How do I convert/revert?

Many of you may wonder what goes on in the head of someone who wishes to embrace the faith of Islam, what challenges such a person faces, and so on. When I was sure of my belief, one of the first questions that came up in my mind was, understandably… how do I convert/revert to this religion? Is there some kind of complex ritual involved?

To give you a deeper understanding of this question… you may have noticed that people who changes their faith to Islam are refered to as either “converts” or “reverts”? I think in most cases, it’s the latter, “reverts”. Convertion simply means to change one’s religion. Revertion is related to an understanding that all who are born into this world are born as muslims, but their religion is altered and later in life, by embracing Islam, they revert back to their original state. I think it’s an interesting aspect to consider. It has a certain significance in my case…

Christian faith consists of a step called “baptism”, in which a person becomes a member of the faith through a ritual given by a figure of spirtual authority (a priest, equivalent to an imam). The person that becomes a christian is having water sprinkled over their head, the water signifies a washing away of past sins, while the priest utters religious words and welcomes the new member into the faith. Baptism can occur at any point in a person’s life but it is very common for christian parents to baptize their children in the first year of their birth. That is what happened to me. In that sense, a child is given little choice as the understanding of a baby is… well, with no experience of the world and no knowledge of the faith itself, it’s non existent. They may simply be surprised at the sudden sense of water on their heads. And would a child’s wailing and babbling be considered as an acceptance of the faith? God knows.

In addition to that, in this society, all babies automatically used to become (in a beurocratical sense) registered members of the christian church at birth, provided one of the parents was also already a member, (so I guess baptism was just a necessary formality?). (Important to note that I am unsure whether this routine has been in every European country, or just here. (* “here”: Sweden.) I believe it’s just here.)

This rule has been removed in later times, alhamdulillah, so now, babies are registered as church members along with the ritual of baptism. Not at birth. Confusing? I know. I can’t really explain it either. Perhaps we can see it as “beurocratical/administrative registration” and then a ceremony of “spiritual acceptance”? Also, since I became a member of the christian church at the moment of birth, I still battle the question… does that make me a convert… or a revert? Not that I feel it’s of any greater importance for describing my current faith, I’m ok with either. But… I think you may have just gained a larger appreciation for the question I held… how do I convert/revert to Islam? Is there some kind of complex ritual involved?

Understandably, I was very delighted to see that accepting the Islamic faith was not a complicated matter at all. Not that it would have discouraged me, I’m pretty sure I would have confidently gone through with necessary steps, knowing I accepted something that felt true and sure to my heart. But the lack of such complications was certainly a positive plus. In the beautiful words of the Holy Quran…

سورة البقرة ٢٥٦
قَد تَّبَيَّنَ ٱلرُّشۡدُ مِنَ ٱلۡغَيِّۚ فَمَن يَكۡفُرۡ بِٱلطَّٰغُوتِ وَيُؤۡمِنۢ بِٱللَّهِ فَقَدِ ٱسۡتَمۡسَكَ بِٱلۡعُرۡوَةِ ٱلۡوُثۡقَىٰ لَا ٱنفِصَامَ لَهَاۗ وَٱللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ

Surah Al-Baqara 2:256
Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things.

Alhamdulillah endless times for this, and for having accepted this beautiful religion that gives purpose and clarity on so many levels. I faced other questions on this journey towards Islam, and we will take a look at them inshallah.
(For any potential non muslim who may be reading this and curious how to change their faith, I recommend checking this website).

Eid is just around the corner. I aim to drop a quick update, perhaps a bit later on that day, and then we will carry on to explore the questions I faced inshallah. Be sure to check back for that. For now, I hope that you are all having the most beautiful and blessed time with friends and family.

The best of times to you all inshallah.
Peace, happiness, and stay faithful.