Threading My Prayer Rug: One Woman's Journey from Pakistani Muslim to American Muslim

Sabeeha Rehman

Jun 2016 · Sold by Simon and Schuster

About this ebook

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM SAROYAN INTERNATIONAL PRIZE FOR WRITING. ONE OF BOOKLIST'S TOP TEN RELIGION AND SPIRITUALITY BOOKS. ONE OF BOOKLIST'S TOP TEN DIVERSE NONFICTION BOOKS. Honorable Mention in the San Francisco Book Festival Awards, Spiritual Category
A 2019 United Methodist Women Reading Program Selection
This enthralling story of the making of an American is a timely meditation on being Muslim in America today. Threading My Prayer Rug is a richly textured reflection. It is also the luminous story of many journeys: from Pakistan to the United States in an arranged marriage that becomes a love match lasting forty-five years; from secular Muslim in an Islamic society to devout Muslim in a society ignorant of Islam, and from liberal to conservative to American Muslim; from bride to mother; and from an immigrant intending to stay two years to an American citizen, business executive, grandmother, and tireless advocate for interfaith understanding.

Beginning with a sweetly funny, moving account of her arranged marriage, the author undercuts stereotypes and offers the refreshing view of an American life through Muslim eyes. Sabeeha was doing interfaith work for Imam Feisal A. Rauf, the driving force behind the Muslim community center near Ground Zero, when the backlash began. She recounts what that experience revealed about American society and in a new preface discusses Islam in America in the time of Trump.

About the author

Sabeeha Rehman came to the United States in 1971. When her sons were school age, she earned her masters in healthcare administration and began a career as a hospital administrator. After her grandson was diagnosed with autism, in 2008 she cofounded the New York Metro chapter of the National Autism Association and was its president. She has spent several decades working for interfaith dialogue and was COO of the Cordoba Initiative and director of interfaith programs at the American Society for Muslim Advancement, where she traversed the Tri-State area raising awareness about Islam and in particular about the role and rights of women. She has been on the public speaking circuit since the late 1980s and has spoken at synagogues and churches, civic organizations, educational institutions, and on television. She lives with her husband in New York City.