An Austrian Scientist Discovers the Truth
Saturday, 09 September 2006
By Amina Islam
Saturday, 09 September 2006
By Amina Islam
BORN 1953 in the town Linz in Austria, I spent my childhood in Munich (Germany) until we moved to Salzburg (Austria) when I was 16 years old. I grew up in a conservative Christian way. My parents are strict Protestant Christians, who believe in the Bible and pray to Jesus as son of God. They educated me to keep a high standard of morals and ethics.
After I had finished high school, I started to study biology and in parallel, to work in a half-day job, both at the University of Salzburg.
Since I did not participate in any Christian activities of the Protestant church, my parents arranged for me to get in touch with an evangelic free church, the Baptist community (a very big and powerful Christian church in the USA). I became an active member and even a leader of a student group. Although I was repeatedly told that this is God’s mystery and a matter of faith and not of intellect, I insisted that I could only believe that Jesus is a human being and a prophet with a special relation to God, who demonstrated the right way to God by his life and teachings.
I got married with a man from the Baptist church and I finished my studies achieving the doctorate. Two children and a divorce later I left the Baptist church, also due to my doubts concerning the foundation of Christianity.
I had to search for a full time job, since I was alone responsible for my children, but al-hamdu lillah I got a very good employment in research and student teaching in my field at the University of Salzburg. I was content to earn my own money to ensure financial independency from all other people.
I got married a second time and started to deal with esoteric philosophies. I had a position as university professor and great responsibility for my work.
Since I had not found happiness in my private life, but was constantly overloaded with double work, job, children and household, I suffered from exhaustion and depressions for some years. I only kept going in life due to my children and my work.
My knowledge about Islam at this time was only a bad prejudice generated by Christians and the media. I never got in contact with the religion and I didn’t want to get in touch with people from this — then it seemed to me —”frightening and rigid” religion.
This was the situation in September 2002, when I was persuaded by a friend to spend a week of holidays in an all-inclusive hotel. We had to book a last-minute flight and found a very cheap offer for Egypt. My intention was to relax, to return to my inner balance and maybe come closer to the truth. The only affair I was not at all interested in was to meet a man.
It was on the first evening in the very beautiful hotel and I went to the buffet for dinner, when I saw Walid for the first time, a cook in the hotel and my later husband. We didn’t communicate for two more days until Walid started writing letters. One of the first suggestions he proposed to me was that we should marry. The rest of the week I couldn’t make up my mind for my prejudices and many doubts in my head or for the deep affection in my heart. Then I returned home to Austria with not more than the handy number of one of his friends. I realized soon that the apparent barriers due to the differences between us (age, culture, religion, education and language) existed only in my head. This was the opinion of the society but not my own experience. I planned to return to Egypt two months later to give our love a chance. The only real problem was the poor communication.
Allah started now visibly guiding my life. Some days after my return to Austria, a woman from Egypt started working as guest scientist in my institute for the duration of one year. Two weeks later I began to visit an Arabic language course at the university offered by a professor from Egypt. Being good Muslims they both taught me a lot about Islam, their culture and the Arabic language, which I intended to learn for better communication with Walid.
Interested to know more about Islam, I bought many books and a good translation of the Holy Qur’an (from Murad Hofmann, a German ambassador, who had converted to Islam earlier). I was amazed how good my idea of God and the world was reflected by the Holy Qur’an. I found extensive conformity with the “Old Testament” and in the “New Testament” with the gospel of Jesus, but without the church-made dogma that Jesus is regarded as son of God.
On my second visit to Egypt, I found out that Walid is a very serious man from a large family of farmers. We married with a local but not international contract (Orfi), which protected us at least against the police and fulfilled the Islamic law that no common activity should be carried out between man and woman outside marriage. After this trip I traveled three more times to Egypt, until we could officially marry in Cairo, and again two more times until we had the visa for Walid. Now he could come with me to Austria, more than one year after we met the first time.
During this year I gradually learned things about Islam by reading books and by the help of my Muslim friends in Austria. Surprisingly I was also contacted by the Cairo University as a referee of a thesis work. Under several Egyptian scientists, whom I met from now on each time when I visited Egypt, I won one good Muslimah as a close friend. I was impressed that many Muslims including young people — even those who are not very strict in their religion — speak openly and respectfully about Allah and Islam.
As soon as my husband came to Austria, we contacted the mosque in Salzburg and I received and bought more books. Two of them, the book of Maurice Bucaille “Bible, Qur’an and Natural Sciences”, which proves that all scientific statements in the Holy Qur’an are in accord with the latest research, and the “Gospel of Barnabas”, where Jesus announces Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and refuses to be revered as God, opened my eyes.
The Holy Qur’an confirmed not only my idea about God and the world, but all his statements, e.g. about natural sciences, did obviously not contradict the reality. I was allowed and even encouraged to use my logic! I discovered that Islam is not a new religion, but a “re-animation” of the roots and the essential of the old religions of the Jews and Christians, with the first Muslim Abraham as the father of all monotheistic religions and with the same prophets, including Jesus. The last Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) — not accepted by the other religions — was used by Allah to repeat the old truth again and to announce new regulations. The Holy Qur’an must be God’s revelation and Muhammad his Messenger!
At the beginning of Ramadan, Walid asked me whether I wanted to do the last step and convert. I accepted to make this in my house. We invited several brothers and sisters and I spoke the shahadah. I had already learned how to pray and started praying as regular as possible. Of course, I was fasting in Ramadan.
I am very happy to belong to the Ummah of Muslims. I try to grow in faith for Allah and knowledge about Islam and to fulfill the law as good as possible.
Still two major problems are left. Although my parents know my opinion about Islam, I cannot tell them that I am converted. They are old and sick and the truth could do harm to them. The other problem: I cannot yet wear a veil in work and in areas, where I am known. Although in Austria Islam is an accepted religion, the society has problems in accepting Muslims and especially the veil as symbol. Due to my public duties I would get many disadvantages and problems in work, affecting especially my working group in the university.
On the other side, I use every opportunity to talk about Islam. I try to live as a good Muslimah, to practice Islam and give a good example.
Allah finally helped me to find the right way in my search of the truth, al-hamdu lillah.
