I raised my head to see Tahir walking into my room as if in haste. Wondering what he was rushing to do, I was surprised when he suddenly sat on the edge of my bed, looked into my eyes and said.
‘Now what are you crying about Darling Bint? A few days ago, you said you were mourning Muhammad Nurain, the Sudanese Sheikh who died in an auto crash and left behind his beautiful Quranic recitation, which always moved you to tears. Now just when I thought you’d finished mourning and moved on, you are in tears again. So tell me, who died this time?’ He asked, wiping my tears with his bare hand.
‘Luckily, nobody died Hubby dearest. These are actually tears of joy. I was moved to tears by the letter I just finished reading.’ I replied, smiling at him.
‘Really? So there’s someone out there who can write you a letter that could move you to tears apart from me?’ He teased.
‘Yes indeed Tahir, there are lots of them.’ I also joked. ‘But this letter wasn’t written to me. It’s for the French President, Mr Macron.’ I explained.
‘You were moved by a letter written to that despicable man? What could you possibly see in it that would make you tear up? I mean he has shown in words and deeds that he has nothing but hatred for Muslims and Islam, and particularly our beloved RasulilLah, SAW. How can you see anything positive in Macron?’ He demanded.
‘It’s not what you think Hubby dear. This letter was written to the French President by a 75-year-old aid worker who became a Muslim while in captivity in Mali. It’s the content of her letter that’s so moving it touched my heart. Here, just take this and read the whole story. You’ll understand what I’m trying to say.’ I urged, handing him my phone. He held it in his hand and started to read:
“The president of France, Emmanuel Macron, who has been fighting Islam in recent weeks got into deeper trouble as he received the shock of his life when the last French hostage, Sophie Petronin, returned to France on October 9, 2020. The 75-year old hostage, to the shock and chagrin of the president and his entourage, announced that she was now a Muslim!
It could be recalled that the 75-year old humanitarian worker, Sophie, was kidnapped by GSIM in Gao, North of Mali, where she was running a Swiss Charity Association Aid, on December 26, 2016. Sophie Petronin was freed on Thursday and arrived at Villacoublay airport, southwest of Paris on Friday. The French President, Macron, was at the airport to receive her, but received the shock of his life when Sophie, wearing a Hijab, announced ….
“… I am A Muslim. You say Sophie, but you have Maryam in front of you.”
Shaken and bewildered, The French President cancelled a media briefing planned earlier to boast of his success against Islam and the Muslims. Immediately, French Media sprang into a campaign, alleging that Sophie was “brainwashed”, and even calling her “Daesh Grandma.”
However in defense of her conversion from Christianity to Islam, Maryam Sophie, sent this letter to the President of her country.
“Mr Macron,
Peace be upon the one who follows the guidance …
I perceived that you were amazed at how Sophie Petronin, a Frenchwoman of pure white Catholicism, had converted to Islam after 75 years of Christianity and during 4 years of captivity among Muslims! Let me simplify things for you Mr Macron,
Yes, I was a prisoner of Muslims.
But they never treated me badly, their treatment of me was all appreciation and respect. They used to provide me with food and drink and were generous with me despite their scarcity of resources .. and they respected my privacy.
No one has ever subjected me to verbal or physical harassment, nor did they insult my religion, nor Jesus, nor the Virgin, peace be upon them, as you’ve been doing with Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him.
They did not impose Islam on me, but I saw it in their morals; People who purify themselves with water, pray the five daily prayers to the Lord, and fast during Ramadan
Mr Macron, Yes, the Muslims in Mali are poor. And their country is poor. There is no Eiffel Tower and they do not know our French perfumes, but they are the cleanest of us and the purest of hearts. Yes, they do not own luxury cars and do not inhabit tall towers. But their concern is above the clouds and their faith is more firm than the mountains.
Mr. Macron, Have you heard the recitation of the Qur’an in your life? When they recite the Qur’an in their prayers at dawn and at night, how beautiful it is to read. Even if you do not understand what they are chanting, your body will tremble and your heart will shudder as you listen to them chanting the words of God, for they memorize it by heart! … Then you realize with your subconscious mind that this is not a human speech but rather a heavenly melody descended from the sky, and you have an overwhelming desire to know the meaning of what they chant at dawn and at night in heavenly hymns!
Mr Macron, have you made one prostration in your life for God and made your forehead touch the ground and whispered to your Lord about your worries and thanked Him for His blessings as they do? Have you ever felt the closeness of God to you and your closeness to Him?…
Mr Macron, The Muslims there believe in all the prophets, even the Prophet of God Jesus, whom they love more than us. And his mother, Mary, who I named myself after, because of their great love and veneration for her and her position.
Mr Macron, You might ask me: How do they love Christ more than we do?
I will answer you: Yes, they love the Lord Christ more than we do, because … We are blessed with the goods of Muslim countries and we extract the tribute from their rulers in various ways, impose commercial and consumer projects that are not developmental. We spread sedition among them, and then sell them weapons to kill each other, but we still consider them terrorists when they realize that we are the terrorists and not them! But they dealt with me and other hostages with the morals of Christ that we were learning in the churches but we do not apply in reality.
Mr Macron, In conclusion … I did not want to declare my Islam in Mali so that it would not be said that I was converted to Islam under the sword, so I decided to declare my Islam while I was free on the land of France, to convey the message of Islam to millions of French and to Europe with its Christian and atheist, parts as a whole!
Mr Macron, This is the religion of Islam that you fight night and day. It stirred my heart and filled my mind …The most beautiful of the poor, modest Mali. I even decided to go back to it again. But after inviting my family and loved ones to Islam.
Because I want them to taste the sweetness of what I have tasted from the worship of the one and only God, for whom there is no god but He, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, and I want for them the goodness of this world and the hereafter.
I invite you too to Islam and to repeat your accounts with this great religion, which is the message of all the prophets and messengers from the time of Adam, passing through Jesus Christ, and concluding with the Master, Muhammad, peace be upon him.
And peace be upon those who follow the guidance…”
‘Yes, I can see why this letter moved you to tears. Her speech is quite touching. May Allah SWT preserve her and her firm faith.’ Tahir prayed.
‘Amin ya Rabbil aalamin. I hope her simple appeal will find a spot in her President’s hard heart. She wrote it with faith and I hope it will plant a strong seed of faith in her people and their leadership.’ I also prayed.
‘Amiin to that.’ He responded before rising from the bed to remove my phone charger from where it was plugged. ‘And this is what I came for before I saw the tears in your eyes. I couldn’t find my own anywhere.’ He explained before leaving the room.
