The Clear Evidence

Extract from “My Path to Islam: Australian Muslim Revert Stories”

Chapter: “Abu Bakr’s Way to Islam” Page: 15-20 Authors: Tuba Boz, Shifa L. Mustapha Publisher: Goodword, 2004

The following is the true account of an Australian revert taken from the honours thesis of Sister Tuba Boz. His name is Abu Bakr, and while his name, like many of those of his fellow-reverts, is chosen for its meaning and its nearness to some aspect of Islam, or that of the life of the Prophet of Arabia, Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), his story is truly that of an Australian young man with all his Australianism intact. And though he, himself, does not wish to be seen as other than a Muslim, it is, for fellow-Australians, encouragement and living proof of the Qur’anic ayat:

Surah 49: 13” O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted. “

If one had told Abu Bakr earlier, that he would one day become a Muslim, his reply would most probably have been, “Naah! No way!!!” for like many Australians his perception of Muslims was that they were terrorists. However, there is no accounting for the Mercy and Graciousness of Allah who leads to His Path those whom He wills from all peoples upon the earth; and Abu Bakr was to find this in due course.

When asked what had triggered his search to find the true meaning of life, for that was the primary aim of his quest, his response was this: “There were a couple of things. It was the year my parents said they were going to separate. It was not the year they formally divorced, but it was the year my Dad moved out of the house. I went a little off the rails. I (even) had trouble with the police… I was drinking alot.” It may be seen that this was a painful time for this young man. This was to be further compounded, for it was in this year that one of his friends died. Of this event he said: “That led me to think, ‘There’s my mate. He just died, and he is only eighteen years old! Is he just worm food?’ You know what I mean. That’s when I started relating it to my life, thinking, ‘If I died tomorrow what would it matter? What would it matter except to the few who know me among the billions on this Earth?’ So I started thinking, ‘No! There has to be more. There has to be more than just this!”’

It was with these questions in mind that Abu Bakr commenced his journey, looking to religion for the meaning of existence. He describes his experiences in this way:

“First, I mean, logically, I’m an Aussie, so I went straight to Christianity, and I thought I’d have that fish sticker on the back of my car, and “I love Jesus”. I was thinking I’d go buy them and see if they did something for my parking fine!” his waggish sense of humour bubbling to the fore. Then seriously he explains, “Honestly I went through all the (Christian) religions; well not all the religions, but the ones I had access to I investigated. Christianity, including Catholicism, I investigated quite a bit. But the problem was I just couldn’t find the answer. While they were all nice, I couldn’t sit there and say, “This is the religion for me! ’ and ‘This sounds beautiful! ’”

His search continued:

“I looked at Hinduism when I was working in a service station with some Hindu friends...

Continue Reading: Video: An Australian Atheist's Journey to Islam - Abu Bakr (English)