Tag: Muslim

‘Homosexuals’ Need To Educate Conservative SG Muslims

This is a response to the recent posting made by Azman Ivan Tan who asserted that homosexuals are “delusional”.

Sexual identity and religion are sensitive and contradictory issues in Singapore. Only a few are willing to discuss them open-mindedly. Most are likely to say that having a different sexual preference is a perversion of religion and a betrayal of human nature or social norms.

The strict adherence to the varied messages that can be taken from the Quran, and the staunch opposition to homosexuality that exists within the Islamic faith, form the foundation of many of the issues that LGBT Muslims face.

But there are still some in the Muslim community who feel that homosexuality is a “delusion”, a “mental illness” or a “phenomenon”, and who stress an avoidance of one’s homosexual desires in an effort to keep in line with their Islamic beliefs. Fellow Muslim brothers Azman Ivan Tan and Ustaz Noor Deros who started this Wear White Movement have clearly illustrated this in the most unpalatable way.

The notion of being gay and Muslim at the same time is very tough when we see how stereotypical views about gay people are still present in our society. Most people grossly conflate gayness with pedophilia, promiscuity, social pathology and other stigmas.

It is therefore imperative to foster dialogue between religious groups and gay communities to bridge the difference. Instead of renouncing gay people as deviant, religious groups should embrace them and learn how to synchronize their situation with Islam.

Gay people, therefore, need to explain their situations sincerely by either coming out in public when they are ready for it, or feeling comfortable with their personal state before expecting society to understand them.

In fact, two-way communication to bring different perspectives about sexual identity and to convey the message that it is a fluid concept should be encouraged in order to create commonalities among components of society.

The stigma still exists. It will take time to change that.

Authored by Ash lee

READ MORE ON LGBT & PINKDOTSG HERE

EDITOR’S NOTE

Are you supporting the Freedom to Love or are you supporting the Traditional Values of Marriage and Family?

Which side are you on? Share your opinion with us at Rilek1Corner.

June 11, 2014
Fatwa Merokok Itu Haram

10 SEBAB MENGAPA ISLAM MENGHARAMKAN ROKOK

1. Rokok menjejaskan akal (mental)
2. Rokok membahayakan kesihatan fizikal
3. Rokok membahayakan keselamatan diri dan orang lain.
4. Rokok membahayakan keturunan
5. Rokok mengganggu manusia lain.
6. Rokok menimbulkan akhlak buruk
7. Rokok mensia-siakan waktu hidup
8. Rokok bercanggah dengan maruah Islam
9. Rokok membazirkan harta (wang)
10.Rokok mengandungi dadah (nikotin dan arak)

Sumber: www.e-fatwa.gov.my

June 11, 2014
No Proper Support For Muslim Converts After Conversion to Islam

Terence Helikaon Nunis

This is more for the converts. In coming to Islam, we still have family and friends of our prior faith. Just as we want them to respect our spiritual path, we must also respect their beliefs. It is never acceptable to condemn them because they did not find what Allah (s.w.t.) had Allotted for you. Your role is to be an example in this world, not so much in terms of knowledge, but more in terms of adab. And strive to be one of those Granted the Gift of interceding before Allah (s.w.t.) on the Day of Judgement.

It is also important that we do not tolerate disrespect of the faith of our family from the Muslims, just as we do not condone disrespect of Islam from the non-Muslims. Islam is about justice. We must be fair. And we cannot allow ourselves to be turned into performing monkeys by Muslims who feel the need to parade a convert condemning a prior spiritual path to feed their collective egos.

In every convert story, we speak and we hear about those who found Islam after study, after discovery after a epiphany. In reality, it was Allah (s.w.t.) Removing His Veil so that we could find Him.

Hakim ibn Hizam (r.a.) was a relative of Khadijah (r.a.), the wife of the Prophet (s.a.w.). He was renowned for his mercy and generosity. Before the rise of Islam, he used to buy the daughters of those families who wanted to bury them alive and graciously assumed the responsibility of taking care of them. Hakim ibn Hizam (r.a.) asked the Prophet (s.a.w.) about these good deeds which he had done prior to his declaration of faith in Islam.

The Prophet (s.a.w.) replied, “These good deeds are but the reasons that brought you the honour of being Blessed with Islam.”

Being Given Islam is a tremendous Honour. The shahadah is the Key to Paradise. Just as it is Given, it can be taken away. So we must consider why we are Muslim. And never think we are better than those who are not.

