(CNN) – A Muslim teenager from Ohio says her father threatened to kill her because she converted to Christianity.
Rifqa Bary claims her father wants her dead after she converted to Christianity.
Rifqa Bary, 17, ran away from her family in Columbus, Ohio, in July and took refuge in the central Florida home of the Rev. Blake Lorenz with the Global Revolution Church in Orlando.
The teen heard of the pastor and his church through a prayer group on Facebook. The girl’s parents reported her missing to Columbus police, who found her two weeks later in Florida through cell phone records.
The teenager, in a sworn affidavit, claims her father, Mohamed Bary, 47, was pressured by the mosque the family attends in Ohio to “deal with the situation.” In the court filing, Rifqa Bary stated her father said, “If you have this Jesus in your heart, you are dead to me!” The teenager claims her father added, “I will kill you!”
Mohamed Bary told CNN a lot of false information has been given and “we wouldn’t do her harm.” He knew his daughter was involved with Christian](http://topics.cnn.com/topics/christianity) organizations.
“I have no problem with her practicing any faith,” he said, but Bary admitted he would have preferred his daughter to practice the Muslim faith first.
Although Mohamed Bary said he did not expect his daughter to run away, Rifqa Bary was placed in foster care by an Orlando judge in August while the Florida Department of Children and Family investigated the threat allegations against the parents.
In a court filing Monday, John Stemberger, Rifqa Bary’s attorney and president of the Christian advocacy organization Florida Family Policy Council, accused the parents’ Ohio mosque of having ties to terrorism and radical Islam](http://topics.cnn.com/topics/islam). The Noor Islamic Cultural Center has denied the allegations.
Stemberger told CNN he agreed with his client that she would be killed by radical Muslims if she is returned to Ohio.
“She is a person who is ripe for apostate killing or mercy killing. I’m not going to let my client slip away in the night by going back,” said Stemberger.
Roger Weeden, the mother’s attorney in Florida, said the filing had no credible evidence but instead was meant “just to inflame the community and the court.” Weeden said he believes the teen’s attorney is trying to create an atmosphere of fear and intimidation.
The teen’s attorney said his client has endured a history of abuse from her family. Stemberger said the young girl was forced to wear the Muslim headscarf called a hijab and was punched in the face by her father for being ashamed while wearing it.
Stemberger is asking the court to keep Rifqa Bary in the custody of the state of Florida until she turns 18 in a year.
Mohamed Bary, who is not a United States citizen, said he can’t believe all the false allegations and the bad image caused by the situation.
“We are not bad people,” Bary said. “We are not like that, we are normal.”
The mother’s attorney said the teenager was a normal girl, a cheerleader in Ohio, and what Muslim extremist would allow his daughter be a cheerleader?
At a court hearing scheduled for Thursday in Orlando, the parents will have an opportunity to respond to the allegations against them. Their attorney said the parents will deny all allegations.
After the court hearing, the judge may force all the parties involved into mediation, followed by an adjudication hearing
Re: Muslim teen fears for life after changing religion
Atleast she didnt turned to hinduism...
A 17 year old getting pressured in USA, I dont buy that. Culturally pressured maybe an dyou been an hindu/indian should know that better. NOw how many examples would you like me to google for you?
Re: Muslim teen fears for life after changing religion
An educated teen in the US converting from Islam to Christianity is different from illiterate tribals lured by money converting from Hinduism to Christianity.
Moreover, Islam is a religion that frowns upon people rejecting it whereas Hinduism actually looks up to people who have moved from Hinduism to form other religions like Guru Nanak, Buddha & Mahavir (Jainism).
Now instead of being defensive, lets stick to discussing the topic.
A 17 year old is educated in accordance to you? and what does educated means?
If we stick to the topic then we will get no where as the article is baseless but your motives are totally understable in your world.
please provide some facts that indicates islam has done unjust to someone rejecting it and not from some individual's life that is a muslim and and did that etc......
As for Hinduism, lets not go into your cast system who let alone looks down on their own, let alone other religions and would love to provide you quite a few examples if that satifies your buds.
Re: Muslim teen fears for life after changing religion
^ I am not debating the merits/demerits of Hinduism/Islam. My point is that does a 17 year old know enough about any religion to want to leave one and adopt another ?
Why don't you go & spew your anti-Hinduism venom someplace else ?
Moreover, Islam is a religion that frowns upon people rejecting it whereas Hinduism actually looks up to people who have moved from Hinduism to form other religions like Guru Nanak, Buddha & Mahavir (Jainism).
The comment you made above says something else......are you sure you are debating a single point?
As for my anti-hinduism comments, I started any. Rather I've asked you for facts about comment that you made rather then express what you believe.
