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Experience of a Canadian Woman
By Sumayya (Evelyn)
Tonnellier
Many may ask why a
young, Canadian-born, Caucasian woman would embrace a religion that not only
supposedly oppresses women, but takes all her freedom and independence and
treats her as a second class citizen.
I reject such accusations and pose to them the following question. "Why is it
that so many women who have been born and brought up in the so-called
'civilized' societies of Canada, USA, and Europe are willing to reject their
liberty, and independence, to embrace a religion that supposedly oppresses them
and is widely assumed to be prejudicial to them?"
As a Canadian revert to Islam, I can only present my personal experience and
reasons for rejecting the freedom, that women claim to have in this society, in
favour of the only religion that truly liberates women by giving us a status and
position which is completely unique when compared to non-Muslim counterparts.
As a child growing up in a non-religious home, I often asked my parents if there
was a God, who is He, and where did He come from? Their response was always,
believe in what you want to believe. This confused me, because many of my
friends had religions, and I never understood why I didn't.
I remember when I was six or seven years old, I attended Sunday School, at a
Church with a friend a couple of times. I found it very boring. I didn't feel
comfortable around the other children, and felt pressured by the instructor and
other children because I didn't know anything about Jesus Christ (PBUH). Feeling
this way I stopped going to the Sunday school, and continued growing up without
a religion, with no knowledge of God, which made me feel very lonely.
It wasn't until I was in high school when I learned about religion in my social
studies class, and remember vividly how my teacher told us women in Islam have
no rights, women are denied education, must be circumcised, and how women must
obey men, otherwise, the men can beat them.
This made me think
No matter what this teacher said, something in my mind kept telling me this
couldn't be true. Ironically, around the same time I was learning this, I met a
Muslim, named Khaled (who is now my husband) at the place where I worked and
asked him about what my teacher said. He was shocked to hear the school boards
were teaching this about Islam and told me they were all untrue. When discussing
this with my teacher in front of my fellow students, the teacher told me that my
source is wrong, and he has the information in his books, otherwise he wouldn't
be teaching us this stuff.
My teacher pretty much made me look stupid; however some of my friends believed
me. I continued talking to Khaled at work about Muslim women and was very
curious about the role of Muslim women. I have to admit that I never agreed all
the time with what Khaled said, but I was also a non-believer at that time, and
never understood fully what Islam was. I was (and still I am) always fascinated
with how the Muslim women would cover themselves, they always seemed to have the
look of peace on their faces. I would never have guessed that I would one day be
one of those ladies who is fully covered.
Two years later, Khaled and I were married and had our first child, Al-Hamdulillah.
It wasn't until one year after my second child was born, Al-Hamdulillah, when I
began to feel depressed and adrift, feeling a large spirituality void. I felt
there was a big chunk of my life still missing. This was when I began to read
about various religions, and it wasn't until I bought a translation of the Holy
Quran when I finally understood the true meaning of life, and our Allah (God),
that there is no God but He (La ilaha illallah)[1]. The Quran answered all the
questions I was looking for, and some that I never even thought of.
One week before the holy month of Ramadhan, I taught myself to pray, memorized
two suras (Quranic Chapters), and said my Shahada[2] (Subhan Allah, Al-Hamdulillah-
Glory be to God, all thanks and praise be to God). I no longer felt adrift and I
believed in God. It was like having the feeling and guidance from Allah Ta'ala.
Wearing the scarf for the first time made me feel as though I had more peace, I
was someone, not only a someone, but a Muslim. I was (and am) protecting myself
from all evil. I felt a lot more close to Allah, because He has ordained women
in the Noble Quran to cover themselves.
I know in my heart that it bothered my husband a lot to have a wife who did not
only embrace Islam, but to see her practicing it when he wasn't. My husband and
I have no differences anymore in terms of raising our children (as Muslims), and
have never been so happy since he and I started practicing Islam.
My life has changed a lot since I embraced Islam (all for the best), and I'm
loving every minute of it! I recommend it to everyone out there, whether a
Muslim, Christian, Jew, Hindu, to pick up a copy of the Noble Quran and to read
not just some of it, but all of it. May God give everyone the strength and
courage that He has given me during the past year.
[1] None has the right to be worshipped but Allah.
[2] Testimony of faith
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