Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Brother Yusuf Estes

My name is Yusuf Estes and I am the National Muslim Chaplain for American Muslims, sponsored by a number of organizations here in Washington, DC. As such, I travel around the entire world lecturing and sharing the message of the Christ of the Quran in Islam. We hold dialogs and discussion groups with all faiths and enjoy the opportunity to work alongside of rabbis, ministers, preachers and priests everywhere. Most of our work is in the institutional area, military, universities and prisons. Primarily our goal is to educate and communicate the correct message of Islam and who the Muslims really are. Although Islam has grown now to tie Christianity as the largest of religions on earth, we see many of those who claim Islam as Muslims, that do not correctly understand nor properly represent the message of “Peace, Surrender and Obedience to God” (Arabic = ‘Islam’).

Dear me, I am afraid that I got a bit ahead of myself, I was trying to give a bit of background on my own personal experience to see if it would in anyway benefit you in your ministry. This may seem quite strange that I would offer to help you, while we perhaps share a few different perspectives and concepts of God, Jesus, prophethood, sin and salvation. But you see, at one time I was in the same boat as you. Really, I was. Let me explain.

I was born into a very strong Christian family in the Midwest. Our family and their ancestors not only built the churches and schools across this land, but actually were the same ones who came here in the first place. While I was still in elementary we relocated in Houston, Texas in 1949 (I’m old). We attended church regularly and I was baptized at the age of 12 in Pasadena, Texas. As a teenager, I wanted to visit other churches to learn more of their teachings and beliefs. The Baptists, Methodists, Episcopalians, Charismatic movements, Nazarene, Church of Christ, Church of God, Church of God in Christ, Full Gospel, Agape, Catholic, Presbyterian and many more. I developed quite a thirst for the “Gospel” or as we say; “Good News.” My research into religion did not stop with Christianity.Not at all. Hinduism, Judaism, Buddhism, Metaphysics,native American beliefs were all a part of my studies. Just about the only one that I did not look into seriously was “Islam”. Why? Good question.

Anyway, I became very interested in different types of music, especially Gospel and Classical. Because my whole family was religious and musical it followed that I too would begin my studies in both areas. All this set me for the logical position of Music Minister in many of the churches that I became affiliated with over the years. I started teaching keyboard instruments in 1960 and by 1963 owned my own studios in Laurel, Maryland, called “Estes Music Studios.”

Over the next 30 years my father and I worked together in many business projects. We had entertainment programs, shows and attractions. We opened piano and organ stores all the way from Texas and Oklahoma to Florida. I made millions of dollars in those years, but could not find the peace of mind that can only come through knowing the truth and finding the real plan of salvation. I’m sure you have asked yourself the question; “Why did God create me?” or “What is it that God wants me to do?” or “Exactly who is God, anyway?” “Why do we believe in ‘original sin?” and “Why would the sons of Adam be forced to accept his ‘sins’ and then as a result be punished forever. But if you asked anyone these questions, they would probably tell you that you have to believe without asking, or that it is a ‘mystery’ and you shouldn’t ask. And then there is the concept of the ‘Trinity.’ If I would ask preachers or ministers to give me some sort of an idea how ‘one’ could figure out to become ‘three’ or how God Himself, Who can do anything He Wills to do, cannot just forgive people’s sins, but rather and had to become a man, come down on earth, be a human, and then take on the sins of all people.Keeping in mind that all along He is still God of the whole universe and does as He Wills to do, both in and outside of the universe as we know it.

Then one day in 1991, I came to know that the Muslims believed in the Bible. I was shocked. How could this be? But that’s not all, they believe in Jesus as:

*a true messenger of God;

*prophet of God;

*miracle birth without human intervention;

*he was the ‘Christ’ or Messiah as predicted in the Bible;

*he is with God now and most important;

* He will be coming back in the Last Days to lead the believers against the ‘Antichrist.’

