Premium Essay

Changing My Religion

In:

Submitted By ckt5127
Words 1250
Pages 5
Changing My Religion

Converting from Christianity to Islam

Crystal K. Baldwin

Religion and Philosophy: Humanities 400

Professor Phillip Van Vleck

Abstract
I Love The Lord…He Heard My Cry I’ve always had a strong faith in our Heavenly Father. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. My views and beliefs have developed over a long period of time and have changed as I have grown in my faith and knowledge. In the past few years my family and I have gone through many trials and tribulations. Test on my faith has caused my spiritual confidence to falter, so I turned to reading, researching and asking questions. I’ve always had an interest in Islam. My eldest son recently converted from Christianity to Islam. I asked him why he converted and his answer was “because he always questioned the Jesus thing”. He said he never understood how Jesus died for our sins and we continue to sin. I found his statement very profound; it caused my own doubts and me to think about my many years of being a Christian. Muslims believe that Christians are committing shirk by referring to Jesus as the Son of God and believing in the Trinity (which, according to the Qu’ran, consists of God, Mary and Jesus – 5:116).
The word “Muslim” means one who surrenders to the will of God; no matter what their race, nationality or ethnic background. If a person truly wants to become a Muslim their first step is to speak the “Shahada”, the testimony of faith. In Islam the Shahada is the first and most imperative of the five pillars of Islam. After speaking the Shahada with honest confidence and sincerity one enters the faith of Islam. When a person enters the life of Islam, they ask forgiveness from the sins of their previous life. They do not need to worry about those sins because their slate is wiped clean. But it is their duty to keep their record clean

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Religion and Love

...Love and religion We are truly human when we act responsibly to restore harmony and act with love and compassion to restore truth, transparency and the equitable distribution of the resources endowed by our common Creator. -Megan Rice There are lots of religion in our world. Some people believe that different religion in their life, the others believe that no religion. The important points are respect and love each other. This is called The Golden Rule. İt depends on people so we need to understand other people’s believe. Most of people has a religion on the world. The most common religions that are Buddhism, Cristian, Muslim, Jewish. According to the researches eight person from each ten person believe one religion. And also according to the reports 2.2 billion people belive in Cristian in the world. After that 1.6 billion Muslim, 500 million Buddhism and 14 million Jewish all around the world. On the other hand, 1.1 billion people has a no religion. İn my observation, its very high percentage in the world. 700 million people has no religion just in China. The distribution is changing by religion. For instance, the Muslim people are mostly in the Pasific and Asia. The Cristian and Jewish are all around the world. The places which we live could effect our choise of religion. Because of our family and culture. For example, I am from Turkey...

Words: 1231 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Question

...Haque (SnH) Acknowledgements This research paper is has been prepared as a requirement for completing my course on Eng-105 (Advance Composition). Several people have played a large role behind the development of this paper, whether by active participation or through their advice and suggestions, so I will start this paper by acknowledging the people who have provided me with their aid, which was necessary for completing this research paper. First of all I would like to thank my course instructor Mrs. Shireen Haque. She selflessly devoted her time in preparing me for conducting my research and in developing my writing skills. Her invaluable support towards my topic motivated me to conduct my research confidently. Whenever I faced any problems, she often took time off her free period to help me, and I am really grateful to her because of this. I would also like to thank my friends, especially Afsana Shompa, Risalat Rahman, Taskin Ahmed, Shahriar Amin and Richard Chakma, for helping me out in conducting the survey and also for their honest opinions regarding my topic and the questionnaire, and there is no way that I can fully repay the sincerity that they have shown in pointing out my mistakes and helping me to correct those. I would also like to thank all the people who participated in my survey and filled out the questionnaire with their honest opinions. Abstract The following paper discusses on the cultural differences between...

Words: 3650 - Pages: 15

Premium Essay

W. C. Smith's The Meaning And End Of Religion

...In the book, The Meaning and End of Religion, W.C. Smith analyzes the problems and redefines the concept of religion. As a term which has been conflicted to say the least, W.C. Smith offers a variety of arguments of this conflict along with solutions to remedy this situation. By elaborating on one of his arguments as well as analyzing his approach to religion from my own, will “religion” be considered problematic both as a term and as a conceptual category. Smith presents five “categories” that need to be explored for a more modern approach. “Some modern investigators have thought to strip the phenomena of any transcendent reference, to explain by explaining away. Yet their explanations, however persuasive each one might sound at first, have...

