Hey everyone
I have been questioning this for quite a while & decided to finally ask the Tasbeha community especially after what has happened in Alexandria this morning .
How will a Muslim convert get married to a Christian girl ? Keeping in mind he is Coptic orthodox now & converted as a young teen . However, his parents are still Muslim.
Would the girl's parents allow it ? Would society look at the family with disbelief & degradation ? Would it be a successful marriage . I mean yes in his past he was Muslim. But isn't the past history & what really counts is who the person really is now ?
Sorry for all the questions & Please Happy New Year to all .
+ Sister in Christ +
Comments
i suggest if there are problems that the FOC of the convert and the FOC of the other Christian have a chat (obviously with the permission of the bride and groom) to discuss any fears or other issues that may arise. ideally one should get married with the parents' permission, but sometimes this is not possible.
if the parents object the married couple should show very much grace and always be willing to rebuild the relationship.
actually i think it's very important that we all help converts from any religion to integrate and this includes laying down our fears (and risking getting hurt, we have a God who heals) and supporting them in their marriages.
if the convert has been a believer for (eg) a couple of years and has show spiritual fruit (love, joy peace etc, sharing their faith, accepting trouble for the name of Jesus) then we should all help them when it comes to decisions about marriage or monasticism.
so the parents feelings are very important, but they should not forbid a marriage on the basis of background alone, and the beliefs of 'society' absolutely do not matter!
if everyone despises you, consider it a blessing, our Lord was despised and hated and he responded by blessing those who hated him.
geomike , what are you implying?
+ sister in christ +
Honestly, if there was a muslim convert, he wouldn't be anywhere near his parents. Even his own family will try to kill him. That is how stupid and idiotic this stupid religion of "peace" is.
Sorry, we are all very tense because of the recent events.
I know a few marriages where one of the spouses had converted from Islam, and (from my limited perspective) did not see the background to be a problem in the marriage
I agree with what you say. i know that some parents take background ( where they came from , parents status etc ) into consideration. I personally think that the idea of him converting is alone an honor & a courageous act. It already shows his true persona . It shows that he is changing for the better. Any parent should at least have the decency to appreciate that. Any feedbacks?
+ sister in Christ +
... but would the fact that his parents are not around be a hindrance when it comes to marriage?
+ sister in Christ +
My dear Sister in Christ Jesus, pray for the family of the Christian lady who is to marry this Christian man, even though his family is Muslim. And Geomike has a really good point to bring up: any Muslim that converts to Christianity becomes the next death target by his family and Muslim friends. Pray for his Muslim family, pray for him, pray for this young Christian lady, and pray for her family. Unfortunately, we Orthodox Christians are a lot like the children of Israel in the Old Testament: we become so focused on the reality that we are God's chosen people that we forget--and even refuse!--to reach out to and love and embrace the "gentile" world around us, and we treat converts as second class Christians because of our superiority complex. Prayer, compassion, boldness, and love that only comes from God are so necessary right now in this circumstance.
I pray I have not overstepped my bounds.
If anyone has any other comments , please feel free to share your opinions & thoughts
God bless
+ sister in Christ +
but he was not and had not been in contact with his muslim family for years before the marriage happened