This was too much for me. Especially since the evangelists that we used to travel around with all hated Muslims and Islam very much. They even said things that were not true to make people afraid of Islam. So, why would I want anything to do with these people? My father was very active in supporting church work, especially church school programs. He became an ordained minister in the 1970s. He and his wife (my stepmother) knew many of the TV evangelists and preachers and even visited Oral Roberts and helped in the building of the “Prayer Tower” in Tulsa, OK. They also were strong supporters of Jimmy Swaggart, Jim and Tammy Fae Bakker, Jerry Fallwell, John Haggi and the biggest enemy to Islam in America, Pat Robertson. Dad and his wife worked together and were most active in recording “Praise” tapes and distributing them for free to people in retirement homes, hospitals and homes for the elderly. And then in 1991 he began doing business with a man from Egypt and told me that he wanted me to meet him. This idea appealed to me when I thought about the idea of having an international flavor. You know, the pyramids, sphinx, Nile River and all that. Then my father mentioned that this man was a ‘Moslem.’

I couldn’t believe my ears.

A ‘Moslem?’

No way!

I reminded my dad of the various different things that we had heard about these people, how they are –

Terrorists; hijackers; kidnappers; bombers and who knows what else?

Not only that but:

They don’t believe in God

They kiss the ground five times a day and

They worship a black box in the desert.

No! I did not want to meet this ‘Moslem’ man. No way! My father insisted that I meet him and reassured me that he was a very nice person. So, I gave in and agreed to the meeting.

But on my terms.

I agreed to meet him on a Sunday after church so we would be all prayed up and in good standing with the Lord. I would be carrying my Bible under my arm as usual. I would have my big shiny cross dangling and I would have on my cap which says: “Jesus is Lord” right across the front. My wife and two young daughters came along and we were ready for our first encounter with the ‘Moslems.’

When I came into the shop and asked my father where the ‘Moslem’ was, he pointed and said: “He’s right over there.” I was confused. That couldn’t be the Moslem. No way.

I’m looking for a huge man with flowing robes and big turban on his head, a beard half way down his shirt and eyebrows that go all the way across his forehead.

This man had no beard. In fact, he didn’t even have any hair on his head at all. He was very close to bald. And he was very pleasant with a warm welcome and handshake. This didn’t make sense. I thought they are terrorists and bombers. What is this all about?

Never mind. I’ll get right to work on this guy. He needs to be ‘saved’ andme and the Lord are going to do it. So, after a quick introduction, I asked him: “Do you believe in God?” He said: ” Yes.”

(Good!) Then I said: ” Do you believe in Adam and Eve?” He said: ” Yes.” I said: “What about Abraham? You believe in him and how he tried to sacrifice his son for God?”

He said: ” Yes.”

Then I asked: “What about Moses?”

“Ten Commandments?”

“Parting the Red Sea?”

Again he said: ” Yes.”

Then: ” What about the other prophets, David, Solomon and John the Baptist?”

He said: ” Yes.”

I asked: ” Do you believe in the Bible?”

Again, he said: ” Yes.”

So, now it was time for the big question:

“Do you believe in Jesus? That he was the Messiah (Christ) of God?”

Again the said: ” Yes.”

Well now this was going to be easier than I had thought. He was just about ready to be baptized only he didn’t know it.

And I was just the one to do it, too.

I was winning souls to the Lord day after day and this would be a big achievement for me, to catch one of these ‘Moslems’ and ‘convert’ him to Christianity.

I asked him if he liked tea and he said he did. So off we went to a little shop in the mall to sit and talk about my favorite subject: Beliefs.

While we sat in that little coffee shop for hours talking (I did most of the talking) I came to know that he was very nice, quiet and even a bit shy. He listened attentively to every word that I had to say and did not interrupt even one time. I liked this man’s way and thought that he had definite potential to become a good Christian.

