What is in a name? Angels have names. Human beings have names. Why? Because we are many and we need to distinguish one from another. But God is One. I believe it. You believe it. Thus, the One has no need for a name to distinguish Himself from others. Why then do we name our God? We give Him many names but these names describe His attributes. He is Yahweh (Jehovah), the “I am that I am” which describes His uniqueness. He is God the Healer, God the Merciful, God the Omnipotent, God the Omniscient. We, human beings, give names to our God because we need to relate to Him according to His attributes and in our particular needs. Do you believe that Allah is His proper name? To say that is to say that He is one of many and we need to distinguish Him from many. No, Allah merely means God (and this is also an attribute). The Malay speaking Christians use both Allah and Tuhan in the Bible to distinguish between the words “Lord” and “God” in the English form. Imagine that if all references of the word “Allah” is to be replaced by “Tuhan” we will have a verse that says “Tuhan Tuhan ku” replacing “The LORD our God”.
Salam n good day 2 everybody…
2 tell u the truth, i am a malay n muslim but am very sad 2 hear over what happened 2 other races n religions in Malaysia.bumipetera???…..I never proud 2 be one…instead i am ashamed and sad when politicians took advantage on us and now everybody will look down on muslim n malays. If I have a choice, i won’t choose 2 be born as malay or so called bumiputera because i m afraid that my status would insult all my beloved friends from other races. I respect all races and religions.
Actually there are a lot of us malays n muslims who reject the ideas to banned other religions using the words Allah, because we feel what important is our faith.As long as we believe and practise our faith sincerely, there’s nothing 2 be afraid of what words other religions are using.Everybody has their own right to use whatever language or words they choose to.
So you won’t go into a discussion directly with him, responding to his aggressive posts as you noted in post 2.1.2.1.1, but after that, you have no problem trashing the guy 3rd person on the same thread with other posters.
The difference in yours and his styles are crystal now. Maybe what with your somewhat invertebrate “nonconfrontational” style you might ask yourself if you’ve been in TH a little too long for the good of your own sense of character.
the main parallels between what’s happening right now here in malaysia and events during the spainish inquisition is that we unworthy humans have taken it upon ourselves to pass divine judgements upon on our own fellow beings….when in actual fact that it is God who will be doing that when the time comes……wish I been born as an orang utan and wrote a hit song about pounding on my chest like a gorilla…..
I am saddened at your ignorance and although your love for your religion is commendable, it is still no excuse for stupidity. People like you are narrow minded enough that you don’t see the bigger picture, learn the actual historical facts. Allah was not solely used by the Quran since the dawn of time. It was found in any other Arabic spoken religions of past like Christianity in the middle easy for example. And the Sikhs. You do not have a patent on the word. Besides, you clearly demonstrated how ignorant you are by quoting verses from the Quran that preach acceptance but yet you are not?? Stupid much?
What does someone’s last name have to do with other people with the same name? I mean, my name may be James Franklin but that does not tie me to Benjamin Franklin.
FYI JFK did not initiate the so-called dominos theory. It was around for a while already and as far as I recall the first person of high political rank to mention it was Dwight Eisenhower in 1954.
Also FYI Thai soldiers fought alongside American troops, at one point having 17,000 men in Vietnam. Not the best way to make friends with near neighbors.
Also FYI after the fall of the Khmer Rouge Pol Pot was given sanctuary at one point by the generals in Thailand. Six relaxing years in Pukhet. He also died while in hiding in Thailand.
You write this: ‘having Mcnamara as reporter is a set up to indirectly mislead the audience’
I am baffled. I may be ignorant of something you know so could you eventually explain this and also try to clarify the slant of your comment?
It seems like a bit of a rant without the necessary connecting of dots to make it understandable. Thanks.
I appreciate the perseverance of how HM, King Bhumibol has worked tirelessly to solve the drought problem in Thailand, especially in the NE where drought continue to be a major problem for the people of that region. As a child growing up in Isaan, I always become excited when important people announce that a squadron of airplanes would be flying over our village to make the much needed rain. We waited. The rain never materialized. Hopelessness set in within the hearts of the people,for they feared they could not feed their children. It was a long time ago, but I can still remember one Isaan family committing suicide because they had nothing to live for. I remember an elderly woman and her grandchild walking from village to village, without shoes, begging for what the people were willing to give. The herd of elephant from Surin and their Mahouts begged for food and cash. Thailand has come a long way since the horrid 1970’s where poverty was rampant. Now, I have realized that back then (70′-80’s), this rain-making project was in its early years of development. It was the reason why it didn’t work. But the government at the time made it seem that the project had already been proven effective. Good for Thailand, the technology has since been improved.
