everything covered but her eyes what a
cruel male dominated culture I remember
this to this day I got down on my knees
and instead of praying to Jesus which
I'd done in the past
I prayed to God and I just said dear God
I've tried everything I could I I just
want to worship you in the way that you
want me to worship you and I don't know
what it is
um
but you need to bring it to me
[Applause]
and his final messages
how you guys doing how you guys doing
I'm excited I'm here with Wendy she
accepted Islam 30 years ago what was it
what did it for you we know Islam is the
fastest growing way of life in the world
yesterday today and tomorrow Insha'Allah
and I want to know people want to know
like what is it what's your background
and what had you so interested that you
accepted Islam and you're still living
it to this day
yes assalamu alaikum thank you for
having me here and I became a Muslim as
I said it was well over 30 years ago but
for me my journey began much earlier
when I was quite young I was raised
Episcopalian but from a very early age I
want to say
even 10 years old I had questions and I
wasn't getting the answers that really
felt right to me and so I started my own
search and my parents actually always
encouraged that they were very
open-minded they were happy that I was a
spiritual person that I was curious and
I just really reached out to different
churches I used to go to
um different denominations of
Christianity I hadn't really expanded
beyond that I was in a small farming
town in Michigan but
um I explored everything I could and
nothing really felt like it was it for
me and this continued all through
college actually and then at one point I
felt like I'd done
what I could do in that maybe I was
approaching it wrong and so
and this is I can remember this to this
day I got down on my knees and instead
of praying to Jesus which I'd done in
the past
I prayed to God and I just said dear God
I've tried everything I could I I just
want to worship you in the way that you
want me to worship you and I don't know
what it is
um
but you need to bring it to me because
I've tried everything and none of them
feel right and I trust you and I just
I'm done with my own search I need you
to bring it to me and show it to me
because I don't care what it is how
strange it is how different how foreign
how unusual how different from my own
background I just want to worship you
the way you want me to worship you and
about a year and a half later I was
introduced to Islam and I knew
immediately immediately immediately so
you said immediately you got down on
your knees and you're praying to the
crater alone for guidance just like
Jesus prayed he prayed not to himself he
prayed to the creator of the heavens and
earth and you're asking for guidance and
then you're exposed to Islam and you
knew right away what were some of the
things about Islam that captivated you
the fact that you're worshiping God
directly that it's a conversation
between you and God and that the Quran
really felt like
a personal message
something from God directly to me I know
maybe that was selfish to think of it
like that but I really felt like well
this is for me this is God talking to me
and that was just exciting and it felt
right and
it was right and it has been right and
continues to be right and I try to share
that with other people
uh tell us when you're talking to some
of your family or other Christians now
and they're just looking at you and
they're like how can you do that you
know there's so many different things
that Islam is advocating they'll think
they'll think you know Islam is about
oppressing women you know they'll see
you now you know in the hijab and then
they'll hear about you know so much
violence in the middle all these things
you know there's a list of array of
different things that come up many much
of his mixed you know with falsehood you
know a lot of distortion lies and
whatnot so how do you tackle those
things when those tough questions that
come at you let's start with one of them
like you know how can you become a
Muslim when Islam oppresses women for
example
that's a great question and I do get
that to this day I get that I still get
that you know no one really says it
exactly like that but you can feel it
coming at you like why would you want to
be a a Muslim you're a woman why so we
asked a tough question for you yeah
you did and um I have various answers
but for myself obviously I'm not
oppressed I don't feel oppressed I don't
believe Islam oppresses women but you
have to be
um specific in your answer and that's
part of dawa as you know is finding out
what the best answer is for each person
what it is what is the root of their
question what is it fear is it curiosity
are they trying to mock you or you know
I try to ask them questions back
to find out the root of their question
and then answer it from there because
really there is no oppression and for
myself you know we're in hijaba it's not
something I did immediately it was after
the birth of my son who was my second
child that I started wearing hijab but
many people's surprise it wasn't
something I discussed with my husband it
wasn't something he had asked me to do I
woke up one day after many days of
praying about it and I said you know
what today's the day and I'm gonna wear
hijab so it had nothing to do with him
forcing me to do it it was something
that was personal and private between me
and Allah yeah and uh do people get
surprised when you tell them and when
they find out that Mary the mother of
Jesus were hijab
right and then you see nuns who are the
best of Christianity right they end up
wearing pretty much was hijab
I think one thing I've found in you
perhaps have as well is that people have
they have Notions that are presented to
them that they've heard over and over
and they just don't think outside the
box they haven't thought of it like that
and when you say that to them
they're like oh oh yeah
you're you're right women do wear like I
do see pictures of Mary you know dress
like this and and you know and so forth
you know it's just something that they
