To not want to be a Muslim

[Lostagain]

Ok so I am a Muslim, have 2 dd and married dh is a convert to Islam....
Anyway from a young age I have had a strong pull towards Christianity or aspects of it. I don't believe Jesus is the son of god, but do believe he will return again etc.
Is it a cultural thing? I was born and brought up in the uk, went to a cofe school for a few years then we went to a inner city which was full of Asians- I am Asian but it was horrible, I hated it. Despite this I still sang on the school choir, certain people were horrified at the time, but my mum supported me. In my teens i went a bit religion mad and started wearing a headscarf etc- didn't last long,
i love Christmas and Easter, I sing hymms when I'm washing up i've been to a few church's in my time, funerals weddings etc and to be honest it's so peaceful there.
I have been to mosques it was ok,actually I couldn't wait to get out of there....Maybe it's a language barrier
I haven't spoken to anyone about this as it is such a big thing -changed my name on mn but sometimes I just don't want to be a Muslim. I want to bring up my children with faith and I struggle to explain the Muslim faith.

I'm sure there is the odd sentence in the above which makes sense :)

Can I just say, TheRhubarb that your post has resulted in my completely agreeing with thunderbird!

You criticise of others being rude, yet do just that.

I am against organised religion of any sort. I don't understand why people have to be labelled as 'Christians' or 'Muslims'. I doesn't mean that I hold no beliefs though-just that I don't wish to categorise myself into a specific group. My 'beef' with thunderbird was that he/she seemed to be accusing others of 'pressuring' the OP to stay muslim whilst stealthily encouraging her to seek out Christianity. Maybe that's not what he/she intended but that's what I felt. I didn't feel there was any need for you to come along and exacerbate the situation.

FWIW, really agree with ReallyTired about the use of your language nailak. You make interesting points but you lose me halfway, and can't be arsed takes too long to google.

(You make great points too ReallyTired)

Well, I for one would like to thank nailak for always making sensible contributions to this type of thread, and remaining calm, measured and helpful.

I don't think it's unreasonable to attempt to understand some of the key concepts of Islam; if a cynical old atheist like me can take the time to understand the major tenets of the religions she's disbelieving in, surely those of a religious bent could cope?

I can't, however, share Rhubarb's surprise that a thread comparing the relative merits of two religions could get a bit heated.

Well if my posts have brought you two together then that's brilliant!
I don't think I have been rude at all, I have pointed out that certain posts were not made with the purpose of helping the OP but to simply rile other posters or to glorify one particular religion. That's a fair point to make I feel, without being rude.

If this was a simple discussion of religion then you would expect a debate. But this was a thread asking for help, she didn't want a debate, she wanted advice and support. I felt that she wasn't getting that from some posters who only wanted to post to achieve their own gains.

I hope she is able to draw support nevertheless from this thread and finds peace.

ok, i will take it onboard
although my posts aimed at cote presume islamic knowledge and the Arabic words define concepts to her better then the English, tbh if someone else had asked the same question as cote i wouldnt have used the word fitrah, but like she said her islamic education wasnt in English!!

kal the point is all suffering is rewarded.

and seriously, people dont know what a fatwa is? I thought after that salman rushdie business it was common knowledge. It means judgement, like the end of a court case, or ruling.

and fitrah means nature.

and dawah means to invite.

TheRhubarb Dont assume to know what my faith is, presumptuous much?

KalSkirata we all know what you think as you have repeated it enough

TheRhubarb read the posts from the very beginning not the last three pages, then you will see the op was adequately advised by many posters.

who made you thread police Thunderbird?

what are we arguing about? I want to join in

no idea but you have to ask certain posters permission

Reallytired offers round some halal/kosher pop corn...

can we have some kosher vino too? I hear its relaxing

cote if your still out there can you actually explain to me what harun yahyah is doing on that you tube video, is it a game show or something?

Thunder, I have no interest in supplying you with an argument.

OP, the thread has wandered way off course but I do hope you are able to find a resolution in your heart. Faith is a gift and no amount of debating over which religion is best will help to feed that faith. Remember that no religion is infallible and there will be people and churches that you either really dislike or feel comfortable with. Where there is spirituality there is God and I don't think He makes any distinction as to which church to show his presence in. He is there in faith.

Thanks theruhbarb. Yes this thread has gone off on a tangent........Please do not fight, I just wanted some support, which many people have given.

Thanks to everyone who has given me much food for thought.

Xx

Erm another ?

If I wanted to just sit in a church and reflect would I be able to?

Been to weddings etc where I have sat in a church, and found them to be rather peaceful - I know it sounds strange.

Yes. Most Christian churches, depending on where you live, are open during daylight hours for people to enter and just pray quietly.

The larger cathedrals also have quiet prayer chapels for silent contemplation.

I don't know about other religious buildings, they seem to have set opening times?

Thanks

There are no mosques around here and tbh they fill me with dread.

I've also asked mnhq to move this thread to the religion one.

X

a lot of churches are open (not round here mind, cos everything would get nicked) and you can just go in and sit.

"If I wanted to just sit in a church and reflect would I be able to? "

Yes, would be welcome.

In the past churches used to be open all the time and anyone was welcome to enter them for silent prayer. Sadly after a lot of thefts and vandelism churches not left open all the time. Most churches are do have a period where they are left open and the vicer just sits in his office minding his own business. He/she would not disturb you if you wanted to pray. In our area churches are typically open on a saturday morning for silent prayer.

Nowadays most churches have email and you can ask when the church will be open for silent prayer. Looking at a church website can give you an idea of what it might be like.

I suggest you try the church of england as they are more laid back than any other sect of christianity. I think with a traditional church of england there is less risk of anyone actively trying to convert you. However there is huge range of styles of worship within the church of England. Prehaps its worth asking people in your area about to get a good idea of which churches to pick/ avoid.

Hi there,

At the request of the OP we've now moved this thread to philosophy/religion/spirituality as we think it's a better fit.

Thanks.

To be fair, most catholic churches are also open and you won't get anyone bothering you. They are used to people popping in to say a prayer and unless you live somewhere rough, there shouldn't be a problem with the church being open. City centre churches and Cathedrals are usually open all day and are used to casual visitors.

Hi lostagain

I havent read the whole thread and dont know the full back drop of everything.
I am muslim, went to a catholic school, had no asian friends, then was surrounded by asians at university and felt awkward.

I used to sing hymns, have visited churches, attended mass.

Background is fairly liberal, nobody bothered about scarves etc.

If you want to PM me, i might be able to answer some questions, both as someone raised around catholic schooling without ANY asian friends and also the questions on islam as a religion.

I wont be judgy, and i can understand why you get bored praying if you dont understand it and why you would run a mile from a mosque!

I can try and answer some of your questions on here if you wish or by PM.

Let me know....

Defuse- thanks

Nice to know someone else brought up in similar situation,

Did u ever feel a pull towards Christianity, when growing up?

I only have 2 Asian friends now as an adult both non Muslim, which is lovely. at school I couldn't cope with the bitchiness of the kids, maybe I'm over sensitive, I do remember someone swearing at me once and going home and asking my. Mum what it meant!

I didn't have any Muslim friends at university, None on the course I took. Even where I work, I am the only Muslim surrounded by 20 christians, who openly pray at meetings etc and weird as it sounds its comforting, to be in that situation.

Your views please, I sound a right nutter!