What Advice Would You Give to Someone Who Recently Converted to Islam?
Answered by Shaykh Yusuf Weltch
Question
What Advice Would You Give to Someone Who Recently Converted to Islam?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
Congratulations on your embracing of Islam. May Allah bless you with a beautiful connection to Him and the best of this world and the Next.
As a convert of 15 years, I always advise people at the beginning of their journey with two central things that every Muslim, especially the convert, needs.
First Advice: Knowledge
The first is knowledge. Knowledge itself is a journey. The more I have learned over the years, by Allah’s grace, the easier Islam has become and the clearer the guidance is.
One must take time to formally learn the basics of Islam. This is known as the personally obligatory knowledge (Fard al-‘Ayn). Essentially, one will learn how to obey Allah Most High and fulfill His injunctions as they relate to one’s personal situation.
This entails the following:
- How to perform the pillars of Islam (esp. prayer)
- What is permissible, and what is prohibited
- What are the rights and responsibilities that I owe to the people around me? Etc.
In this, one will also learn what is not a requirement to change from their normal lifestyle.
When I became Muslim, I was told it was obligatory to change my name. This was not true.
Again, this will give you great clarity in what your Creator wants from you.
Options for Formal Study
The best option is to attend in-person classes on the above topics catered to your level from an authentic authorized scholar of the religion who embodies the Prophetic character.
If this is not available to you as an option, there are many online options now.
SeekersGuidance is always a great option to learn all the various subjects of Islam in a formal and personally catered curriculum for free.
Arkview has classes from basic to advanced at your own pace. It is recommended for converts. There is an affordable monthly fee for this program, but you may find their various offerings well worth it.
Second Advice: Righteous Company
Among the struggles I had as a New Muslim was a lack of knowledge and a lack of companionship. I didn’t know or live near many Muslims, and I began to feel quite lonely. Once I was able to meet practicing Muslim friends who took their relationship with Allah Most High seriously, Islam became much easier and much more fulfilling for me.
Islam is very much a social religion. From the prayer, to the pilgrimage, many of the injunctions center around having relationships for the sake of Allah.
Righteous friends are usually found in places of righteousness. Make time to attend the programs at your local mosque. Seek out that mosque that reminds you of the beautiful, inclusive, and merciful character of the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and give him peace).
Hope this helps
Allah knows best
[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Shaykh Yusuf Weltch teaches Arabic, Islamic law, and spirituality. After accepting Islam in 2008, he completed four years at the Darul Uloom Seminary in New York, where he studied Arabic and the traditional sciences.
He then traveled to Tarim, Yemen, where he studied for three years in Dar al-Mustafa under some of the most outstanding scholars of our time, including Habib Umar Bin Hafiz, Habib Kadhim al-Saqqaf, and Shaykh Umar al-Khatib.
In Tarim, Shaykh Yusuf completed the memorization of the Quran and studied beliefs, legal methodology, hadith methodology, Quranic exegesis, Islamic history, and several texts on spirituality. He joined the SeekersGuidance faculty in the summer of 2019.