Stop fudging Nganadeeleg. I have sparred with you on many occasions and I know you are quite capable of articulating in as many words, and in as many posters as you please, at New Mandala to help ignorant me see …. as you say it, “the big picture”. That silly advice ‘to look beyond Thaksin’ does not help Nganadeeleg if all you could do is conspirationally whisper hush hush … there is lese majeste … I can’t say much right now. There are no Thai royal secrets at New Mandala … that’s the whole idea of the Walker-Farrelly NM enterprise, among other things … if you still don’t get it old pal!
Bialao is convinced the millions (Neptunian will be mad because I could not count!) of anti-Thaksins led by the Kamnan are ‘fighting to protect Vajiralongkorn’, while oddly seemed fanatical for the Lao royals …. (Bialao could have read the banned book in Thailand Ngana keeps insisting I should read, seems like).
No reservation on all the detail historical takes and especially laud you for putting them together the ways you did.
Just one point that will make present quagmire more on the ‘colonial legacy’.
Burma being made a province of India, a colonist brilliant ploy, allow UNMITIGATED migration not immigration mind you, of Kalar as “Royal Subjects” enable every Kalar to freely settle in Burma especially in Yakine and Tanintayi which are the very first colonized territories as well as close proximity.
The Rohingyas population is the major result of migration from adjacent eastern India, which was then regarded as under Konbaung dynasty realm.
The Kalar (Hindus and Muslims) assimilate well with the Yakhine knowing any otherwise will bring on sure “quelling” by the Burmese army. It was one of those quelling under Maha Bandoolas that the British used as an excuse to invade Burma.
Buddhists are the most tolerant that will end when violation of Buddha or Buddhist women are involved. Unlike large scale indiscriminate willful destruction and cruelty of anything Buddhist underway in adjacent Bangladesh and else where in Malaysia and Indonesia to a lesser extend.
Bigotry should never ever be associated with Buddhism.
Take a pause from your piety to reflect
on several historical facts. If you are
a Malay, your great ancestors were not
Muslims but were Hindu-Buddhists. Malays
were not Muslims since the dawn of time,
and neither were any other Muslims, because
long before Muhammad the Prophet had revealed to him the words of Allah, Judaism and Christianity (of the Abrahamic faiths) had
already been in existence. And long before Jesus and his disciples spread the gospel of the New Testament, Arabia was populated by Jews and pagan tribes. The Christian Copts had been in Egypt centuries before Islam came to al-Masr. And before the Jews, the Hindus and the Buddhists practiced their faith. And you also had Zoroastrians and, before them, Assyrians, and a variety of ancient belief systems.
Yes, Muslim and Jews do not recognize the Christian Trinity, but that does not invalidate the Trinitarian belief in the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, anymore than your belief in being a descendant of the patriarch Isaac (Ishaq) is valid, simply because Ishaq is mentioned in the holy Qur’an
15 times. Faith is faith and cannot be invalidated by science because the foundation of faith is of the spirit and not of the flesh.
As the holy Qur’an makes reference to non-Muslims, like Ahl al-Kitab, and Muslims revere Isa (Jesus), Mariam (Mary), Ibrahim (Abraham), Ishaq (Isaac), Issa (Esau), all of whom were Jews, what troubles you if a non-Muslim uses the word “Allah” in prayer (like an Arab or Indonesian Christian) ? Surely, if your own ancestors were non-Muslims, and the holy Qur’an instructs Muslims to revere Jews as prophets (like Ibrahim), then what is wrong with a non-Muslim revering God using Arabic terminology, which is not native to Malay culture to begin with ?
It seems to me, that all faiths are intertwined, geographically, historically and culturally. Therefore, I propose that you can no more deny the reverence of Jewish Prophets in the holy Qur’an as instructed by Allah, then you can deny the right of a Lebanese or Malaysian Christian to revere God by uttering the word “Allah.” In the end, we are all returned to the same God, through our souls, when we pass on, so how important is one word (whether it is Allah or Tuhan or God or Jesus
or Buddha or Vishnu), as aren’t they all variations on the manifestation of the one Creator, who may be revered in different ways by different people, but recognizes all his
(sorry, Marina) creations as divine.
