when I went to the Hebrew school
so you did those DNA tests yeah and what
did that show uh really it's 100 real
almost 100
this is our guy Society I like to think
the best example of this is Hanukkah the
the the holiday yes it's not a religious
holiday when they learn about Islam
Jesus in Islam do you think they'd
accept him then
I mean
this is
[Music]
brothers and sisters we're here in
Florida alhamdulillah and what's behind
me future Dean Center Masjid magadau
Center we're outside of it we got to get
in it that's where we need your support
alhamdulillah but we're doing one of our
first programs with our brother who's
coming on yakub father mother did the
DNA test 100 percent
Jewish 100 Jew and he's here to tell us
how he came to this beautiful way of
life started searching and he found
purpose and he found it in his Deen this
way of life so stay tuned for this
amazing credible Journey with his
amazing brother here on the D show in
front of the future Dean Center
my brothers and sisters I'm here today
to appeal to you to support the dean
Center at Dallas Center first of its
kind in the United States perhaps in the
globe to support dawa to non-muslims who
are interested in Islam my dear brother
Eddie from the dean show is championing
this cause the building is secured
there's a contract on it it's 35 000
square feet it has plenty of room to run
excellent programs and we just need your
help and support no matter how little in
making this Center become a reality and
you will have a reward from Allah for it
until the day of judgment
[Music]
how are you doing alhamdulillah I'm
really well how are you it's really nice
to meet you here in Florida it's very
nice for you to be here in my home my
home state my home area Tampa Bay
inshallah soon we could be filming
inside the studio now we're outside of
the dean Center so we're trying to get
inside but inshallah we can they'll be
happening sometime soon but tell us
you have a very interesting story your
father and mother
are both Jewish
and what particular kind of Jewish
um
the domination how do you call it or
name was it that you were Pratt what was
it sacked uh what do you what's the name
that you what kind of Jew were you so um
I guess it's kind of interesting so I
didn't really fall into one category I
guess in America you can separate they
have Hasidic Jews yeah I like to say
that there's an there's kind of an order
as far as in America what you see in
religiosity so in the bottom you have
reformed Judaism the reform movement
they're they're basically secular for
the most part but following um many
Traditions but not necessarily keeping
kosher or things like that conservative
working their way up kind of halfway
between uh Orthodox and and reform you
know maybe they'll have a kosher
household but still not really you know
extremely religious they might work they
may not but there's the Orthodox and
Ultra Orthodox and so subhanallah I kind
of grew up kind of were between a reform
and conservative you know still
following a lot of the Traditions the
holidays and
um you know I went to you know Hebrew
school all the way up until I had my bar
mitzvah wow she had Bar Mitzvah he went
to Hebrew school did you speak Hebrew
not not conversationally because that's
more you can understand I could
understand it especially if I'm reading
the Torah and yeah and we would uh we
would memorize you know dozens of
prayers so I can still you know remember
uh Friday night services Saturday
morning Services when uh you know for
the for the Sabbath for Shabbat that's
that's what they would uh and
everything's in Hebrew and
um of course I actually did go to a
Hebrew school and and spends a lot of
time with the hasidim the ultra-orthodox
sex
um uh is that with the curls yeah what's
the significance behind the curls um
it's so there's a
um there's a there's a there's a verse
in the Torah and it mentions about
having
the Commandment of having your uh your
your side locks yeah and so it's just
it's just a just as we you know you'll
see um Muslims who uh you know they they
would want to grow a beard you know well
you don't necessarily as a Jew you don't
necessarily need to you'll see a lot of
you know conservative you know even
Orthodox not necessarily growing them
all the way down yeah
um just so as I see a Muslim growing a
beard out to here or a woman wearing a
full Gilbert with fully covered fully
covered up you know so there's some you
said reference to it where in the in the
Torah there is yeah okay and then tell
me when let's start off with the first
reformed Jew right so the reformed Jews
are like like those you said that are
more liberal Progressive pretty much
don't pray don't absorb Sabbath
um and all the other was it like 600
plus Commandments 613 613 Commandments
those are like kind of out the window
for them
so the pick and choose like a buffet I
like to think it's it's because you have
some Muslims to do the same thing
absolutely yeah I like to think of it as
the way that a lot of Americans use
because a lot of most of American Jews
fall into the reform or conservative
camps I think the majority who I've met
um by number at least they usually
