From Faith to Faith

I was reading about the passing of the Irish singer, Sinéad O’Connor, a few minutes ago, and it once again occurs to me how confusing the concept of inter-religion conversion can be to outsiders.

As early as 2007, O’Connor considered herself a Christian, crediting her faith for giving her the strength to overcome the effects of her childhood abuse. But by 2018, she had converted to Islam, calling it “the natural conclusion of any intelligent theologian’s journey.” She even went further by referring to those who were not Muslims as “disgusting.”

Now, let’s look at the story of Amir Sjarifuddin, the second prime minister of Indonesia. He was born into a Muslim family, with his mother being a devout Muslim from a well-respected Malay-Islamic community. However, by the time he turned 30, he had become a Christian, considering his conversion the greatest thing that could ever happen to a human.

Famous people and everyday individuals have converted in both directions.

Muhammad Ali, the great boxer, went from Christianity to Islam.

George Weah, the great footballer, went from Islam to Christianity.

How about those who went back and forth?

Adunni Ade, a Nigerian actress, converted to Christianity and later reverted back to Islam.

Jesse of Kartli, a Georgian prince of the Bagrationi dynasty, went from Christianity to Islam and then back to Christianity.

These conversions are not limited to Islam and Christianity; they occur in every religion on Earth.

Suraj Randiv, the cricket player, converted from Islam to Buddhism.

Claudia Ciesla, the German model, transitioned from being a devotee of Judaism to a fervent believer in Hinduism.

I know of a Nigerian, Jaye, who was a Muslim, became a Christian, then an atheist, and is now a Rosicrucian.

If you, my reader, are a typical Nigerian, depending on the religion you profess, you might feel sorry for Jaye. The Muslim might wonder how misguided Jaye is. The Christian might be sorry that Jaye is lost. The atheist might dismiss Jaye as deceived.

And you are free to do that.

But my question is, if the information I have presented has not caused you to pause and ask yourself:

“If people move from A (where A represents your belief system) to elsewhere all the time, can we empirically say those who have moved from elsewhere to A have made the best decision of their lives?”

Or is it just one of the millions of decisions humans make while alive, akin to returning a tin of tomato we no longer fancy while in the supermarket?