A fundamental problem with rules



Chan Kheng Hoe

Our National Fatwa Council has done it again. After presumably extensive research, countless hours of debate and in-depth study into the Holy Books, they have reached the undeniable conclusion that the practice of "kongsi raya" needs to be re-considered. The reason? It may compromise the faith of Muslims who attend such functions.

This begs the question, is our faith determined by the functions we attend? Does going to the mesjid make us Muslims, and going to the temple make us Buddhists? If that is so, I am afraid that our dear prime minister may have compromised his faith because I clearly remember reading about him attending a Christmas celebration organised by the churches.

Faith is essentially about the unseen. It is not necessary when a fact is evident. The seed of faith springs from our hearts. With our hearts we believe in God, and from our hearts, some of us choose not to believe. Is a person murtad because he sins? Clearly not, otherwise the whole nation will be full of apostates. He can murtad only in the heart. His lifestyle, at best, are mere signposts to indicate the condition of his heart.

So, let's consider the elements of "kongsi raya" that make it so deplorable. To my mind, "kongsi raya" essentially comprises families dressed in nice clothes eating cookies and talking courteously with each other with some form of music playing in the background. If that's deemed a threat to the faith of a person, that person's faith can't be very secure in the first place.

If we're bent on banning corrupting elements, let's consider banning other things as well. Perhaps we can ban the World Cup due to the exposed body parts of both males and females displayed occasionally when a goal is scored. It wouldn't hurt us at all since we are never represented in the World Cup anyway.

Or we could ban Bursa Malaysia. Speculation in securities beyond any logic and economic fundamentals is clearly acknowledged even by non-Muslims to be akin to gambling. Coupled with the fact that the KLCI dipped below 900 points recently, all the more we should ban the Bursa.

Of course, to be fair, the attempt to maintain the "purity" of faith is not confined to Muslims alone. Fundamentalists from all faiths have always sought to keep their faithful on the straight and narrow path by a plethora of rules. At the heart of the rules, however, is not faith but fear. There is an underlying fear among all fundamentalists of every religious persuasion that without the rules, their flock will somehow go astray. Unfortunately, the Almighty God is deemed not mighty enough to keep the faith of the faithful.

Then there is also the fear of syncretism. Wikipedia defines syncretism as the attempt to reconcile disparate, even opposing beliefs, in order to assert an underlying unity. Hence, a syncretist may marry opposing principles of different religions to create new tenets of faith. In the worst case scenario, syncretism would recognise another deity or god alien or even opposed to the original faith.

If that's indeed the fear, I would like to let all fundamentalists in on a secret. Syncretism is already here. It is in fact thriving in our society. It does not manifest itself during "kongsi raya" functions. Years of living under the Damocles' sword of oppressive laws have ensured that every Malaysian knows how to respect another person's faith very well.

Instead, syncretism, like its counterpart faith, also springs from our hearts. Fundamentalist rulings can remove the faithful from the world, but they cannot remove the worldliness embedded in the hearts of the faithful.

Yes, there is an alternative deity in Malaysia. He is worshipped profusely. His adherents do not stray from his teachings, for his teachings are buried deep within their hearts. We have "Friday Muslims", "Wesak Buddhists" and "Sunday Christians", but the followers of this deity are faithful seven days a week, 24 hours a day. Even when they attend the mesjid, temple or church, their thoughts remain faithful to this deity alone.

Who is this pretender to the throne, who has displaced the Almighty, and permeated Malaysian society today with the tentacles of his influence? Let me declare to you now his name, and you judge for yourselves whether you had in the past fallen on your knees to worship him. He is none other than Materialism, the deity embodying the love of money.

Perhaps next year, the Fatwa Council can consider banning "kongsi kaya" instead.

Kheng Hoe is a former fundamentalist who has changed his mind. Comments: feedback@thesundaily.com