follow that camp and so I like to think
of it as a
um they look at Judaism not as not as a
Creed to establish themselves in and
believe like what what really is
happening why why am I here answering
the big questions and instead it's more
what are the Traditions that I can
follow and be part of a community and
and feel closer to God without having
um any I would say any any specific
consequences to think of you know any
any specific you know the idea of what
when they hear uh in fact you know
people close to me family members when
they heard what do you mean by fearing
God I I don't why should I fear the one
who who made me when you know they have
this idea of of love and the idea of of
openness and and connection but
um that always that negative all the the
things that constrain you you know while
the ultra-orthodox they'll have the
ideas of they even have the idea of
jahannam and it's it's mentioned in
other places and of the Hellfire of the
Hellfire and they call it
and that's why you see in the Quran and
they say that we will only be there just
for a few days
and they believe they'll only be there
are some who are who are ultra-orthodox
uh some some groups amongst those you
know it's so it's kind of is it the same
like you know say Muslims who who die
and let's say they didn't uh they did
some sins or whatnot they might Allah
knows best how long but they might they
have a good chance of entering the
Hellfire for a little bit of time is
that kind of to get purified and then
the Allah is this kind of the same thing
we're seeing from what I've read it's
very almost identical to that
subhanallah it really is interesting I
just think the maybe when it comes to
the on the scholars and how they how
they depict the amount of time they
spend in there maybe they've Quantified
it oh it's gonna be a week or it's going
to be such and such amount of time but
yeah very interesting very similar yeah
very interesting uh what about this
chicken thing
you know about the chicken thing I do
know about the chicken thing what's that
about so this is this is a uh thing that
they do if I'm not wrong
um so we actually just had the high holy
days yeah uh just not we but you know
the we saw that many of the Jewish yes
people were observing Rosh Hashanah Yom
Kippur and then they just finished
sukkotens there's something very
interesting that I found in sakota as
well
um so with Yom Kippur
they there's the night before called
konidre that's the that's the night that
starts it you know they have the same
thing where the day starts at night and
just as we do the the um the night once
the sun sets that starts the day so that
whole 24-hour cycle of them fasting
that's their fasting day they actually
believe that Yom Kippur is the day that
the the Deeds for the year are sent down
just as we believe is the
the Deeds for the year are sent to the
angels and passed down subhanallah they
believe the same thing but on that night
one of the things that they say you
should get up in the early hours of of
the night
and this ritual uh
started off being
um
it's been it's been depicted by many
scholars but it really didn't start
until way later so it's kind of like a
Bida I would like to I'd like to
consider it a bit Abida and look to me
it reminded me
absolutely yeah and it's a lot it
revolves around Superstition now right
and it's Superstition and then then you
can if you go deeper it probably has
some elements of uh of shirk in there
because right so you could see how Islam
Muslims are the only true monotheists
pure monotheism
because now if you look into a lot of
these practice you'll see that you're
giving some kind of authority power to
other than God Almighty Allah would you
agree I would agree and I think a lot of
it comes down to how they
take a tradition and add to it and
that's something that I found growing up
there would be a lot of these things
where I say what is the meaning of this
why why is why do we have to do this or
why is this in here and then a lot of
the times it'll be well oh this is just
because this uh you know they'll bring
in an idea from
Society I like to think the best example
of this is Hanukkah the the holiday yes
it's not a religious holiday it's a
historical holiday there's no reference
to in the Torah or anything nothing or
what we have of the Torah you know it's
not it's not in it's on any of the books
of uh of the Torah when we say we when
we say Quran and Sunnah right we say
these are the two God Almighty reveal
the Quran we have this in verbatim it's
there tamper-free tamper proof then you
have obviously just for those who are
not familiar with this then we have the
prophet Muhammad's way Sunnah authentic
you know there's a science of Hadith
everything is there that you can verify
that he said it these are our reference
points right so are these in the
reference points of what we will you
allegedly have of what would you say you
have remnants of the Torah
so they
in the tradition they actually have a
very similar tradition yeah so they have
the Torah yeah and they also have the
other books that um when we say torat
you know in Islam we usually include