hadn't connected with Islam yet until
you do that for them but it's obvious
once you do
and that's a good feeling to see that
light bulb kind of go off in their head
we'll uh we'll go ahead and show them
also this is actually from a a friend of
mine it's a Christian friend
um who sent me this and inshallah
Patrick he also I think uh he's having
an affinity towards Islam but he sent me
this and what's your reaction we're
going to put this up so they can see it
also
okay so here it says Uh there's a woman
and she's dressed uh like she's going to
the beach and she's saying that
everything covered but her eyes what a
cruel male dominated culture and then it
has the woman here on the other side and
she's covered up and then she's thinking
about the other woman nothing covered
but her eyes what a cruel male dominated
culture
well that hits it right on the head
doesn't it yeah when I go to the beach
which I do
and I'll be fully covered and I've
gotten over that the stairs and no one's
actually ever approached me and asked me
certainly I get looks but it is
it's just like night and day when you
see women like that you feel so bad for
them I do personally because
they've just been taught this they've
been taught that their body is what's
the most important thing about them and
it's something to be proud of yes
you know I'm I'm proud of the body God
gave me I live in it I try to take care
of it but I also honor it by respecting
it and part of respecting it is
privacy keeping it for myself and for my
husband and these women don't know that
and I just I feel like when I explain
that to people who ask me I've never had
anyone on the beach ask me but I've had
people I've had this discussion with
women before
um I can see them thinking it over
because it really
it is something to think of your body as
belonging just to you but what are you
going to do with that what are you gonna
do with that
information and we kind of have a
discussion from there and it can go some
interesting places yeah
well I want to thank you thank you for
sharing that with us here in uh just the
home of Bill Clinton huh has has he
connected here with the Muslim Community
has there any been has anybody uh has he
had any exposure to Muslims in Islam do
you know anything that's going on with
him is he still this is his home base
huh it is and you know that I really
don't know I know that he did come here
um frequently when he was president in
fact I met him once when my children
were little he we live out by a golf
course of course he golfed a lot and I
took my kids and I was in the full hijab
and I had my little kids put them on his
lap and he couldn't have been Kinder or
nicer but it wasn't something you met
Bill Clinton yeah so you've met Bill
Clinton here you were
yeah nobody said anything or had any in
fact it was my neighbors who knocked on
my door said you gotta come you got to
come he's out at the golf course and I
have a real good relationship with my
neighbors and they wanted me to be a
part of that and it's not something we
even thought about but yeah that's the
only encounter I ever had but
thank you sister Mercado Mario locks him
to bless you in your journey
if you build a house imagine for the
sake of Allah and return Allah will
build a house for you in the Jannah that
is the promise of our Habib Muhammad
tell us now so you've been a principal
here for how long
um seven years seven years so are you
excited now for the future project the
expansion of course yes it's going to be
a new building a nice building
facility for the kids to play to enjoy
their time yes brother sister how you
doing I'm here with Josh how you doing
Josh I'm doing all right how about
yourself so we're walking out I said
salaam alaikum and he responded Yes sir
how did you learn that
um well I mean it's a common term that
I've heard growing up you know just
watching things like uh like we
mentioned before Malcolm X yeah because
uh he was somebody I kind of looked up
to you know it's fresh especially with
his mannerisms so I mean it's a it's a
greeting and you know so I know how to
greet back yeah because I thought
because we're here we're in Little Rock
Arkansas and we're actually at a this is
a Masjid here so I thought our brother
Josh is uh he's Muslim but he's not I
was like what are you waiting for what
and then we talked a little bit we
started talking about Malcolm X Muhammad
Ali their Roots actually being Islam
right right they are so do you what else
do you know about Islam besides
um so
maybe and besides the hype sometimes in
the media oh yeah yeah I don't I don't
even pay attention to the media too much
anyways with things that's with anything
um
but uh the the things I know I know
about the uh Prophet Muhammad you know
um a lot of the other things I know
usually come from the tenants of maybe
like the Nation of Islam yeah a lot of
people sometimes confuse that yeah right
right and I understand the difference
with that you know it'll be just like a
trying to think of an a good example but
I
without being offensive with anything no
no go ahead give it wrong I'll say it'd
be just like uh if you look at
Christianity right you have some groups
out there that seem to be a little more
you know uh
extreme in their thoughts yeah and then
most would yeah Malcolm X saw this and
when he went to Hajj actually you saw
when he came back you know what he wrote
he wrote actually that when he came back
he wrote that you know if Americans
implemented the teachings of Islam this
would eradicate the racism that we have
today because he was sitting and praying
with the you know the black the white
the yellow the all different shape size
and colors you know and he got to see
the unity of humanity coming together
under the worship of one and only one
God right right and I I that change
right there you know I thought that was
an awesome change for him in his life
especially I mean the change going from
where he was where you know basically
almost Heathen in prison to convert into
Islam that helped him you know as I feel
I feel that conversion will help
