Who Needs Converts?1

We read your editorial from the Friday Bulletin (January 19, 2001; Year 3) written by Prof. M. Elmasry in which he says: “While occasional converts may result from apologetics-based public debates, one must ask: ‘Is it worth it?’” Please allow us to examine a few issues, point by point.

At the beginning of his editorial he states that, for all intents and purposes, it does not make any sense to deal with issues like “Is Jesus the Son of God?” or “Is the Qur'an the True Word of God?” Evidently, it is not a coincidence that these are exactly the topics dealt by Brother Ahmed Deedat - Islamic Propagation Centre International - in Durban (South Africa) and which have been topics of video debates and publications.

It is absurd to deny the value of a debate/discussion without taking into careful consideration the social context in which it takes place. Take, for example, the case of people living in impoverished nations like Rwanda, Bangladesh or Haiti. It would be absurd to discuss whether genetically altered soya beans are good or bad when people in those countries are starving to death and wish to feed themselves any way possible. However, it is not absurd to deal with such an issue in “developed” countries.

Ahmed Deedat’s approach to da’wah was the result of his experiences dealing with Protestant missionaries. He came to a profound understanding of the methods which they used to change the thinking of predominantly Muslim people and to lead them away from Islam. What Ahmed Deedat did was “to utilize the means of the enemy in order to combat the enemy.” As a result, he has educated Muslims, helped to stem the tide of Muslim conversions to Christianity, kept Muslims loyal to Islam, and brought many non-Muslims into the faith. Everyone should recognize that he did the right thing and that his approach has been very effective. Ahmed Deedat's public was and is a Muslim public.

On the other hand, it might be considered absurd to take such an approach when dealing with people with predominantly Christian roots and beliefs. This is an issue that deserves careful consideration and which should be discussed in depth.

In his editorial Prof. Elmasry asks whether “occasional converts” are worth it. It is important to clarify what is meant by “converts” and by “occasional converts” since the sentence can be interpreted as an expression of contempt towards we who are Muslim converts/reverts. Is the author saying that converts/reverts are not worth the effort and that Muslims should not bother with such approaches? The fact of the matter is that the vast majority of English-speaking Muslim converts have been exposed, either before embracing Islam, or soon on after their conversions, to the videos and publications of Ahmed Deedat. They work. And even if only a few people took their shahadah as a result of watching them (which is far from the case), is it not quality as opposed to quantity that counts?

• 1. This letter to the editor, which was co-written by Hector Manzolillo, was published in the CIC Friday Bulletin (Friday March 9, 2001; Year 4; Volume 4; Issue 13) and is available online at (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/muslim/message/769).