Malaysiakini.com （http://www.malaysiakini.com）
(1)Do the Christian thing, forgive the journalists, 17 July 2009
by Paul Warren
It was reported in an English daily that the two journalists charged with 'causing disharmony' may face two to five years in jail.
If a different party had committed such an act to a different community, without question they would have been arrested under the ISA and yet we see a different reaction to this situation.
Most of those arrested under the ISA don't how they are threat to national security.
But in the case of the Al-Islam reporters, their actions were clearly capable of causing racial or religious disharmony. The charge does not reflect the seriousness of the offence.
To try to understand the authorities action thus far, you have to look at how each offended community is expected to behave upon such violation upon them.
The Catholic and Christian attitude at best is a forgiving one. This has already been said by one of the bishops. Of course, they make known the violation that has happened.
Even those who had made the police report, beyond that, wait for their religious elders to guide them towards closure. And most of us achieve closure by forgiving these two ignorant journos.
We may make a police report, hold a prayer of protest and or an outdoor candle light vigil to let known to the indignant and indifferent that this is unacceptable behaviour.
Now, the response by the Catholic and Christian community in no way undermines national security. I cannot see the use of the ISA in this instance.
Honestly, I think the Catholics and Christian community have already by their response thus far shown their disapproval and we can leave the rest to the divine.
Now, how would a violation of an equal magnitude visited upon a mosque or any Islamic rituals or practice be responded to?
I don't even want to contemplate how it might turn out. But within the context of the laws in place, it could trigger a response that could easily threaten national security within the definitions provided for under the Internal Security Act.
Not that I support the ISA, but as for the various tools available to the authorities to bring calm and peace, the ISA might just be appropriate.
As to how the authorities will deal with this matter, there are several factors that will come to play.
1. The police report itself which is an expression of disapproval over a violation of self and which might be covered by some criminal act or other.
2. The attitude of the authorities of their responsibility to non-Muslims especially when the authority responsible for the outcome is insensitive towards the feelings of the non-Muslims.
3. The weight given to the justification of the actions of these two journos, if this justification can be found within their own religious calling.
An attempt has been made by a blogger, Mahaguru58, where he quotes one religious leader and he quotes the Quran.
If you are inclined towards religious justification, then really these two journos have done no wrong. The only thing that matter is if their actions have violated any Islamic edicts or fatwas. Since in the Catholic Eucharist it is only the bread that is consumed, and it is neither dipped in wine nor is wine served, their only concern for theses two journos was if they might have consumed the wine.
And now that we know that wine was not consumed, and that they may have not, in their religious calling violated anything. They actually are heros.
Now, put in that position, how then are the police going to act? There is no real harm done. The Christians have had their opportunity to put on display their very charitable forgiving attitude.
I say that having made known that what was done was unacceptable, the Christian thing to do would be to withdraw. There is no need to contribute towards retribution or punishing these two journos. That is for the law to take its course.
Maybe if it comes to trial, and if I was to stand as the prosecuting witness, the only thing I would do is to explain what the Eucharist means to me and the Christian community.
Then I would to look at these two journos in their eyes and tell them, it is not necessary for them to ask for forgiveness as it may just be beyond them to understand, but to tell them that we forgive them nevertheless.
(2)Al-Islam journalists, editor must be punished, 20 July 2009
by Jude Chan
For too long, the sensitivities of Catholics have been brushed aside by misinformed Muslims acting on the excuse of ferreting out 'murtad' cases.
In 2007, the Holy Mass at Our Lady of Lourdes in Silibin was disrupted by group of Muslims on the pretext that Muslims were being converted en masse. This proved to be false of course.
In 2009, Muslim journalists come into our church, unannounced and disguised as Catholics. They took part in the Holy Eucharist and even received Holy Communion, which is reserved for Catholics.
Then they had the audacity to spit out, photograph the expelled communion and publish it in their magazine. What was their reason for acting in this manner?
Again, supposedly to ferret out 'murtad' cases.
Can we not see a trend in this? They entered our churches and participated in our ceremonies. The sensitivities of Catholics have been completely ignored.
Indeed, the latest episode is but a blatant act of contempt towards our religion. What does this white communion wafer mean to us?
Joachim Francis Xavier and Sudhagaran Stanley, the two people who lodged a police report on this matter, had this to say:
"The 'communion' is held with great reverence and cannot in any way be mishandled or (treated) with a lack of respect. Even Catholics are not allowed to take home the 'communion' but are instructed to consume it immediately during the service.
Xavier and Stanley said they were "outraged that these Muslim men consumed it (the communion) only to spit it out later, have it photographed, and have its image published".
This time it has gone beyond total disrespect. Section 298(A) of the Penal Code makes it a criminal offence to cause disharmony, or feelings of enmity, hatred or ill-will, or prejudicing, etc. the maintenance of harmony or unity on grounds of religion.