You can no more claim “Allah” as your own, than I can claim Ibrahim as solely my own, simply because he happened to be a Jew. As Ibrahim is mentioned in the Qur’an, so Arab Christians, Indonesian Christians, Bahai’s and Jews from Yemen all use “Allah” in their daily worship. Were you to deny Malaysians
the right to use such a word, is it not equally right for me to reclaim my Jewish prophets from utterances by Muslims ? The holy Qur’an instructs Muslims to respect Ahl al-Kitab and respect Isa and Mariam, as the Prophet Jesus and the mother of Jesus,
as believed by Christians. Though you may not believe Mariam to be the mother of Jesus or I may not believe it, yet you still revere Mariam and Isa, as instructed by the holy Qur’an. What would you do if a Christian asked you not to revere Isa and Mariam, as they are not considered Muslim prophets in
Christian (or Jewish) belief ? Is their claim to ‘ownership’ of Prophets and Saints any less valid than your request for non-Muslims not to use the word “Allah” ? Do you believe that Allah favours your claim, as a Muslim, more than he might favour a non-Muslim’s claim ? Yes, Muslims believe Islam as the one and true revealed religion, but your religion would not exist if the Prophet Muhammad had no followers in the 7th Century AD. As it happened, he did, but not all followed him, and while the Hadiths of the Prophet condemn those who did not follow the Prophet, the holy Qur’an at the same time, praises the Ahl al-Kitab, who also chose not to follow the Prophet. can you reconcile these two seemingly contradictory viewpoints anymore than a Christian can reconcile, the Trinitarian belief ? Faith is faith, and as believed to be revealed by God, in whatever form, is equally and all valid.
As you struggle with Itjihad to come closer to Allah through your personal Jihad, please remember that your struggle is shared by everyone else on the planet, many of whom have different practices than you, but are still searching and struggling for the same goal as you are-to get closer to God.
China is a nation full of challenges. It makes one wonder, how China could survive and expanded over 5,000 years.
Two words jump up. Patience and Agriculture.
The Hans who dominate China, have been around for a long time. They know that they need to grow in terms of genetic pool, otherwise China could have been a nation of ‘idiots’.
So many outerlands were visited and conquered – not agressively with weapons, but with sublime cultures, language and trade – possible because of its ancient civilisation.
Whenever China was attacked (the Mongols and Manchus), the attackers were actually assimilated instead, and this made even the gene pool bigger, not to mention the land size.
The 5,000 year history has plenty to tell. Most Chinese would think that have come so far, what is another say 10 years of misery? Just be patient and wait for the next cycle of progress. It will come.
To support the expansion, there has to be good agriculture. The Hans have perfected agriculture because availability of labour, land, and water – food has never been a problem except for some specks in time in the last two hundred years. With machinery, their agriculture productivity will rocket, and labour can be diverter to more useful purposes.
Both these aspects make China strong under present circumstances – the world’s top exporter and maybe the top importer for the next twenty years – no doubt.
Vichai N, because the book that would help you see the big picture more clearly is banned within Thailand, you are excused for getting confused (but if you really want to find it, I’m sure there is a way:).
There are other sources of information that are not specifically banned within Thailand, but you wont find them being discussed in mainstream media so you will also need to be a little proactive in seeking them out.
Anyway, to help you in your search for the answer to your question, my advice is to try to look beyond Thaksin.
(if there is one thing I’ve learned about you, my old friend, is that you pay way too much attention to an old square head and his family:)
Wow. That’s a long article displaying in incredible accuracy of what’s alarmingly wrong with the general Muslim population in Malsysia, sheer unadulterated resolute ignorance AND the profound indifference of even the slightest desire to accurately understand Christianity but instead launch into the most misinformed blasphemous statements.
What unheard of religion does this “Trinity Gods” belong to? Surely not Christianity as for past 2,000 years our final count; The Almighty God, One True God Forever and Ever…ONE AND ONLY ONE.
I won’t bother to correct or clarify as such knowledge has been around long before Islam and hasn’t changed since then.
But since your inability to grasp even the most simplest of concepts exacerbated by your boastful and brimming with pride erroneus delusions, I’m going to ask you to consider this:
Water: Exists as Liquid, Solid and Vapor. You cannot change the compound H2O no matter what form it’s in, if will always be water. As the Holy Trinity, God Himself, Ubiquitous and Indivisible. I honestly have no idea where the Holy Mother of God the Virgjn Mary fits in your incredible fantasy of your version of Christianity but I’ll be sure to ask her to pray
for you, my Muslim brother.
Your lack of understanding of one of the Abrahamic religion truly saddens me. As your highly insecure ignorant-type fear of kalimah Allah appearing on or with The Holy Trinity is both mind boggling and incomprehensible to me.
But then again, my faith is pretty secure so I don’t worry about irrelevant things.
Brother Mansor, you need to understand that before the dawn of Islam Arabic Christians have been and will keep using the correct and only word to describe the Almighy One True God, Allah.
Unless of course it’s you who believes in more than one God and that’s the only plausible reason many, many years later Muslims in Peninsular want us to differentiate.