also the stories of Suleiman
those would be in the books of Kings
after the five books of Moses they call
that the Torah the five books of Moses
first five books of of the Bible right
yeah and then afterwards you have the
book of the books of the Kings yeah and
then the books of the later prophets so
that's the torada they call it Tanakh
for short it's abbreviation that's like
the main book and then so those are
those are your core texts but then what
we as we say we have the Tough City we
have the exegesis of the Quran they have
the same thing uh that's that's in the
talmud yeah the first half or the first
part of the talmud which is the uh the
mishna that's like the collection of you
could say Hadith okay a collection of
narrations by by the the oral the oral
Traditions the oral um
okay so go back to where you were at say
yeah this um Hanukkah yeah just like
Christmas is not in the Bible there's no
sanction for it are you saying it's the
same thing like that I'd say it's
exactly the same yeah in fact the story
that is commonly told as and you were an
ortho USA you're an orthodox Jew I think
I ended up reform in the end oh yeah I
think I think I really declined as as
the the more the more I I started off
you know I grew up in a household that
was more reform more liberal okay right
so go back to what you were saying now
sure you finish that point um just that
you know when you when you look into
um they see that you have the the
yeah Scholars will say well this is what
we do this is what we interpret from
everything yes and it relax Jesus but
from those you really won't even find
anything discussing the story of and
because the story of the The Maccabees
this is what they they claim it about
this is this is just about one or two
centuries before
yes and so there's nothing of course in
the books really depicting this and the
story itself is also
um it's not authentic they apply one
story and connect it with another and so
they take the idea of this miracle that
happened which maybe it did happen with
a belief with a group of believers who
um who had uh only a little bit of oil
yeah um just so that way they could
light light up their area and be able to
pray and you know and pray to Allah
right
but this oil as a miracle from Allah
from what from what the story says is
that this
um this oil which should have only
lasted maybe half an hour or a night
ended up lasting eight nights
so that's what this miracle this they're
celebrating this miracle that happened
but this story isn't isn't authentic and
even rabbis will go back and say
it's just so there are just like
Christians who oppose Christmas those
cities of pagan holiday you have Ultra
Orthodox rabbis or Orthodox rabbis who
also they'll come out academically and
from an authentic uh authenticity Point
authenticity Point they'll say no this
is not in ours what we have of our
scriptures will they argue against this
sadly no sadly no no and it's it's
because when it comes to Traditions a
small minority even maybe a small
minority yeah but even amongst American
we would go in to a local
um mall and they'd rent out the ice
skating rink yeah and it would be a
Hanukkah celebrations to deny this no I
don't think so no I wouldn't because it
I think when it comes to blasphemy in
general and Judaism there's not this
idea of
um
going going wrong in the sense of oh if
you if you if you believe this and
you're not a Jew or if you believe it
there of course there are you know
essential if you don't believe in
um the the pure monotheism yeah if you
don't believe in tahade then of course
that would that would separate you but
when it comes to the Bida I think there
are a lot more lenient
but you your bloodline 100 Jew 100 I
even did a blood test I can't find
anything that doesn't look Jewish wow so
you did that those DNA tests yeah and
what did that show uh really it's a 100
real almost 100 Jewish nothing really
outlying that Eastern European Ashkenazi
um Origins and this is amazing because
now we see just like it reminds me of
the Jew during the time of prophet
Muhammad's time and he was looking at
all the signs and it was huge scenarios
one that comes to mind was the one who
confirmed he was a messenger
um
and he confirmed and he came up and he
testified there's nothing worthy worship
with the creator of the heavens and
earth God Almighty Allah Muhammad is a
messenger he confirmed and now this
person this is academic right he's a
scholar he was the best Rabbi he was the
best top Rabbi so he's not trying to
lose his position he's not trying to do
this for money for fame for any interest
but for the truth right so he confirmed
that Muhammad peace praying upon him and
the Jews were anticipating a messenger
to come
so now he confirms he's the messenger
and you know how the story goes and then
they testified he brought the people and
they said you know ask them about me and
then he said they're the best they're
the best you finish the story
that's true he is
you know gather them gather them and and
go to them and ask them about my
credibility my credibility and they kept
saying he is the most learned that his