Islam Christianity I think those can
help because the tenants of those faiths
you know it's it's about love family
Brothers Brotherhood you know what I
mean so you know also a way that you
carry yourself you know I think that's
important too and if people carried
themselves that way
you know it possibly wouldn't be so many
in prison right now you know one of the
the main the main Core teaching of Islam
is the Oneness of God this is the main
thing along with developing yourself to
be the best example of a human being
that you can be living by the tenets of
Islam which teaches you to be an upright
and standing morally upright human being
but one of the most important teachings
is and we believe that every messenger
that God Almighty sent came with the
same message right worship one God one
God Alone this was the main main message
did you ever get to exposure to this
teaching this What's called the pure
monotheism of Islam so um I won't say I
did
um how about this one did you know that
Muslims believe and love Jesus right
right uh because I know you know that
one huh you're right I know as far as
Islam Islam goes uh he's a prophet right
yeah it's a mighty messenger just like
Abraham No Moses knowing all the other
Messengers one of the greatest messages
at that right right and um because I
know that according to the teachings
it's the same you know God of Abraham
absolutely yes God of Isaac so
um
the similarities are uncanny you know
but the when you think about the world
the three major religions of the world
yeah so but yeah that part I do know
yeah so uh do you have any questions for
me right now anything that's been
tickling you in the back anything that
you like about Islam that I can answer
I don't think there's too many questions
you know I I like to absorb things
that's it as I learn as I go on through
life and I learn then you know that's
when I absorb stuff you know have you
ever read the Quran so I've never read
the correct I've read pieces of it but
I've never read the whole I'm gonna
introduce you and I'm gonna leave one of
these brothers here Zakaria this is the
principle here can I see you for a
minute
can I see you also who's going to take
it upon yourself come here and we got
the principle zias we got the whole
committee this are this is our our
neighbor and friend Josh who's going to
he never read the Quran so I'm Gonna
Leave it to you guys I'm leaving
tomorrow but I'm gonna leave I wanted
you guys to get him a translation and
maybe some reading materials so he can
go ahead and look at who's gonna who's
it who you're gonna do it yes I'll do
that this is the principal have you met
him before no I haven't okay
all right so how's that it's a gift for
me to you from them to you how's that
that's fine yeah you can look me up at
thedineshow.com and any questions you
ever have shoot me an email and my we'll
hook up again and I'll answer those
questions oh sure will sure will it was
really nice meeting you it was good
meeting you too all right brother all
right Jeff so mission statement right
now is to serve a diverse community
um to serve a diverse community and
build a better future inspired by Islam
can you tell us a little about the
community here and the current status of
the Muslim Community in Little Rock
Arkansas so alhamdulillah we have a very
diverse Community here in the city of
Little Rock in Arkansas a lot of people
don't think you know we have a community
but alhamdulillah we have a lot of
Muslims here we have our Friday prayer
we do it uh we had to do it in the gym
because the the Masjid has gotten too
small for us we've got we have about 500
people that attend the Friday prayer we
have our school that goes from
infant infant program all the way to the
eighth grade and inshallah we want to
keep expanding with the school we have
our Sunday school we have our Quran
classes we have our youth programs
sisters halaka many many things
alhamdulillah this this community is
doing we have dawa programs and we also
have our food food pantry mashallah I've
noticed that you have another project
going on so what was the need now
because you're in one location but
you're moving to another location tell
us about that so the majority of the
Muslims that live in the in the city of
Little Rock live on the west side in the
newer side uh of the city we wanted to
have a center complete sinner that will
accommodate everybody that lives on the
west side of the city
it's about the the location we chose
it's about five minutes six minute drive
from the majority of the Muslim that
live on the west side of the city
alhamdulillah and we are growing like I
said the Masjid does not fit us anymore
so we have to pray in the gym our school
you know we want to move to high school
and keep expanding to 9th grade 10th
grade and so so on and so forth but we
cannot do it in the in the current
location and tell us I've seen now when
I went over there you guys actually you
started breaking ground what's the
current situation with the construction
yes so alhamdulillah we finished phase
one which is getting the the ground
ready for the buildings we've there we
bought about 10 acres of land we cleared
all the trees uh and we did a lot of
site site work and we also expanded the
road canis Road uh the the land is in
really good spot it's in the heart of
West Little Rock which is mashallah the
north area where everybody's the growth
in the city is on this side so now we
want to uh raise more funds in order to
start with with the school building
inshallah may Allah bless this project
and inshallah I come back next time I
see it all come to a reality in fruition
inshallah I mean
and we're so happy to have you here
thank you very much
cannot leave without giving you a gift
if you are not yet Muslim and you tune
in and see what these Muslims are
talking about and you like a free copy
of the Quran go and visit thedine
show.com we'll take care of the postage
and everything and get it delivered to
you and if you still have some questions
about Islam call us at
1-800-662-4752 we'll see you next time
until then peace be with you
assalamualaikum