Muslim Imam Comes to Faith, Teaches Jesus to Muslim Students

Growing up in predominantly Muslim Bangladesh, Fedu’s life was permeated by Islam. His father was an imam, and his grandfather told him stories of pilgrimages to Mecca. Fedu studied at an Islamic school, and, like his father and three brothers, became a Muslim scholar and imam, eventually teaching at a mosque in the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka.

While working at the mosque one day in 1996, Fedu met a student named Azad from a nearby college. The two struck up a conversation and quickly became friends. However, when Fedu learned two years later that Azad had become a Christian, he began to worry about him. He knew Muslims at his mosque would find out about Azad’s conversion, and he also knew the local Muslim authorities were some of the worst persecutors of Christians in Bangladesh. Instead of standing up for his friend, Fedu stopped talking to him altogether.

Then, 15 years later, Fedu received a call from Azad, who had felt God nudging him to reconnect with his old friend. As the two caught up on each other’s lives, Azad mentioned how Jesus had changed his life. And when they finally met in person, Azad gave Fedu a Bible and some Christian literature to read. They spoke two more times before again losing touch with one another.

Fedu at first dismissed the gift his friend had given him, but eventually he started reading it, comparing its teachings with those of the Quran. The more he studied the two books, the more he began to doubt Islam, which had been his religious foundation since childhood.

Fedu knew the Quran taught that God would send His Word. But in the Bible, he read in John 1:1 that God had sent His Word in the person of Jesus. Then he read Jesus’ words in John 14:6 — “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

He could no longer defend the Quran against the Bible, and he wanted to know the Jesus he had read about in its pages. When he placed his faith in Christ in 2011, he wished he could share the news with his friend Azad.

Growing Pressure

After becoming a follower of Christ, Fedu continued teaching at his mosque. It supplemented the income he made from a pharmacy he owned, and he also wanted to share the truth he had learned with his captive audience at the mosque who needed to hear the gospel.

The more Fedu studied God’s Word, the more it was reflected in his teachings at the mosque. When it came to God’s prophets, he taught that Jesus was above all and that He alone is holy. Members of the mosque became increasingly aware of his Christian views, and one day in 2017 someone found Christian literature at his home. The president of the mosque quickly addressed the issue.

“When they noticed I love Jesus and not Muhammad, they said my job is done,” Fedu recalled.

Fedu had been praying for guidance on how and when to leave the mosque, so he viewed their decision as an answer to prayer.

Soon afterward, Fedu received an unexpected call from Azad, who had again felt God nudging him to reach out. Fedu couldn’t contain his excitement as he shared the news of his Christian faith.

Overjoyed, Azad discussed what it means to be a follower of Jesus with Fedu and his wife, who had not yet accepted Christ. They had long talks about the Holy Spirit, baptism and the likelihood of persecution, and Azad answered their many questions about Christianity. Eventually, Fedu’s wife also placed her faith in Jesus, and she and Fedu were baptized.

As their Christian faith became known, they began to face violent opposition from their neighbors. A group of angry Muslims destroyed Fedu’s pharmacy, robbing him of his last source of income. Two of his brothers beat him for leaving Islam, and they and some Muslim neighbors then banned his family from the area.

Fedu was angry at first, but he has learned to forgive. “I forgive my brothers,” he said. “I have no anger in my heart.” Fedu even shared the gospel with his brothers, but they no longer talk to him.

Increasing Faith

Since December 2017, Fedu has been living in a VOM-supported training center, where his faith has continued to grow through discipleship studies and fellowship with other believers. His wife and three children are staying with his wife’s relatives so the children can remain in school. Although her relatives are Muslim, they are more secular in their beliefs and do not oppose her Christian faith.

VOM is supporting Fedu’s family with food, clothing and other expenses as he works to restart his pharmacy business in a new location.

Fedu asks us to pray that his family members and neighbors will come to know Christ. He also asks us to pray for him as he prepares to share Jesus Christ with the many imams he knows; he has already led one imam to Christ and given him a Bible. Finally, Fedu asks us to pray that his family will be able to live together under one roof again.

Meanwhile, he will continue sharing his faith with Muslims using the same method that brought him to Jesus — friendship and a new book. “I am going out and sharing my faith,” he said. “When I talk to people, I show them what the Bible and the Quran say about Jesus.”