So, what is your stance on Tawhid?

Are you really interested in practicing Salat?

And do you have the stomach for Sawm?

If it was Islam you were interested in, you would've already converted.

If you think that Islamic cultures promote the exclusive Pedo, think again. Heck, their net result is more tolerance for gays in the Maghreb; not as a matter of doctrine, but culturally.

I did spend time as a convert before lapsing back into Atheism.

Tawhid combined with a universal call was part of what drew me in.

Another was the idea of mystical union with the umma through Salat and Hadj.

I experienced Sawm two years in a row; and at the height of Summer too :)

I was already drawn by Sufism, but I could see the benefits of some of the traditional schools of Islamic Jurisprudence. ( My supporters at the Mosque and community centre knew that there were a lot of long-haired would-be Sufis. So I suspect that they were delighted with my interest in traditional theology too. )

Keep in mind: Islam is less a belief and more a practice.

Anyone can recite the Shahada in front of witnesses as a first step in conversion. Then comes the lifelong practice of an entire lifestyle. What that lifestyle is varies a bit depending upon culture, region and school of jurisprudence. But make no mistake; Islam is about reconfiguring your life around the lifestyle, not vice versa.

Sure, the slurs against Islam include that it "promotes Pedophilia;" which is a misreading of the notion of child-brides which are only practiced in a few remote cultures. And frankly, if a Westerner wants to travel to Yemen, there is a lot of regional baggage on top of Islam they will have to submit to.

As an apostate; I hypothetically live under a death-sentence; though I doubt that the nice Pakistani lady on the council and the nice Egyptian Imam would be anything more than disappointed by my reversion. Had I chosen to flee to where child-marriage is practiced; I would most certainly be dead for my apostasy.

In a way, the West had its chance and blew it. The Gulf War era introduced a lot of Westerners to Islam, and quite a few GIs converted. I met many, though I wasn't a vet myself.

The third Balkan War created much sympathy for the victims of genocide; and many more curious people converted.

Then the most awful event for Western Muslims created the greatest opportunity. Just after 9/11 there was a movement to create a distinctly Western Islam with the previous cultural baggage removed. Maybe it didn't have enough momentum. Maybe NYPD infiltration programs defeated trust within the networking communities. Who knows? But a distinctly Western Islam seems to be on hold.

By all means study Islam. Read you Qur'an and Hadith. Read histories. Read schools of jurisprudence. Read convert accounts. And then decide on Islam's own merits whether it reflects your spirituality.

But don't convert to have Islam be what you would prefer it to be. It is a community and a practice. Neither of them have your preferences in mind.

Dante