Page 175 - Neglected Arabia Vol I (1)

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NEGLECTED ARABIA 5

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Missionary News and Letters
Published Quarterly
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FOR PRIVATE CIRCULATION AMONG THE FRIENDS OF I
. THE ARABIAN MISSION «
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The Life of a Convert
Rev. Edwin E. Calverley i
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T our sympathy and something more. The Arab or Persian who !
HE life that a convert from Islam is compelled to live claims
becomes a Christian needs more than our sympathy because he
would be put to death if the Mohammedan law were enforced. ,; . i
The Khalifah Ali burnt alive some early apostates from Islam. I bn
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Abbas, who was the cousin of the Prophet Muhammad and an early t
governor of Basrah, said that the Khalifah had not acted rightly, for I
the Prophet had said: “Punish not with Cod's punishment, (i.e., lire), ii'
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but whosoever changes his religion,
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kill him with the sword." (Hughes: !l
Diet, of Islam.)
To this day, even where the
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Moslem law is not allowed to
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operate, this desire to kill a con­ * L
vert remains and it must be ;
guarded against. ■ 1
“I shall certainly shoot my
brother with this revolver if I ever
see him going to the Christians'
Sunday afternoon service !" So de­
clared recently the brother of one j
of the converts baptized in Basrah
in 1920 by the Rev. Dr. T. 11. :n
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Mackenzie, the Chairman of the E :
Board’s Executive Committee.
“Oh. please stay away from the • • i
church service, so that your brother u ; :
will not carry out his threat.” the
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convert's mother pleaded with him. :i:
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“You say your, new religion is a
religion of love," she continued. •
A Moslem 1‘keacher and Judge ok the
Suia Sect “You will not show love if you give '
your brother a chance to kill you." •ij.
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For her sake he staid away some Sundays until his brother went
to India. . •
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