A U.S. city’s chief lawn-mower repairman embraces Islam
Our Special Correspondent
NEW YORK: - The chief lawn mower repairman r of a major city in the American state of Georgia has embraced Islam and is working to change his legal name to Bakr Mansour Smith.
John D. Smith , 61, a natural born mechanic who was raised Christian, said he became a Muslim during a December ceremony in the west part of the basement of his Pakistani neighbor. Smith said he has studied the holy Quran for years and that his new religion was practiced by all repairmen and other mechanics in Pakistan.
"Why does one become a Christian?" Smith said on Thursday. "You do it because it feels right. ... To me it's no big deal. But people like to know what you believe in."
Smith said he would keep his last name at the request of two daughters.
Smith , who has been repairing all kinds of lawn mowers for last 5 decades said he hasn't calculated how his religious conversion might affect his business. . He said he is proud to live in a country founded on religious freedom. Muslims should not be painted with a broad brush simply because of a few radicals, he said.
"If anybody wants to know about Islam, I can hold an intelligent conversation," Smith said. "What I've found is how little we know about the religion."