father's learning his father is the most
learned
um he is the best of us the best of us
and then and then and they said if if
and if I were to tell you that he
accepted Islam what would you think and
they said oh I I seek refuge and Allah
from that is what they said wow
or may Allah protect or may Allah
protect him from that why wasn't it like
let's look at the evidence maybe he's on
to something
you know maybe he's got something here
he's the most intelligent of us right
and this is what the prophet I said I'm
right in front of them and then of
course he comes in the room and he and
he says the shahada you know he Bears
Witnesses and that Muhammad is his
messenger
right afterwards he is the worst of us
he is the is the son of the of the worst
of us and he is now everything flipped
and he kept talking about him until they
left the propaganda worse immediately
right in front of them
now you took that same shahada
rasulullah all they would have done at
that at that time or before that time if
they were living in Moses's time
Moses the messenger Jesus time
that's the same way of life right you
know pure monotheism worshiping God
Almighty the Creator alone not as
creation you did the same thing what led
you now from going from being a you said
waiver before that your bloodline 100
Jewish mother and father Orthodox Jew
wavering a little bit were you wavering
because you're seeing these
inconsistencies it's not making sense
and what made you come to a point where
you took your testimony of Faith to
shahada
so
again when I say like I I don't think I
could really consider myself Orthodox
um even growing up yeah while I went
well when I was in first grade until
third grade I went I went to the Hebrew
school
I never really followed the Sabbath as a
kid because I wasn't in my household my
parents were liberal they were they were
more secular it's that's how it was my
family in general I guess was
conservative I went to a conservative
sleep away camp for Jewish kids and
where they they shoved a lot of uh
interesting thoughts you know into my
into my mind at a young age but that's
what that's what happened I I grew up
getting all these conflicting ideas of
well these are these beautiful
traditions and these beautiful phrases
and when you read the the the prayers of
the Jews when you especially um there's
there's a beautiful poem that they were
saying at the end of a prayer service
called and I highly recommend you look
up the the the translation for it it's
beautiful and it's it's it's it's
Islamic it's Islamic you read it and you
say wow there is Islam in this poem
but do you know what the kids will do
they'll sing it to the Barney theme song
to The Backstreet Boys music they'll
take because it Rhymes in a nice prose
and they're gonna start getting up
clapping their hands as if it's some
sort of fun you know but this is there's
they're talking the words of tawheed
they're saying in essence I believe one
of the terms is
there is no power nor Dominion except
Allah except God and that's in there and
they're saying this and they're clapping
and this is fun
why aren't they taking this seriously
who's who's teaching them tarheed who's
teaching them the essence of the faith
so I had no faith in that sense I had no
truth faith so growing up I grew up you
know going to a typical you know
Elementary Middle High School public
school system through and through I was
a secular kid growing up in a secular
society
I got the opportunity very it came out
seemingly out of nowhere you know Allah
guides in ways that you you wouldn't
even imagine and so you know subhanallah
I I got the opportunity to study in
Germany as an exchange student in my it
took my senior year of high school I was
able to you know finish my studies and
then and then do this and you know so I
was able to kind of experience a new
culture and and that was another thing
you know everyone tells you oh Germans
they hate Jews so it's not you know in
in
Islamic societies oh Jews hate Muslims
or Muslims hate Jews you know when
you're Jewish you think Muslims hate
Jews and it's the same thing you think
the Jewish people thought that Germans
hate hated Jews and so when I said I was
going to Germany they're like oh you
know good luck going to the jew-hating
country and so you know I just wanted to
kind of break out of these Norms I
already started breaking out of these
Norms so you know alhamdulillah I
finished that year in Germany it was a
beautiful study abroad experience but
still very secular it was only once I
started to stay in Europe for my for my
college education I went to the I
decided to say in Amsterdam in the
Netherlands and if you know Amsterdam
it's not a city of religion it's a city
of uh it's a city of sin to be quite
honest
um it's it's around every corner
everything's available and everything's
legal everything prostitution drugs
everything they even uh you get
prostitution is attacked it's a taxable
um uh job for them they get taxes they
get bodyguards everything and so we you
know same thing with with uh you know
Weed and Alcohol everything's available
so I go to the land of sin to go to
study and what comes to that you know
