At university, Sarah Ager was known for her Christian faith. Her parents are Salvation Army ministers. She grew up going to church and being in the church choir. Belief in God and being a Christian were a fundamental part of her identity, until she converted to Islam when she was studying English in Leicester. She wasnt peeved with the Church, didnt know much about Islam, and she didnt convert in order to marry a Muslim. So what led her on this journey? She decided to look into Islam when she met some Turkish Muslims at university. The main reason I started studying [Islam] was because I was embarrassed, she says. I knew nothing about Turkey or Islam, I didnt know what they believed; I was intimidated. I thought I have to at least Google this religion. But Sarah didnt stop at a quick Google search, she decided to take a course on Muslim women in literature as part of her degree. There were two Muslim women wearing Hijabs on the course and I remember being intimidated and sitting at the other end of the room. I thought they must be really Muslim. But when they were speaking during the class, they had such a beautiful way of expressing their faith. I became more interested in finding out how they perceived God. Often were taught that youre bad so God doesnt love you, my understanding is that God is very inclusive. In the Quran there are often passages that say that you shouldnt judge something because you dont know if there is a part of that thing that God really loves. Not everyone who converts from one religion to another receives the sympathetic reaction that Sarah has. Her family were supportive, shes stayed in contact with her Christian friends, and her parents try to find ways to relate their faith with hers. Sarah still appreciates the things that her upbringing gave her – particularly knowing the stories of Jesus. She finds some Muslims are reticent to read about Jesus because hes been taken by Christians as it were. Now 26 and working as a teacher in Bologna, Italy, Sarah runs the Interfaith Ramadan Project, a blog designed to bring people of different beliefs together during the Muslim month of fasting to talk about what their faith means to them. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it is during Ramadan, when most Muslims fast from food and drink during daylight hours, that she appreciates the practical aspects of her faith – her dress, prayer routine and the discipline of fasting. When I put on a hijab, Im reminded of how I want to present myself in the world, she says. Spiritual disciplines such as prayer and fasting can be lived out in both Christianity and Islam. Now practising them as a Muslim, Sarah says she wished she had done them before. When I was a Christian, I would pray spontaneously, but sometimes that means you only pray when things are bad, and you dont pray when things are good. The fact that I pray five times a day now means I have to stop what Im doing, even if Im grumpy. We pray in a very physical way, you cant just pray in your head, you have to engage physically – bowing and leaning. Like the idea of wearing a hijab, she initially thought fasting was crazy. The first time I started fasting, I was just trying it out, I wasnt a Muslim yet. I was really surprised by how not eating and not drinking affects your mental approach and your sense of spirituality, she says. When youre fasting, the only thing that stops you from picking up a glass of water is your faith. I walked past a pizza place and never been more tempted – but then if you lock yourself away youre not testing your faith. I really wish Id done it as a Christian, she adds. Sarah started the Interfaith Ramadan blog last year, in the hope of bringing together like-minded people from different faiths. Motivated by her appreciation for Christianity and an interest in learning about other religions, she is committed to interfaith dialogue, believing that people of faith encourage one another. She was particularly struck by a recent comment from a Catholic nun on one of the blog posts. She said she prays five times a day too, and that the whole point is that you are interrupting your daily life, and reminding yourself that God is more important than your life. It really encouraged me.
Posted on: Fri, 12 Dec 2014 21:11:21 +0000
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