Little did I know the course of events about to unravel in front of myeyes. First of all, I agreed with my father that we should do business with this man and even encouraged the idea of him travelling along with me on my business trips across the northern part of Texas. Day after day we would ride together and discuss various issues pertaining to different beliefs that people have. And along the way, I could of course interject some of my favorite radio programs of worship and praise to help bring the message to this poor individual. We talked about the concept of God; the meaning of life; the purpose of creation; the prophets and their mission and how God reveals His Will to mankind. We also shared a lot of personal experiences and ideas as well.

One day I came to know that my friend Mohamed was going to move out of the home he have been sharing with a friend of his and was going to be living in the mosque for a time. I went to my dad and asked him if we could invite Mohamed to come out to our big home in the country and stay there with us. After all, he could share some of the work and some expenses and he would be right there when we were ready to go to out travelling around. My father agreed and Mohamed moved in.

Of course I still would find time to visit my fellow preachers and evangelists around the state of Texas. One of them lived on the Texas -- Mexico border and another lived near the Oklahoma border. One preacher liked to carry a huge wooden cross that was bigger than a car. He would carry it over his shoulder and drag the bottom on the ground and go down the road or freeway hauling these two beams formed in the shape of a cross. People would stop their cars and come over to him and ask him what was going on and he would give them pamphlets and booklets on Christianity.

One day my friend with the cross had a heart attack and had to go to the Veterans Hospital where he stayed for quite a long while. I used to visit him in the hospital several times a week and I would take Mohamed with me with the hopes that we could all share together in the subject of beliefs and religions. My friend was not very impressed and it was obvious that he did not want to know anything about Islam. Then one day a man who was sharing the room with my friend came rolling into the room in his wheelchair. I went to him and asked him his name and he said that it didn’t matter and when I asked him where he was from he said he was from the planet Jupiter. I thought about what he said and then began to wonder if I was in the cardiac ward or the mental ward.

I knew the man was lonely and depressed and needed someone in his life. So, I began to ‘witness’ to him about the Lord. I read to him out of the book of Jonah in the Old Testament. I shared the story of the prophet Jonah who had been sent by the Lord to call his people to the correct way. Jonah had left his people and escaped by boat to leave his city and head out to sea. A storm came up and the ship almost capsized and the people on board threw Jonah over the side of the ship. A whale came up to the surface and grabbed Jonah, swallowed him and then went down to the bottom of the sea, where he stayed for three days and three nights. Yet because of God’s Mercy, He caused the whale to rise to the surface and then spit Jonah out to return back home safely to his city of Nineveh. And the idea was that we can’t really run away from our problems because we always know what we have done. And what is more, God also always knows what we have done.

After sharing this story with the man in the wheel chair, he looked up and me and apologized. He told me he was sorry for his rude behavior and that he had experienced some real serious problems recently. Then he said that he wanted to confess something to me. And I said that I was not a Catholic priest and I don’t handle confessions. He replied back to me that he knew that. In fact, he said: “I am a Catholic priest.” I was shocked. Here I had been trying to preach Christianity to a priest. What in the world was happening here?

The priest began to share his story of being a missionary for the church for over 12 years to south and Central America and Mexico and even in New York’s ‘Hell’s Kitchen.’ When he was released from the hospital he needed a place to go to recover and rather than let him go to stay with a Catholic family, I told my dad that we should invite him to come out and live with us in the country along with our families and Mohamed. It was agreed by all that he would so, he moved out right away.

During the trip out to our home, I talked with the priest about some of the concepts of beliefs in Islam and to my surprise he agreed and then shared even more about this with me. I was shocked when he told me that Catholic priests actually study Islam and some even carrydoctors degrees in this subject. This was all very enlightening to me. But there was still a lot more to come.

After settling in, we all began to gather around the kitchen table after dinner every night to discuss religion. My father would bring his King James Version of the Bible, I would bring out my Revised Standard Version of the Bible, my wife had another version of the Bible (maybe something like Jimmy Swaggart’s ‘Good NewsFor Modern Man.” The priest of course, had the Catholic Bible which has 7 more books in it that the Protestant Bible. So we spent more time talking about which Bible was the right one or the most correct one, than we did trying to convince Mohamed about becoming a Christian.