everyone's telling me wow you know
you're going to live the best years of
your life you're 18 years old
everything's available to you and this
is this is going to be the Pinnacle of
your life
six months in and I and I'm thinking wow
if this is the Pinnacle of life I don't
want to be part of it I need to find the
true meaning of life
and so what do I do I'm you know I'm
kind of switching around looking online
what kind of religion suits me and I'll
tell you the first one was not Islam the
first one Islam was far out from that
because that was rules that was
something almost foreign to me but
ironically one day I'm walking through a
book market and I pick up the daote
ching
the Chinese philosopher and so you know
I'm sitting at home starting to flip
through this
and at that time I was already I think
my belief in Allah had already
dissipated in fact I was pretty much
agnostic from high school until until my
first year of college I was agnostic yes
I I had total I had totally broken away
and Judaism it was more of tradition
just Traditions yes
I'm flipping through the the this
version of the daote ching and I start
coming across phrases and I'm like I
swore I've heard this before this isn't
new
and I saw I've read it in the Bible and
of course I brought up around Christian
friends too and I've been to Christian
ceremonies and
read through their book as well I've
read through parts of the of the Bible
of the you know the canonical stories of
Isaac and whatever is true of it and and
so I I got the idea and I started
reading through this I said I swore I've
heard words like this spoken somewhere
else and in a tradition and I swore I've
heard this from Jesus I swore I've heard
this before and so I find word for word
I'm like this it sounds like something
Jesus would have said I swear and I go
online and I look up the words and I
type in Jesus uh sayings
subhanallah right in the Bible
I find almost word for word he's
speaking the same truths about about
life about the truth about Allah about
existence and I'm thinking how does this
Chinese philosopher on one side of the
world and a Christian
or not Christian
but
at this time thinking a man who was born
in a Jewish you know it could have been
a prophet could have been something else
I don't know at that time I wouldn't
have known
foreign
how are they coming to the same
conclusions and so from that point I
started believing in God again because
only if if you can find that the truth
can be found no matter what the anyone
if if somebody is truthful if somebody
is sincere
how can you come to the same conclusions
about the the reality of Life of our
existence
there has to be a god there has to be an
overarching
um all-knowing all wise God that is in
no way anthropomorphic which if you look
in the not just the Christian Traditions
but even even in the way that they that
the Jews describe God and the way that
they talk about God and the way that
they
even from the Torah you know parts of it
looks extrapolate parts of it in talk
about God in a very anthropomorphic way
which I didn't like
they they they made him too they made
wrestling with uh yakub was it yeah
resting resting on the seventh day of
the Sabbath or yeah God created the
heavens and the Earth and then he rested
on the seven giving those attributes
again resting yes resting when we know
he is neither weary nor does he need
rest yes
nor does he sleep it's from the Quran
as I'm starting to look into this I'm
I'm really now devoted in defining the
truth
and this this study of mine before I
even get to Islam and and trust me once
I get to Islam it's quick
but the whole study of of of believing
in God and trying to find the truth I
was at that time considered a
perennialist
you know as long as every religion I
guess if you if you you can extract some
truth from it I only I only accept at
that time because I didn't get to Islam
yet I only accept what I know is what
every other religion if you can pull
parts from it they all agree is the
truth
and subhanallah I start taking you know
I start reading the bhagavad-gita you
know Eastern Traditions you really start
doing your homework really starting to
read I'm reading um I did actually read
a few books on on Sufism that was at
that point so I did have some like
dabbling in in Islamic
um things but um books on and then and
then I eventually sat down and I read
the entire Bible non-stop front to back
you really went to work then how the
entire Bible the entire Bible the only
time the only thing that I stopped
though is after once I started reading
the Paulina pistols I stopped because I
realized he does not have the authority
to be there uh I mean I no no offense to
the Christians but I do not see an
authority as in he is not a prophet nor
is he a messenger
to be able to tell me how to interpret
the words of God yeah an example is God
Almighty say gets circumcised he's
saying circumcision to Heart Jesus said
also to get circumcised because he's
following the he didn't come to change
the law he was circumcised in seventh
day right right but you know it was born
he was circumcised but Paul is saying
circumcision to Heart
