Converts to Islam can change their minds, Egyptian court rules

This is an article taken from Malaysia Today

Cairo, February 11, 2008

In a landmark case, an Egyptian court has ruled that the state must recognise the right of Christians who convert to Islam to change their minds and revert to Christianity.

While Egyptian law is largely secular, personal status issues such as conversion, marriage and divorce are governed by the religious laws of the relevant community.

Egypt is primarily Muslim but has a substantial Coptic Christian minority.

Saturday's ruling by the Supreme Administrative Court said 12 people who had converted to Islam from Christianity and back again could have their reversion to their original faith stated on their government identity papers.

The court ruling, which overturned a lower court decision in April, now obliges the Ministry of the Interior to issue the plaintiffs with birth certificates and identity papers identifying them as Christians.

"This opens the door of hope to hundreds of Copts who converted … and were then unable to return," said Mamdouh Nakhla, a human rights lawyer.

But the paperwork will note their previous conversion to Islam - a caveat one human rights activist said was an invitation to discrimination. It "will open the door to discrimination … by extremist officers or civil servants when they see in the entry that they left Islam," said Gamal Eid, head of the Arabic Network for Human Rights.- REUTERS

Let me paint a hypothetical situation. Say I was born a Muslim. I learned to recite the Quran at a very tender age and by puberty I was already praying five times a day. I even performed my pilgrimage to Mekah, a couple of times in fact, and practically did everything that a Muslim is supposed to do, at least as far as rituals are concerned.

Then, later in life, I decided I would like to educate myself on what the other religions are all about. Being not of these religions I was therefore free to roam the realms of the other religions and not confine myself to any specific doctrine. I was intrigued that the Quran says we are all followers of the religion of Abraham. Be it Jew, Christian or Muslim, you are all followers of Abraham. Are you therefore a Jew or Christian and I, a Muslim, or are we all 'Abrahamites', but of various sects that have been labelled Orthodox Jew, Samaritan, Hasidic, Haredi, Catholic, Coptic, Greek Orthodox, Adventist, Anabaptist, Baptist, Congregationalist, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, Reformed, Pentecostal, Anglican, Restorationist, Sunni, Wahabbi, Salafi, Shiah, Ismailiyah, Kharijite, Sufi, Naqshbandi, Bahai, Druze, Ahmadiyya, Nation of Islam, Zikri, Hindu, Buddhist, etc.?

I eventually began to believe that there is only one religion, the religion of God. But humankind decided to compartmentalise itself into various boxes and then posted labels that now run into scores. When did it all start? Where was the beginning? And when did the rot first set in?
Okay, I can accept the argument that, along the way, many Prophets were sent down by God to correct the distortions and deviations to His religion that were perpetuated by mankind throughout the ages. According to Islamic tradition, there were more than 124,000 Messengers and Prophets since the beginning of time. Abraham himself did not introduce a new religion. He just 'reverted' to the original and correct doctrine of the One God. He opposed the many Gods created by humans from stone, metal and wood. And the same went for Moses, Jesus and Muhammad.

So, if this is true, then where did Judaism, Christianity, Islam and their numerous sects and sub-sects come from? Only one can be true. They can't all be true. Of course, it could be that they are actually all false and none are true. Humankind does have this bad habit of distorting history. Even the most recent history of Merdeka and the May 13 tragedy have been grossly distorted.

What we have been told is not at all what really happened. We have been fed lies upon lies. And Merdeka and May 13 happened in an era when there were still and moving cameras. The evidence is clear. Yet, in spite of this indisputable evidence and the many witnesses still alive who can testify to the truth, they are still able to lie to us, distort the truth, and fool 90% of Malaysians into believing 'their version' of events.

What about events that happened more than 2,000 years ago in the age before there were any proper records? No doubt, today, records exist in the form of 'holy books'. But when were these books written and who wrote them? Did the Prophets themselves record history in their own handwriting or was history recorded centuries after their deaths by 'hidden' hands? Were these books written as a true reflection of events or were they tailored to justify and strengthen certain beliefs and myths?

