Islam exposed to receptive audience
Islam exposed to receptive audience
Some came from Bay Area to hear speaker’s informative discussion
| Friday, Apr 10 2009 09:42 PM
Henry A. Barrios / The Californian Zenn Monzon, left, asks a question about Islam to Sheikh Yusuf Estes, right, who was a former Christian music minister before converting to Islam. Estes was the guest speaker of the annual Islam Exposed Conference put on by the Islamic Shoura Council of Bakersfield. Monzon says he has studied many religions and is a Christian.
What’s the difference between read and recite? What’s the true meaning of jihad? Do Muslim women really have to wear the hijab (headscarf)?
At the “Islam Exposed” conference last Saturday, Sheik Yusuf Estes spoke to a packed crowd at the Beale Memorial Library auditorium in an effort to answer some of these questions. He broke his talk down into simple lingo using scenarios based on the contexts and times in which the Prophet Muhammad lived.
For example, despite the ill-informed belief that the Prophet looted and stole from caravans, he was nicknamed “al-Sadiq,” which means “the trustworthy one” in Arabic. Furthermore, his honesty and sincerity in his transactions as a merchant led to a marriage proposal from his boss, Khadija.
The invitation of Estes to Bakersfield was part of an effort to allow for more dialogue between Muslims and non-Muslims. Estes, a former Christian missionary, entered Islam through dialogue. A Texas native, he now lives in Virginia and travels throughout the country giving talks about Islam.
The afternoon conference began with an introduction and ended with a question and answer session. Sometimes, the sheik would refer people to one of several Web sites for further information.
Visitors were able to sign in as guests, pick up copies of the Quran and talk to volunteers from the Muslim community.
Sophia Bham, a volunteer at the information booth, said the turnout was, without a doubt, a success. “People were more interested and happy with the hospitality. They want to study more,” said Bham.
Some people even came to the event from out of town. A group of young Muslims — three women and one man — carpooled together from the Bay Area. They heard about the event on a sisters’ (what members of the Muslim community call fellow female members) event board on the internet.
One of them, Kim Tran, was happy to see some misconceptions cleared up. As a convert herself, she was yearning for an engaging talk about Islam. “The Bay Area is full of Muslims, but an event like this is worth driving hours for,” she said.
Still others were locals looking for answers about life in general. As Nathan Ellis, a student at San Joaquin Valley College, walked out of the conference room, he asked members of the Muslim community for their contact information so he could continue the discussion about Islam. “I think I just need to read more,” he said.
Betty Farmer, whose husband is a deacon with the Seventh-day Adventist church, remained long after the event as her husband conversed with Estes. “We have the same god, so we welcome discussion about beliefs,” said Farmer.
The event was organized by the Islamic Shoura Council of Bakersfield. Sheik Yusuf Estes remained in Bakersfield to give talks at the local Islamic centers over the weekend. Then, he was scheduled to visit the Fresno area. For further information about the Shoura Council or future events, please visit www.iscob.org.
Eman M. Shurbaji is a recent graduate of Cal State Bakersfield, where she studied communications. She is a member of the local Muslim Women’s Association.