and that all comes down to
the Pauline
the foundational concept of Pauline
Christianity which is
salvation through faith alone and not by
not by Deeds yeah that's an easy
convenient way
to live your life and I I never accepted
that and I would have got that guy you
got that out of the way Christianity so
Christianity was out of the way and I
but I was still pulling all of these
truths from and coming from a Jewish
background the whole concept now of
Jesus being God you know God having a
son
the Jews not just digress for a second
but how do they understand this term son
at that time they literally understand
that because they'll be the ones who
would know the meanings a little bit
better than those than the Christians
though when when Jews say son of a man
or son of God
even at that time they would consider it
to be a
an honorific
um metaphorical metaphorical and even
there's a Hadith I can recall where um a
Christian man he converts to Islam but
who's running a golden cross and before
the Prairie or afterwards he
excuse me still overcoming the cold is
gone but remnants
um before going to pray
he um either before or after he tells
the men remove remove it for it is a
sign of idolatry and so he does he
removes it and they go to pray a leave
reciting for sort of yes
and
after the prayer because the the what he
was reciting from the verses were
speaking about how the rabbis and the
priests and
how they were how how they were taken as
God's aside beside Allah and so the the
this man the the sahaba at the time he
goes up and he says no we we never we
never worshiped them so what does that
mean what was that what was that
intending to be and he said did they not
make Halal what Allah made Haram and he
said yes and did he not make
um uh did you make Haram that which
Allah made he said yes and he said that
is what that means wow this is deep this
is deep we're almost out of time yeah
finish up what you were saying just
finishing the story yeah this is very
interesting go ahead
um so you know so you know this idea of
Halal and Haram yeah this was something
that by that point there's the idea of
the of the truth yes and at that point I
really thought okay Allah could only be
this he cannot be anthropomomorphic he
can only be you cannot have these limits
that people are placing on him in in in
in in another sense so subhanallah where
I where I lived in Amsterdam downstairs
uh from where I lived there was a a cafe
and this Cafe owner was Muslim and I was
already going to his uh his shop getting
coffee getting hot chocolate so on and
so forth and he knew I was reading the
Bible and I told him I started to read
the Quran he says great if you have any
questions come to me and boy today
I was not the type of person who left
alone I would go and I sit down with him
I said okay
so but like I I'm reading through parts
and I'm saying okay I just read this
um I will only accept it if this means
this this this this and this and he said
subhanallah what you said that's exactly
what we believe that's that's what a
Muslim believes and I said really he
said yeah and then what I'll do is I'll
go back home turn a few pages
the explanation for what I was looking
for was right there in the Quran and
that didn't happen once that didn't
happen twice that kept happening where I
was I was coming to the like I realized
I was being inspired or it was only
through inspiration that
I was not being misguided in a certain
way of understanding
that Allah is really leading me towards
a certain way of understanding
and that's that and it was a very
personal experience you can't you can't
say that about just
seeing and seeing a sign or giving
examples like okay if you read the Quran
and it has the proof of uh uh you know
it can have proofs of the way that the
um uh the fetus you know manifests in
the womb and it is a miracle but a
Miracles aren't necessarily the the only
way that somebody will get will get will
guide it yes and for me it was a person
a very personal experience of seeing
that
I was very I was very confident if it
cannot be that uh one good example just
about a couple weeks before I actually
took my shahada
I he invited me to stay
um in the cafe after he closed down the
shop and some of his Muslim friends came
over
we ended up getting on the discussion of
just the term
and they said yes yes it means
um uh their um
uh there is no God worthy of worship
except Allah I think they use that
terminology there is no God worthy of
worship
but I said
no I don't like that I don't like that
translation because that's saying that
there are other gods there is no other
God it should be it should be like there
is none worthy abortion nothing worthy
worship yes there are no other gods
except Allah so that's as if to say
here's Allah and then here are some
other gods but only Allah is worthy of
worship but these don't exist yeah so I
went so I was correcting their
translation
two weeks before I too much I had wow
subhanallah and then one day I'm you
know because at this point I already
knew Islam had the truth that I was
looking for and now I'm just trying to
be certain what what kind of you could