Words: 693 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Personal Narrative: My Views Of Native Americans

...From what I remember of my childhood, I’ve been only popular with others by being the only Native American in the whole elementary school, especially in the whole town, because of that, I was be born as any other modern day American. Around those years, I’ve been doing my own research on what kind of Native American I am. In my own way of research, in which was by reading books in school, I felt that I was looking into a cloud fog about myself, and that my parents were the one I only found. They told me that my religion is Navajo culture, which were only the basic of what they are and the language they spoke having to be a little similar to Mexican language but different understanding, because I spoke simple Navajo to my friends and mistaken...

Words: 906 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Religion Belief

...Religion is based on a type of belief system; however, not all belief systems are represented as religions. A belief system can cover a number of different situations that may overlap with some religions; but, each individual belief is an opinion which determines how we interact with every aspect of our life. "Religion is essentially the art and the theory of the remaking of man. Man is not a finished creation." (Edmund Burke) I believe that there is some sort of driving force that impacts my life and the lives of all other people in the world. I believe that when we die there is neither a good nor a bad place where we go, but that death is just leading our soul to the next part of our spiritual journey. This energy does not control life, and it does not judge us or make decisions based on us, it merely guides and aides all the beings in the world into the betterment of the soul. I do not believe in associating this power with any sort of religion because many religions have major flaws and are too specific on how people should lead their lives. My belief is based on my own experiences and situations that I have come across in my life. With the knowledge I have gained and as I have progressed I have created a belief system in which I live by. Throughout my life I believe that this force helps me when I arrive at conflicts and road blocks in my journey and troubles with choice and judgement. Similar to the idea of Karma, I know that when I do bad things there will be a negative...

Words: 676 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Buddhism Religion and Afterlife

...Buddhism Religion and Afterlife The idea of death and the afterlife is a topic that everyone can relate to. Whether one has a bigger belief towards western religion, eastern religion, or no religion at all (atheism), the idea of life after death exists in the minds of many. All the major world religions teach that life continues after death. As for my religion, Christianity; the beliefs can be generally classified as a linear, whereas the faith traditions such as Buddhism and a few others can be classified as mainly cyclical. Cyclical is the opposite of linear, People do not just live and die once, but can be reborn a number of times (and live a series of lives) before reaching their final end-state. After death, the soul (or the essence of a person) is reborn in this world to live a new life. The process of being re-born into the world is also known as reincarnation. This continuous cycle of life is known as samsara, and it is the aim of every Buddhist to achieve freedom from it so that they will no longer be reborn into the world. Buddhists believe people are continually reborn into this world, unless they have achieved liberation (freedom) from samsara (the continual process of birth, death and rebirth). The Buddha experienced samsara when he saw the effects of old age and sickness, leading to death. Freedom from samsara occurs when a person has reached nirvana. Buddhism began as a way to address the suffering that exists in the world, and was not overly-focused on ultimate...

Words: 2100 - Pages: 9

Free Essay

Religious Life of Planet Earth

...Religious Life of Planet Earth REL 212 26 July 2012 The term religion is coined as a particular response to dimensions of life considered sacred, as shaped by institutionalized traditions (Fisher, 2011). Religion can be associated as a group of people coming together to practice and share a feeling or doctrine of beliefs, to an individual meditating by themselves once or several times a day. Religion has become not just a practice of many people in one group, or a spiritual comfort to a singular person. One cannot simply justify what is religion just by looking at a group or a single individual. If we were to base religion off of a group, one could state that Alcoholics Anonymous could be a religious group. These people gather willingly together to form a support system for each other and comfort each other through their times of need. They do not worship one particular deity, but still gather for a greater purpose. With that being noted, I believe that one person or group cannot justify what they see or define as religion or what is not. I think it is up to the group or individuals practicing or believing in their faith or doctrine to acknowledge that they have a belief system that they hold as sacred. There are seven common factors that inhibit a sense of religion. What may seem like religion in one person’s mind may not be considered a religion in anothers. Of the seven common factors; rituals, narrative and mythic stories, experiential and...

