When a Puerto Rican attorney and former Navy JAG officer encounters Islam for the first time, the last thing anyone might expect is an immediate, profound recognition of truth. Yet that is exactly what happened to Wilfredo Amr Hernandez, whose journey from Catholic upbringing to practicing Muslim, military chaplain, and outspoken defender of Muslim civil rights stands as one of the most compelling conversion stories in the American Muslim community today.
From Catholic School to the Concept of Tawheed
Raised in a devout Catholic family in Puerto Rico, Wilfredo was educated in Catholic schools from first grade through middle school. His mother attended church daily and held leadership positions within her congregation. Yet despite this deeply religious upbringing, one fundamental question never received a satisfying answer — the concept of the Trinity. When he first visited an Islamic center in the city of Vega Alta near San Juan in late 2002, the Islamic teaching of Tawheed (the absolute oneness of God) struck him not as something foreign, but as something he had always believed deep down.
“When I first heard and listened to people talking about Tawheed and how that is essential to our faith — that naturally resonated with me. Nobody ever needed to try to explain to me in Islam the concept of the One God. When it was exposed to me, I didn’t have any questions because I said: this is what I have always truly believed.”
A Navy Attorney Becomes a Muslim Chaplain
After embracing Islam in January 2003, Wilfredo’s thirst for knowledge led him to enroll in a Master’s program in Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations at Hartford Seminary. He reconnected with the U.S. Navy — where he had previously served as a JAG defense counsel — and joined the Chaplain Candidate Program Officer corps. At the time, there were only four Muslim chaplains in the entire Navy fleet, making his role both rare and vital as he served Muslims and non-Muslims alike across the armed forces and later in immigration detention centers.
Why Pure Monotheism Makes Logical Sense
“It is truly logical — you say God can never be born, God is the owner of everything. What can He be offered? You can’t offer Him anything when He owns everything. In Tawheed, there is nothing higher than Allah. You cannot put the Highest offering something to His creation — it is the contrary. His creation should be offering acts of gratitude to Him.”
- Islam answered what Christianity could not — the Trinity never made logical sense to Wilfredo, but the pure monotheism of Islam immediately did
- His legal and military mind demanded evidence — as a trained attorney and Navy officer, he needed a faith built on reason, and Islam delivered
- Family acceptance followed — his mother, a daily church-goer, eventually gifted him a Muslim prayer rug for Christmas as a sign of deep respect
- Community impact grew exponentially — he became a regular columnist in Puerto Rico’s largest newspaper, writing exclusively about Islam and Muslim life
- Hajj in 2007 deepened his conviction — fellow Muslims were deeply moved to hear an American revert’s story, calling it a source of immense inspiration
Defending Muslim Rights as a Lifelong Mission
Today Wilfredo serves with CAIR Florida, where he has spent nearly a decade working first as an attorney and now as communications director defending the civil rights of Muslims across the state. His unique combination of legal expertise, military chaplaincy experience, and passionate faith drives his mission to ensure that future generations of American Muslims inherit a better, more just society. As he puts it, every act done for the sake of Allah is worship — and protecting the Muslim community is the form of worship that fits him best.
