Amid Gaza War, A Spiritual Revolution Taking Place In The West
By S. Arshad, New Age Islam
28 November 2023
Christians And Atheists Have Embraced Islam After Reading
The Quran
Main Points:
1.
Young people in the
US and UK are reading the Quran.
2.
Many people are
studying books on Islam.
3.
They are embracing
Islam because of the hollowness of the western society.
4.
Many are taking
their Shahadah on TikTok.
5.
They are surprised
to find praises of the Jesus and Mary in the Quran.
-----
Amid the Gaza war, a spiritual revolution is taking place in
the West. Thousands, if not millions, of the Christians and atheists of the US,
UK and Ireland have converted to Islam during the last one month. They were
overwhelmed by the resilience of the Muslims of Gaza amid the worst of
suffering and massacre. The westerners want to find out what gives them so much
strength to endure all the hardships and pain and submit to the will of God. To
find it out, they turned to the Quran. Many women and men have been reading the
Quran and trying to understand its message themselves. The message of the Quran
has changed their lives, the way they looked at the society and their filled
their spiritual vacuum. The reasons for accepting Islam or falling in love with
the Quran as given by different people are presented below:
1. The Quran starts with its message directly. It does not
start in the fashion of "Once upon a time..." or " In the
beginning there was.... ".
2. The first surah of the Quran starts with
"read". That's a wonderful message. It teaches man to read and gain
knowledge as knowledge leads man to the right path and salvation.
3. A surah is named Al Nisa ( woman) which shows God gives
woman an equal place to women in society.
4. One woman was surprised to know that the Quran allows
divorce It may be surprising to many who criticise Islam for having the system
of divorce which is misused by men to exploit and oppress men. To many women in
the west, divorce allowed by the Quran is feministic as it gives women the
freedom.to break free of a tortuous marriage.
5. A 21 year old boy of the Ireland said he converted to
Islam because the western society has made the youth wayward. In the name of
freedom, it has allowed the young men to lead a purposeless life. They are
taught that they should care for their own desires and their wn interests. It
has allowed porn and usury and fornication while the Islamic states have banned
porn, fornication and usury. The western economic system is based on usury. The
Quran envisages a well knit family and society. Every individual has a duty
towards the family and the society.
6. A Christian woman said she was moved by the merciful,
forgiving and loving God if the Quran. The Quran says God of merciful and
forgiving while God of the Bible is ruthless.
7. A new Muslim woman was overwhelmed by the praises of
Jesus in the Quran She was moved by the verses that said Jesus talked when he
was a baby and said he was a prophet. This was not known to her. She was very
proud to know that Jesus talked when he was a baby and announced he was a
prophet. She was so excited that she said she would go to the coffee house and
tell those present there that Jesus talked when he was a baby.
8. Another Christian man said that when he reads the Quran
on camera, the Christians threaten him with the wrath of God while the Muslims
say, ' Let him just read. He may be led to the truth. ' When reads the Bible
while playing the music or holding his dog, no Christians say 'you should not
play music or hold your dog while reading the Bible' but when he reads the
Quran while playing the music or holding the dog, the Muslims comment, ' you
should not play music while reading the Quran or should not hold the dog
because it is unclean. Someone writes that it is okay as he is only reading the
translation.
9. One lady was surprised to know that prophet Moses was so
strong that a man died of his single punch.
There are many reactions of the people of the west on Islam
and the Quran. Listening to their opinions and views on Islam and Quran opens
new perspectives of the Quran. The Indian Muslims or the non -Muslims look at
the Quran from their own social milieu but the westerners look at the teachings
of the Quran from their own religious and social background and evaluate the
teachings of the Quran from their own point of view.
The open and liberal society of the west has also given them
the freedom to choose their belief. They are not under pressure from the government
or from the church. They are drawn towards Islam by their own conscience. They
have not been coerced or proselytised by any Muslim organisation active in the
west. They are studying the primary book of Islam and learning about Islam
directly from its fundamental source. They are reading the Quran on their TikTok
videos and are being guided by the viewers. No Islamic scholar or preacher is
involved in their spiritual journey. They have been scrambling for books on
Islam and the Quran.
Today more and more westerners are turning towards Islam
because of the materialistic and consumerist approach of the western society.
The loneliness of people because of the disintegration of the family and
society has compelled man to seek spiritual fulfilment. He looks for solace,
comfort and mental peace. The Quran has provided them with the solution. That's
why more and more people in the US and UK are turning towards the Quran.
This phenomenon has some lessons for the Muslims of the
world. They failed to present the Quran as the book for the entire humanity
though Gid says that it is a guidance (dhikr) for the humanity (Alameen).It
speaks of the previous prophets and messengers and has even chapters after
Abraham, Jesus, Mary, Bani Israel (Sons of Israel). It also narrates the story
of Prophet Moses in detail and the story of his confrontation with Pharaoh.
Therefore, the Quran provided the Muslims with ample premises to reach out to
the People of the Book and other religious communities and establish good
relations with them. Most of common Christians do not know that the Quran
praises Prophet Jesus, Prophet Moses, Mother Mary and other prophets of Bani
Israel. Many Christians are finding the apocrypha that has made way into their
faith through the Quran.
Therefore, the tragedy that the Muslims of Gaza are going
through and the spiritual and moral strength they have demonstrated during
series of death and destruction has forced the westerners to turn to the Quran
to get the same moral and spiritual strength and resilience so that they can
also face the hardships of life and find mental peace.
-----
S. Arshad is a columnist with NewAgeIslam.com.
New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism