Bünyamin Yıldız, a Dutch-born Turkish imam, is proud in having helped 150 people to convert to Islam during son passage in the country. Work in mosques run by the associated Dutch Diyanet Foundation with Turkish Presidency of Religious Affairs (DIB), Yıldız says The words of the Prophet Muhammad guide him to lead more people to Islam.
While son mandate of nine years in two mosques in the European country, its efforts converted people from the Netherlands, as well as from Poland, Russia and China to Islam.
Yildiz, 34, hopes to convert more people in his last post as imam of Ulu Mosque in Bergen op Zoom, a city in the south of the Netherlands.
Yıldız told Anadolu Agency (AA) that son inspiration was “sahabe” (sahabah – companions of Muhammad the Prophet who spread Islam to different countries). “I carry the same intention and receive the results. I feel blessed to help others,” he said. He attributes conversions to driving of Muslims. “My guide is the hadith (saying) of the Prophet who urges the devotees to ‘make things easy for the peoplecalm them with good news and don’t push it away.
Sydney Zandwijken, a 21-year-old man, is among the Muslim converts he guided. Both met at the Mevlana Mosque where Yıldız used to work in rotterdam. He says he was influenced by his Muslim friends and Yıldız helped him convert. “I was looking for peace and Islam brought it to me,” he said.
