Muslim ‘apostates’ come out of hiding in Europe
22 Nov 2014 4:34 AM IST
In France, the film ‘The Apostle’ by filmmaker Cheyenne Carron has meanwhile lifted the veil on ‘apostasy’ by telling the story of a young Muslim who converted to Catholicism and how he had trouble getting family and friends to accept his choice. ‘It is time for us to stop hiding,’ said Pastor Said Oujibou, 46, who left radical Islam for evangelical protestantism and who is among the few converts to have publicized his decision in France.
He said he is ‘tolerated’ by his former co-religionists, even if he admits to having sparked ‘sarcasm and annoyance’ from them. But he warned against the ‘double talk’ that certain branches of Islam in France close to the Muslim Brotherhood and Salafists use toward apostate Muslims.
‘Apostasy is a taboo in Muslim culture and if the text of the Quran does not provide for any punishment, prophetic tradition calls for killing apostates,’ said Radouane Attiya, a former preacher trained in Saudi Arabia who is now a specialist on Islam at Liege University in Belgium.
Specialists said that more people become Muslim in Europe than leave the faith but Muslims converting to Christianity, especially evangelical protestantism, are on the rise, according to Oujibou.
Evangelicals seek to proselytise in working class and immigrant neighbourhoods where there are many Muslims.‘In Europe, as in Arab countries, there is a rampant atheism gaining ground. But what is new is the search for visibility,’ Attiya said.
He said he is ‘tolerated’ by his former co-religionists, even if he admits to having sparked ‘sarcasm and annoyance’ from them. But he warned against the ‘double talk’ that certain branches of Islam in France close to the Muslim Brotherhood and Salafists use toward apostate Muslims.
‘Apostasy is a taboo in Muslim culture and if the text of the Quran does not provide for any punishment, prophetic tradition calls for killing apostates,’ said Radouane Attiya, a former preacher trained in Saudi Arabia who is now a specialist on Islam at Liege University in Belgium.
Specialists said that more people become Muslim in Europe than leave the faith but Muslims converting to Christianity, especially evangelical protestantism, are on the rise, according to Oujibou.
Evangelicals seek to proselytise in working class and immigrant neighbourhoods where there are many Muslims.‘In Europe, as in Arab countries, there is a rampant atheism gaining ground. But what is new is the search for visibility,’ Attiya said.
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