I Was a Muslim
 
 
 

Testimony of an Imam’s Son
 
From the cassette “From Works to Grace”
 
 
Moussa Koné

---

To God all be the glory for having made 
   the publishing of this book possible.

 
    Copyright © 1995, Moussa Koné
 

---

Childhood

My name is Moussa Koné. I am the third and last son of the Koné family. When I was born in 1953, my father, Ibrahim Koné, was already an Imam.

My father, who was very fond of me, introduced me very early to the reading of the Koran, at the age of three even. At the age of six, I enrolled in primary school, class one. However, only three weeks after I was enrolled, I lost my sight and had an operation. This forced me to stay at home, which suited my father very well because his heart’s desire was for me to become a serious student of the Koran. His own father had 40 children and none of them was sent to school. Thus, at home, I did not have any other activity than the reading of the Koran which I greatly liked.

I must say that the study of the Koran disrupted my primary studies, which I only undertook from time to time at home with my older brothers. At the age of 13, I nonetheless took the primary school leaving examinations (C.E.P.E.) as a private candidate and passed. At the age of 14, I could read the Koran so well that I taught other children in my neighbourhood. As a result of this, children of different tribal groups gave themselves to Islam.

However, one day while reading the Koran with my father, I asked him a question that came to my mind: “If tonight, you and I should die, would we go to Paradise?” He gave me a sincere answer: “My son, I do not know. And, I cannot know because the Koran does not clearly say if we can enter Paradise.”

I was deeply touched, but my father was sincere with his God, with himself and with me. He knew that lying would not solve anything because I could search through the Koran myself and discover the truth. The answer disturbed me, but did not change my attitude towards the study of the holy book of Islam.

At the age of 18, I could, by reciting the suras, do a lot of things. I will mention just two experiences I had from the Koran. This is neither to glorify myself nor glorify Satan, but to show how much I had mastered the Koran.

Initiation to Skills as a Muslim Marabout

One night, around 2 o’clock in the morning, at the present location of the S.I.R. (Société Ivoirienne de Raffinerie) at Abidjan, my father, one of his friends called Adama and myself were sitting among the bushes. I was reciting the sura called Yassim. Ten minutes later, a strange being appeared a few feet away from us. Adama then left us and started talking to the being. This conversation lasted some 20 to 30 minutes, after which the being disappeared and Adama came back to join us. My father explained to me that the being was a spirit that had come to make an appointment with us.

The following day around 4.00 p.m., we went to the appointed place in an enclosed compound. There were three of us and we had with us a big trunk. We then started reciting suras of the Koran. Actually, it was my turn to do so. While I was reciting, Adama pronounced the names of Senegal, Burkina-Faso (Upper-Volta at the time), and Togo, and bank notes of 1,000 CFA francs fell from above. When he pronounced the name of Ghana, it was Ghanaian cedi notes that fell about us.

However, we decided to stop because we did not have any special need. Besides, the trunk was full. Where did this money come from? Probably, from the banks of the countries mentioned. Is this not how bank cashiers often have problems with their employers and are accused of embezzlement? Suddenly a huge snake appeared on the money in the trunk. We closed the trunk and the money was supposed to be kept for 40 days before being used.

This was my first experience of this kind. Mastery of the Koran, however, gave us another science, another way of using it, and this gave rise to my second experience.

Kawatim

A high-school teacher was in love with a white woman, but she was not interested in him. There was no contact between them. He, however, came to me to make him a talisman. I asked him for a white person’s hair, which he brought back from the Plateau, the Abidjan business district. I did what is known as the kawatim. This is a technique which consists in converting a name into numeric figures and arranging them into a square, in a given order. They are then all wrapped up in leather or any other object which is finally given to the customer. Marabouts know what this sort of thing is all about.

I converted their names into figures and arranged them in a square. I put everything in order, wrote the name of the Prophet Mohammed on the four sides. I made some liquid out of the kawatim writings on the walaha (a wooden slate used for Koranic writing) and gave it to him in a bottle. He was supposed to rub himself with the liquid. Three months later, they got married and eventually had a child. This was a marriage without the real consent of the woman since she was manipulated by a demonic force. Today this couple have a thousand and one problems and my friend is unhappy. The power of the devil comes to an end whereas that of God is limitless. After my conversion I confessed with tears before this man the error of my ways.

It should be pointed out that all this is contrary to the Muslim scriptures. Such practices are forbidden by the religion, but very few people comply with this rule.

A Bible Thrown into the Sea

In spite of all the knowledge of the Koranic suras that I had, the question I had asked my father tormented me: “If you and I should die, will we go to Paradise?” Nevertheless, life continued as before and my father had all the honour and respect due to him. We were all very happy about this. He had all he wanted except money. I therefore had to work to help the family. I started to work at the Post and Telecommunications Department and later SONITRA and SOTICI in Abidjan.

In 1980, I became a seaman. This was after the discovery of oil in Côte d’Ivoire, off the shores of Grand-Bassam. I was among the first Ivorians to work on the platforms. They were American platforms for extracting oil. I went initially to work as a replacement for two weeks, but stayed for eight years. And it was during these eight years that I had the most extraordinary experiences with the Lord, which transformed my life.

Part of the eight years were spent off the Ivorian shores. The last years, when all these changes occurred, were spent at sea. In 1984, I was on a very big vessel belonging to the S.E.D.C.O. Company. The Captain was called Welford. One day, this man met me on the bridge of the ship and asked me if I was a Muslim. He asked this question because he knew my name. I answered him in the affirmative. Then he told me, “This evening, I am coming to your cabin to chat with you.”

This really surprised me. I was quite astonished because the Captain of a ship is not just anybody. He is the most prominent person. He is the same as a head of state in a republic. In addition, on this vessel, which was really big, I was the only black and, besides, my sleeping quarters were below deck while his were on the fourth floor.

A number of questions went through my mind. Had I done something serious? Why did he not rather order me to come up to see him?

So, as expected, the Captain came. He came just at the time when I was reading my Koran. He knocked on the door of my cabin, entered and came to sit beside me. He was holding in his hand a book on which was written “Holy Bible.”

The Captain told me that he came to talk to me about Jesus. Suddenly I was filled with a lot of anger because just the name of Jesus irritated me. I got up suddenly, took the Bible he had put on my bed, and threw it out of the porthole into the sea. I then felt relieved and very proud. I thought I had annoyed him and waited for his reaction. But when I turned round, I saw a huge smile on his face. He was calm and did not in any way lose his temper. I was completely taken aback because I could never have accepted someone behaving that way towards me. Who would dare throw my Koran into the sea?

The Captain told me quietly, “Calm down, my boy.” I replied to him, “You know I am a Muslim and Mohammed is my prophet. Allah is my God. If you do that again, I will leave the ship and return home to Abidjan.”

After this conversation, he stopped talking to me directly about Jesus Christ. He did not get angry or discouraged. It was rather at this time that he got closer to me. He came to me while I was working in the engine-room. He gave me nonalcoholic drinks when the weather was hot, showed me affection, helped me with my work, and told me about his life, which I did not see the others doing. I was really touched.

The time came for me to return to Côte d’Ivoire on vacation and to spend some time with my family. I told him, “I am returning home to share the little money I have earned with my parents, because they are poor. As for you, you are rich.” “I am not rich. Everything belongs to God. He gave it to me for my family and for my needs,” he told me modestly. This touched me again, because I knew that he was wealthy. Actually, he owned a plane and a helicopter as well as several other properties. He added, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter Paradise.”

This saying caught my attention. It had a real impact on me. I did not know that it was a Bible verse. However, I understood that it was difficult for a rich man to enter Paradise.

I returned to Abidjan with this thought in my head. My father was no longer there. He had gone to Bouak‚ where he was the Imam in the industrial zone district. Before going to join him there, I met a Ghanaian friend who had worked on the platforms with me. He told me that an American living in Cocody wanted to see me. I refused to go because I had just spent a long time with Americans on the boat and I was not particularly keen on seeing another one. I therefore went to spend nine months of my leave with my family and often led prayers with my father.

After my period of leave, I spent another year on the ship before returning to Abidjan. The same Ghanaian again extended the American’s invitation to me. This time, we went. He was called John Weed and we started a conversation on the Koran, which he knew very well. I didn’t know that he was a Christian. He spoke arabic marvellously well since he had been a missionary in Egypt.

This conversation with him awakened in me the same question that I had asked my father: “Am I saved?”

My leave at an end, I returned to sea, on a Danish vessel this time. In addition to my Koran in French, I bought an English-Arabic Koran and some Hadiths (stories recounting the deeds and sayings of Mohammed). I decided personally to do some research concerning my salvation.

At that time, I had a salary of some 350,000 CFA francs (i.e. $US 700) for 28 days of work, and the seemingly serious boy in the eyes of my father, who often led prayers, started living a life of debauchery at our various ports of call. However, I never missed my prayer hours and always kept to the exact time. I had a pocket Koran which I always kept on me. All the same, islam did not prevent me from leading this dissolute life. I did, however, carefully avoid smoking and drinking alcohol.

While I was leading this life, the same question kept on tormenting and haunting me. I therefore decided to do some research. Indeed, someone may deceive you by giving you a dud cheque, but when it comes to the salvation of your soul, it is important to be very careful that nobody deceives you, because the soul does not return to earth after death. It must face judgement, so there is just no possibility of restarting your life from zero, or passing through purgatory. It is therefore vital to make sure, right now, that you are on the path of truth.

My Research about Salvation

I started doing my research in my cabin in the evening after work and after saying my 8 o’clock prayers. I did it very calmly. I was alone and concentrated hard. I had entrusted this to God. All I had for my investigations was the Koran.1

I took the 100th sura, verses 6, 7 and 8, which says, “Truly, man is to his Lord ungrateful and to that fact he bears witness by his deeds.”

This verse declared my state of sin while maintaining that I was aware of this, and so was God. As I progressed in my research, I realized that I was not saved, but that I was a sinner.

I found in the 101st sura, the following verses:
“Then, he whose balance of good deeds will be found heavy, will be in a life of good pleasure and satisfaction. But, he whose balance of good deeds will be found light, will have his home in a bottomless pit. And what will explain to thee, what is this? It is a fire, blazing fiercely!”

So, I am a sinner and my sins will be counted and “weighed.” I then asked myself the following question: “If I am a sinner, how do I do more good deeds than bad ones in order to go to Paradise?”

Continuing my research, I read the 102nd sura, verses 6-8:
“Ye shall certainly see hellfire! Again, ye shall see it with certainty of sight! Then, shall ye be questioned that day about the joy ye indulged in!”

What a shock this was to me, who was desperately searching for my salvation (and seeing it as a way out)!

The Koran was, in fact, telling me that I would certainly see Hell. Already, in the 100th sura, it convicted me of sin. In the 101st sura, it told me that my sins will be counted, and while I was looking for a way out, it was telling me that I could not escape. I needed a solution, however, because these suras did not offer me any consolation.

I continued my research and I got to the 107th sura, where it is written, “Woe are those who are neglectful in their prayers.”

It is true that I prayed regularly. But who knows? Since my childhood, could I have possibly been neglectful during prayers? The Koran was clear. One must not intentionally accumulate prayers by skipping the hours, because prayers carried a lot of weight in the scales. I could therefore not put my mind at ease.

I looked at the 11th sura, verse 120:
“If the Lord had so willed, He could have made mankind one people: But they will not cease to dispute... and the Word of the Lord shall be fulfilled: I will fill Hell with jinns and men altogether.”