Anyway it’s not my place to conclude as it’s your faith not mine that appears to confuse you.
I noticed you keep mentioning the word sincere. May I ask why? And what about? Do you mean to say sincerity is not always practiced when in conversation with God?
Also I find it deeply disturbing that you appear to not only judge but mock Marina Mahathir’s sincerity (in what you don’t know as you haven’t said) when it comes to her relationship with God. It appears you have God/Allah complex as you seem quite judgemental and radially assertive. Do you not fear that God/Alllah is the only Judge and when you judge others you better be without sin do so?
How strange that you have no fear in God/Allah when when you brazenly talk about “justifying one’s sincerity”.
Wow, I wouldn’t dare as I’m far from perfect and will concerntrate on bettering my flaws not others.
I fear that your warped ideology stems from not knowing much yet shamelessly preaching gibberish someone has propagated to you.
The fact that after several centuries of Bibles, Eucharistic services all using the Arabic kalimah Allah has JUST begun to grab your attention and mysteriously started affecting you evidence of your ignorance and poor faith.
Lastly, the Holy Father Pope Francis is the Catholic Church’s spiritual guide and the our leader by example and faith. What in the world gave you the hallucination that Catholics or anyone needs His Holiness to commune with God?? Your ultimate display of pride supercedes all fact.
Our Pope has made a very strong statement that we Catholics must further strengthen our bond with our Muslim brothers. And we gladly and happily do so as our 2 Abrahamic origin faiths are so similar.
And whilst the ignorant ones like you Brother Mansor continue to hate us, tell us how you want us to pray (as if we simply will change the language of prayer to suit others insecurity) and harbour dangerous sentiments toward us Christians, we in turn love our neighbour as we would ourselves, especially our Muslim brothers, never ever dreaming of having any say in how you’d commune with God and lastly harbouring deserved respect toward all Muslims.
Brother Mansor, honestly, look into your heart and listen to your conscience, the voice God within each of us…Do you think Allah, creator and architect of the Universe so far and wide beyond human comprehension will be owned by you?
Do you not see the trivialities of an insecure misguided child pale in comparison to loving, obeying and greatly fearing Allah/God?
I have faith in you fellow Malaysian and pious Muslim, that’s twice my brother!
There are many people who fear the unknown because they are ignorant of the world around them. These people dive into the nearest enclaves that they hope would protect them from others exploiting their weaknesses. Soon, they begin to carve out their rationality for continuing hiding in their enclaves – it soon becomes an identity and these people would want others to join them, just to justify their own actions and continuance in hiding.
Neither Hindus nor Buddhists believe in many gods. God is One and He is omnipresent. Hinduism offers many ways of understanding and internalising this concept. As such, your comment just shows your lack of knowledge and understanding about other religions.
What’s baffling to me is why people would fight to protect Vajiralongkorn? I understand the popularity of Bhumibol but he has has effectively abdicated. His time is over. All you have left are a scheming queen and a crown prince despised by all. This is what the Yellows are fighting for? Why???
I think the age of monarchy in Thailand is over. Bhumibol knows it. The Reds know it. One day, the Yellows may wake up as well.
It just seems ridiculous to me that people will get fanatical over protecting some random billionaire family named Chakri. Their dynasty is not even that old. By comparison, the Lao royal family descends directly from Khun Borom. The Japanese emperor likewise descends from a god. But the Chakris??? Are they really all that? Are they worth dying for?
My fren..saying Buddhists worship alot of god shows how shallow you are but i dont blame you because even majority of chinese in Malaysia is confused between Taoism(multi god worshipper including Gotama himself) and Buddhism(more to teaching of self realisation thru meditation)…religion is like a painting viewed from different angle which create different perspectives that at the end of the day you will realise that its actually the same painting bro…
Are you denying Allah is Yawei in the Tora and Jehovah in the bible?
Conveniently denying all other connection thus justifying Islam supremacy?
As long as Muslim, a majority in Malaysia, keep on this facade of better than though, without competing why should other religions one up on Islam, especially with plenty of regits.
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A Malaysian Inquisition?
What is in a name? Angels have names. Human beings have names. Why? Because we are many and we need to distinguish one from another. But God is One. I believe it. You believe it. Thus, the One has no need for a name to distinguish Himself from others. Why then do we name our God? We give Him many names but these names describe His attributes. He is Yahweh (Jehovah), the “I am that I am” which describes His uniqueness. He is God the Healer, God the Merciful, God the Omnipotent, God the Omniscient. We, human beings, give names to our God because we need to relate to Him according to His attributes and in our particular needs. Do you believe that Allah is His proper name? To say that is to say that He is one of many and we need to distinguish Him from many. No, Allah merely means God (and this is also an attribute). The Malay speaking Christians use both Allah and Tuhan in the Bible to distinguish between the words “Lord” and “God” in the English form. Imagine that if all references of the word “Allah” is to be replaced by “Tuhan” we will have a verse that says “Tuhan Tuhan ku” replacing “The LORD our God”.
