Source: Appeal-Democrat

On June 29, 2003 the Appeal-Democrat reported that Ali "Jensen, of Santa Cruz [CA], converted to Islam about 26 years ago after exploring transcendental meditation and Zen Buddhism, he said. According to Islamic teachings, he prays five times a day and fasts for an entire month, among other things... Jensen was speaking at the second Yuba-Sutter Abrahamic Interfaith Dialogue Program, a group involving Christian, Jewish and Muslim members... Coordinators stressed mutual understanding and peace as goals for the dialogue. They also reminded participants to respect each other's religious differences while maintaining one's own faith, and to stay away from politics."