Ramadan can be a difficult time. For Christians who have converted from Islam, it is a period during which their new faith comes under particular scrutiny. Secret believers might be exposed for not joining in with Ramadan fasting, and converts may face a time of particular pressure to return to Islam. For many, this pressure and persecution comes from their own family. That’s what 24-year-old young believer Sharifa* in Sri Lanka face each year.
Muslims believe that the rewards for good deeds are calculated and granted at the end of their life, and this determines their eligibility to enter into heaven. During Ramadan, they believe the reward is multiplied. Sometimes two times, ten times or even a hundred times. By contrast, Christians know wholeheartedly that no work of our hand would ever grant us access into heaven, and it is only possible through the death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
A painful Ramadan
For Sharifa, choosing to leave Islam and become a Christian was initially straightforward. She chose to follow Jesus in 2018, and her parents accepted her decision. That all changed during Ramadan in 2021.
“During that time, my dad woke me up at 3am every day and forced me to eat and pray,” remembers Sharifa. “He told me to pray [Islamic prayers] five times every day, just like they did, and he forced me to cover my head with a shawl.”
“He told me that he will beat me if he finds me on the way to the church.”
Sharifa
Most painful of all was Sharifa’s mother. She had declared her new Christian faith at the same time that Sharifa converted – but, during Ramadan 2021, decided to return to Islam. Sharifa was now the only Christian in her family, and her father saw the opportunity to increase his opposition. “He told me that he will beat me if he finds me on the way to the church,” says Sharifa.
Sharifa’s choice
“...if I continue to be Christian, they will not treat me as their child.”
Sharifa
By the end of the Ramadan season, Sharifa’s parents gave her an ultimatum. “They told me that if I continue to be Christian, they will not treat me as their child.” It was a shocking thing to hear. “I prayed for three days and told them that I would continue to follow the Lord,” says Sharifa.
Just like her parents had stated, she does not get treated as their daughter even to this day: “Recently, I heard my mom telling someone over the phone that I was not a part of their family because I was a Christian.”
Sharifa’s parents’ efforts to forcibly convert her to Islam have escalated over the years. She still lives with them, but often they refuse to let her share their food. They lock her out when she goes to church. She has to read her Bible in secret, in the middle of the night.
And tensions are heightened every Ramadan. Sharifa lives with the fear that her parents will force her to take part in Islamic rituals, and that their rejection will be even more evident during the month.
Please keep praying
Sharifa has seen a change in her own attitude, since local partners supported her study at Bible school in 2022. She says: “Before going to the Bible school, I reacted furiously towards my parents when they forced me to convert to Islam, but now I have learned to be patient and even share the gospel with them in any possible way.”
For Sharifa – and countless other Christians who have converted from Islam – need our prayers during Ramadan.
Please pray, so that they know they are not alone during a period of particular vulnerability and opposition.
*Name changed for security reasons