This verse is very moving. It made me shed tears. It says that if God had so desired, he would have made of all nations one people. This is why we have different religions. It is also because God already made his promise, that of filling hell with both men and jinns.

I was filled with anguish. Could I escape this? I was looking for my salvation like a sick person would look for healing, but I could not find an effective remedy with the Koran. I went to sleep on this the first day of my research and continued the following day.

When the time came, I read the 19th sura, verses 71 and 72:
“Not one of you but will pass over it: this is, with thy Lord, a decree which must be accomplished. But we shall save those who guarded against evil, and we shall leave the wrong-doers therein, humbled to their knees.”

So, everybody will be thrown in there, even if it is just for one minute, because if one does good works, one also does bad ones and they need to be purified. For someone who was doing all those good works, I was not at all happy to learn that I would still pass through Hell.

If I should meet there Abidjan thugs who know me, they would say to me, “So, you Moussa, who used to lead prayers with your father, you are also here with us?”

I went on to read through the 114 suras of the Koran. I examined them one by one, and there was not one that could tell me with certainty that I would go to Paradise.

I was very worried. I closed the Koran, and went to bed with fear and despair in my heart.

The Truth of the Bible Confirmed

After these investigations on salvation, there was another problem disturbing me: Are the Injil and the Torah true or not? I remembered that several times in Abidjan, Christians had tried to preach the Gospel to me. I always replied that their book had been falsified. This is what every good Muslim believes. However, this time I wanted to be clear in my own mind about it.

As usual, after the 8 o’clock p.m. prayer, I opened my Koran to sura 2, verse 130. In some versions it will correspond to verse 135, and it says; “Say ye: We believe in God, and the revel-ation given to us, and to Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus, that given to (all) Prophets from their Lord; We make no difference between one and another of them: And we bow to God (in Islam).”

Now, I understood: God gave his book to Moses and Jesus. It should be noted that the book of Moses is the Pentateuch, and that of Jesus is the Injil, that is to say, the Gospel. The Koran was therefore telling me not to make any difference between these books and that of Muslims, and to submit my- self to the will of God.

I had never read the book of Moses or that of Jesus. In the Koran, the stories of Moses and Jesus are scattered among the suras. Where was I going to find these books? Was I going to touch the Bible of the Christians when I had thrown one into the sea? If I read the Gospel and Jesus told me that he was the only way, did I have to believe that?

The commandment of the Koran was clear: I was not to make any difference between these books and the Koran. I was supposed to have faith in them. But would God ask me to believe in a falsified book? I was now perplexed. I believed that the book was corrupt, but the Koran was commanding me to obey it.

Continuing my meditation, I came to the fifth sura which, in verse 47, says: “But why do they come to thee for decision, when they have (their own) Law before them?”

This verse referred to Mohammed and the Jews. God was telling Mohammed that the Jews cannot take him to be a judge or a referee since they have the Pentateuch. The lesson I drew from this was that if someone has the Pentateuch, he already has the Word of God. This book came from God and therefore contains the Word of God. It cannot therefore be corrupt.

In the same sura, verse 50 says:
“And in their footsteps we sent Jesus the son of Mary, confirming the Law that had come before him: We sent him the Gospel: Therein was guidance and light, and confirmation of the Law that had come before him: A guidance and an admonition to those who fear God.”

I was deeply touched by the fact that the Koran says that it is God himself who gave the Gospel to Jesus, and that the Gospel is the guidance and the light for all the people, and that it confirms the book of Moses, which is to say, the Torah or the Pentateuch.

Verse 51 of sura 5 says: “Let the People of the Gospel judge by what God hath revealed therein. If any do fail to judge by (the light of) what God hath revealed, they are (no better than) those who rebel.”

I therefore understood that the one who leads his life according to the Gospel is led by God. Thus I found in the Koran the confirmation that the Gospel is the Word of God given to Jesus.

All the same, I continued my research, and verse 72 of the 5th sura told me:
“Say: O People of the Book, ye have no ground to stand upon unless ye stand fast by the Law, the Gospel, and all the revelation that has come to you from your Lord.”

