Guest Muslim pastor in W. Dundee: ‘God saved me from myself’

Article updated: 8/13/2011 1:07 AM
Guest Muslim pastor in W. Dundee: ‘God saved me from myself’

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From the time he was a little boy growing up in Lebanon until he was 21, Hicham Chehab was consumed with hatred toward Christians.

Lebanon was a war-torn country divided between the Christians and Muslims, with many Muslims angered that the Christian minority treated them like second-class citizens.

So when a Christian militia group killed Chehab’s older brother in Lebanon 30 years ago, Chehab admits to hunting Christians down at night to avenge his death.

But all that changed when Chehab, formerly a Muslim extremist, took a cultural studies class at the American University of Beirut that required him to read selections from the Bible, including “The Sermon on the Mount.”

In one part of the sermon, Jesus instructs his followers, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.”

Chehab, 51, knew the Quran chapter and verse, but wasn’t at all familiar with the Bible. He felt God was talking directly to him when he read that particular verse and he took it right to heart. God, he said, saved him from himself and taught him the power of forgiveness.

“When involved in something, you are kind of drowned in it,” Chehab said of his previous activities. “You don’t see the other side of the coin. I saw the other side of the coin reading the Bible.”

This weekend, Chehab brings his story to Bethlehem Lutheran Church in West Dundee as the guest pastor. He will discuss his past life and his transformation at the 5:30 p.m. Saturday service and again at 10 a.m. Sunday. A PowerPoint presentation on his fellowships in Lombard and Batavia follows the Sunday service at 11 a.m.

Christine Gross, a member at-large on Bethlehem’s church council, is responsible for been bringing guest pastors to the church once a month.

The 100-year-old church is in the midst of trying to redefine its focus and Chehab’s story should definitely give members something to think about.

“He brings something different to the pulpit and something different to our church,” Gross said. “He has a powerful, powerful message.”

Chehab went on to become a peacemaker of sorts, bridging the gap between Christians and Muslims in Lebanon. He calls himself a Muslim follower of Jesus.

Chehab lives in Hanover Park. He runs his Salam fellowship out of Peace Lutheran Church in Lombard and Immanuel Lutheran Church in Batavia, helping refugees get on their feet, teaching them American customs and introducing them to God.

In West Dundee, he hopes the message of forgiveness shines through.

“I hated, I had a desire for vengeance and I was kind of ruining my own life,” Chehab said. “But I saw hope and forgiveness in the forgiveness that Christ gives, in peace.”

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