Monday, May 10, 2010

Jamal Jivanjee's Memory

According to Jamal Jivanjee's current biography (as of May 10, 2010):
Growing up in the Columbus Ohio area, Jamal Jivanjee was raised by a devout Shiite Muslim father ... and a very conservative Catholic mother ... . Jamal's quest for the truth led him out of Islam and Catholicism, and down some perilous roads, but eventually to Christ as a young adult. Jamal went on to become a graduate of Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA where he studied Pastoral ministry.
(source)

Keep in mind that Dr. Ergun Caner claims to have been raised by a devout Sunni Muslim father. Also, keep in mind that Mr. Jivanjee claims regarding the Caner family:
My father was a devout Muslim and we attended functions at the same mosque/ masjid that Ergun, Emir, & his family attended on east Broad street in Columbus, Ohio. Ergun & Emir’s father, Mr. Acar Caner, was a very prominent leader within the Islamic community that we associated with and was very involved with this mosque. As a result, I remember as a young child going to their home with my family to have dinner with their family.
It would be interesting to know what approximate year Mr. Jivanjee remembers visiting the Acar house. From what I could find on the Internet, Mr. Jivanjee is about 35 years old, meaning he was born about 1975. As such, in November of 1982 (the date Caner indicates as his conversion), Mr. Jivanjee would have been about 7 years old.

I don't doubt that everything that Mr. Jivanjee said is true. The fact that his father was Shiite and Acar Caner was Sunni is not as significant as one might think, given that in the late 70's and early 80's there were not huge numbers of Muslims in central Ohio.

Notice that Mr. Jivanjee doesn't say he or his family regularly attended or worshiped at the Broad St. Islamic Foundation, but just that they "attended functions" there (although, again, perhaps there as no Shiite mosque in the area at the time). Notice as well that Mr. Jivanjee does not claim to have personally known Ergun and Emir, but just to have dined once with Mr. Acar Caner and "his family" (which may well have referred to Mr. Caner's second wife and daughters).

Some of Dr. Caner's fans seem to think that Mr. Jivanjee's comments above prove that Dr. Caner was not just from a Muslim family but a devout Muslim, and that this evidence exonerates Dr. Caner from all the accusations of dishonesty that have been swirling around him. The problems are (1) that's not what Mr. Jivanjee says and (2) it doesn't appear that Mr. Jivanjee, being only about 7 years old and in a different branch of Islam at the time Dr. Caner apparently converted, would have been in a position to know whether Dr. Caner was a devout Muslim.

I trust that Jamal Jivanjee will continue to speak the truth about his knowledge, and particularly the limits of his knowledge. While it would be great to be able to vindicate Dr. Caner's claim to have been a "devout Muslim" (and he may have been a devout Muslim, I am not claiming otherwise), Mr. Jivanjee's testimony is probably not going to be enough (as it stands) to silence the critics.

- TurretinFan

6 comments:

Unknown said...

I'm finding this stuff more and more interesting (being a native Ohioan and citizen of Columbus); though, what I find especially interesting is that a devout muslim would marry a conservative catholic and vice a versa. Let me know if I can use my location to serve in this matter.

Anonymous said...

TF, though noble that it is, it is my guess that Mr. Jivanjee will not contact you and provide you with any truths that reflect poorly upon himself or Dr. Caner.

We would hope that the Spirit of Grace works in his spirit and that the Truth is greater than friendships gained or lost?

I suppose the only hope is that resolutions are permitted to be put on the floor and not tabled during their convention in June?

The wisdom that Liberty University is exercising is not sound nor biblical. I wonder if the Truth has caught them off guard like Peter's denial and now they are looking for some cleaner way to end this controversy?

The same Jesus is just as powerful now as He was in getting Peter out of his lies!

Joh 20:19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you."

Turretinfan said...

Timothy,

Thanks for the offer! I will keep you in mind.

-TurretinFan

Unknown said...

It turns out I have friends who are in some way connected with Mr. Jivanjee. I just realized it. I recently saw several videos he posted on FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=1008905886&v=app_2392950137

I knew that name was familiar!

Turretinfan said...

Yes, though he is in Tennessee now, he originally came from the Columbus area.

Moses Model said...

In a sermon from Midwestern Baptist Seminary given 9/8/2009, available on ITunes, Ergun claimed he prayed with Jamal Jinvanjee before they both converted to Christianity at his mosque. He also claims that Rifqa Bary worshiped at the same mosque as he and his brothers did. As far as I can tell, Rifqa barely worshiped at the Noor Islamic Cultural Center which did not open until 2006. http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/09.08.2009-ergun-caner/id218413186?i=81836900&mt=2