This clearly states that the person who calls himself a Christian must stand on his book which is the Gospel, or else nothing is solid. You can check this up for yourself. All this is written in the Koran. I am not making anything up.

The 3rd sura told me in verse 109 that:
“Not all of them are alike: Of the People of the Book are a portion that stand (for the right): They rehearse the signs of God all night long, and they prostrate themselves in adoration.”

I said to myself: “Before the arrival of Mohammed, the Word of God existed with the Christians. Why would God send another contradictory Word, since the Koran and the Bible are completely opposed?”

How could God, who is righteous and just, do that? I began to worry and have doubts, and questions kept flooding into my mind, and for good reason: The Bible that I was rejecting was only being confirmed through the Koran. Nevertheless, I was not discouraged. I looked at the 10th sura, verse 94:

“If thou were in doubt as to what we have revealed unto thee, then ask those who have been reading the Book from before thee: The truth hath indeed come to thee from thy Lord: So be in no wise of those in doubt.”

This verse was addressed directly to Mohammed. I liked Mohammed a lot and therefore could not comprehend this verse which said: “Mohammed, if you are in doubt, ask those who received the Scriptures before you.”

He was to ask those who read the Gospel and the Pentateuch, because they received revelations from God. Now, I was wondering if, during these moments of doubt, I, Moussa, could go and ask those who have received the Scriptures before me. For this specific verse is a commandment. I had to definitely abide by it.

I asked myself: Supposing I start off to go to “those who received the Scriptures before me,” and on the way I meet a Muslim brother who wants to persuade me to turn back, what should I do? Should I obey the man or the Koran? I should obey the Koran —  this goes without saying —  and yet it was telling me to ask those who “received the Scriptures before me.” How could God tell a prophet to go to the Scriptures that are said to be corrupt.

But the Koran has eight verses which say that the Word of God cannot be changed. It he who gave the Pentateuch to Moses, as well as the Gospel to Jesus, and God watches over his Word. Therefore it cannot be twisted. No verse in the Koran states that the Bible has been falsified. There is, however, a part of the Koran that says that the Jews have twisted the Word of God through their language. When Mohammed turned to them, they only rolled out part of the scroll and told him: “Rahina, thou shalt hear but thou shalt not understand.”

In other words, the Koran does not say anywhere that the Scriptures that came before it were falsified. Please look this up for yourself. Do no take the word of a man, even if he is an Imam or a marabout. Consult the Scripture instead, the Word of God, for it is important to know where you stand as far as your salvation is concerned.

I had now been on the ship for six months. I was no longer going out to night clubs. I had lost weight. I had gone down from 80 kg to 60 kg. I was preoccupied about my salvation, yet the book that I loved so much since my childhood hardly reassured me. No verse told me with certainty that I can enter Paradise. The person who knows the Koran knows what I am talking about. I wanted to check if the Bible was corrupt but the Koran was telling me that the Word of God cannot be changed. Thus I even found the confirmation of the Pentateuch and the Injil in the Koran.
 

Jesus Christ, the Crucified and Resurrected Saint

A. The Holy One

I knew that the main bone of contention was Jesus. Christians say that he is the Son of God while Muslims say that God did not ever father any child and that this is not possible. Could God have had a wife in order to have a child. “This is blasphemy,” they say.

Because of this controversy, I decided to continue my research on the person of Jesus. I took the 19th sura, where his birth is announced. It is written in verses 16 and 17: “Relate in the Book (the story of) Mary when she withdrew from her family to a place in the East. She placed a screen (to screen herself) from them; then we sent to her our angel, and he appeared before her as a man in all respects. She said: I seek refuge from thee to (God) Most Gracious: (come not near) if thou dost fear God. He said: Nay, I am only a messenger from thy Lord, (to announce) to thee the gift of a holy son.”