At one point I recall asking him about the Quran and how many versions of it there were in the last 1,400 years. He told me that there was only ONE QURAN. And that it had never been changed. Yet he let me know that the Quran had been memorized by hundreds of thousands of people, init’s entirety and were scattered about the earth in many different countries. Over the centuries since the Quran was revealed millions have memorized it completely and have taught it to others who have memorized it completely, from cover to cover, letter perfect without mistakes.

This did not seem possible to me. After all, the original languages of the Bible have all been dead languages for centuries and the documents themselves have been lost in their originals for hundreds and thousands of years. So, how could it be that something like this could be so easy to preserve and to recite from cover tocover.

Anyway, one day the priest asked Mohamed if he might accompany him to the mosque to see what it was like there. They came back talking about their experience there and we could not wait to ask the priest what it was like and what all types of ceremonies they performed. He said they didn’t really ‘do’ anything. They just came and prayed and left. I said: “They left?Without any speeches or singing?” He said that was right.

A few more days went by and the Catholic priest asked Mohamed if he might join him again for a trip to the mosque which they did. But this time it was different. They did not come back for a very long time. It became dark and we worried that something might have happened to them. Finally they arrived and when they came in the door I immediately recognized Mohamed, but who was this alongside of him?Someone wearing a white robe and a white cap. Hold on a minute! It was the priest. I said to him: “Pete? -- Did you become a ‘Moslem?’

He said that he had entered into Islam that very day. THE PRIEST BECAME A MUSLIM!! What next? (You’ll see).

So, I went upstairs to think things over a bit and began to talk to my wife about the whole subject. She then told me that she too was going to enter into Islam, because she knew it was the truth. I was really shocked now. I went downstairs and woke up Mohamed and asked him to come outside with me for a discussion. We walked and talked that whole night through. By the time he was ready to pray Fajr (the morning prayer of the Muslims) I knew that the truth had come at last and now it was up to me to do my part. I went out back behind my father’s house and found an old piece of plywood lying under an overhang and right there I put my head down on the ground facing the direction that the Muslims pray five times a day.

Now then in that position, with my body stretched out on the plywood and my head on the ground, I asked: “O God. If you are there, guide me, guide me.” And then after a while I raised up my head and I noticed something. No, I didn’t see birds or angels coming out of the sky nor did I hear voices or music, nor did I see bright lights and flashes. What I did notice was a change inside of me. I was aware now more than ever before that it was time for me to stop lying and cheating and doing sneaky business deals. It was time that I really work at being an honest and upright man. I knew now what I had to do. So I went upstairs and took a shower with the distinct idea that I was ‘washing’ away the sinful old person that I had become over the years. And I was now coming into a new, fresh life. A life based on truth and proof.

Around 11:00 A.M. that morning, I stood before two witnesses, one the ex-priest, formerly known as Father Peter Jacob’s, and the other Mohamed Abel Rehman and announced my ‘shahadah’ (open testimony to the Oneness of God and the prophethood of Muhammad, peace be upon him).

A few minutes later, my wife followed along and gave the same testimony. But hers was in front of three witnesses (me being the third). My father was a bit more reserved on the subject and waited a few more months before he made his shahadah (public testimony). But he did finally commit to Islam and began offering prayers right along with me and the other Muslims in the local masjid (mosque). The children were taken out of the Christian school and placed in Muslim schools. And now ten years later, they are memorizing much of the Quran and the teachings of Islam.

My father’s wife was the last of all to acknowledge that Jesus could not be a son of God and that he must have been a mighty prophet of God, but not God.

Now stop and think. A whole entire household of people from varying backgrounds and ethnic groups coming together in truth to learn how to know and worship the Creator and Sustainer of the Universe. Think.A Catholic priest. A minister of music and preacher. An ordained minister and builder of Christian schools. And they all come into Islam! Only by His Mercy were we all guided to see the real truth of Islam without any blinders on their eyes any longer.