Re: Muslim teen fears for life after changing religion
Yeah, this story is really infuriating for me because I'm from a southern state in the U.S. where I've seen lots of big, powerful churches like this (many of them were more like money-making schemes) and they would prey on younger people from different religions. A close group of friends I had from a church like this tried to convert me and one of the girls later admitted to me that they used to have meetings in church specifically about ME and what tactics to use. Thats just wierd.
I think that this COULD potentially be a problem in other families, but in this case, I just can't believe this girl. Her interviews simply spew rhetoric and use common misconceptions about Islam to appeal to the mass public (she uses wierd phrases like "my blood is halal for my parents" and "its about honor")
I just find it hard to believe that her parents would threaten to kill her....she was a cheerleader for God's sake! no fundamentalist father i could imagine would allow his daughter to be a cheerleader.
It is happening all over the World, not just in USA.
Since we hear that "Islam is fasted growing religion" we just sit and do nothing ...we think it is someone else is job. It is each and every Muslims responsibility to spread the words of GOD.
Our main problem is that we Muslims fight over simple things.....bucket of crabs. We blame west of the problem but we have commited the biggest crime by hating each other (another words no uniting under one flag). Barelvi hate Deobandi (and All other Muslims are ghustaq-e-Rasool-- they started this in USA also). We are not even able to resolve Baralvi - Deobandi conflict which is over hundred years old. Why not ask the Muslim religous scholars (Hanafi - Shafi - Malik - Hanbali ) of the world to get together to resolve this conflict. (Why not ask SaudiArab?)?
Salafi hate Suffi & tablighi. Salafai thinks that we should only focus on non-Muslim and give dawat to Muslim is stupid and against Sunnah.
Islam is not just praying in Ramadan or Friday. Islam is the way of life...we must implement it in our life. 1st of all we don't teach our kids Islam and then when they start dating and drinking then we realize ohh....$hit where the hell we for last 20 years (busy in Dunya). If don't teach our kids Islam we will see the same results as South America where millions of Muslim become Christians. We are living in crazy confusing time, one of the brother in the community accepted Bahai faith and someone else from Hyderabad married to Buddhist girl and become Buddhist.
Imam in my Masjid said he got a call from Muslim brother who said his daughter become pregnant by non Muslim guy.
A 17 year old is educated in accordance to you? and what does educated means?
If we stick to the topic then we will get no where as the article is baseless but your motives are totally understable in your world.
please provide some facts that indicates islam has done unjust to someone rejecting it and not from some individual's life that is a muslim and and did that etc......
As for Hinduism, lets not go into your cast system who let alone looks down on their own, let alone other religions and would love to provide you quite a few examples if that satifies your buds.
Well brother Islam demands death to the muslim who rejects Islam. I dont think that U need any reference for that. So naturally the girl who has turned murtad needs to be executed by her father, if she doesnt turn back to Islam and if her father is a true muslim. This is the Islamic position on this topic.
Now for being unjust who reject Islam, If U think that breaking their temples and idols, on which they have faith, is unjust than Islam demands that. Thats why pious muslims have broken so many temples and idols in the past. If U need any reference for this comment of mine than feel free to ask.
Re: Muslim teen fears for life after changing religion
christain missioneries use money to attract the poor ppl and pursuade them for conversion. there are many cases where missioneries tried to convert the ppl by offering them money ................
Now for being unjust who reject Islam, If U think that breaking their temples and idols, on which they have faith, is unjust than Islam demands that. Thats why pious muslims have broken so many temples and idols in the past. If U need any reference for this comment of mine than feel free to ask.
Peace.
i disagree with ur arguement that is against the fact. if this wud the case we cud not see a mandar in the india. 1000 years is sufficient period to remove such kind of things.
in war and riots sometime it happens that place of worships get destroyed but it is not associated with the mandirs only.
beside u dont see much native spanish muslim in spain however in india hindus are still majority ........... hope u got my point.
what about the babri mosque .................. fanatics demoslished the whole mosque in the " secular " india under the pretext that it is janum bhoomi of ram .
however recently jug suriya a renowned journalist questioned the mere physical exitence of ram. every hindu severly criticised that article bt nobody cud prove its existence historically.
Well brother Islam demands death to the muslim who rejects Islam.
no, Islamic LAW demands that raj, not Islam. There is a big difference so dont just throw phrases around when you aren't fully aware.
secondly, this law doesn't apply in dar al-harb (areas where shari'a is not the code of law). Muslims are required to be good citizens and that means following the laws of the country in which they live.
i disagree with ur arguement that is against the fact. if this wud the case we cud not see a mandar in the india. 1000 years is sufficient period to remove such kind of things.
in war and riots sometime it happens that place of worships get destroyed but it is not associated with the mandirs only.