A Malaysian Inquisition?
Salam n good day 2 everybody…
2 tell u the truth, i am a malay n muslim but am very sad 2 hear over what happened 2 other races n religions in Malaysia.bumipetera???…..I never proud 2 be one…instead i am ashamed and sad when politicians took advantage on us and now everybody will look down on muslim n malays. If I have a choice, i won’t choose 2 be born as malay or so called bumiputera because i m afraid that my status would insult all my beloved friends from other races. I respect all races and religions.
Actually there are a lot of us malays n muslims who reject the ideas to banned other religions using the words Allah, because we feel what important is our faith.As long as we believe and practise our faith sincerely, there’s nothing 2 be afraid of what words other religions are using.Everybody has their own right to use whatever language or words they choose to.
How to understand Thailand’s conflict
So you won’t go into a discussion directly with him, responding to his aggressive posts as you noted in post 2.1.2.1.1, but after that, you have no problem trashing the guy 3rd person on the same thread with other posters.
The difference in yours and his styles are crystal now. Maybe what with your somewhat invertebrate “nonconfrontational” style you might ask yourself if you’ve been in TH a little too long for the good of your own sense of character.
A Malaysian Inquisition?
the main parallels between what’s happening right now here in malaysia and events during the spainish inquisition is that we unworthy humans have taken it upon ourselves to pass divine judgements upon on our own fellow beings….when in actual fact that it is God who will be doing that when the time comes……wish I been born as an orang utan and wrote a hit song about pounding on my chest like a gorilla…..
A Malaysian Inquisition?
I am saddened at your ignorance and although your love for your religion is commendable, it is still no excuse for stupidity. People like you are narrow minded enough that you don’t see the bigger picture, learn the actual historical facts. Allah was not solely used by the Quran since the dawn of time. It was found in any other Arabic spoken religions of past like Christianity in the middle easy for example. And the Sikhs. You do not have a patent on the word. Besides, you clearly demonstrated how ignorant you are by quoting verses from the Quran that preach acceptance but yet you are not?? Stupid much?
A Malaysian Inquisition?
Thanks Jibrail.
I really need a good metaphor to explain the Trinity to those who are really confused by the concept.
God Bless
Royal rain-making in the news
I am unsure what the point of your comment is.
What does someone’s last name have to do with other people with the same name? I mean, my name may be James Franklin but that does not tie me to Benjamin Franklin.
FYI JFK did not initiate the so-called dominos theory. It was around for a while already and as far as I recall the first person of high political rank to mention it was Dwight Eisenhower in 1954.
Also FYI Thai soldiers fought alongside American troops, at one point having 17,000 men in Vietnam. Not the best way to make friends with near neighbors.
Also FYI after the fall of the Khmer Rouge Pol Pot was given sanctuary at one point by the generals in Thailand. Six relaxing years in Pukhet. He also died while in hiding in Thailand.
You write this: ‘having Mcnamara as reporter is a set up to indirectly mislead the audience’
I am baffled. I may be ignorant of something you know so could you eventually explain this and also try to clarify the slant of your comment?
It seems like a bit of a rant without the necessary connecting of dots to make it understandable. Thanks.
Royal rain-making in the news
I appreciate the perseverance of how HM, King Bhumibol has worked tirelessly to solve the drought problem in Thailand, especially in the NE where drought continue to be a major problem for the people of that region. As a child growing up in Isaan, I always become excited when important people announce that a squadron of airplanes would be flying over our village to make the much needed rain. We waited. The rain never materialized. Hopelessness set in within the hearts of the people,for they feared they could not feed their children. It was a long time ago, but I can still remember one Isaan family committing suicide because they had nothing to live for. I remember an elderly woman and her grandchild walking from village to village, without shoes, begging for what the people were willing to give. The herd of elephant from Surin and their Mahouts begged for food and cash. Thailand has come a long way since the horrid 1970’s where poverty was rampant. Now, I have realized that back then (70′-80’s), this rain-making project was in its early years of development. It was the reason why it didn’t work. But the government at the time made it seem that the project had already been proven effective. Good for Thailand, the technology has since been improved.