If I were to stop right here, I’m sure that you would have to admit that at least, this is an amazing story, right? After all, three religious leaders of three separate denominations all going into one very opposite belief at the same time and then soon after the rest of the household. But that is not all. There is more! The same year, while I was in Grand Prairie, Texas (near Dallas) I met a Baptist seminary student from Tennessee named Joe, who also came to Islam after reading the Holy Quran while in BAPTIST SEMINARY COLLEGE!

There are others as well. I recall the case of the Catholic priest in a college town who talked about the good things in Islam so much that I was forced to ask him why he didn’t enter Islam. He replied: “What? And loose my job?” - His name is Father John and there is still hope for him yet.

More? Yes. The very next year I met a former Catholic priest who had been a missionary for 8 years in Africa. He learned about Islam while he was there and entered into Islam. He then changed his name to Omar and moved to Dallas Texas.Any more? Again, yes. Two years later, while in San Antonio, Texas I was introduced to a former Arch Bishop of the Orthodox Church of Russia who learned about Islam and gave up his position to enter Islam.

And since my own entrance into Islam and becoming a chaplain to the Muslims throughout the country and around the world, I have encountered many more individuals who were leaders, teachers and scholars in other religions who learned about Islam and entered into it. They came from Hindus, Jews, Catholics, Protestants, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Greek and Russian Orthodox, Coptic Christians from Egypt, non-denominational churches and even scientists who had been atheists.

Why? Good question.

May I suggest to the seeker of truth do the following NINE STEPS to purification of themind:

1.) Clean their mind, their heart and their soul real good.

2.) Clear away all the prejudices and biases

3.) Read a good translation of the meaning of the Holy Quran in a language that they can understand best.

4.) Take some time.

5.) Read and reflect.

6.) Think and pray.

7.) And keep on asking the One who created you in the first place, to guide you to the truth.

8.) Keep this up for a few months. And be regular in it.

9.) Above all, do not let others who are poisoned in their thinking influence you while you are in this state of “rebirth of the soul.”

The rest is between you and the Almighty Lord of the Universe. If you truly love Him, then He alreadyKnows it and He will deal with each of us according to our hearts.

So, now you have the introduction to the story of my coming into Islam and becoming Muslim. There is more on the Internet about this story and there are more pictures there as well. Please take the time to visit it and then please take the time to email me and let us come together to share in all truths based on proofs for understanding our origins and our purpose and goals in this life and the Next Life.

May Allah guide you on your journey to alltruth. Ameen. And May Heopen your heart and your mind to the reality of this world and the purpose of this life, ameen.

Peace to you and Guidance from Allah the One Almighty God, Creator and Sustainer of all that exists.

Your friend,

Chaplain Yusuf Estes Holy Quran 15:55They said: We give you good news with truth, therefore be not of the despairing.

Brother Ahmad

Twenty Year Search begins a Lifelong Journey

It seems like I have always been a Muslim. I cannot recall ever believing that any other than Allah created the universe. I used to stare at the sky, animals, trees, etc and just marvel at how magnificent and great the Creator of all of these things must be. The only problem that I had with religion as an adolescent and young adult was that I was not mature enough to accept that complete submission to the Creator was necessary. My own desires came first. ‘What do I want, and how do I get it?’ was my primary concern. Throughout other experiences later, I came to understand that my own knowledge was infinitesimally small and that it was my Creator, Allah, alone who possesses all knowledge and who has power of all things.

When I was in sixth grade, my oldest brother became a ‘born again Christian’ at Immanuel’s Temple in Lansing, Michigan. He used to try to get all of us to go to church and ‘praise God’ with him. I remember being asked once when his girlfriend was spending the night at our house, “Do you accept Jesus Christ as your lord and savior?” I don’t remember what my exact reply was, but I remember saying something to the effect that I believed that Jesus’ life was an excellent example of piety but that God alone was my Creator and that I was unable to accept that Jesus was, in fact, God. She seemed content enough to hear that I did indeed love Jesus and went on explaining how that meant I was saved from the fire, and on and on.

