What to do if you want to become

Question :

I am very interested in learning more about and embracing the religion of Al-Islam. My problem is that I live in an area that has no Muslim community at all. No places of worship, no study groups, nothing. What is the best way for me to get started learning what I should know?

Answer :

Al hamdulilah

As soon as you have come to know, dear noble inquirer, that Islam is the true religion of righteousness and the straight path, you should hasten to embrace it and begin practicing the Islamically-prescribed obligations, such as the prayer, etc. Your earning to learn about Islam is a wonderful thing for which you should be commended.

Your unfortunate complaint regarding the absence of a helpful surrounding and a righteous environment is certainly a valid one and to a degree a problem; however, this obstacle no doubt can be overcome by the will of Allaah. For example there are several pages on the Internet that you can use to gain knowledge and benefit. You can also correspond to the various Islamic organizations and publishing houses to get valuable and informative books about Islam. There may be an Islamic center in your town or in a nearby town that you can go to, even if only once a month, to get to know your fellow Muslim sisters and to get advice from them and work with each other in enjoining righteousness and good deeds. Perhaps you can use the internet as an avenue to find out the addresses of Islamic centers in any particular city or state.

If it is possible for you to move to a city where there is a Muslim community or an Islamic center which adheres to true, mainstream Islam (followers of the Sunnah and the united Islamic community), this would be very good. If, in the worst case, may Allaah forbid, lets suppose you don't find even a single Muslim about you, this would not ever prevent you from holding fast to the religion of Islam. In Islam you have an ever-persistent relationship with your Lord; you worship Him and talk to Him and ask Him
guidance, support, and aid in adhering to His religion; you feel His company and security by your prayers to Him your seeking refuge in Him--to an extent that will compensate you more than the absence of anybody else, and will allay your loneliness and the inability to meet fellow sisters in faith and religion. Consider the situation of the followers of our beloved Prophet (peace be upon him) who embraced Islam at its inception. They remained alone and estranged among their tribes and people, each one worshipping Allaah from his place until the Prophet migrated to al-Madinah, at which time they migrated with him and supported him in establishing the Islamic state.

We ask Allaah for your guidance and for you to reply quickly to the call of Allaah and his Prophet (peace be upon him), and we wish you happiness in this life and the hereafter.

Islam Q&A
Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid (www.islam-qa.com)


What to do if you want to become Muslim but no Muslims in your town.
Question : I am very interested in learning more about and embracing the religion of Al-Islam. My problem is that I live in an area that has no Muslim community at all. No places of worship, no study groups, nothing. What is the best way for me to get started learning what I should know? Answer : Al hamdulilah As soon as you have come to know, dear noble inquirer, that Islam is the true religion of righteousness and the straight path, you should hasten to embrace it and begin practicing the Islamically-prescribed obligations, such as the prayer, etc. Your earning to learn about Islam is a wonderful thing for which you should be commended. Your unfortunate complaint regarding the absence of a helpful surrounding and a righteous environment is certainly a valid one and to a degree a problem; however, this obstacle no doubt can be overcome by the will of Allaah. For example there are several pages on the Internet that you can use to gain knowledge and benefit. You can also correspond to the various Islamic organizations and publishing houses to get valuable and informative books about Islam. There may be an Islamic center in your town or in a nearby town that you can go to, even if only once a month, to get to know your fellow Muslim sisters and to get advice from them and work with each other in enjoining righteousness and good deeds. Perhaps you can use the internet as an avenue to find out the addresses of Islamic centers in any particular city or state. If it is possible for you to move to a city where there is a Muslim community or an Islamic center which adheres to true, mainstream Islam (followers of the Sunnah and the united Islamic community), this would be very good. If, in the worst case, may Allaah forbid, lets suppose you don't find even a single Muslim about you, this would not ever prevent you from holding fast to the religion of Islam. In Islam you have an ever-persistent relationship with your Lord; you worship Him and talk to Him and ask Him guidance, support, and aid in adhering to His religion; you feel His company and security by your prayers to Him your seeking refuge in Him--to an extent that will compensate you more than the absence of anybody else, and will allay your loneliness and the inability to meet fellow sisters in faith and religion. Consider the situation of the followers of our beloved Prophet (peace be upon him) who embraced Islam at its inception. They remained alone and estranged among their tribes and people, each one worshipping Allaah from his place until the Prophet migrated to al-Madinah, at which time they migrated with him and supported him in establishing the Islamic state. We ask Allaah for your guidance and for you to reply quickly to the call of Allaah and his Prophet (peace be upon him), and we wish you happiness in this life and the hereafter. Islam Q&A Sheikh Muhammed Salih Al-Munajjid (www.islam-qa.com)