The simplicity of Islam, the powerful
appeal and the compelling atmosphere of its mosques, the earnestness of its
faithful adherents, the confidence inspiring realization of the millions
throughout the world who answer the five daily calls to prayer - these factors
attracted me from the first. But after I had determined to become a
follower of Islam, I found many deeper reasons for confirming my
decision. The mellow concept of life - the fruit of the Prophet’s
combined course of action and contemplation - the wise counsel, the admonitions
to charity and mercy, the broad humanitarianism, the pioneer declaration of
woman’s property rights - these and other factors of the teachings of the man
of Mecca were to me among the most obvious evidence of a practical religion so
tersely and so aptly epitomized in the cryptic words of Muhammad, may the mercy
and blessings of God be upon him, "Trust in God and tie your
camel." He gave us a religious system of normal action, not blind
faith in the protection of an unseen force in spite of our own neglect, but confidence
that if we do all things rightly and to the best of our ability, we may trust
in what comes as the Will of God.
The broadminded tolerance of
Islam for other religions recommends it to all lovers of liberty.
Muhammad admonished his followers to treat well the believers in the Old and
New Testaments; Abraham, Moses and Jesus are acknowledged as co-prophets of the
One God. Surely this is generous and far in advance of the attitude of
other religions.
The total freedom from idolatry
... is a sign of the salubrious strength and purity of the Muslim faith.
The original teachings of the
Prophet of God have not been engulfed in the maze of changes and additions of
doctrinarians. The Quran remains as it came to the corrupt polytheistic
people of Muhammad’s time, changeless as the holy heart of Islam itself.
Moderation and temperance in
all things, the keynotes of Islam, won my unqualified approbation. The
health of his people was cherished by the Prophet, who enjoined them to observe
strict cleanliness and specified fasts and to subordinate carnal appetites ...
when I stood in the inspiring mosques of Istanbul, Damascus, Jerusalem, Cairo,
Algiers, Tangier, Fez and other cities, I was conscious of a powerful reaction
[to] the potent uplift of Islam’s simple appeal to the sense of higher things,
unaided by elaborate trappings, ornamentations, figures, pictures, music and
ceremonial ritual. The mosque is a place of quiet contemplation and
self-effacement in the greater reality of the One God.
The democracy of Islam has
always appealed to me. Potentate and pauper have the same rights on the
floor of the mosque, on their [foreheads] in humble worship. There are no
rented pews nor special reserved seats.
The Muslim accepts no man as a
mediator between himself and his God. He goes direct to the invisible
source of creation and life, God, without reliance on saving formula of
repentance of sins and belief in the power of a teacher to afford him
salvation.
The universal brotherhood of
Islam, regardless of race, politics, color or country, has been brought home to
me most keenly many times in my life and this is another feature which drew me
towards the Faith.
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