As a Muslim, I still have a great love of Catholicism. And spending time with both the Catholics and the Muslims, the Catholics are superiors to the Muslims in my eyes. If the Catholics were all Muslims and the Muslims were all Catholics, the ummah of Muhammad (s.a.w.) would not be in this sorry state.

The one thing that disgusts me about many Muslims is how they are so sure they alone are going to Heaven, or how they are full of triumphalism when someone converts as if it validates their ego. Aside from that, they do nothing for the converts. Or how they disparage the beliefs of the Christians when they only have kindergarten knowledge, but when a non-Muslim were to do that, they want to claim injury. Hypocrites.

If I were to look at the Muslims and confuse it with Islam, I would never have converted. The average Muslim is not a good example of the sunnah of the Prophet (s.a.w.). There is only affected piety, arrogance and cultural imperialism. As an ‘alim once said, “Islam is in the books and the Muslims are in the graves.” The ummah of Muhammad (s.a.w.) is dust and we are left with arrogant, self-righteous pretenders.

Authored by Terrence Helikaon Nunis*

*Terrence Helikaon Nunis used to be Catholic and belonged to a missionary organisation. After his conversion to Islam, he sat on the board of a Muslim converts’ organisation and specialised in da’wah programmes, convert management, interfaith issues and apostasy cases. He is also an initiate of a Sufi order.

EDITOR’S NOTE

What a brave guy.

Life stories and testimonies from Muslim converts are always interesting because they come from different backgrounds and colourful cultures. Adapting to Islam can be quite challenging but all challenges bear fruits of joy at the end of sheer determination and perseverance.

People who are born into Islam have the benefit of having a foundation with their parents and family. The Qur’an is on their bookshelf, Arabic words are mixed into conversation without needing definition, and there is an environment of tradition that provides a reference point for looking at the world. A convert is experiencing the total opposite. He or she doesn’t have any sort of religious connection with their family anymore, and there is sometimes backlash from parents and extended family about the decision to become a Muslim.

Even if there’s no significant backlash, there are no blood relatives to talk to about Islam, no one to clarify things, and no family support to be offered in the entire process. All of these things can cause an immense amount of stress and disillusionment. It’s common for converts to have moments of breakdown where they feel like nobody is on their side. For those who are lucky enough to have a close friend or mentor to help them in situations like this, it’s still not the same as having family help. Converts need an exceptionally good amount of emotional support from individuals in their community to feel empowered as Muslims. This doesn’t require a full-time therapist, but just people to make them feel at home.

June 9, 2014
The Tudung Issue: Open Letter to the Prime Minister

Dear Prime Minister,

Wishing you a very Happy New Year.

I hope that what I am going to say here will help to make you reconsider your stance with regard to several issues which the Malay Muslim community has long been unhappy about, the latest of which concerns its women folks’ desire to wear the tudung wherever their employment may be.

To say that the Malay Muslim community is sad and disappointed with your decision to still disallow its woman folks in certain sectors of employment to don the tudung is an understatement.

As usual the mainstream media tried to paint a different picture with its lopsided report. The Berita Harian topped it up with a group photo of seemingly happy, smiling people to give the false impression that the community is happy with your decision. I do not see any sensible reason as to why they should be smiling.

Inso far as this issue is concerned the community has been keeping track of statements made by your ministers, including those of the Minister in charge of Muslim Affairs and members of Parliament from your party over the last few months.

I read the statement you made after last Saturday’s dialog session several times over to try and make some sense of what you were saying and what message it was supposed to convey.

I find it strange that in spite of having lived among Malay Muslims all your life and after more than 50 years lording over the people – 55 years of PAP rule since 1959 – you and senior members of your party still do not understand the psyche of the Malays and their steadfastness over their religious faith.

Perhaps you have been relying too much on feedback from the mainstream media and from people around you who may include those who regard themselves ulamas and who have the tendency of making a virtue of telling you only what they think you would like to hear. Many among them may have mastered the art of posturing or are simply playing the PR game.

If you continue to rely on the mainstream media – in this case the Berita Harian,which many in the community feel is being micro managed by your Minister in charged of Muslim Affairs – for your feedback and be counseled largely by people around you,chances are you will remain blissfully ignorant of what the Malay ground is really saying.

Some are already saying that the Prime Minister seems to think that he is now mightier than God since he has the power to easily overrule what has been made obligatory by the religion.

They are not happy that they have to subject themselves to the discretion and whims and of the government even in carrying out certain aspects of their religious obligation.

Granted that not all Muslim women will want to put on the tudung even if they are allowed to. That is their personal choice and they are answerable to God for their defiance. As for those who choose to don the tudung it is felt that there should not be an earthly power to prevent them from doing so. Even the Constitution guarantees them the freedom to practise their religion.