say what's what what what direction in
Islam you know
um did I want to follow and I'm reading
subhanallah like uh differences between
Scholars scholarly differences of
opinion and I remember another Muslim
walks in he's looking at what I'm
looking at on my screen
um and he says subhanallah this is what
you're researching why haven't you taken
your shahada yet and I said you're right
I don't know why it was just you know
the idea of what is this going to do to
my life but at that point I didn't care
anymore I took my shahada the next day
it was
the cafe owner we're best friends by
this point he drives me to the um to
pray Juma
the whole thing you know the whole was
in Arabic but
um you know afterwards he takes they
take me to the front I I take my shahada
again in front of everyone I will I
cannot forget the feeling it is not just
the feeling of taking your shahada and
feeling like you're you're weightless
that I think every single uh convert
will explain that feeling of feeling
weightless and and all your burdens are
gone
but the community
a Jewish Community when somebody says
they're converted to Judaism they'll be
oh congratulations nice good good for
you welcome welcome to the community and
it's even possible truly is it possible
you can but it takes a lot of effort I
do know a few actually yeah a few it's
not the default no it's not it's not a
like you go on the street and you invite
someone and they just like that's not
gonna happen in fact in a lot of
traditions they have to be rejected a
few times they have to say no you can't
do it right now no you can't do it by
the rabbis the rabbis have to reject
them I think it's three times maybe
wrong in different Traditions they
actually have to be rejected before
because you have to be you have to show
you have conviction in it yeah whereas
Islam you're welcome but then you're not
really even considered true like you are
hunt you know bloodline and that you're
kind of like second third how to
um that's a that's more of a discussion
of uh of where of what your ability is
like for instance I I I'll go back to
the the
um the the Jamal in a second
my lineage from what I from what I know
from my family the the birth of the
mother is that's the highest level right
coming from your mother's life it's how
you know you're you're Jewish for sure
by religion yeah
um but in but if it's based on your
father
of what your tribe was or what your uh
what your
um you could say your your business in
in the dealings of the of the
um at that time it would have been like
the the temple but in this case you know
in your own synagogue there are the the
Priestly class called the kohanim the
kohanes yeah and then there's the ones
below it the coins are like the
basically the ones uh the the children
and and the family of of Aaron of Haruna
and then um uh below it
um and uh that family was the family of
uh
so we're on route 60. we're not we're
not no no this is our guy hey
how are you so that's how we got to get
in the studio you see a live example
here we're filming right off of Route 60
right in front of the deed Center so the
kohanim uh the Priestly class they were
the ones dealing with the the goings of
the temple the ones who actually were
the priests leading the temple and in
time in the time of uh this is what they
believe in and it could have very well
been true
um and then the the Levites were those
in the tradition they were the ones who
did not worship the golden calf yeah the
one tribe that denied the golden calf
and that's why they were granted
um they were the ones who they couldn't
take any other job except to be in the
in the um uh service of the temple
that's what they had to do in that in
their in their time and you know uh in
the time of of
um
that's what they that's what they were
designated to do so I come from the line
of Levites according to my family
um so that's it that's more of a status
according to what you have to do yeah
but it's there's no hierarchy in a
social way at least not at least
nowadays but I don't think back then
there really was so
so now tell us finish off the jummah the
moment it happens what is it okay so
you're looking at this pure monotheism
yeah and you're about to make this
decision paint us the picture what's
going on so the the place I went to the
you know the the brother he was Moroccan
and the Masjid over there it was fully
Moroccan mostly um from The Reef area of
Morocco they all they don't I mean they
speak Arabic but they also speak uh you
know another dialect and
a lot of these brothers
all they see is a white brother who and
the brother also explained you know I
converted from Judaism
but what happens especially this is
right before covid this is November 2019
right before covid
when you see not just people getting up
to congratulate you but you actually see
a line formed to the back wrapping
around
after I switched I'm going to give you
that love now the support but but seeing
a line of people with tears in their
eyes can you imagine that subhanallah
I'm speechless I'm like oh why are these
people are that happy for me I know I I
know then based on the it's like a
um an affirmation you see the way that