Words: 820 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Hum 130 Week 2 Appendix D

... | | |Name of Indigenous | | |culture/religion presented in |Pech culture | |Web site | | |Consider the examples of roles| | |and observances held sacred by|None of the roles and observances are being kept alive today. The church has banned them and deemed | |these people. Is this practice|them witchcraft. These people can not follow their old faith without persecution. | |being kept alive? | | |Has the culture/religion |This culture was forced to evolve and their traditional beliefs have been banned. This culture has | |evolved over time? |evolved into a new religion and new ways. The old traditions have been lost. | | |...

Words: 826 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Civil Liberties

...I chose the civil liberties because I think that it is important for someone to choose their own religion and beliefs without causing any trouble. Having the freedom to speak, choose your own religion and to vote for whomever you want to vote for is important to the American people. I chose the subcategory “The Free Exercise Clause”, because it upholds the rights of the American people to decide on any religious belief and to be able to exercise their beliefs without getting in trouble with the law. One example of a public policy that is designed to protect the civil liberty is the “moment of silence” in schools. The moment of silence is done in all the schools in the morning during the announcements and there is silence for 60 seconds with no sounds or interruptions. This gives everyone the opportunity to pray, meditate or even just sit and think without being disturbed. I support this policy because everyone has their own right to pray without disturbing the rights of others and those who don’t chose to pray also have the right to sit without disturbing the ones who are praying. The article that I chose to write about was originally written in the American School Board Journal paper and was written by Edwin Darden in 2008. The title of the article is “Is Silence in the Classroom Really Golden”? He explains that having silence in the classroom is great to have but are we having it in our classroom just for religious purposes? He asks if a mandatory “moment of silence” in public...

Words: 1046 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Hamlet

...allows contemporary audiences to value the continuing significance of gender roles, religion and personal behaviour in shaping ones identities and relationships. In Shakespeare’s times, as Queen Elizabeth’s reign passed to James 1st and the courts were changing to a Machiavellian system based on expediency for political gain, loyalties began to be questioned and a corresponding uncertainty was created. This uncertainty is also common within our own changing modern society. Shakespeare’s uncertainty and concern about the relationships between men and women remains relevant today, allowing me to empathise with the female characters, Gertrude and Ophelia. Though society’s treatment of women has improved, some inequality still remains, enabling us as modern responders to understand Shakespeare’s portrayal of women’s experiences and their loyalty towards their patriarchal figures. Hamlets mistreatment of Ophelia, “God hath given you one face, and you make yourselves another,” uses ploce to highlight his hypocrisy considering the “antic disposition” he puts on. Similarly, the vulgar comment, “nothing ... between maids' legs,” goes unchallenged, emphasising how Ophelia’s expected obedience prevents her defying a male’s authority. This portrayal represents Shakespeare’s patriarchal values, emphasising the seemingly eternal struggle for gender equality. Though gender dichotomies remains, changing times allow modern responders to view the characters actions differently to Shakespearean...

Words: 1193 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

History

... Professor * How is the word myth used popularly? For example, what does the statement, “It’s a myth” mean? In contrast, how is the word myth used in the academic context? After considering the things in the definition in your textbooks and course materials, write a definition in your own words. The word myth is used in stories told people don’t know if the stories told are true or not. My personal belief is that a myths can be both true and not true tales. My reason for this because things in the area that happened more than fifty years ago or longer could be turned into false information after the years and years of being restated, no one knows because this area has happened so long ago in time. Myths are stories that were passed on from one generation to the next one its fiction and non -fiction. Myth is used in academic context as being an explanatory narrative, & illustrates how people should act and the existing social order. They are collectively authored and are created by people traditions and oral traditions are told and retold over time. My definition of myth is something that has reason for it could be true or untrue depending on the topic; you just have to use logic to determine the truth of the quote or statement. * Why do myths from different cultures around the world address such similar or universal themes? Think about how myths explain the unknown and the tribulations of mankind. The reasoning why myths from other cultures are...

Words: 808 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Hot Gas

..."profound" that the professor shared it with colleagues via the Internet, which is, of course, why we now have the pleasure of enjoying it as well. Bonus Question: Is Hell exothermic (gives off heat) or endothermic (absorbs heat)? Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law (gas cools when it expands and heats when it is compressed) or some variant. One student, however, wrote the following: First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time. So we need to know the rate at which souls are moving into Hell and the rate at which they are leaving. I think that we can safely assume that once a soul gets to Hell, it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving. As for how many souls are entering Hell, let's look at the different religions that exist in the world today. Most of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion, you will go to Hell. Since there is more than one of these religions and since people do not belong to more than one religion, we can project that all souls go to Hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in Hell to increase exponentially. Now, we look at the rate of change of the volume in Hell because Boyle's Law states that in order for the temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell has to expand proportionately as souls are added. This gives two possibilities: 1. If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at...