[/quote]
No brother, thats not against the fact at all. And muslim rulers in India didnt ruled according to Shariyah, thats why we see mandirs in India even today, and thats why we see mandirs in Pakistan even.
Its obligatory on a muslim to destroy any place of worship where someone else besides ALLAH is being worshipped. U can consult following fatwa in this regard.
Two or even two million wrongs cant make a right, demolishing any place of worship is a henious crime to humanity.
U have been quoting this phrase quiet often. I may or may not be agreed with Jug suriya, but messing with someone’s faith is not a good idea. however he and U are entitled to ur opinion.
I think that U are dissolving the whole issue into technical fluid, let me ask U a question technically,
Just Imagine that GOD forbid, the father kills her daughter for turning a murtad, its evident that laws of USA will hold him guilty of murder…what will be Islamic position of the father? I mean how he will be considered in Islamic world??? A brutal murderer who murdered his own daughter? or a pious muslim who didnt even sapre his dauthter for love of ALLAH?
^what do you mean by the ‘Islamic world?’ how will Muslim societies judge the father? How will Shari’a law view him? or how will God judge him? The phrase ‘Islamic world’ is sort of broad, don’t you think?
These are all totally different things. A lot of scholars within the different schools of thought have argued that the punishment for apostasy shouldn’t be death and in fact, the Quran itself does not advocate death for apostates.
What sickens me about this case is NOT that the girl converted…to each his own grave. What actually bothers me is the manner in which she has become an object of the conservative right Christian agenda in the U.S. and they have used her as a method to slander Islam and go back to the whole Bush-era ‘Muslims are fundamentalist terrorists’ propaganda. Look at all the conservative blogs today, watch Fox news…you’ll see how they are ALL OVER this story and using it to promote their own political agendas. It’s quite sickening.
So drop the whole ‘what religion is right’ crap…its not about hinduism or Islam. I think this is, at its core, a story about a family being torn apart. the main question is, has her father really threatened to kill her or is she being coached by the pastor who she fled home to go stay with? Its not about whether Islam ordains the behavior the father has been accused of or not
christain missioneries use money to attract the poor ppl and pursuade them for conversion. there are many cases where missioneries tried to convert the ppl by offering them money ................
Isnt this the same logic used by Hindu fundamentalists who protest mass conversions by Christian missionaries ? Then why do the non-Hindus make such a big deal about the protests ??
Anyhow, if U too are of the view that apostates shouldnt be killed, than I subscribe to ur thoughts just coz holy quran doesnt talks of death to apostates. But again the question arises that how many of ur bretherns would agree with U or to the scholars who dont think that Islam demands death to murtads. There are several ahadith to support their views.
Yeah, this story is really infuriating for me because I'm from a southern state in the U.S. where I've seen lots of big, powerful churches like this (many of them were more like money-making schemes) and they would prey on younger people from different religions. A close group of friends I had from a church like this tried to convert me and one of the girls later admitted to me that they used to have meetings in church specifically about ME and what tactics to use. Thats just wierd.
I think that this COULD potentially be a problem in other families, but in this case, I just can't believe this girl. Her interviews simply spew rhetoric and use common misconceptions about Islam to appeal to the mass public (she uses wierd phrases like "my blood is halal for my parents" and "its about honor")
I just find it hard to believe that her parents would threaten to kill her....she was a cheerleader for God's sake! no fundamentalist father i could imagine would allow his daughter to be a cheerleader.
This type of conversion should not "infuriate" anyone. Religion and faith is a personal decision and everyone has a choice to live his/her life they way they see fit.
You can't even force your blood brother and sister to follow a specific faith.
Muslims are ignorant of Christian faith (just like Christians are ignorant of Muslim faith).
Muslims in particular already believe in Jesus and the Bible. Thus we don't need to "convert" to believe in something we already do as part of our faith.
Muslims are ignorant in one big way when they start arguing with Christians about the birth of Christ and status of Christ in Islam. We say holy birth (means God sent a seed to virgin Mary), they say son of God. In both the cases, the miracle of virgin conception happened and Jesus AH was born.
Muslims need to practice and show on daily basis that based on our book, Christians and Jews will go to heaven just like us, because they believe in the unity of Allah, His angels, and His books.
So it is time to quit getting angry and get infuriated, and start using our heads. Otherwise, our youth will one day abandon us either to become Jihadis or to become non-Muslims.
It is time that Muslim community in the USA clarified their position that they support personal choice of faith and do not subscribe to the head chopping punishment for anyone just because he/she said Jesus is the savior.
If we learn from this incident, and teach the future generations accordingly, there is no need to fear.