the Muslim brothers and this is a room
packed full of brothers and they're all
lining up to hug me
to to greet me to to welcome me to make
Dua for me one after another and I was
in such a daze
and subhanallah uh that that entire day
I didn't even know uh how to respond how
to react and uh right after we right
after the hugging and everything was
done I went with the Iman
could only speak Arabic and we go to eat
at a local you know Moroccan restaurant
I learned that you know we're eating
with a big platter so I'm learning oh
you have to eat from your side you have
to eat learning this immediately you
know you have to eat with your right
hand but that's where that's when I
learned about the story of Abdullah even
said in wow that we just spoke about wow
so so then oh you took your shahada so
what would you say in essence it was a
bunch of things or just one one thing
was it the pure monotheism miracles in
the Quran the prophecies the literary
Miracle all these combined what was it
is there you know for some people it's
this it's that what was it for you that
did it it was it was the definitiveness
of the Quran it was not there was no
wavering when you read a philosopher's
book they say very well you could be
here you could be there
is exactly if you if you are truthful
you know if you if you are a Believer
you will be in Elgin
and for the ones who disbelieve you will
be in the Hellfire and it is very clear
of the descriptions how one can get
there how one is there the threats in a
in a beaut I don't I would say a
beautiful threat is a way that I felt I
felt a beautiful threat because it's
it's a realistic threat it's a wake-up
call yeah it's not like a threat saying
that that there's no threat from Allah
to me saying
um uh like in a sense of of uh you like
you you are to choose right yeah it is
not I'm going to make you choose no it's
you are the one to choose but know that
if you are um going to wrong yourself if
you're going to oppress yourself then
know that that will be your end your
oppression and yours and yourself regret
is gonna it's gonna cause your doom and
nothing I've never seen come across
anything like that not even in
Christianity because they believed Jesus
can be the pure salvation we are not
guaranteed al-jannah even even as a
Muslim just because we as in the terms
of that we'll never touch the Hellfire
we may touch the Hellfire and may Allah
protect us from that
we're out of time I just want to just
throw a couple things real short do you
think more Jews would come to Islam
because now if they truly truly knew the
concept of God in Islam and also the
true nature of Jesus because they reject
Jesus right right but that's because now
Christians make him into a literal Son
of God or to God in a trinity but when
they learn about Islam Jesus in Islam do
you think they'd accept him then
so as I kind of started off and that
would lead off to Prophet Muhammad as
final
what I see in the standard American I I
guess I can only speak really for the
American Jewish community
they tie themselves to Judaism by
tradition and by Community oh okay
and I like to think with with any
Community that's tightly knit if they
feel that they have found themselves a
home
whether it be
it can be anything it could be in a
religious setting it could be in uh you
know a youth group anything where they
find themselves having belonging and
meaning they're not going to search for
belonging and meaning elsewhere
it's only once they've dislodged
themselves as I did yeah as many maybe
so I think some of the other uh Jewish
converts that you've you've um
interviewed on on the Dean's show before
um they always somehow dislodged
themselves to see to seek out to search
and so I I guess the message is to those
who are searching you got to be
searching you got to be searching the
truth is there let's finish off you've
been Muslim how long now three years
three years something that's recited and
the Jewish the Christian Hindu atheists
whoever you can even repeat this prayer
on your own it's called the opening the
al-fatia the first chapter of the Quran
I always put my guests a little bit on
the spot I like to hear this opening
it's an original language in the Arabic
can you recite it for us please
whoa
I mean
beautiful this is uh
amazing praising God Almighty the
creator of law
affirming he is the most merciful the
most gracious the owner of the day of
judgment and this is the part right here
show me the straight way guide me to the
straight way
because you as the one alone that we
worship so I'll leave you with that I
asked the creator of the heavens and
earth like you did for guidance
and I'm so happy we're making some
history here
that we're literally on this street
called Route 60 in Florida future Dean
Center and you got I got we got a lot
more to talk about we just started I
mean I'd love to have you inshallah God
willing back on next time we could be
inshallah inside a Dean Center so make
sure you're supporting so we can go
ahead and make this a reality and do
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brothers
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