Philadelphia born and raised Angelina Rivera grew up participating in church every Sunday at her mother’s request. She considered herself Christian and was fairly practicing. Interestingly enough, she said it was because of her regular attendance in the congregation and listening to the pastor that questions began to pop up in her head.
“Certain things [the church] explained did not make any sense to me, so it made me question everything,” Rivera said. “No one could answer what I was questioning, like, ‘Who’s God and who created? Why are we on this Earth?’ No one could answer these questions for me, and I was curious.”
The inquisitive teenager found more questions than answers at her local church. Like many teens, she turned to her friends—many of whom were Muslim.
“Even though they weren’t practicing, they still [had] a clear answer,” Rivera said. “I was just shocked because no one ever responded to me like that.”
Questions about religion, God, and Jesus didn’t phase Rivera’s Muslim friends. They gave her straightforward answers—a phenomenon she hadn’t experienced so directly before from her church pastor or her mother when it came to religion. Islam was different from her Christian upbringing. Like an open book, there was nothing to hide—no beating around the bush. Islam provided logical answers that Rivera could appreciate, understand, and eventually, act on.
Her friends’ answers started to make sense, and Rivera then began to search the Internet to delve deeper. The answers she found online from prominent Muslim scholars deeply moved her.
“I would cry when I listened to certain things about Islam, the beliefs about Heaven and Hell, the angels who are close…about how merciful Allah is,” Rivera said. “Angelina, what other proof do you need? This is the right religion. This is the truth.”
Making It Official
It was Ramadan, and Rivera locked herself in her room searching on the Internet: “How do you become Muslim?”
The church-going teen was roughly three years deep into researching the religion of Islam. YouTube videos of world-renowned Muslim scholars filled her feed with lessons about Islamic belief and practice.
She learned the shahada, the Muslim declaration of faith: “There is no god except God, and Muhammad (may the blessings and peace of God be upon him) is the final messenger of God.” She repeated it to herself over and over again—just in case she ever decided to convert to Islam.
Rivera then searched up how Muslims pray. Like she did with the shahada, she tried the prayer, salaah, to see if it was something she could definitely do. She found herself full of joy with each motion of standing, kneeling, and prostrating.
As she became more interested in Islam, Rivera realized she always had Muslims around her. Her childhood best friend’s mother was Muslim, and as a young girl, she witnessed her praying. Her high school friends came from Muslim backgrounds, too. Even when working at Lowe’s as a manager, she encountered a Muslim woman who was drawn to her bubbly personality and welcoming energy.
“I told her, ‘I’m going to be honest with you—I want to become Muslim,’” Rivera said. “It was so, SubhanAllah (glory be to God), random.”
The woman referred Rivera to the local mosque and the imam there who was a convert to Islam himself.
“I did not hesitate. I went on my break an hour later, and I called. I introduced myself and [said] I want to become Muslim,” Rivera said. “[The imam] said, ‘Oh, okay. Well, when?’”
“Now. When I get out of work,” she responded.
Later that day, Rivera showed up at the mosque in a long cardigan and a winter scarf repurposed as a hijab, or headcovering. She said her shahada once again—for real this time—and made her conversion to Islam official.
Staying Steadfast Despite Challenges
Within one week of entering the fold of Islam, Rivera put on her hijab full time. Whenever she was in public, no one was able to see her hair.
“I felt like it was my crown,” she said.
Wearing the headscarf, of course, made Rivera a visible Muslim woman. She endured a number of discriminatory encounters at her customer-facing workplace from derogatory comments about her dress to being filmed without her consent. Eventually, she quit her job altogether to regain some peace of mind.
But the hostility, unfortunately, didn’t end at work.
Rivera’s mother feared her daughter would dwell in the hellfire for leaving the Christian faith, and was very vocal with her concerns.
“As a Muslim, when I learned how Allah loves those who are kind to their family…it made me stronger,” Rivera said. She handled her mother’s comments and actions with grace, and after some time, albeit months to years, the antagonism began to shift.
“When she sees how I react, she [says] ‘I’m proud of how strong you are with your religion. It makes me want to be stronger with mine.’” Rivera said.
Angelina Rivera’s journey highlights just how valuable clear and straightforward answers can be to a person who is searching for meaning. Islam gave her the answers she desperately seeked, so much so, that the resulting conviction was enough to transform her life.
If you have questions about Islam, need help connecting with Muslims, or want to find your local mosque, reach out to 877-Why-Islam.