Among the most widely believed myths about Islam in the West
today is the myth of forcible conversion to Islam.

	Many Westerners do believe that Islam is so widespread in the
world today simply because of a "holy campaign of terror"
carried out by the early Muslims to convert non-Muslims to Islam.
Non-Muslims were offered the freedom to choose either Islam or death.
In a discussion with a Baptist Minister he said to me that "Muslims
tend to kill non-Muslims and anyone who disagrees with them".  In a
syndicated column appearing in over 30 papers (on July 23rd, 1994)
entitled, "Muslim persecution of Christians increasing"  the author
blames many Muslims countries for persecuting Christians then he quotes
the Qur'an, "There is no compulsion in Religion" and ends the quote by
rudely writing "Really?".  How to confront such misconceptions?  First,
there is no need for us to be apologetic.  We Muslims should search for
the truth and present it as it is.  This is how we have been instructed
by Allah (SWT) "Say:  the truth from your Lord and let him who will
believe and let him who will reject."(18:29)  Islam is the religion of
the Truth.  The Qur'an is the book of the Truth.  "We sent down the
Qur'an in Truth and in Truth has it descended." (17:105) "Put your
trust in Allah for you are on the path of the manifest Truth."(27:79)
Therefore, we should ask ourselves first, before we are asked by anyone
else, what is the truth?  Did Muslims really force others to convert to
Islam?  Is there any evidence for consistent forcible conversion
throughout the Islamic history?  As a matter of fact, there is no such
evidence anywhere in the history of Islam.  Many distinguised Western
historians have attested this fact-- foremost among whom is Sir Thomas
W. Arnold in his book, "The Preaching of Islam".  Also there is
Marshall G.  Hodgson in his book, "The Venture of Islam", Albert
Hourani in his book, "A History of the Arab People", Ira Lapidus in his
book, "History of Islamic Societies", L.S.  Starorianos in his book, "A
Global Hisotry, the Human Heritage" and many others.  In fact, there is
substantial evidence to the contrary. We have already seen in a
previous *khutbah* that Muslims were often seen as liberators of the
oppressed people everywhere.

	The question that remains to be answered is why then so many
people have chosen Islam throughout the more than 1400 years of its
history.  Islam has penetrated the Middle East, North Africa, Spain,
West Africa, East Africa, Eastern Europe, Asia Minor, the Caucasus,
Central Asia, Afghanistan, India, Western China, and the Malay
archipelago.  Islam in all these regions replaced so many other
well-established religions:  Christianity, Zoroastrianism, Buddhism,
Hinduism, Paganism and animism.  What are the reasons behind the
triumph of Islam over all these religions in so many different places
at so many different times?

	First and foremost, Islam is an amazing blend of simplicity and
rationality:  a very simple religion yet very rational at the same
time.  Professor Hodgson has explained the reasons for the popularity
of Islam as follows:  "Muslims made a personal appeal to people's
religious consciousness.  On the level of straight argument, they often
put forward the populistic intelligibility of Islam.  Muslims commonly
ridiculed, in the name of intellectual good sense, the more mythically
convoluted teachings of older traditions.  This could seem attractively
straightforward to people dissatisfied with taking things on faith from
a learned priest whose mysteries they could not comprehend.  A single
Creator, to be worshipped by each person for himself, on the basis of
revelation that had been given to a famous prophet whom millions
already acknolwedged.  This was at once intelligible and plausible."

	The unambiguous and uncompromising belief in the Unity, the
Greatness, the Wisdom of God, the Creator of the universe, is
unparalleled among other religions.  The French professor Edouard
Montet said, "The dogma of the unity of God...has always been
proclaimed in the Qur'an with a grandeur, a majesty, an invariable
purity and with a note of pure conviction which is hard to find
surpassed outside the pale of Islam.  A creed so precise, so stripped
of all theological complexities and so accessible to the ordinary
understanding might be expected to possess and does indeed possess a
marvellous power of winning its way into the consciences of men."

	Besides its simple and rational creed, Islam offers an
impressive set of rituals which has gained the admiration and,
subsequently, the conversion of many non-Muslims.  The second pillar of
Islam, **salah**, the prayer, has been described as follows by Sir
Arnold, "The religion of the Muslim is continuously present with him
and, in the daily prayer, manifests itself in a solemn and impressive
ritual which cannot leave either the worshipper or the spectator
unaffected."  Then Sir Arnold narrated the story of an Egyptian Jew who
converted to Islam at the end of the 13th century mainly because of the
sight of the **Juma'a** prayer.  Actually, it is not only in the 13th
century that people converted to Islam because of the prayers; it just
happened a few years ago in Ottawa that a non-Muslim Canadian woman
converted to Islam because of **Juma'a** prayers.  She used to go to
the Ottawa Mosque on Friday and pray among the sisters for several
months.  She loved the prayer and eventually she embraced Islam.

