?

- Both. But spiritual experience undoubtedly played a decisive role in my conversion to Christianity, in contrast to my conversion to Islam as a teenager.

All my life I have been accustomed to think carefully and rationalize everything, this applies even to spiritual matters, which can be detrimental to seekers of God. For me, this turned out to be a clear obstacle. Belief in God cannot be purely intellectual.

Once, about a year ago, while sitting at home, I peered at the icon of the Crucifixion of the Lord. My gaze lingered on the position of His hands. Suddenly, something struck me like a current: His body did not express pain and torment. That is, I am by no means belittling all the terrible pain and suffering of the crucifixion, but at that moment I saw something higher than this. I saw something beautiful - as if Jesus was telling me: "I did this for you and for the whole world, because I love you and want you to come to Me and follow Me." This feeling just hit me. I experienced something similar in my childhood: it used to be that you hurt yourself, and your mother, hearing my crying, hurries to me. I see her outstretched arms, she hugs me, and I feel a sense of calm, love and security.

– Forgot to ask you about this earlier. Islam denies the Deity of the Holy Spirit, doesn't it?

- Yes it is. The Holy Spirit is mentioned in the Qur'an, but the archangel Gabriel is implied. Islam believes that he is the "Holy Spirit".

– Have you had to overcome yourself, knowing the main Christian dogmas that Islam rejects: about the Most Holy Trinity, about the only begotten Son of God and the Holy Spirit as the Person of the Holy Trinity?

- Of course, I had an internal struggle. A huge task was before me: rebirth - mind, soul, everything that I was, and how I saw the world around me. Islam rejects everything that is considered fundamental to Christianity. The most significant example is the denial by Muslims of the Deity of Christ and His crucifixion. Even the form of the name of Jesus used in the Qur'an differs from the form used by Arabic-speaking Christians for centuries before the advent of Islam. The question of who Muslims call Christ and who Christians call Christ may seem trivial to some, but it is very important. Because the Jesus we find in Islam and the One we know as the Lord and Savior of the World are not the same person. Now, when I hear from a Muslim that he also believes in Jesus Christ, I answer him: "No, you don't." There is only one Christ, not two Christs - "Islamic" and "Christian". And if a person does not accept Him and does not believe in Him - such as He really is, then he does not believe in Christ at all. During the period of internal struggle, I realized that the more I read, study, participate in the Liturgy and pray, the more everything becomes clear. I also understood that God as the Holy Trinity is a mystery that you just need to accept, believe in and follow the Church.

Two books that have helped me a lot are the work of St. Athanasius the Great “On the Incarnation” and “The Accurate Statement of the Orthodox Faith” by St. John of Damascus. In general, I learned and - most importantly - experienced how beautiful, majestic and beautiful God is - the Indivisible Trinity.

- This is great! We are coming to the end of our conversation. Tell us now about your experience Orthodox worship and compare it with the experience of Islamic worship.

– First of all, I will say that it is impossible to imagine what my first Liturgy in the church was like. All my senses were involved at the same time. It was amazing. Felt like a child. In Islam, I have not experienced anything like this. There can be no comparison. I felt that worship is a mutual communication between people and God: believers sing and praise the Creator, and He acts through people. External rites in Orthodoxy, such as prostrations, were not at all strange to me. But it took me a while to get used to the icons. I read the "Sermon in Defense of Sacred Images" by St. John of Damascus. The way he defends holy icons impressed me so much that since then there have been no doubts about icon veneration. These are not just works of religious art - they are a consequence of the incarnation of the Word of God.

Yes, I also think it is a very important book. I am glad that you are reading the early Fathers of the Church, and not just the explanations of the Orthodox faith. And the last question. Has life in Orthodoxy changed you, and if so, how?

- Yes, she changed me thoroughly, and this process continues. I feel that I have not even begun to understand the true meaning of death, burial and resurrection with Christ. I know that the main attention in life should be devoted to the death of the former (“old”) “I”, my former thinking, outlook on life, on myself and my neighbors. This is a wonderful process that transforms and changes the whole life ... But it is also terrible at the same time. After all, I was baptized into Christ, and it was as if a mirror had been placed in front of me. Now I must look at myself honestly, with all my sins and shortcomings. You can't fool God, and in order to have a relationship with God, you must first be honest with yourself. For the first time in my life, I understand what true love is. The Lord says: “There is no greater love than if a man lays down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). There is no greater love than if you lay down your life: for a husband for his wife, for a wife for her husband, for a parent for his child ... to deny yourself and lay down your life for the sake of others is truly God's work, and the Lord did it first for us . That's where real love is. May I and each of us, by the grace of God, bring it to life.

Ex-Muslim George was interviewed by Kevin Allen

Translated from English by Dmitry Lapa

Ancient Faith Radio

Georges Houssney, founder and president of Horizons International, conducted a survey of 100 former Muslim believers in Christ, Christian Megaportal invictory.org reports with reference to Christianity Today.

The results of the study helped determine what triggered the transition from Islam to Christianity.

As scholar Scot McKnight writes, conversion to Christianity is directly related to how accessible we present the gospel.

Of the Muslims surveyed, 40 percent were mediocre Muslims and 40 percent were nominal. 20 percent claimed to be fanatics, saying their relationship with Allah was built on fear or duty.

55 percent said they perceived Islam as a cultural system versus a religious system.

Nine out of ten converts stated that they now worship another God, which is different from Allah.

So what character traits God distinguish Him from Allah? Approximately three out of four Muslims surveyed said that this quality is love, which to a large extent characterizes only the Christian God. And 25 percent said it was forgiveness that God gives.

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Also, eight out of ten people said that the love of Christians played a significant role at the time they were evangelized. And six out of ten claimed that only this love helped them to accept Christianity.