Two sisters became captivated by Islam, and their French liberal, `Jewish-by-chance' father has found himself having to face up to their religiosity and subsequent expulsion from school. The incident has provoked both private and national ferment.
Laurent Levy, a sworn liberal and a total atheist, noticed dramatic changes in his two daughters, but he did not attribute much importance to them. One day, about two years ago, the two girls stopped eating pork. "No problem," he said. A while later, they informed him that they intended to fast during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan. Levy thought it the most natural thing in the world that his daughters were adopting.
When Levy's daughters - Lila, 19, and Alma, 16 - told him that they were going to fast for the entire month of Ramadan, he did not stand in their way. "It is their right," he said.
A while later the sisters informed him of their intention to pray five times a day, as commanded by the Koran. There is no reason why they shouldn't do this, thought the father. Then they stopped going to the beach and wearing bathing suits, and even stopped using the family swimming pool during vacations. At night the two sat and learned chapters of the Koran by heart. Friends in the neighborhood and at school were amazed by the change in the two cheerful young women. Gradually they began to wrap themselves in long clothing, even in the summer, and covered their legs with thick stockings.
About a year ago the transformation was completed. Lila and Alma donned scarves and covered their heads. After a while they also covered their chins and their foreheads. At school they stopped talking to boys, whispered only to each other and distanced themselves from the other students. They did not take part in physical education classes, as they were required to wear gym clothes that they felt revealed too much of their bodies.
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Two sisters became captivated by Islam, and their French liberal, `Jewish-by-chance' father has found himself having to face up to their religiosity and subsequent expulsion from school. The incident has provoked both private and national ferment.
Laurent Levy, a sworn liberal and a total atheist, noticed dramatic changes in his two daughters, but he did not attribute much importance to them. One day, about two years ago, the two girls stopped eating pork. "No problem," he said. A while later, they informed him that they intended to fast during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan. Levy thought it the most natural thing in the world that his daughters were adopting.
When Levy's daughters - Lila, 19, and Alma, 16 - told him that they were going to fast for the entire month of Ramadan, he did not stand in their way. "It is their right," he said.
A while later the sisters informed him of their intention to pray five times a day, as commanded by the Koran. There is no reason why they shouldn't do this, thought the father. Then they stopped going to the beach and wearing bathing suits, and even stopped using the family swimming pool during vacations. At night the two sat and learned chapters of the Koran by heart. Friends in the neighborhood and at school were amazed by the change in the two cheerful young women. Gradually they began to wrap themselves in long clothing, even in the summer, and covered their legs with thick stockings.
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http://www.balkanchronicle.com/inde...rf-daughters&catid=89:muslim-world&Itemid=463
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