In other words, was the cart placed after or before the horse?

After pondering over the 'evidence', or lack of it as the case may be, I form an opinion that Judaism, Christianity, Islam and all their numerous sects and sub-sects never came from God but are mere inventions of mankind. This very belief of rejecting 'organised' religion causes me to 'leave' religion. How would Muslims deal with this?

I never renounce Islam. I never ask to leave Islam to become a Christian, or whatever. In fact, I now don't believe in any religion. I officially still remain a Muslim though. But because of my very belief that religions do not exist but were mere creations and distortions of mankind, this causes me to have left not only Islam but religion itself. How would Muslims deal with this?

You can prevent Muslims from leaving Islam if they do so openly. You can pass laws making it a crime or even sentence apostates to death. But for every one Muslim who openly leaves Islam, thousands or tens of thousands more 'leave' Islam secretly. They do not wish to make their exit official. But Islam has left their hearts so they have therefore left Islam. And it is not just Islam that they have left. They have abandoned the very concept of organised religion.

You can legislate acts. But you cannot legislate thoughts or beliefs. What is in the mind of an individual only that individual, plus God, knows. You can't get into the minds of individuals to scan their thoughts. If they act out their belief then you could probably suspect what they are thinking. But if they act opposite to what they believe then not even their own parents would be any the wiser.

It is futile to try to legislate belief. If they can't believe openly then they will go underground and believe secretly. Maybe it would be better to focus on setting good examples and win converts through positive acts rather than reinforce their disbelief though negative acts.

Persuasion instead of force wins more converts. And proper education and understanding would turn converts into staunch believers. You can lead a horse to water but you can't force it to drink. You can force a person to remain a Muslim but you can't force that person to believe in the Quran, Muhammad or God. That is a matter of the heart and mind.

But how do you win the battle of the hearts and minds when the very people who are supposed to uphold the dignity of the religion are instead defiling the religion? If I was a doubter, what I see around me would just confirm my doubts. It would not make me doubt my doubts. It would convince me that I am justified in doubting.

Look at how Muslims act. They scream that Islam is a religion of peace but they preach war. They scream that Islam is a compassionate religion but they preach death. They scream that Islam is a tolerant religion but they condemn kafirs (infidels). They talk about going right but they turn left. That is the greatest disservice these people do to Islam and which not only puts off non-Muslims but even Muslims themselves.

I used to have great respect for imams, gurus, ulamaks and all such people of the cloth. I would go out of my way to be near them and kiss their hands. There is nothing I would not do for them. All they need to do is to open their mouths and consider it done.

Money was no obstacle in the way of the Lord. But the closer I got to them, the more I detected hypocrisy. I began to suspect that the 'cloth' they wore was merely a camouflage to fraud and deceive. This is not confined to just Muslims but is apparent in all societies and religions. No doubt there is some good amongst all that bad. There may even be many good amongst just some of the bad. But all it needs is one buffalo to muddy the entire herd.

I personally met a Malay contractor who testified that the imam of the National Mosque (Masjid Negara) demanded a bribe of RM30,000 for a maintenance contract his company was going to be awarded. This contractor showed me documents to convince me he is telling the truth because he realised such a story would be very hard to swallow.

This imam eventually joined Umno and contested against Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail in Pematanag Pauh. Another supplier of cleansing chemicals testified that he too had to pay the bilal of the National Mosque a bribe for the items he supplied the mosque. This supplier, a convert to Islam who I had known since school days, was shocked and understandably became very disillusioned with his new-found religion. Can you blame him if he decides to go back to Christianity?

No, legislation and laws are not what we need. What we need are Muslims setting good examples to prove that Islam is everything they say it is. Only then would Muslims not want to leave Islam. Instead non-Muslims would become Muslims in droves. At the moment, though, I can't see that happening, not in 100 years.