Journey in search of spirituality ... Spain's Muslims refuse to limit Islam to the "religion of immigrants" 

Muslims in Spain constitute a small fraction of only 2.1 million people in the country.

Spanish Muslims reject the stereotype that limits Islam to the scope of immigrants only, and in statements to Anadolu Agency, Omar Del Pozo - President of the Muslim Community Association in Spain - said that this image that depicts Islam in Europe must be changed as a religion for immigrants only. .

Del Pozo stated that he grew up in a Spanish Muslim family, and that he witnesses the conversion of one of them to Islam almost every Friday in the Great Mosque that he runs in Granada, noting that there are about 3 thousand Spanish Muslims living in Granada.

Campaigns to smear Islam

For his part, Muhammad Jaouaruddin - who converted to Islam 40 years ago and came from Madrid to Granada and settled there - said that there is a lot of bad and wrong information about Islam today, and there are also many anti-Islam campaigns in newspapers, television and most of the media, describing this as an order. Tragic due to the widespread ignorance about the subject.

Jawaruddin - who changed his name after converting to Islam from Francesco to Muhammad - added that there is permanent coexistence between religions in Europe, and that whenever the Islamic community wants to be strengthened, it faces external pressures and evils that seek to harm the coexistence.

He emphasized that Islam represents to him more than just a religion, as it is "a much broader system of life that enriches and completes the individual."

He explained that some of his customs and religious life had changed after he converted to Islam, and that his family did not initially accept his new status, and he also faced some problems in his private and professional life, as he occupied a good place in his field of work in cinema and theater when he was in Madrid, but some people did not Accept his conversion to Islam, noting that he has lived in Granada for 25 years and his four daughters are Muslims.

Searching for spirituality

On the other hand, Salha - a Spaniard who was born and raised in Granada and changed her name from Rosario to Salha after she converted to Islam 39 years ago - said that it is very difficult to change prejudices about Islam, and that the role of the press is very important in this matter.

Salha added that Granada is called the land of magic, and that it was the city of kings in the past and was filled with nobility and beauty, and that although Granada was considered a place of coexistence and a very special place for Muslims, Islam needs to be better explained (to non-Muslims).

Salha explained that after the end of the dictatorial period in Spain (1936-1975), a state of turmoil prevailed among young people and the search for spirituality, and that she found Islam during this research.

She saw some of the things that brought her closer to him, such as sharing others, friendship, good coexistence, social justice, and belief in God as one God.

Shoaib Sanchez, a Spanish Muslim.

He built a mosque with his own capabilities in an area about 25 kilometers from Granada, and works to provide opportunities for 500 families in the surrounding area for worship and social activities.

Sanchez said that he became Muslim in the 1980s after he got acquainted with a Muslim group and saw what he was looking for in Islam.

He added, "The Islamic state of Andalusia has existed in these lands for nearly 800 years, not only in Andalusia, but also in Murcia, Valencia, Zaragoza and Teruel. This is not shown by the archaeological remains that have remained since that era, but also there are remains and traces of some social aspects." .

Sanchez tells that, for example, when he became Muslim, he was surprised and surprised when he saw a person perform ablution.

This is because his great-grandfather used to wash in the same way, a tradition that has been preserved until now.

Sanchez indicated that he works in the field of ceramics, and that his workplace, as well as the materials he uses in his work, all remain from the Islamic culture to this day.

It is not just the religion of immigrants

As for Myriam Cuenca, who is 64 years old and lives in Abela, Spain, she said that there is a perception that Islam is the religion of immigrants only.

Myriam became Muslim for nearly 20 years, then she became the first woman to hold the position of secretary of the Islamic Union in the Autonomous Region of Castile and Lyon, and at the same time she assumed the position of Secretary of the Islamic Community in Abela, as well as a member of the Islamic Committee in Spain.

Myriam stressed the need to change some misconceptions about Islam.

Islam is seen as a religion for immigrants only, and some of them are demanding Muslims - with every racism - to return to their countries.

She explained that these racists do not understand that there are Spanish Muslim citizens, and they do not remember that Islam ruled this region for 800 years.

Miriam Sanchez pointed to the press coverage of Islam, saying, "She is not neutral with regard to her news about Islam in general, and does not adhere to accuracy and there are minor exceptions."

Spain has nearly 2.1 million Muslims, including 880,000 Spanish citizens, most of whom are immigrants who have been resettled.