The fact that the journalists of Al Islam believed that they were ferreting out cases of conversions/apostasy/murtad do not afford them a defence.
Section 298A(7) provides that it shall NOT be a defence to any charge under this section to assert that, what the offender is charged with doing was done in any honest belief in, or in any honest interpretation of, any precept, tenet or teaching of any religion.
I want these journalists to know and understand that there are consequences to their actions. I also question the judgment of the editor of Al Islam who had allowed this article to be published, completely brushing aside the sensitivities of Catholics.
I call on the minister to exercise his powers under Section 7(1) of the Printing Presses and Publications Act, 1984 to prohibit the publication of Al Islam.
The same must also be said for the printer of the magazine who may have committed an offence under Section 4(1)(b) of the same Act by printing a document which is likely to promote feelings of ill-will, hostility, enmity, hatred, disharmony and disunity.
2.MySinchew (http://mysinchew.com.my)
ANGRY IN MALAYSIA, 20 July 2009
by Soo-Inn Tan
"My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you." (James 1:19-21 TNIV)
If you are a follower of Jesus in Malaysia, you are probably angry. Consider the following.
1. Two Muslim journalists infiltrate a Catholic church incognito. They had heard that a number of Muslims had been converted to Christianity through this church. They found no evidence of such conversions. During mass they come forward to take the communion wafer. They did not swallow and held the wafer in their mouths till they had left the church building. They then spat out the wafer and took pictures. They then published an article about their "adventure" together with pictures of the spat-out communion wafer. To date there is no reprimand from any official government body. Police reports have been made.
I come from a free church tradition. I believe the communion bread remains bread though I believe the Spirit of Christ is at the Lord's Supper. This is beside the point. Malaysia is a multi-racial, multi-religious country where the constitution protects the dignity of all religions. The silence from the government is deafening. Imagine if some Christian journalists had thrown the Koran on the floor, taken pictures, and published the story. Of course we should forgive our enemies. But there are other issues involved, including holding the government responsible to its call to protect the dignity of all religions.
2. In recent times the Malaysian Anti Corruption Commission (MACC) has been aggressively investigating public servants from opposition parties. (Of course whether a party is considered an opposition party depends on your perspective. In truth the "opposition" parties form the duly elected governments in a number of states.) Christians should be at the forefront of any fight against corruption. But when politicians from the governing party are rarely investigated while so many politicians from "opposition" parties are investigated, something is seriously wrong.
The glaring double standard gives lie to the fact that the Anti Corruption Commission is a non-partisan body committed to eradicating corruption wherever it is found. It seems that the Commission is but a political tool of the ruling party.
3. And now we learn that a political aide, who was interrogated by the Commission, has fallen to his death from the 14th floor of the Anti Corruption Headquarters. He had been taken to the MACC office at 6pm on Wednesday (July 15th) to assist in the Commission's investigation into the alleged abuse of constituency development funds by several state assemblymen. Did he jump? Was he pushed? We do not know.
What we know is this. He was interrogated till 3.45am in the morning. In the words of Goh Keat Peng:
[Why was a witness being held for questioning for ten hours and only released at 3.45am? What kind of case is it and what is the urgency of the case in question that the witness had to be deprived of sleep and forcibly kept awake till 3.45am? Was the nation deemed to be in grave danger had the witness in question been sent home at a respectable time and asked to report again for questioning the next morning?
The nation could endure long years of waiting over so many other much longer pending cases involving so much more public money and have much greater weight in public interest but this particular case could not wait for the next morning when the witness in question would have been fresher and better rested?
Like I said, if you are a follower of Jesus in Malaysia you should be angry. I am. Which is why I remember James 1:19-21. I know righteous anger can quickly become unrighteous. I know that when I get angry my discernment is compromised. I am more vulnerable to manipulation. I become rash and speak and act prematurely. When I am angry, I need to bear in mind at least two things:
1. Unrighteous anger will not accomplish God's purposes. If our concern is to be agents of God's work, unrighteous anger is out.
2. When we are consumed by anger we only see the evil "out there." We stop working at the evil inside us. We forget the ongoing call to "get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent" in our own lives.
However, fear of unrighteous anger should not paralyse us from doing what is right. Followers of Jesus are called to speak up against injustice.
["Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy." (Proverbs 31:8-9 TNIV)]
And as John the Baptist discovered, "speaking truth to power" may demand the highest price (Matthew 14:1-12). There is a time to speak up. There is a time to act. There is a time for righteous anger. But we must guard our hearts and ensure that all we say and do flow out of the twin loves for God and neighbour (Mark 12:28-31).
Whatever righteous anger may look like, it must come from a heart that has such a deep passion for God that we are deeply pained that His ways are violated. It must come from a heart with such a deep compassion for human beings (of whatever race or religious background) that we are roused when human life is violated. And it must come from a heart that is always suspicious of its own righteousness.
・This article is used with permission from GRACE@WORK.
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