Daughters of Another Path by Carol L. Anway

I knew I had found the TRUTH! I had been searching for God since the early '80s. When the professor read passages from the Qur'an to illustrate how powerful a 'tool' it was in spreading Islam throughout the world, my heart sang. I began a course in Middle Eastern History, which immersed me further into the study of Islam. I didn't even study for my final exams which were happening at the same time! I had strange and vivid dreams about religious topics, and when I would get up all I wanted to do was continue reading the Qur'an. I went through a very odd experience whereby for the whole week it took me to read the Qur'an I couldn't sleep and seemed to toss and turn all night in a feverish sweat. The reading of the Qur'an and of hadith of the Prophet is what captured me. I was nominally Christian, raised in a Catholic environment, but was not practicing the religion and really only bothered to label myself a Christian in order not to appear too rebellious in front of my extended family (my family was also really only Christian in name, not 'reality'). I held the stereotypical view of Muslim women as being oppressed and in a bad position relative to their Christian counterparts. My conversion began as the result of a challenge by a Muslim to read the Qur'an in order for us to have a debate on the position of women in Islam. For some women the Qur'an was an important part of their conversion experience. Many of the women have expressed their growing respect and love for the Qur'an, which is considered the final and literal word of God. Excerpts from 'Daughters of Another Path: Experiences of American Women Choosing Islam' by Anway Carol L.:

Daughters of Another Path by Carol L. Anway