What Drives Muslim Reverts/Converts to Distance Themselves from Other Muslims?

Last updated on: March 18, 2014 at 5:18 pm by Dilshad Ali

What Drives Muslim Reverts/Converts to Distance Themselves from Other Muslims? 2014-03-18T17:18:06-04:00 Dilshad Ali

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

“Hey, you, yeah, you.

The lady with the tattoos.

The gal with the eyebrow piercings
The chick with the blue hair.

There is room for you in Islam.”

Nancy Qualls-Shehata, a revert/convert who blogs as the “Muslimah in Progress” at Patheos Muslim, wrote this great post two years back about how Islam has room for everyone. The one in tattoos, the one with piercings, the one in high heels and hair all a-flowing, the one “poured into skinny jeans.” Knowing that too many times that the Muslim community pounces on reverts/converts to Islam for not being “Muslim” enough or not following Islam strictly enough, she reached out, with her years of experience, and tried to assure that there is a place for everyone within our faith:

So you see, I see you. I see YOU. Yes, I see the tattoos and the piercings and the tight clothes and the high heels. Honestly, I might click my tongue and think to myself how inappropriate that looks, because I’m only human and there are teachings in Islam about all that stuff. But then I remember that “all that stuff” is not the essence of my faith. The essence of my faith is the belief in One God, and following on the heels of that are teachings about the values that make us moral human beings. Cherishing parents, helping the less fortunate, nurturing the children. And you ladies are all over that. So I tell you, there is room in Islam for you.

Some of my brothers and sisters might disagree. They might self-righteously sniff and say “She looks like a whore / tart / biker chick / kaafir”. But if we are to reach out, who are we gonna reach out to? Am I only going to try to share the beauty of Islam with someone who passes some visual test of what a person who believes in God should look like? That would be the worst kind of arrogance and for me in particular it would be hypocritical too. I wasn’t born wearing these robes. I didn’t grow up in a Muslim family. I have worn the heels and the hair and the other stuff. I have been lost and I didn’t even know I was lost. Yet someone was able to look past the “infidel” exterior and reach out to me and share this beautiful faith with me. They told me that there was room in Islam for me.

I thought about Nancy and her post today when this video popped up several times in my Facebook Feed — a video from a revert to Islam who was making an announcement that she was deleting her YouTube channel and all other accounts across social media, in which she has discussed her faith, because of the hate and gripes she had been receiving from Muslims about what was lacking or wrong with her as a Muslim. (This video itself will probably gone in a few days when she finally deletes it.) That she was done with engaging with the Muslim community at large:

Says Kendyl Aurora in this video:

I guess my final message to the Ummah is to maybe start thinking about reverts a little more. Think about people’s feelings before you say things. Think before you judge people, before you put these kind of hateful comments out into the world, and maybe be a little more considerate to others, because I found that there a lot of people who really made comments and judgments without knowing me one bit.

Just watch it, and hopefully you’ll also realize that there is an adab in how we speak with each other. How we spread knowledge about our faith and how we converse with each others as friends and neighbors. There is an adab to follow, and if Muslims cannot show each others — reverts/converts and born-Muslims — that there is room for Islam in all of us, that we know this is a journey where we should be encouraging each other and holding each other up in love, teaching through love, then we can only blame ourselves for our problems.

Previous Post

March 11, 2014

Do You Remember 13?

Next Post

March 20, 2014 Equal is not the Same

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category A Global Voice for Autism Autism Awareness Month 2016 Autism Awareness Month 2017 Autism Interlude Hajj and Eid ul Adha Jenin Autism Project Ramadan Three Questions Uncategorized WISE Global Conference

Select a Month November 2018 October 2018 August 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who was Ruth's mother-in-law?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Hannah Mary Naomi Elizabeth