Sovannarith
New Member
I was raised a devout, conservative Christian in America. I am an ethnic Khmer, born in America. In Cambodia, the land of my ancestors, the main religion is a form of Buddhist Paganism. Islam is the second largest religion, but is practiced mainly by the Cham people, who take up less than 5% of the population. Despite their religion, Cham are look at as voodoo practicing people. My dad's family used to be polytheists, but converted to Christianity because of the missionaries in Cambodia. My mom later became a Christian after she married my dad. My paternal grandparents, who attend two church services per week really helped in strengthening my belief in God. All my other relatives aren't religious. When I was 5 years old, my parents started going to church. My dad became a preacher, though my mom never really was that religious. I even went a Christian elementary and middle school.
At middle school, we learned a lot about the Jewish culture of Jesus (SAW). I also started actively reading the Bible, which I didn't really know although most teachers said that they were impressed with my knowledge of it. The contrasts between the total submission to Allah by Jesus, David, Moses, and Daniel (peace be upon them all) and the "all you need to do is believe" mindset of Paul were so sharp. At times, they even preached the opposite message. This brought up many doubts and questions in my mind. It became clear to me that Christians obviously didn't practice the religion of their messiah. How could these people have strayed so far from their original religion? The astounding differences in the teachings of all the different Christian sects didn't help either. The New Testament's teachings were also so ambiguous and vague, whereas the Old Testament was so specific that it couldn't possibly have come from the same source. Whenever I asked a learned Christian about my doubts, they gave me answers as vague as their Bible. I could argue both for and against any issue using the Bible as my basis.
One day, I found a brochure on Islam. The brochure was actually supposed to be scrap paper for a science project, but I read it. I'm a young American male, so you all can probably imagine what I thought about Muslims. The information in the brochure was very basic, but it was all legit. Admittedly, I was a little biased because my experience with Christian people and how they treated me, but the reason of Islam was amazing. Now, the brochure was good, but it was not enough for a conversion. At that point in life, Jesus (SAW) was still my savior despite the doubts. I became more curious about Islam and found a website called answering-christianity.com, which although it has a few errors, really opened my eyes. I never decide on issues without being well-informed, so I researched arguments against Islam, all of which were super weak. I used that website sort of as an introduction into Islam. It pointed out many more errors and contradictions in the Bible and in Christianity that I have never even considered, having been brainwashed in church since childhood. I learned about the life of the Prophet (SAW) and the scientific miracles in the Holy Qur'an, but more importantly, I saw the moral principles in it. I battled against the Bible and deemed it as a book corrupted by inconsistencies and polytheistic Greek philosophies. I battled against the Holy Qur'an and could find no fault in it--historically, scientifically, or ethically. I also concluded that Hinduism, Mormonism, Jehovah's Witness, Bahai'i, Buddhism and many other belief systems to be imperfect.
At age 13, in March 2009, I accepted the beliefs of Islam. I have never said the shahada to a witness, owned a copy of the Holy Qur'an, met a Muslim person in real life, nor have I even been inside a mosque, but I do salaat five times a day, stay away from haraam things, and have fasted Ramadan. Masha'Allah, my Arabic is coming along well. My parents, whom I have consulted throughout the whole journey are devastated. I am now 14 years old and trying to live steadfast in Islam. I feel like my conversion story is unusual, but I thank Allah but for guiding me to the truth at a young age.
At middle school, we learned a lot about the Jewish culture of Jesus (SAW). I also started actively reading the Bible, which I didn't really know although most teachers said that they were impressed with my knowledge of it. The contrasts between the total submission to Allah by Jesus, David, Moses, and Daniel (peace be upon them all) and the "all you need to do is believe" mindset of Paul were so sharp. At times, they even preached the opposite message. This brought up many doubts and questions in my mind. It became clear to me that Christians obviously didn't practice the religion of their messiah. How could these people have strayed so far from their original religion? The astounding differences in the teachings of all the different Christian sects didn't help either. The New Testament's teachings were also so ambiguous and vague, whereas the Old Testament was so specific that it couldn't possibly have come from the same source. Whenever I asked a learned Christian about my doubts, they gave me answers as vague as their Bible. I could argue both for and against any issue using the Bible as my basis.
One day, I found a brochure on Islam. The brochure was actually supposed to be scrap paper for a science project, but I read it. I'm a young American male, so you all can probably imagine what I thought about Muslims. The information in the brochure was very basic, but it was all legit. Admittedly, I was a little biased because my experience with Christian people and how they treated me, but the reason of Islam was amazing. Now, the brochure was good, but it was not enough for a conversion. At that point in life, Jesus (SAW) was still my savior despite the doubts. I became more curious about Islam and found a website called answering-christianity.com, which although it has a few errors, really opened my eyes. I never decide on issues without being well-informed, so I researched arguments against Islam, all of which were super weak. I used that website sort of as an introduction into Islam. It pointed out many more errors and contradictions in the Bible and in Christianity that I have never even considered, having been brainwashed in church since childhood. I learned about the life of the Prophet (SAW) and the scientific miracles in the Holy Qur'an, but more importantly, I saw the moral principles in it. I battled against the Bible and deemed it as a book corrupted by inconsistencies and polytheistic Greek philosophies. I battled against the Holy Qur'an and could find no fault in it--historically, scientifically, or ethically. I also concluded that Hinduism, Mormonism, Jehovah's Witness, Bahai'i, Buddhism and many other belief systems to be imperfect.
At age 13, in March 2009, I accepted the beliefs of Islam. I have never said the shahada to a witness, owned a copy of the Holy Qur'an, met a Muslim person in real life, nor have I even been inside a mosque, but I do salaat five times a day, stay away from haraam things, and have fasted Ramadan. Masha'Allah, my Arabic is coming along well. My parents, whom I have consulted throughout the whole journey are devastated. I am now 14 years old and trying to live steadfast in Islam. I feel like my conversion story is unusual, but I thank Allah but for guiding me to the truth at a young age.