Koran commentators agree that “holy” means “without sin.” In the 114 suras, I discovered that five titles different from those applied to others, greater than theirs, are attributed to him. He is called, the Messiah, and the Son of Mary, because nobody knew him to have a human father. Contrary to Mohammed, who is called the “son of Abdallah,” Jesus is called the Apostle of God, the Spirit of God and the Word of God, one of those close to God, who was honoured on this earth and beyond.

In the 114 suras of the Koran, no sin is attributed to him. He is seen to heal and take care of people. In short, he only did good works. The Koran (third sura, verse 35) compares him to Adam because he is superior to the other prophets. He is the manifestation of the greatest miracle. In fact, he is greater than Adam because the latter was made of dust. When he died, he became dust whereas Jesus is the Spirit of God and the Word of God. When he died, he returned to God and not to dust.

I therefore acknowledged that Jesus is superior to Adam. Besides, Adam and the other prophets are sinners. Adam’s sin can be found in verse 36 of the second sura, that of Moses in sura 28, verses 15 and 16, and that of Jonah in sura 37, verse 142.

As for Mohammed, his sins are not mentioned, but it is said of him in sura 40, The Believer: “Oh Mohammed, patiently, then persevere; for the promise of God is true: and ask forgiveness for thy fault, and celebrate the praises of thy Lord in the evening and in the morning.” Read also suras 47:19 and 48:1.

I said to myself, “Even Mohammed sinned, then. So, how is it that Jesus never sinned. Why is he above all the other prophets?” At first indignant and jealous for Mohammed, I ended up having respect and consideration for Jesus. He lived on this earth for more than 30 years, and there is no mention of his sins. My God, what a man!

I closed the Koran gently that day, that exceptional day, and continued the next day after 8 o’clock in the evening. During this period, we had spent a week at sea without berthing, without coming to port. I gazed out of the porthole at the vast expanse of water which seemed to touch the sky at the horizon. Before this shimmering blue spectacle, I exclaimed, “Indeed, God is powerful!”

B. The Crucified and the Resurrected One

Some Christians told me that Jesus was crucified and that for that reason their sins had been forgiven. I thought that was too good to be true. I therefore wanted to be sure about it. I opened the Koran to the fourth sura entitled Women, verse 156:
“They say we killed the Messiah, the Son of Mary. He was not killed, he was not crucified. Another person who resembled him was killed in his stead. God raised a living Jesus into the sky.”

It was the happiest day of my life. It was the first time since I began my research six months earlier, that I had found a verse contradicting Christians, and the Koran appeared really clear to me. I went to sleep with the intention of continuing my research in the forthcoming days. I had changed. I no longer went to night clubs although my friends invited me. They asked why I refused to join them but I avoided telling them because they could not understand what was happening between God and me.

The following day, I opened the Koran to verse 48 of the third sura (or verse 55, according to some versions). God said:
“Oh Jesus, I will make you taste death, I will raise you unto me, and I will deliver you from the unbelievers and those who follow you will be above those who do not believe in you until the day of resurrection. You will return to me, I will judge your differences.”

This verse knocked me out. It had the effect of a sledge hammer on me. In fact, two elements of this sura are in contradiction with verse 156 of the fourth sura.

The Koran asserts in the fourth sura: “They did not kill him, they did not crucify him,” whereas in the third sura verse 48 (or 55), the Koran assets, “God said to Jesus: I will make you taste death, I will raise you unto me.” I will make you taste death. This resembles the crucifixion. The words: I will raise you unto me reminds one of the resurrection from the dead.

And finally, it says that those who follow Jesus Christ are above those who do not follow him until the day of resurrection. Thus the crucifixion is denied in verse 156 of the fourth sura, but indirectly confirmed in verse 48 (or 55) of sura 3. And the end of the verse is clear: Those who follow Jesus Christ are above those who do not follow him until the day of the resurrection. It is not for 10 years or 40 years, but until the day of resurrection. And since this day had not arrived, was I to accept that Christians were above me? I was really not ready to accept that!