At the time, I was probably eleven years old. I started reading the bible with my brother from time to time, but I noticed that I had insights and questions about the passages we would study that he could not answer. I looked through the index and table of contents voraciously, thinking that I would find more references to all of the topics that were important to me, but the verses that I was directed to were always inadequate. In short, I observed that the book was not very well put together.

I remember thinking, ‘this does not seem at all like what the Creator of the universe would choose to tell His creations.’ Why, for example, in the opening passage in John, would He spend so much time discussing a genealogy? Why did Genesis sound so contrived? Why did Revelations and Acts appear to be so inconsistent with other parts of the book? What was all that symbolism and apocalyptic chatter mean? Who was supposed to be impressed? No, I did not accept that this book was from God, at least not entirely. Some of what I read moved me, but most of it was more boring and senseless than a 2000 page comic book.

There were only two times when my brother convinced me to attend church with him. All that I saw were people there trying to make themselves feel good about their own pathetic shortcomings. The preaching lacked sophistication. He kept claiming that he possessed all types of powers due to Jesus Christ. He kept trying to convince the congregation, and himself, that what he was saying was true. I thought, ‘what a quack.’ The best message in the world can never reach its intended target if the messenger’s approach is inadequate.

I wondered why all of those people at the church picked up the hymn books and opened up their bibles to the pages that the minister instructed them to read. How was it that he got away with making so many comments without being questioned? How come everyone was following what he was saying and not looking at other parts of the bible that clearly contradicted what he was saying? I did not want to sell myself short by allowing him to stand in the way of me becoming acquainted with my Creator, but since I had already turned to and away from the bible, I concluded that those people were content with suspending their intellect and reasoning ability.

They accepted what they were feed, and because their beliefs taught them that despite their poor qualities and severely deficient characters they were still loved by God, they never looked elsewhere? If you believe that God loves you as a wretch the same way that he loves you as a pious person, then why would you ever change your beliefs? If you believed that Jesus died for your sins, then why would you stop sinning?

My quest for knowledge continued throughout high school. I read Plato and Aristotle. I studied Greek and Roman mythology. I looked at contemporary thinkers and philosophers like Bertrand Russell, Nietzsche, Freud, C.S. Jung and others. I tried to get into Thoreau, Emerson, other writers and other poets, mostly white Americans. I attempted to find some substance and depth in Black American writers like Toni Morrison, James Baldwin, Langston Hughes, Maya Angelou and others. In each of the different personalities, I found some elements that interested me and others that did not, but I was not impressed with any of them enough to make me think that what they knew was worth knowing.

During my first year of college, I started reading about Taoism (Daoism), Buddhism, Hinduism, Shintoism and Confucianism. Again, there were interesting elements and not so interesting elements. What path was I on and how would I know when I got there? Desiring to learn more about the African experience that I felt disconnected from, I transferred to another university for my second year to begin an African Studies major. I studied black social scientists and historians like DuBois, Diop and Senghor in class, and revolutionaries like Marcus Garvey,

Malcolm X, Steve Biko, Walter Rodney and Amilcar Cabral, out of class. I started to get absorbed into the ‘struggle;’ the plight of African and descendants of Africa in world dominated by Western hegemony. I revisited the injustices of the transatlantic slave trade and plantation enterprises in the Americas. I compared the plight of Blacks in the United States with Africans living in post-colonial (neocolonial) Africa, and I was determined to unite the oppressed under a banner of pan-Africanism. Several friends and I founded a small group that we called, Africa’s Progeny for Global Power (APGP). We were devoted to enlightening and empowering our ‘people’ around the world, the Caribbean, Latin America, North America, Europe, Asia, and of course, Africa. We were sharp, results-oriented and focused.