	In addition to the prayers, the other pillars of Islam,
**Zakah**, **Hajj**,**Siyam**, have always been factors in
attracting many hearts to Islam.  Up until the present day, one still
meets converts who were impressed by the social justice of Islam
brilliantly expressed in the payment of **Zakah**.  The genius of
**Hajj** and **Siyam** has always been a determining factor in the
conversion of many people.  It is this union of rationalism and
ritualism that explains the power that Islam has exercised over the
hearts and minds of so many people.  Islam simply gives the truth, neat
and clear in a visible and tangible form.  The neatness and clarity of
Islam was presented to human beings in the form of a miraculous book,
the Qur'an.  The marvellous power and beauty of the words of the Qur'an
have always been a decisive factor in conversion to Islam.  The famous
Jewish American convert to Islam, Maryam Jameelah, cited the Qur'an as
the major factor of her conversion.  After a deep study of both the Old
Testament and the Qur'an, the contrast between the two scriptures
became increasingly evident to her until she firmly believed that the
Qur'an was indeed God's message to the human race.

	A conference of Christian missionaries in 1887 was discussing
why Islam has almost swept away Crhistianity from the Middle
East.  What did Islam offer these people to forsake Christianity for
good?  One of the missionaries was insightful enough to say the
following:  "Islam brought out the fundamental dogmas of the Unity and
Greatness of God, that He is mindful and Righteous.  It proclaimed the
responsibility of man, a future life, a Day of Judgement and stern
retribution to fall upon the wicked, and enforced the duties of prayer,
alms-giving and fasting.  It replaced monkishness by manliness, it gave
hope to the slave, brotherhood to mankind and recognition to the
fundamental facts of human nature."

	The formidable rationalism, ritualism and clarity of Islam did
not only lead the Christians of the Middle East to forsake
Christianity and embrace Islam in the past.  It continues to do so with
Christinas in the West to the presnt day.  An Australian-born Christain
who converted to Islam four months ago and who was studying here with
us at Queen's wrote in her story of conversion to Islam, "Christianity
continued to be difficult for me.  So much didn't make sense, the
trinity, the idea that Jesus was God incarnate, the worship of Mary,
the Saints, or jesus, rather than God.  The priests told me to leave
reason behind".  The she went on to say, "Could Muhammad really be a
messenger?  Could the Qur'an be God's word?  I kept reading the Qur'an,
it told me that Eve wasn't alone to blame for the fall, that Jesus was
a messenger, that people would question the authenticity of Muhammad's
claim to revelation but that if they tried to write something as wise,
consistent and rational they would fail.  This seemed true.  Islam
asked me to use my intelligence to contemplate God, it encouraged me to
seek knowledge."  Then at the end of her sincere search for the truth
she prayed to God saying, "Dear God, I believe in You, I believe in the
compelling and majestic words of the Qur'an and I believe in the
prophethood of your messenger Muhammad (SAW)."

	Another Muslim sister, from California, who was a practising
Christian and an active member in her nearby Presbyterian church, wrote
in her conversion story that despite her active affiliation with the
church, she always had serious questions about the fundamentlas of
Chrsitianity which did not make sense to her.  She debated her
questions with her friends but never came up with good answers.  The
church couldn't give them good answers either, they only told them to
"have faith".  All her questions were answered when she took a course
about Islam.  Listen to her own words.  "This class brought back all of
the concerns that I had about Christianity.  As I learned about Islam,
all my questions were answered.  All of us are not punished for Adam's
original sin.  Adam asked God for forgiveness and our merciful, loving
God forgave him.  God doesn't require a blood sacrifice in payment for
sin.  We must sincerely ask for forgiveness and amend our ways.  Jesus
wasn't God, he was a prophet like all of the other prophets.  This
answered all of my questions about the trinity and the nature of
Jesus.  I found a teaching that put everything in its proper
perspective and appealed to my heart and my intellect.  It seemed
natural.  It wasn't confusing.  I had been searching and I had found a
place to rest my faith."

	My dear brothers and sisters, Islam is so strong and so
self-assured that it does not need to use force to attract others to
it.  The moral and intellectual superiority of Islam over all other
religions has manifested itself so clearly throughout the history of
Islam. Despite all of the ills of Muslims everywhere,  Islam continues
to be the fastest growing religion on earth.  Professor Huston Smith of
the MIT in his book, "The Religions of Man" says, "In some areas where
Islam and Christianity are competing for converts, Islam is gaining at
a rate of 10 to 1."

	Ambassador Herman Ellis, in a testimony in front of the
committee on Foreign Affirs of the House of Represntatives of the
United States Congress on June 24th, 1985, said, "The Muslim community
of the globe today is in the neighbourhood of one billion.  That is an
impressive figure.  But what to me is equally impressive is that Islam
today is the fastest growing monotheistic religion.  This is something
we have to take into account.  Something is right about Islam.  It is
attracting a good many people."

	Yes, something is right about Islam and that's why it has
attracted so many people throughout its 1400 years of history.

[du'á in Arabic]