How to understand Thailand’s conflict
Stop fudging Nganadeeleg. I have sparred with you on many occasions and I know you are quite capable of articulating in as many words, and in as many posters as you please, at New Mandala to help ignorant me see …. as you say it, “the big picture”. That silly advice ‘to look beyond Thaksin’ does not help Nganadeeleg if all you could do is conspirationally whisper hush hush … there is lese majeste … I can’t say much right now. There are no Thai royal secrets at New Mandala … that’s the whole idea of the Walker-Farrelly NM enterprise, among other things … if you still don’t get it old pal!
Bialao is convinced the millions (Neptunian will be mad because I could not count!) of anti-Thaksins led by the Kamnan are ‘fighting to protect Vajiralongkorn’, while oddly seemed fanatical for the Lao royals …. (Bialao could have read the banned book in Thailand Ngana keeps insisting I should read, seems like).
Beyond bigotry: Unravelling ethnic violence in Rakhine
Peter Cohen
No reservation on all the detail historical takes and especially laud you for putting them together the ways you did.
Just one point that will make present quagmire more on the ‘colonial legacy’.
Burma being made a province of India, a colonist brilliant ploy, allow UNMITIGATED migration not immigration mind you, of Kalar as “Royal Subjects” enable every Kalar to freely settle in Burma especially in Yakine and Tanintayi which are the very first colonized territories as well as close proximity.
The Rohingyas population is the major result of migration from adjacent eastern India, which was then regarded as under Konbaung dynasty realm.
The Kalar (Hindus and Muslims) assimilate well with the Yakhine knowing any otherwise will bring on sure “quelling” by the Burmese army. It was one of those quelling under Maha Bandoolas that the British used as an excuse to invade Burma.
Buddhists are the most tolerant that will end when violation of Buddha or Buddhist women are involved. Unlike large scale indiscriminate willful destruction and cruelty of anything Buddhist underway in adjacent Bangladesh and else where in Malaysia and Indonesia to a lesser extend.
Bigotry should never ever be associated with Buddhism.
A Malaysian Inquisition?
Brother Ahmad,
Take a pause from your piety to reflect
on several historical facts. If you are
a Malay, your great ancestors were not
Muslims but were Hindu-Buddhists. Malays
were not Muslims since the dawn of time,
and neither were any other Muslims, because
long before Muhammad the Prophet had revealed to him the words of Allah, Judaism and Christianity (of the Abrahamic faiths) had
already been in existence. And long before Jesus and his disciples spread the gospel of the New Testament, Arabia was populated by Jews and pagan tribes. The Christian Copts had been in Egypt centuries before Islam came to al-Masr. And before the Jews, the Hindus and the Buddhists practiced their faith. And you also had Zoroastrians and, before them, Assyrians, and a variety of ancient belief systems.
Yes, Muslim and Jews do not recognize the Christian Trinity, but that does not invalidate the Trinitarian belief in the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, anymore than your belief in being a descendant of the patriarch Isaac (Ishaq) is valid, simply because Ishaq is mentioned in the holy Qur’an
15 times. Faith is faith and cannot be invalidated by science because the foundation of faith is of the spirit and not of the flesh.
As the holy Qur’an makes reference to non-Muslims, like Ahl al-Kitab, and Muslims revere Isa (Jesus), Mariam (Mary), Ibrahim (Abraham), Ishaq (Isaac), Issa (Esau), all of whom were Jews, what troubles you if a non-Muslim uses the word “Allah” in prayer (like an Arab or Indonesian Christian) ? Surely, if your own ancestors were non-Muslims, and the holy Qur’an instructs Muslims to revere Jews as prophets (like Ibrahim), then what is wrong with a non-Muslim revering God using Arabic terminology, which is not native to Malay culture to begin with ?
It seems to me, that all faiths are intertwined, geographically, historically and culturally. Therefore, I propose that you can no more deny the reverence of Jewish Prophets in the holy Qur’an as instructed by Allah, then you can deny the right of a Lebanese or Malaysian Christian to revere God by uttering the word “Allah.” In the end, we are all returned to the same God, through our souls, when we pass on, so how important is one word (whether it is Allah or Tuhan or God or Jesus
or Buddha or Vishnu), as aren’t they all variations on the manifestation of the one Creator, who may be revered in different ways by different people, but recognizes all his
(sorry, Marina) creations as divine.
