First & foremost, my name's Houston. I'm 16-years-old, a Caucasian male & currently submitting to the suppositions of Agnostic theists — the view of those who do not claim to know existence of God or gods, but still believe in such an existence. Born in Key West, Florida unto parents of disparate Christian denominations, I was more or less raised to believe in God, Jesus as the Son of God & Messiah & ultimately the didactics of the Bible. Fortunately, my parents did not make it a point in mine & my sibling's upbringing to instill a strict adherence to the Christian faith, & although we've currently various crucifixes & Christianity-influenced paintings that adorn the walls of our house, the atmosphere in which my parents compose themselves enables a pluralistic home-life.
In 3rd grade, I was enrolled in a private Catholic school where I had my first hands-on experience with a congregation of people ranging in ages from 4-years-old to 14-years-old that had been submitted to a rigorous & unfaltering belief in all things Biblical. Only 8-years-old or so, I found only one subject troubling, & that was Religion. Since I was able to talk, I've possessed a inquiring mind, always asking, "Why?" or "How?" & up until my first helping of Religion, those around me would often go to the utmost lengths to answer the questions I procured. Unfortunately this was not so in Religion. Questions were either looked down upon or prohibited all together. The only answers that were ever given to my questions ascertaining the reliability or validity of specific events, people or precepts were variations of, "God is omnipotent, omnipresent & omniscient, therefore all things Biblical are in turn irrefutable facts." & while I realize that faith is in large part a criteria in any religion, this answer & its variations have never sat well with me.
Starting earlier this year, I took it upon myself to in some way attain the religious texts of many, if not all, religions. I've taken this upon myself in order to find a religion & its inclusive belief system that makes the most sense to me, alongside making it a point to become knowledgeable of all the world's religions & their undermining standards. So far I've obtained the Bible (already had various versions lying around the house), the Book of Mormon & the Qur'an. I've flipped through both the Bible & the Book of Mormon, but have only recently actually considered reading the Qur'an in-depth. What has interested me most about the Qur'an is that there are, to this day, two original copies of the revelations of Allah to the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), a feat no other divine book can boast, as well as the fact that the lineage & history of the Prophet (PBUH) is recognized.
Thus, I've come here to expand my knowledge of the Qur'an & the Islamic faith & hope to further myself in terms of what I believe in, since currently, I believe that divinities exist, but the lack of tangible proof ultimately makes it difficult for me to swallow what I'm being fed. I understand I lack faith, & that it is more or less the only prerequisite to fully comprehending & accepting the teachings of the Qur'an & obtaining the blessings & love of Allah, but it is not in me to have faith in something that is deficient of tactility. Therefore, I hope that a sense of faith can be instilled within in by you, the users of this board, or that in the least, you can guide me towards the acceptance of Islam into my religious sentiments.
aboard liberal.. hope you enjoy your stay here and learn all you can...
Br. woodrow is a senior member here, also from texas, was a catholic priest? and is now Muslim.. I hope he comes to greet you, he has recently been married and hasn't been very active... but we have many caucasian Muslims here even if they are not texans...
peace
Text without context is pretext If your opponent is of choleric temperament, seek to irritate him
Hey liberalization, welcome to the forums!
It was very interesting reading your story, as so many converts to islam have a similar one, except theirs ends with a paragraph on how they accepted to islam, lol.
If you have any questions about islam, or anything you're unsure of when you're reading the quran, just ask!
format_quote Originally Posted by Skye Ephémérine
Br. woodrow is a senior member here, also from texas, was a catholic priest? and is now Muslim.. I hope he comes to greet you, he has recently been married and hasn't been very active...
I think he was a southern baptist preacher.....? maybe? lol, maybe he'll be able to come in here and tell him himself inshallah.
Skye Ephémérine - Thank you for the welcome! I share your hopes in enjoying my time here on the board & learning all I can. & I hope to meet Brother Woodrow & hear his conversion story, as well. Although I am sure I can skim through the plethora of stories here in the Introduce Yourself forum, I believe his particular narration will appeal to me more seeing as how he made the change from Christian priest to accepting Islam; quite a monumental conversion in my opinion.
crayon - I appreciate the welcome! I could've severely beefed up my story, but I felt no one would bother reading it & who really cares about the minute details anyways. & yeah, I saw that after a handful of stories in the Introduce Yourself forum, the user went on to explain their acceptance of Islam, & I could've done so as well, but that's be lying, & lying is never a solution, even to gain acceptance. As for the two links you've posted, I will read the first as soon as I'm done writing & submitting this reply & will browse the Discover Islam forum afterwards. & I will most certainly ask any questions I may have (I will most likely write down my questions as I'm reading the Qur'an & compile a lengthy list that I will post in the near future, granted I could not find the answers after doing my own research).
- Serene - - I will do my best to be a good member & remain active. Thanks for the warm & colorful welcome.
Until last month I was a Texan living in Austin. Skye is partly right, I did not quite make it to being a Catholic Priest, I was a seminarian studying for ordination. Later I was an Evangelical Missionary for a fundementalist denomination trying to convert Muslims to Christianity.
glad to have you here. we need a Texan as a member. I now live in Minnesota and part time in south Dakota.
At the Moment I am in Faith South Dakota, tomorrow I will be in Evansville, MN last week I was in Austin introducing my wife to my grandkids.
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aboard liberal.. hope you enjoy your stay here and learn all you can...
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