Billy Hallowell
Al Fadi, a Saudi native now living in America, is setting out to educate the West about his former religion — Islam. His message, rooted in what he says are deep convictions and personal truth, is sure to inspire controversy.
Al Fadi converted to Christianity after coming to the United States for college. While he claims that he initially planned to convert everyone he met to Islam, something completely unexpected happened. After meeting Christians for the first time in his life, al Fadi became enamored. He explained his conversion to CBN’s Erick Stakelbeck: “Basically, the more I met people who follow Christ, the more I realized that they are distinct and unique in their character. They’re kind, they’re patient, they’re loving, they have moral values, they don’t look at others with hatred.”
Before long, he abandoned Islam, leaving him to embrace Jesus Christ. His conversion, alone, would have led to a death sentence in his homeland. Even now, danger isn’t an impossibility (al Fadi is actually a pseudonym). But regardless of the dangers he faces for sharing his truth, he says that it’s worth it.
Now, al Fadi is making it a mission to correct what he says are the West’s misconceptions about Islam. In an interview with CBN, he explained, in detail, his interpretation of Islam and those who are not Muslims:
“When I lived in Saudi Arabia, not only did I look at non-Muslims as second class, you would look at non-devout Muslims as second class citizens.
If Islam has to prosper, be the superior religion, then certain steps must be taken by its followers, including spreading Islam at any cost, including the sword and killing any opposition.
So you learn all of these things and then of course you learn that the Koran tells you to hate the Christians and the Jews.”
It is these messages that al Fadi desperately wants Americans, among other Westerners, to better understand. To address these issues, he has written a book called ‘The Qur’an Dilemma.”
In particular, he believes that the West has been fed a more favorable, less volatile picture of Islam in its entirety. One subject he covers in-depth is the Koran’s call for jihad, or “holy” war, against non-believers.
“It is basically a proscriptive demand found in the Koran when it comes to jihad – killing the infidels, spreading Islam until there is no other religion on earth except the religion of Allah,” he explains.
Al Fadi believes that the more positive images the West is fed come from the Prophet Mohammed’s early career. It was later, he says, when Mohammed gained followers and political might, that he became more violent.
Of course, these are al Fadi’s own, personal views — views that many people would see as intolerant and wrong-headed. But considering his Muslim upbringing, he sees himself as the perfect person to address these topics.
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