I decided that I had to visit Africa in order to begin to actualize my dreams. I applied for a scholarship that I eventually won to study at the University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania. A few months later, with no second thoughts, I was on a plane headed back to the ‘motherland.’ People told me that living in Africa would change my way of thinking profoundly. I replied that my most fundamental beliefs could never change, but admitted that the superfluous activities would probably vanish forever. What did I feel most committed to at that time? Ironically, I was committed to serving my Creator, but the difference between then and now is that I felt my own manner of serving Him was adequate. I thought I was left free to worship on my terms. Later I realized worship has to come on the terms of the Worshipped, not on the terms of the worshipper. Imagine having a your slave tell you, ‘yes master, I will serve you and commit myself to pleasing you, but before all that happens, let me go over here and handle some other business!’

It does not make sense at all does it? Imagine acknowledging that a Creator exists. Without knowing any further information to describe your Creator’s attributes or His orders and commands to His creations, one would have to conclude that it was a duty to submit and worship his Creator. TheBeing with the power to make things that we ourselves cannot even comprehend deserves our complete attention. Anything that a creation wishes to do that is not in harmony with the desires of the Creator is done in vain. Why keep bumping one’s head going against the grain, when all one needs to do to be successful is submit to his Maker? All creation must acknowledge that the Creator alone is fit to be worshipped and must disavow any distraction or ‘partner’ that could distract from worshipping the One True Supreme Being.

I lived in mainland Tanzania and in the offshore Zanzibar Islands on and off for four months before I accepted Islam. I had reached the point where I realized that all of my efforts were futile if they were not centeredaround pleasing my Creator. This is humanity’s natural mode of existence. This is the way that all creation, animate or inanimate, functions. Mountains have behavioral characteristics determined by Allah, the Creator. Scientists may believe in geological evidence, but Muslims understand that all of those sciences are just man’s attempt to comprehend what Allah creates. An astronomer can try to calculate the earth’s orbit around the sun, but no matter how close he comes to accuracy, all he can discover is what Allah already established. In that sense, there is no such thing as new knowledge. All knowledge is with Allah, and the only knowledge that we have is what Allah chooses to endow us with.

For example, let’s take someone many societies assume to be knowledgeable, like a physician. A physician studies anatomy, physiology, epidemiology, etc in order to gain a better understanding of the way that a human body operates. However, all of that knowledge and training can never change a matter once Allah has ordained it. When someone’s heart stops and doctors revive the person, they credit medical technology with a miracle, but if those same doctors, using that same technology failed to revive the heart, then they would recognize that technology and knowledge has limits. The limit is the extent to which Allah endows us with His own knowledge. That determines our ultimate aptitude.

When I accepted Islam, I did not have any epiphanies or land-shaking experiences. What I felt, was that after 20 years of searching, Allah opened my heart to accept the truth. It was always there. Imagine an archaeologist excavating the remains of the skeleton that he always believed existed. Whether or not he located the first bones, they were still there. He did not createthem, he merely received the benefit of having his knowledge expanded by learning about the bones. The discovery, like accepting Islam, is the first step, and not the final answer. Assembling the individual bones into the proper order is similar to a Muslim putting his life together by building his faith. Finally, after assembling something that resembles a finished piece, the archaeologist can spend the rest of his life increasing his understanding of his new finding because he has more evidence than ever for study. The parallel works with a Muslim who devotes his life towards increasing his knowledge in order to become the best servant of Allah that he can possibly be.

Accepting Islam-that is to accept that Allah alone deserves worship, has no partners, is unlike any of His creations, and towers high above all things, and to believe that Muhammad was Allah’s messenger-that is the most important step, but it is also only the first. In no way should merely accepting the faith make one believe that he has become a believer or even a good Muslim for that matter. Improving oneself and one’s devotion to his Creator is a lifelong endeavor, but only those who are smart enough to understand and mature enough to accept the truth will ever experience this felicity. Allah, the High and Exalted, guides whomever He chooses. I am just thankful to be among that list. Holy Quran 16:3 He created the heavens and the earth with the truth, highly exalted be He above what they associate (with Him).