Why Did They Become Muslims

a new era by conquering Istanbul, had to announce the event to the
entire world by converting Saint Sophia, which had been a symbol of
Christianity, into a mosque, a symbol of Islam. Fâtih Sultân
Muhammad Khân never destroyed Saint Sophia. On the contrary, he
had it repaired. The Qur’ân al-kerîm does not contain a
commandment concerning the demolition of churches. As we shall see
later ahead, Muslim governments have always protected churches and
other temples against transgression.
Now we shall tell you about the conversion of a mosque into a
church accomplished by Christians, who consider themselves as
affectionate, innocent, and compassionate. The following passage is a
paraphrased translation from Spaneien=Spain, prepared in
cooperation by Prince Salvatore, Prof. Graus, theologian Kirchberger,
Baron von Bibra, and Ms. Threlfall, and published in the Würzburg
city of Germany in 1312 [1894 C.E.]:
“Cordoba (Qurtuba in the Arabic literature) is one of the most
important cities of Spain. It was the capital of the Arab Andalusian
state in Spain. When Muslims under the command of Târiq bin Ziyâd
‘rahima-hullâhu ta’âlâ’ (crossed the Gibraltar and) landed in Spain in
95 [711 C.E.], they made the city their capital. The Arabs brought
civilization to the city and developed it from a semi-wild habitation
into the cultural hub of Spain. They built a grand palace [Al-Qasr], in
addition to hospitals and madrasas (Islamic universities). Besides
these, they established a Jâmi’a [grand university], which was at the
same time the first university established in Europe. Up until that time
the Europeans had been far behind civilization in knowledge, in
science, in medicine, in agriculture, and in the humanities. Muslims
brought them knowledge, science, and culture, and tutored them.
“Abd-ur-Rahmân bin Muâwiya bin Hishâm bin Abd-ul-Melik I
‘rahima-humullâhu ta’âlâ’ [d. 172 (788 C.E.)], the founder of the
Islamic state of Andalusia, intended to have a grand mosque built in
Qurtuba (Cordoba). He wanted the mosque to be larger, lovelier and
more gorgeous than the mosques in Baghdâd. He found a plot that he
thought would be most suitable for the mosque. The plot belonged to
a Christian. The money he demanded for his plot was very high. Being
an extremely just ruler, Abd-ur-Rahmân I did not have recourse to
compulsion for the expropriation of the plot, which he could have
done quite easily. He paid the owner of the plot the money he
demanded. The Christians used the money to build a small church for
themselves. The Muslims began to build the mosque in 169 [785 C.E.].
During the construction, Abd-ur-Rahmân worked for a few hours
with the other workers every day. Materials necessary for the
construction were brought from diverse places of the orient. The
lumber necessary for the wooden parts was transported from
– 276 –