You can no more claim “Allah” as your own, than I can claim Ibrahim as solely my own, simply because he happened to be a Jew. As Ibrahim is mentioned in the Qur’an, so Arab Christians, Indonesian Christians, Bahai’s and Jews from Yemen all use “Allah” in their daily worship. Were you to deny Malaysians
the right to use such a word, is it not equally right for me to reclaim my Jewish prophets from utterances by Muslims ? The holy Qur’an instructs Muslims to respect Ahl al-Kitab and respect Isa and Mariam, as the Prophet Jesus and the mother of Jesus,
as believed by Christians. Though you may not believe Mariam to be the mother of Jesus or I may not believe it, yet you still revere Mariam and Isa, as instructed by the holy Qur’an. What would you do if a Christian asked you not to revere Isa and Mariam, as they are not considered Muslim prophets in
Christian (or Jewish) belief ? Is their claim to ‘ownership’ of Prophets and Saints any less valid than your request for non-Muslims not to use the word “Allah” ? Do you believe that Allah favours your claim, as a Muslim, more than he might favour a non-Muslim’s claim ? Yes, Muslims believe Islam as the one and true revealed religion, but your religion would not exist if the Prophet Muhammad had no followers in the 7th Century AD. As it happened, he did, but not all followed him, and while the Hadiths of the Prophet condemn those who did not follow the Prophet, the holy Qur’an at the same time, praises the Ahl al-Kitab, who also chose not to follow the Prophet. can you reconcile these two seemingly contradictory viewpoints anymore than a Christian can reconcile, the Trinitarian belief ? Faith is faith, and as believed to be revealed by God, in whatever form, is equally and all valid.
As you struggle with Itjihad to come closer to Allah through your personal Jihad, please remember that your struggle is shared by everyone else on the planet, many of whom have different practices than you, but are still searching and struggling for the same goal as you are-to get closer to God.
A Malaysian Inquisition?
“In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful”
Totally agree, but you forgot the following; (base on actions of certain quarters, of which you belong)
1. Most chicken little – needs protection by his followers
2. Most insecure followers – faith needs protection from others
3. Most naive and unintelligent – easily confused by a word, if used by others
4. Most sensitive – Even a Sunday Mass in a Church, where His followers should not even be near, will cause consternation is Allah is mentioned.
Enough said.
Review of Southeast Asia and the Rise of China
China is a nation full of challenges. It makes one wonder, how China could survive and expanded over 5,000 years.
Two words jump up. Patience and Agriculture.
The Hans who dominate China, have been around for a long time. They know that they need to grow in terms of genetic pool, otherwise China could have been a nation of ‘idiots’.
So many outerlands were visited and conquered – not agressively with weapons, but with sublime cultures, language and trade – possible because of its ancient civilisation.
Whenever China was attacked (the Mongols and Manchus), the attackers were actually assimilated instead, and this made even the gene pool bigger, not to mention the land size.
The 5,000 year history has plenty to tell. Most Chinese would think that have come so far, what is another say 10 years of misery? Just be patient and wait for the next cycle of progress. It will come.
To support the expansion, there has to be good agriculture. The Hans have perfected agriculture because availability of labour, land, and water – food has never been a problem except for some specks in time in the last two hundred years. With machinery, their agriculture productivity will rocket, and labour can be diverter to more useful purposes.
Both these aspects make China strong under present circumstances – the world’s top exporter and maybe the top importer for the next twenty years – no doubt.
How to understand Thailand’s conflict
Vichai N, because the book that would help you see the big picture more clearly is banned within Thailand, you are excused for getting confused (but if you really want to find it, I’m sure there is a way:).
There are other sources of information that are not specifically banned within Thailand, but you wont find them being discussed in mainstream media so you will also need to be a little proactive in seeking them out.
Anyway, to help you in your search for the answer to your question, my advice is to try to look beyond Thaksin.
(if there is one thing I’ve learned about you, my old friend, is that you pay way too much attention to an old square head and his family:)
A Malaysian Inquisition?
Wow. That’s a long article displaying in incredible accuracy of what’s alarmingly wrong with the general Muslim population in Malsysia, sheer unadulterated resolute ignorance AND the profound indifference of even the slightest desire to accurately understand Christianity but instead launch into the most misinformed blasphemous statements.
What unheard of religion does this “Trinity Gods” belong to? Surely not Christianity as for past 2,000 years our final count; The Almighty God, One True God Forever and Ever…ONE AND ONLY ONE.
I won’t bother to correct or clarify as such knowledge has been around long before Islam and hasn’t changed since then.
But since your inability to grasp even the most simplest of concepts exacerbated by your boastful and brimming with pride erroneus delusions, I’m going to ask you to consider this:
Water: Exists as Liquid, Solid and Vapor. You cannot change the compound H2O no matter what form it’s in, if will always be water. As the Holy Trinity, God Himself, Ubiquitous and Indivisible. I honestly have no idea where the Holy Mother of God the Virgjn Mary fits in your incredible fantasy of your version of Christianity but I’ll be sure to ask her to pray
for you, my Muslim brother.
Your lack of understanding of one of the Abrahamic religion truly saddens me. As your highly insecure ignorant-type fear of kalimah Allah appearing on or with The Holy Trinity is both mind boggling and incomprehensible to me.
