Religious understanding

Ah, another letter which appeared in the Star of 18^th April 2009 on the perpetual issue of religious tolerant and understanding (misunderstanding?) in Malaysia.

What is pertinent is the one sided situation at the moment. Non-Muslims have ample opportunity to learn about Islam but there seems to be a dearth of avenue for Muslims to learn about other religions. Officially of course. Unofficially, there is always the internet, but it would be a major stepping stone towards a more meaningful understanding of different religions if Muslims are exposed to the others.

One paragraph from the letter said “Perhaps, non-Muslim religious programmes and inter-faith dialogues should be aired on national TV”. That hope, I am afraid would be just a dream looking at the current situation.

But, we the optimists, those who want a better nation, have eternal hope.

The letter:

Religious understanding a two-way traffic

I AM responding to G.K. Lim’s letter “Good for non-Muslims to learn about Islam” (The Star, April 13).

Personally, I believe it is equally good for Muslims to learn more about the faiths of various non-Muslim religious groups that are practised in Malaysia particularly.

And it is best to learn from the qualified sources, such as the respective religious groups, to prevent any misconceptions.

Getting to know each other is a two-way relationship and I find the situation nowadays is not so.

From my observation, most Malaysian Muslims have a long way to go in understanding and appreciating the faiths of their fellow non-Muslim Malaysians.

Perhaps, non-Muslim religious programmes and inter-faith dialogues should be aired on national TV.

I beg to differ from Lim as there are a lot of Islamic TV programmes aired on national TV to enable non-Muslims to understand Islam.

Certainly the time has come for fellow Muslim Malaysians to learn and appreciate the non-Muslim faiths as we march forward as citizens sharing common universal values.

THE ANALYST,
Kemaman.