At this precise moment, other questions went through my mind, especially concerning the fourth sura where the crucifixion is rejected. How could the God of glory, the powerful God, deceive men? How could he pretend, make men believe that Jesus Christ was crucified whereas he was not? That is not typical of God. God, if he so desired, could have raised Jesus Christ in all sovereignty without reporting to anyone. What would God gain by hiding the truth whereas He is the truth?

I continued my research and read the 19th sura up to verse 34. Jesus Christ, as a small child in his crib, said this:
“Peace be with me on the day of my birth, on my place of death, and on my place of resurrection.”

We accept the fact that peace dwelled with him from the day of his birth to the day of his resurrection, but not on the day he died because we do not want to accept his death. However, there cannot be resurrection without death. This verse indirectly implies that Jesus Christ was killed and raised from the dead. I was convinced.

I had come to understand a lot of things within six months. In fact, on the boat alone with my Koran, I realized that:

—  There is no salvation in the Koran;
—  The Koran confirms the Bible;
—  Jesus Christ is above other prophets. He is the Messiah, the Apostle of God, Mary’s son, the Spirit of God, the Word of God, one of God’s trusted men, honoured here below and in the hereafter.

I was furthermore convinced that He was crucified.

Appearance of a Supernatural Being

After all these revelations, I did not know what to do. I tried to go out in the evenings but it was no longer exciting. I could not eat. I was morose because I knew I was not saved. Therefore, one evening I said, “If these trials I am going through are of God, then he should prove it to my physically. He should show me what to do. That evening, when I returned to my cabin, I spoke to God in Jula, my native language and not in Arabic this time. I told him this: “My father is an Imam. When I am with him, I lead the prayers. All my uncles are Imams. I am the descendant of an Imam. For that reason, I cannot abandon Islam.”

I then turned off the light but all of a sudden another light appeared in my cabin. Someone was there. Initially I was scared but afterwards his presence did not frighten me any longer. The Being in question approached me and placed his hand on my right shoulder. I remember that episode as though it happened only yesterday.

He spoke to me, saying that all I needed to know had already been revealed to me and it was my personal decision to either believe or not. After this, everything became dark again. I looked all over my cabin for this Being but I could not find him anywhere.

Eventually I knocked on the door of my neighbour, a Dane. He came out of his cabin, his eyes reddened by sleep. He appeared drunk. I asked him if he had been to my room a few seconds earlier. He answered, “Are you crazy? What could I have come to your cabin for at such a time?” I apologized to him and returned to my cabin. I could not sleep the whole night as I was overwhelmed by the vision.

The Koran Burns

The following evening, after eating and praying, I made the same request to God. I took the Koran and recited the Yassin sura. I did not know I was challenging God thus, and that when you challenge God, he shows you who he really is.

I was reading when I suddenly saw a live coal in the right page of my Koran. Before I could react, another live coal had appeared. Two live coals were burning up my Koran. Afterwards there were several others. I was sitting on my bed with my legs crossed and with my back to the wall. The Koran began to burn. I looked up and there was indeed a ceiling between the cabin and the sky. So where were these live coals coming from?

I was afraid, but not for my security. I was afraid because the holy book of Islam, the book of every Muslim, the book that I was holding, was burning. This book which is the compass of a billion people in the world, a book in which about 50% of the population of Côte d’Ivoire have put their faith, was going up in flames!

By the time I expected to feel the burning in my hands, everything had burned up, despite the Koran’s hardback cover. There were only ashes left in my hand. That day I felt the greatest terror in my life. I have never been so afraid. This episode took thirty minutes. I remained seated at the same spot and did not sleep until morning.

I spent four sleepless nights because I was resisting sleep, but on the fifth day, I could no longer resist. I was overcome by a deep sleep. I woke up late the next day.

