"Convertophobia" in Twelver Shiaism

[MuslimAnswers]

Salam Alaykum,

Interesting article from a American Shia Shaykh about how his co-religionists distrust him - entitled "Islam's "Convertophobia" Problem" but well, you know...

https://medium.com/@shaykhdaniel/islam-s-convertophobia-problem-7f60e6b976b3

(He does mention within the article that the Sunnis are way ahead in terms of catering to the new Muslim community).

[Sheikh]

That article is exceptionally accurate.  If it's alright, I'll just drop in some of my experiences.
(Note: I've never attended an Islamic center for long periods of time, so nobody really ever got to know me very well.)

Sunni Center
I originally converted at a Sunni mosque that was quite small.  It was a tiny house that was owned by a brother, I guess.  There was a full-time Imam that was also an American convert and had studied Islam in Kuwait (I think).  When I converted I was welcomed wholeheartedly, and not just by the Imam but by everyone.  I randomly ran into one of the brothers at Walmart while I was with my mom and the guy paid for our stuff (he was standing in front of us at the checkout).  I didn't even know him really, but he apparently recognized me.  After that, I went to a different center and they were equally as welcoming and invited me to do d`awah with them (handing out fliers).  In addition to the mosques, I've met a few Sunnis randomly and they were all super friendly.  One invited me to pray at a Salafi mosque.  I declined.  Heh.

Shia Center
The Sheikh was a nice guy**.  That's about it.  Everyone always looked at me kinda funny.  I had never been called a spy or anything overt like that, but I always felt like the American-bashing intensified when I was around.  Don't get me wrong, I hate my country's foreign policy, but these people made it out as if all Americans (myself included) were directly responsible for every bad thing that ever happened.  Not cool.  We don't blame every Iraqi on the planet for Saddam.  We don't blame every Pakistani on the planet for Zia-ul-Haq.  But no, blame me for losing the genetic lottery and being born in the wrong country.  Oh, and during Ramadan when they were reading the Qur'an they tried to make me go to the English room because they assumed I couldn't read Arabic (I can).  And then they passed over me when it was my turn to recite.  I didn't go back for Ramadan ^.^  But I did go back for Muharram and I had someone ask me if I really loved Ahl al-Bayt or not, as if it's impossible for a convert.  I also ran into a couple Shias by chance, one at a hookah lounge.  The guy asked me why I converted and told me that it was pointless because a convert can never love Ali enough and if you don't love Ali you won't go to heaven.

So yeah, that's my experience.  Of course, there were good times at the Shia mosque and bad times at the Sunni mosque, but overall, it was much more friendly and welcoming with Sunnis.

** I should mention that I'm referring to the Imam that led prayers.  I've only met two proper Shia scholars.  I never talked to the first.  The second one was whacky.  He said that Mahdi was a Japanese guy that invented video chat, for example.  I asked a question about one of his lectures and he got really mad and was questioning me on why I would even ask when he is clearly more knowledgeable.  Point taken, except for the fact that he answered everyone else that had questions with respect.

[Husayn]

He states:

It is in this way, among several others, that Shi`ism has been allowed by too many of its adherents to turn into a sort of Iraqi/Persian nationalist cult.

A sort of!?!

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Yes, a Lebanese friend of mine went to Iran (Qom specifically) to one of the seminaries.

He came back telling us how racist Iranians were against Arabs.

Same applies to Iraqis, they are very insulting to non-Iraqis (for the most part).

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@ Sheikh

So you are not Arab? For some reason I assumed that based on your tag + picture.

Care to shed some light on your background akhi?

[Sheikh]

Yes, a Lebanese friend of mine went to Iran (Qom specifically) to one of the seminaries.
He came back telling us how racist Iranians were against Arabs.

I also had a friend that went to Qom years ago.  He said that blacks get the worst of it by far.  They still call them `abd (slave) in the "holy city" of Qom.

Same applies to Iraqis, they are very insulting to non-Iraqis (for the most part).

It's tribalism.  I had an Iraqi friend that told me that here in the West, she will only be allowed to marry another Iraqi.  But if she was back in Iraq, she would only be allowed to marry someone from her hometown.  And if she was back in her hometown, she would only be allowed to marry somebody that's related in some way and/or part of the same clan/tribe. 

One of the perks of being a male convert is that I can marry whoever the heck I want to (as long as they're Muslim/Christian/Jewish); no such racist demands in my family 

@ Sheikh

So you are not Arab? For some reason I assumed that based on your tag + picture.

Care to shed some light on your background akhi?

Check PM.

[Furkan]

LOL funny stories here.

[Hani]

There's descent people on both sides and I prefer to discuss with that type. However, I'm more interested in the validity of their beliefs rather than their Akhlaq and culture and habits.

[MissyB786]

How do you deal with the ignorant people that are stuck in their beliefs and constantly wanna argue ie Ad Hominem that try to ruin ur character before U even manage to get ur point out

Ie calling u a saudi ISIS wahabi supporting terrorist -_-

just cos u disagree with Iran or whatever else about shiasm. Like there is no point discussing with such people, cos they already have that view in there head?

[Hadrami]

That article is exceptionally accurate.  If it's alright, I'll just drop in some of my experiences.
(Note: I've never attended an Islamic center for long periods of time, so nobody really ever got to know me very well.)

Sunni Center
I originally converted at a Sunni mosque that was quite small.  It was a tiny house that was owned by a brother, I guess.  There was a full-time Imam that was also an American convert and had studied Islam in Kuwait (I think).  When I converted I was welcomed wholeheartedly, and not just by the Imam but by everyone.  I randomly ran into one of the brothers at Walmart while I was with my mom and the guy paid for our stuff (he was standing in front of us at the checkout).  I didn't even know him really, but he apparently recognized me.  After that, I went to a different center and they were equally as welcoming and invited me to do d`awah with them (handing out fliers).  In addition to the mosques, I've met a few Sunnis randomly and they were all super friendly.  One invited me to pray at a Salafi mosque.  I declined.  Heh.

I do that extra mile to newly converts too, because apart that we are encouraged to do that, but also I know it's hard to stay muslim for some converts. I've seen 2 revert left Islam after few years. Sometimes we only look after the new ones and think after few years they can get on their own feet when it is harder than that. Even if your family are OK with the conversion, everything changes and for some it's just too much to cope.

[Hani]

It was brought to my attention by a brother, that there are some important paragraphs in the above article by the Shia convert, in which he describes some of the Hawzah students of being corrupt thieves, criminals who would kidnap foreigners, and ignorant of basic matters such as Wudu', read here and I quote:

((But what hurt even more came next: we were both, on numerous occasions, accused of being spies. Sometimes directly, sometimes indirectly, but it happened all the time. In fact, when we left for the summer that year, both of our rooms were broken into, ransacked, and then pillaged, and all by our fellow seminary students, some of them in relatively high levels of study. (When we came back the following year, we were basically told by the religious authorities in Karbala who ran the seminary dorms that there was nothing they could do about it.) My point is, I’m not talking about some reckless and impulsive kids here, I’m talking about adults who are supposed to be legit, turban-wearing, bona fide religious scholars.
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My seminary handler and I had actually come up with a weirdly elaborate back-story to hide the fact that I am an American citizen by birth, in order to avoid potential troubles or even kidnapping by overzealous Sadri students or their friends and relatives outside of the seminary system.
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From the get-go, I had people who would observe with great care my ritual ablutions, waiting to point out any visible procedural error. Of course, they found mistakes; except that the mistakes were on their part. It became rapidly clear that many of my colleagues did themselves did not understand a number of very basic aspects of religious law.))