But then again, my faith is pretty secure so I don’t worry about irrelevant things.
Brother Mansor, you need to understand that before the dawn of Islam Arabic Christians have been and will keep using the correct and only word to describe the Almighy One True God, Allah.
Unless of course it’s you who believes in more than one God and that’s the only plausible reason many, many years later Muslims in Peninsular want us to differentiate.
Anyway it’s not my place to conclude as it’s your faith not mine that appears to confuse you.
I noticed you keep mentioning the word sincere. May I ask why? And what about? Do you mean to say sincerity is not always practiced when in conversation with God?
Also I find it deeply disturbing that you appear to not only judge but mock Marina Mahathir’s sincerity (in what you don’t know as you haven’t said) when it comes to her relationship with God. It appears you have God/Allah complex as you seem quite judgemental and radially assertive. Do you not fear that God/Alllah is the only Judge and when you judge others you better be without sin do so?
How strange that you have no fear in God/Allah when when you brazenly talk about “justifying one’s sincerity”.
Wow, I wouldn’t dare as I’m far from perfect and will concerntrate on bettering my flaws not others.
I fear that your warped ideology stems from not knowing much yet shamelessly preaching gibberish someone has propagated to you.
The fact that after several centuries of Bibles, Eucharistic services all using the Arabic kalimah Allah has JUST begun to grab your attention and mysteriously started affecting you evidence of your ignorance and poor faith.
Lastly, the Holy Father Pope Francis is the Catholic Church’s spiritual guide and the our leader by example and faith. What in the world gave you the hallucination that Catholics or anyone needs His Holiness to commune with God?? Your ultimate display of pride supercedes all fact.
Our Pope has made a very strong statement that we Catholics must further strengthen our bond with our Muslim brothers. And we gladly and happily do so as our 2 Abrahamic origin faiths are so similar.
And whilst the ignorant ones like you Brother Mansor continue to hate us, tell us how you want us to pray (as if we simply will change the language of prayer to suit others insecurity) and harbour dangerous sentiments toward us Christians, we in turn love our neighbour as we would ourselves, especially our Muslim brothers, never ever dreaming of having any say in how you’d commune with God and lastly harbouring deserved respect toward all Muslims.
Brother Mansor, honestly, look into your heart and listen to your conscience, the voice God within each of us…Do you think Allah, creator and architect of the Universe so far and wide beyond human comprehension will be owned by you?
Do you not see the trivialities of an insecure misguided child pale in comparison to loving, obeying and greatly fearing Allah/God?
I have faith in you fellow Malaysian and pious Muslim, that’s twice my brother!
Peace be upon you.
A Malaysian Inquisition?
There are many people who fear the unknown because they are ignorant of the world around them. These people dive into the nearest enclaves that they hope would protect them from others exploiting their weaknesses. Soon, they begin to carve out their rationality for continuing hiding in their enclaves – it soon becomes an identity and these people would want others to join them, just to justify their own actions and continuance in hiding.
A Malaysian Inquisition?
Saudara,
Neither Hindus nor Buddhists believe in many gods. God is One and He is omnipresent. Hinduism offers many ways of understanding and internalising this concept. As such, your comment just shows your lack of knowledge and understanding about other religions.
How to understand Thailand’s conflict
What’s baffling to me is why people would fight to protect Vajiralongkorn? I understand the popularity of Bhumibol but he has has effectively abdicated. His time is over. All you have left are a scheming queen and a crown prince despised by all. This is what the Yellows are fighting for? Why???
I think the age of monarchy in Thailand is over. Bhumibol knows it. The Reds know it. One day, the Yellows may wake up as well.
It just seems ridiculous to me that people will get fanatical over protecting some random billionaire family named Chakri. Their dynasty is not even that old. By comparison, the Lao royal family descends directly from Khun Borom. The Japanese emperor likewise descends from a god. But the Chakris??? Are they really all that? Are they worth dying for?
A Malaysian Inquisition?
My fren..saying Buddhists worship alot of god shows how shallow you are but i dont blame you because even majority of chinese in Malaysia is confused between Taoism(multi god worshipper including Gotama himself) and Buddhism(more to teaching of self realisation thru meditation)…religion is like a painting viewed from different angle which create different perspectives that at the end of the day you will realise that its actually the same painting bro…
A Malaysian Inquisition?
Are you denying Allah is Yawei in the Tora and Jehovah in the bible?
Conveniently denying all other connection thus justifying Islam supremacy?
As long as Muslim, a majority in Malaysia, keep on this facade of better than though, without competing why should other religions one up on Islam, especially with plenty of regits.