Words: 463 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

Interview of a Mormon

...Interview of a Mormon… By: Amy Stone Hum/130 Due: 8/16/15 Instructor: Michael Merez In my study of the Mormon religion I found out they feel that some of the scriptures of the Bible are written incorrectly. They also believe that Adam was not made of the dust of the earth that he was God and the father of Jesus Christ. Their belief also believes there are “different levels in the afterlife”. They are as followed: A. The Celestial Kingdom B. The Terrestrial Kingdom C. The Telestial Kingdom D. The Outer Darkness… They also believe that Jesus was born of Mary, but as a virgin. They are taught that God and Mary had a “physical relationship. Also believe and are taught “Salvation can be earned by faith and good works”. This is not true in order to be saved you need to ask forgiveness for your sins. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and what he did on the Cross for your sins, and confess your sins. A brief history of the founder Joseph Smith Jr. in 1820 claimed he had a “vision from God telling him all Christianity was an abomination in their site and he was not to join any”. When he told others about his vision they “persecuted him”. He was 15 at this time. In 1823 when he was 18 he met “the angel Moroni “the glorified son of one Mormon”. Moroni came to Joseph “three times” and said to him to look for Gold-Plates on a hill in Palmyra, but to wait four years before he took them and not to show the tablets to...

Words: 1073 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Islam Essay

...American Literature Jennifer Barnes Ms. K Meeks March 10, 2011 Islam and Christianity Christianity and Islam are two of the most significant religions in the world today. Both religions are very similar with only some of the beliefs and teachings being different. Christianity started about 2000 years ago in Judea with Jesus Christ and his faithful group of disciples. It has grown into one of the major religions, impacting all other faiths and changing the course of human history. Its sacred scripture is the Bible, particularly the New Testament. Its principal beliefs are that Jesus is the Son of God (the second person of the Holy Trinity), that God’s love for the world is the essential component of his being, and that Jesus died to redeem humankind. Christianity means “one who is crystallized into one.” Islam means "entire submission to the Will of Allah" in Arabic, and a Muslim is one who submits to the will of Allah (God). Islam’s primary significance is the making of peace first within one‘s self, and then for humanity as a whole. The author of Islam is Allah (God). The book of Islam is the Holy Qur’an, and the scriptures that were taught to the prophets. Islam has five beautiful fundamental principles of belief. Belief in Allah and his Apostle, Belief in Zakat (spending in the cause of truth), Belief in Fasting, Belief in Pilgrimage, Belief in Prayer(5 times daily). These beliefs are strictly enforced by each and everyone that prescribes to the title of...

Words: 1165 - Pages: 5

Free Essay

Unitarian Universalist

...Amber Crawford Tim Jones Religion in the United States 13 November 2014 Unitarian Universalist I had the pleasure of attending a Unitarian Universalist service in Mt. Vernon, Illinois. At first I was intimidated by the thought of attending a religious service because I was not raised in the church, and do not currently practice a religion of any sort. My mentor, knowing my personality, suggested the Unitarian Universalist church. I had never heard of this religious organization before, so after doing some research, I realized that this was definitely the place for me to attend. I was pleasantly surprised by the service, as was my husband who is a diehard atheist. Unitarian Universalism is an organizational embodiment of the extremely liberal religious tradition in the United States (Hemeyer, 2010). The current Unitarian Universalist Association is the result of the Universalists and the Unitarians coming together (Hemeyer, 2010). To better understand the Unitarian Universalist we know today, we are going to look at origins of the Universalists and the Unitarians prior to when they merged. The Universalists believe that all persons will eventually be saved by God, which means that salvation is universal and not restricted to a certain number (Hemeyer, 2010). Universalism was already present by the time of the American colonies (Hemeyer, 2010). John Murray (1741-1815) has been referred to as the father of American Universalism (Hemeyer, 2010). He preached what may be considered...

Words: 1841 - Pages: 8