August 4, 2008 | 10:06 pm

The interview: Hamas scion explains conversion to Christianity, respect for Israel

Posted by Brad A. Greenberg

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Last week I mentioned the amazing story of Christian convert Masab Yousef. What made Yousef’s story so surprisingly was his background as the eldest son of Hamas’ leader in the West Bank. Yousef was raised on a religious diet of hating the infidels and the state of Israel. Now born-again and living with tens of thousands of Israelis in California, Yousef, who goes by Joseph, has spoken out against Hamas and in support of Israel, which he misses and doesn’t expect to see again.

In this interview with Ha’aretz’s Avi Issacharoff, Joseph recalls how prison opened his eyes to the “real Hamas” and a simple act of evangelism planted the seed that changed his life. He sends his regards to Israel and calls Islam “a big lie”:

“I feel that Christianity has several aspects. It’s not only a religion but a faith. I now see God through Jesus and can tell about him for days on end, whereas the Muslims won’t be able to say anything about God. I consider Islam a big lie. The people who supposedly represent the religion admired Mohammed more than God, killed innocent people in the name of Islam, beat their wives and don’t have any idea what God is. I have no doubt that they’ll go to Hell. I have a message for them: There is only one way to Paradise - the way of Jesus who sacrificed himself on the cross for all of us.”

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“I left behind a great deal of property in Ramallah in order to achieve true freedom. I wanted to get to quiet surroundings that would help me to open the eyes of the Muslims and reveal the truth to them about their religion and about Christianity, to take them out of the darkness and the prison of Islam. In that way they’ll have an opportunity to correct their mistakes, to become better people and to bring a chance for peace in the Middle East. I don’t give Islam a chance to survive for more than 25 years. In the past they scared people and in that way they prevented anti-religious publicity, but today, in the modern age, they won’t be able to hide the truth any longer.”

At the moment he doesn’t have a partner, but he is relying on help from above on this matter, too. “I hope that someday God will give the opportunity to meet the right one. She will have to be a believing Christian, and if she’s a Jew who converted, even better.”

Sorry, Joseph, I’m no Yente.