Why Islam is my choice — Page 20
20 much emphasis upon the divinity of Jesus Christ. So, when I became a Muslim, it was rather easy for me to accept the true teachings about Jesus. My father, at first, somewhat objected to my decision, but when he met Chuadhry Ghul ā m Y ā s ī n, and saw the changes in me, he too recongnized the beauty of the message of Isl ā m. He told us that he was too old to change, but he would like to see me progress in Isl ā m. I certainly felt blessed for all the changes Isl ā m brought within me. After I became a Muslim, I spent much of my time with other A ḥ mad ī Muslims (in those days, most of the Muslims in the United States were A ḥ mad ī Muslims). I firmly believe that it was due to them that I remained steady in my faith. One brother in particular, Missionary Chaudhry Ghul ā m Y ā s ī n, always encouraged me to study. I took his advice and went back to school in 1951. During this time, the high schools were offering programs for war veterans who wanted to continue their education at the college level. These programs were geared to help them get into a college. I also took advantage of that. By the Grace of All ā h, I did extremely well. Many of my teachers were impressed by my performance and helped me get admission into a college. I finally had a choice of going to either Harvard or Brandeis. I chose Brandeis because they had an Arabic Studies program. I studied there for four years and later went to McGill University in Canada. All of a sudden, I was blessed with more than I had ever imagined. After McGill, I got a job at the Harvard library. One year later, an offer came along to work in Africa. I had always wanted to go and help the people of Africa, so I immediately took the job and went to Nigeria. It was supposed to be a temporary posting for one year, but I ended up serving there for twenty seven years. It was during my stay in Nigeria that I visited many of the Muslim cultures like Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Saudi Arabia,