During that sleep, I had a dream. In that dream, I saw a tall man standing opposite me. He had bright eyes like car headlights and I was dazzled by this light. He was approaching me. I was afraid, very much afraid, but suddenly my fear gave way to courage and I went to meet him. As I was about to touch him, he stopped and I asked for his name. He refused to tell me who he was. He rather began reciting the Islamic creed: “Laila la la ho: Mohammed rassoula lah.” Then he retreated and disappeared. I woke up with a startle and realized at that precise moment that there was something in me that was stronger than what was in him.

In the morning, at work, I was more relaxed. I had the impression that there was a change in my life. I had more strength and my nights became normal.

Drawing the conclusion from all I had gone through, I found that there is no salvation in the Koran and that the Pentateuch and the Gospel are books from God. I also realized that Jesus is a Prophet above all prophets, that he is sinless, and that he was crucified.

I had asked God to give me some physical proof. There was this physical vision, the burning of the Koran and next, this being, symbolizing Islam, which fled in my dream.

I Make a Commitment

I had spent eight months on the boat and I was reaching the end of my contract. I finally landed and found at Cocody (Abidjan) the missionary who had contacted me through my former Ghanaian colleague. Without giving him a detailed report, I told him I had come to accept Jesus Christ.

We prayed together. This prayer was so sincere that for the first time I knew that I had really talked with God. I confessed my sins. I was full of joy. It was wonderful.

I went out and headed for the Cocody Post Office close by. There, near a newspaper kiosk belonging to a Senegalese, I stopped suddenly and unconsciously because of my deep concentration on Jesus. I closed my eyes and, as in a film, I saw passing before my eyes all the sins I committed in night clubs, my indecent sins, the sin of invoking the spirits of money, and so on. I was there for about 10 minutes, during which time many of my sins passed before my eyes. I opened my eyes and around me there was a gathering. The old Senegalese who had followed everything from the beginning, asked what was happening. I simply replied, “It is Jesus,” and I continued on my way. Since he did not understand, he said to those around, “Certainly, he is mad.”

I knew that Jesus Christ had entered my life and that it was he who had given me forgiveness and this indescribable joy.

To My Muslim Brother

I hope I have helped you to discover the source of this indescribable joy through this brief testimony. You saw my determination to follow the Koran in spite of the contradictions I detected in it. You saw to what extent I was attached to the religion of my fathers. However, I thank God for giving me the strength to say yes to the truth proclaimed by the Bible.

Muslim friend, what are you going to do?

Will you follow the “uncertainties” of the Koran or will you go to the side of the one who is the truth, Jesus Christ, who assures you of salvation now and, of course, in the hereafter?

When you have been deceived in all areas and in different ways, just do not accept that, for the sake of the salvation of your soul. Do not trust in the mere words of an Imam or a marabout but take the Koran and scrutinize it, study it. Whether you are called Abdoulaye, Moussa, Maimouna, Fatou, Bakary or any other name, do not say, “Because my father is Muslim, I am also Muslim.” Ask yourself whether you are saved. If you die today, will you go to Paradise? That is the question you have to answer.

You will certainly discover in your Koran research that you might be able to be saved through your good deeds, but think a while: Are you sure you can do enough good deeds to gain a place in Paradise? As you do good deeds, you also do evil ones which God sees. That is why the Koran cannot assure you of salvation. You will only find “uncertainties” in the Koran whereas the Bible which, besides, is confirmed by the Koran, shows you the path above all others, the only path.

Do no look at your fortune or your social rank. Do not look at those around you. Look at your own life. The important thing is for your sins to be forgiven, and the only way for that to happen is through Jesus. He forgives your sins, even those you have committed since your youth. Does the Koran not say that those who follow Jesus are above those who do not believe in him?

My Muslim friend, what are you going to do?

“Come! Follow me!” Jesus said.

Will you do it?

---


 
 

First French printing Nov. 1993.
English edition May 1995.
HTML edition Sept. 1998.

This present text is available in booklet form from CDM, 08 B.P. 424, Abidjan 08, Ivory Coast.