Ali came from Iran, a devout and convinced Muslim. His mother and sister are
also devout Muslims. His father is no longer living.
ALI: ONE MUSLIM’S STORY
Soon after arriving in
his host country to study, Ali met a woman who was friendly toward him, and soon
a friendship began. This woman was a Christian, but this did not bother Ali since
he knew that the teaching of Islam is the only absolute truth.
“You tell me about your Christianity and try to
make me a Christian, and I’ll tell you about Islam, and try to make you a Muslim,”
Ali suggested with a smile, knowing that it was a “no-lose” proposition. Becoming
frustrated, the Christian woman asked her pastor to visit Ali.
“You realize that your religion is only a lie,”
the pastor confronted him. “It’s a religion of Satan, and those who follow
it are bound by Satan.”
That was the end of Ali’s relationship with the
Christian woman, with the pastor, and with all forms of Christianity. Angered,
Ali determined to become an even more devout follower of Islam.
Some two years later, Ali was looking for an apartment,
in his search, he met Paul, a fellow student also looking for housing. Paul
was friendly toward Ali and treated him with love and respect. They moved into
an apartment, and as they lived together, Ali was impressed with the love shown
to him by Paul.
Paul was a Christian in the local student movement,
and in his relationship with Ali he practiced incarnational love – making the
love of Christ visible and real to his new roommate. The two discussed their
respective faiths in an atmosphere of openness and mutual respect. Instead
of trying to lecture Ali or defeat him in a debate, Paul sought to understand
him, to listen to his views and to answer his questions thoughtfully and honestly
in love rather than in judgment or condemnation. And Paul didn’t reject his
roommate or abandon the friendship when Ali failed to agree with him. Over
a long period of time, Paul proved that he was committed to Ali as a person,
not a project to be abandoned if it didn’t produce results.
Their relationship, like any deep friendship, was
of course not limited to theological discussions or Bible studies. They cooked
together, sharing food from their respective cultures; they talked about their
families, friends, and goals; they studied together, struggling to survive the
rigors of academic life; and they played together.
Paul offered Ali his time, his respect, his patience,
his acceptance, his understanding – in short, love springing from the love of
Christ. After some time, Ali became a Christian.
“Unfortunately, the conversation with the pastor
pushed my conversion to Christ back three years,” Ali now says sadly. “It was
love that drew me to Christ.”
Afraid of his family’s reaction to his conversion
(especially from his uncle – “He will come here and kill me!”), Ali did not
at first tell them he had become a Christian. Today his family does know, but
when he told his mother, she wailed and pleaded with him to change back – after
two days of constant crying, following him around and clinging to him, he said
to her, “Please stop! You’re breaking my heart! Okay, Okay, I’ll consider
changing back.” It was the only way he could get her to stop, Ali explained.
Ali’s wife has since come to faith, but all is
not well with their new life in Christ these days. He still lives in his host
country, but does not feel supported by the Christian community there. And
he is afraid to return to Iran, knowing that he will find no fellowship there.
Yet he perseveres in faith, and our Lord upholds him.
Terrell Smith is an International Student Ministry staff worker
in InterVarsity’s International Student Ministry Department.
Copyright Information: Reprinted from HIS magazine, February 1981 by permission of the author, and from Student Leadership journal, Winter 1993 issue.