You also warned against a ‘push back’ from the other communities should we insist on having it our way.

At the same time you noted that the issue over the tudung was an old one and that you fully appreciate the desire of those who want the headscarf to be able to be worn by women more freely. According to you the change has got to be gradual.

It can be agreed that change has got to be gradual. We have no quarrel with that and have been patiently waiting for change to happen. There has not been muchprogress since the 10 years that the issue last surfaced. We are neither asking for any concession nor are we taking anything away from or even depriving the other communities of anything, let alone intruding into their space.

As such the likelihood of any push back from the other communities is very remote.It is only your government that is making it sound so threatening. Singaporeans are very rational people and when given the proper explanation as well as by citing examples shown by other countries where Muslims make up even smaller numbers there is less likelihood that they would raise any objection.

As things stand today, there is no evidence that members of the other communities are unhappy if Muslims women are allowed to wear the tudung no matter where their places of employment may be. They have got so usedto such sights. Contrary to what you think, my experience shows that they are quite supportive of our effort. This only goes to show how out of the touch you and your government are with the ground.

I shall not dwell into the example you mentioned, equating the tudung issue with the putting up of Chinese language signs on the circle line as I feel that it is irrelevant in this discussion and totally out of context. This can be discussed at another forum.

ButI agree that the issue at hand is broader than the tudung itself. I suppose you are trying to say that you have to be fair to followers of the other faiths, hence the term ‘push back ‘. I suppose the breath of the issue also include the need to broaden the common space and your government’s declared intention to build an inclusive society.

I find this argument quite hollow and insincere. On the one hand you and yourministers talk about broadening the common space and the government’s desire in building aninclusive society. But on the other hand and in practice you are shrinking the common space by importing large numbers of immigrants mainly from the People’s Republic of China, India and the Philippines to swarm our limited space and in the process making life less bearable for Singaporeans. This has also further reduced the percentage of Malays compared to the others. Again no worries about any push back.

But what is so annoying and detestable to the Malays is the carving out of areas and making them exclusive to non Malays and Muslims. In case you miss the point I am referring to your long time discriminatory national service policy which bars us from large sectors of the armed forces, especially the in the more specialised areas in the army, the air force and the navy.

You have turned these sectors into exclusive domains of the non Malays and non Muslims.And you still have the audacity to talk about broadening the common space andbuilding an inclusive society? Can there be more hypocritical than this. We are taken to be fools.

The psychological, and to a certain extent, economic, damage this destructive policy has done to the nation as a whole and to the Muslims in particular is incalculable.This is no way to build a united multi ethnic nation. Of course you are not worried about any push back since non Malays make up an overwhelming 86.6% of the population.

For the sake of our future as a peaceful, united and progressive nation urgent steps need to be taken to make right where you have gone wrong.

You may begin by allowing our Muslim female nurses to don the tudung and gradually the other sectors like the Customs and Immigration, the Civil Defence and the rest. This should be followed by changes to other areas. Let us celebrate our diversity in unity.

Sincerely yours,

Mohamed Jufrie Mahmood

June 9, 2014
Homosexuals are Delusional

I spent some time reading the posts on a gay group. Sadly I am beginning to realize…

They are all delusional. They have perverted sense of what is right. They all have this mentality that their “love” is bigger than EVERYTHING else in this world. They really sound like very very depressed people. I think one of the reasons why they are doing this lifestyle is to escape from reality.

They are in fact empty inside. Their hearts do not really feel much. The pain they have in them. The feeling of incompleteness. The feeling that everyone is against them. They are just looking for escapes. Like a addict is looking for the fix.

Maybe they really need to be more TRUTHFUL to themselves. What really are they for on this earth? Do they think they are invincible and will live forever?

They are “supporting” each other to ensure they have people around they who are homosexuals. If they don’t have, they are lost.

My advise to those of you homosexuals reading this, think about the moment when you are about to die. Were you truthful to yourself? Did you really seek the truth? Or were you just finding the escape so that you can make yourselves have the moment of feeling fulfilled? The fulfillment is artificial and does not last. You know it yourselves. Why torture yourselves?

Authored by Azman Ivan Tan

EDITOR’S NOTE

The divide between the LGBT and WearWhite camps are getting more obvious. Increasing tensions felt between the two groups.

Are you supporting the Freedom to Love or are you supporting the Traditional Values of Marriage and Family? Which side are you on? Share your opinion with us at Rilek1Corner.

June 9, 2014