Few subjects are so sensitive in Egypt as the conversion from one religion to the other. It is often difficult to find out the truth in such stories with all of the possible interests involved, both of the convert and the people around him or her. One can obtain a better glimpse of the various motives through in-depth interviews with various actors. Neither Jayson Casper nor I have ever met with Muhammad Hijāzī. I, however, remember the outpouring of negative Egyptian media reporting when his conversion became public in the late 90s, making him despised in the eyes of many Muslims and a hero in the eyes of Christians wanting to see Muslims get to know the Gospel and/or Christians with generally negative perceptions of Muslims. Such experiences of hate and love also form the concerned convert; it may make them even more negative about Islam and preach this to anyone who wants to hear such a message.  For several years Hijāzī tried to change the religion field on his ID card, but once that court case was lost media attention for him declined.  His work with the U.S.-based al-Tarīq station, known for a very negative attitude towards Islam, however, brought new problems with Egyptian authorities. Why did he work with al-Tarīq? It is possible this was for lack of other sources of income. 

The only thing we can do with such potentially inflammatory stories is to try to be as factual as possible with the information found, knowing of course that what has been reported may be far from a complete picture. We are pleased with the effort of Jayson Casper to bring as much information together as possible which is reflected in the report below.

Cornelis Hulsman