Autumn's in full swing and winter will soon be upon us.
Early in September the leaves were beginning to turn brown and from this lime tree.....
Lime Tree - Victoria Park, 4 September
...... the leaves began to fall. I kept my eye on one falling leaf and voila! I got my photo of a freshly fallen lime leaf.
The biggest leaf in the centre, the freshly fallen. One lime leaf down but not out because next spring, young green leaves will take its place.
Came October and November and the trees in the Park kept on giving up their leaves. This year, instead of scrunching them under my shoes, I decided to pick the leaves and take them home instead.
An assortment of autumn leaves from Victoria Park
Maple leaves, at various stages of turning to autumn.
The oak seems to get "browned off" earlier than the maple.
My years of living in England has made me more aware (with a lot of tutoring from the spouse) of the beauty of nature around me. I learned to recognise the trees (well, some), the leaves, the flowers and the berries - but don't ask me their botanical names. It's something that most afficionados of trees and flowers like the spouse and Jack, who can reel off these names off the top of their heads.
Jack - in - the - Garden , 21 September 2014
I wish I had learned to be more appreciative of trees and flowers when I was growing up in Singapore in the 1950s. My mother loved gardening and she had not one, but two green thumbs - a talent which she passed on to my sister Maznah.
This was all I could manage when I was working in Brunei . It was my pride and joy.
But it's never too late. I can identify my favourite wild flower - the Bunga Tahi Ayam (Camara Lantana). They flourish in our garden at Setiawangsa.
The spouse even made me a hand-drawn picture of my favourite bloom.
But I have discovered a new love - the Senduduk - not the garden centre variety, but the wild Senduduk.
Lely's (Pickled Herring) picture of the wild Senduduk in our garden.
Another 'wild' interest of mine was my hunt for my favourite fruit tree. The tree and fruits belonged to no one. It grows free and happy anywhere in the kampung and brings so much joy to all the children who would climb all over its branches, pick its fruits and know that you will be safe from irate neighbours or their dogs.
I was absolutely delirious when - after endless searchings - I found my beautiful and bountiful tree at Paya Jaras, Sungai Buloh a few years ago.
Pokok Ceri
That one red juicy wild cherry - how my brothers and I would scramble over each other just for a bite and a gulp.
Those were the days. I hope that Pokok Ceri will still be there when we get back.
21,000 Afghani civilians = Big Dark Square. 453 British service personnel = Small White Square.
Now that Remembrance Day, Armistice Day, and Poppy Day have been laid to rest - for this year - it's time for more reflections about invasions and killings post-1945. The First and Second World Wars were basically tribal wars between Christian- European civilizations in their bid for supremacy, not only in Europe, but in the rest of the world.
People from other non-Christian 'civilizations' were also dragged into this bloodshed - those from the British, French, Belgium, German, Italian and other Empires. As for the involvement of the WASP (White Anglo-Saxon Protestant) USA, they chose to do so - and at the end of both world wars, they became - till today- the most powerful nation on earth.
The bloodshed of both world wars has been recorded in endless books, documentaries, videos and movies. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the First World War, a war that killed almost a whole generation of young men, a war aptly described as a "war fought by lions and led by donkeys".
People were more at ease when it came to remembering the dead of those two world wars. But the wars and deaths of post 1945 - the killings of the Vietnam War, the 'Troubles' in Ireland, and the invasions of the Middle East pre and post September 11 were unpalatable. The victims, overwhelmingly were not "us", and the commemoration of the perpetrators sticks like craw in the throats of the afflicted.
Note this 'protest' by Wigan Athletic's Republic of Ireland international winger James McClean.
Harry Leslie Smith, a 90 year old survivor of the two world wars wrote in 2013
"...... it will be the last time that I bear witness to those soldiers, airmen and sailors who are no more, at my local cenotaph. From now on, I will lament their passing in private because my despair is for those who live in this present world. I will no longer allow my obligations as a veteran to remember those who died in the great wars to be co-opted by current or former politicians to justify our folly in Iraq, our morally dubious war on terror and our elimination of one's right to privacy."
They are both brave and principled men. If only Muslims in Britain are allowed to express their reservations and principles in the same way ; " ..... for me to wear a poppy would be as much a gesture of disrespect for the innocent who lost their lives in the Troubles -..( James McClean) like on the 'War on Terror' in the Middle East.
" I am not a warmonger, or anti-British, or a terrorist .... I am a peaceful guy .. "
James McClean, you have taken the words right out of the mouths of many Muslims in Britain!
In a blaze of glory, the last remaining British troops left Camp Bastion, Helmand Province, Afghanistan on 26 October 2014. Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan was supposedly to
"turf out al-Qaeda ....
........ and burn the poppy-crop; to protect an education policy for Afghan women....
... and finally to protect the streets of Britain from Islamist threats."
So what's the verdict now that the British troops are back home? 453 deaths of British personnel were recorded - from October 2001 to October 2014. Their names and photographs were publicised by the British Government
UNAMA ( United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan) "estimate that 11,614 civilians died .... in Afghanistan. However, ..... this figure - which only accounts for just over half the war - is likely to be an underestimate. The Watson Institute of Brown University in the US, estimates that 21,000 civilians have died as of February this year, ..." "Ultimately we will probably never know exactly how many civilians died as a result of the conflict or what their names were." (Note the use of the benign word 'conflict'.)
So, here's the background for the above diagram. The large green square represents the 21,000 (underestimated) civilian Afghani deaths and the white patch withinillustrates the proportion of British fatalities.
When Christians moan the fate of Christians in the Middle East and turn to Princes and Patriots for succour - the carnage of Muslim deaths in Afghanistan (and Iraq and Libya and Palestine) provides the other side of the coin - the context so to speak. Hallelujah!
On BBC1 News two or three nights ago there was an item on the launch of a report by a Catholic charity. Accompanying the launch was a statement by His Royal Highness Prince Charles Philip Arthur George, Prince of Wales, KG, KT, GCB, OM, AK, QSO, PC, ADC, Earl of Chester, Duke of Cornwall, Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Baron of Renfrew, Lord of the Isles and Prince and Great Steward of Scotland.
In his video message HRH Prince Charles said, " It is an indescribable tragedy that Christianity is now under such threat in the Middle East, an area where Christians have lived for 2000 years and across which Islam spread in 700 AD, with people of different faiths living together peaceably for centuries."
The report, by Aid to the Church in Need, claimed that "across the world, Christians remain the most persecuted religious minority, while Muslim countries predominate among states with the most serious violations of religious freedom." (My emphasis in bold).
The report also said that "as Western Europe becomes more diverse, political and social tensions are rising between different faith and cultural groups".
John Pontifex, who compiled the religious freedom report, says "all faith communities need to work together to stand up for the right to worship in peace."
"We do not want to be alarmist but we do want to tell the truth in this report about the degrees to which minority groups - Yazidis, and indeed of course Christians, are being pushed out of their homelands."
"It is in effect a genocide. What more evidence does one need to point to it being a genocide?"
......" I have for some time now been deeply troubled by the growing difficulties faced by Christian communities in various parts of the Middle East."
"It seems to me that we cannot ignore the fact that Christians in the Middle East are increasingly being deliberately targeted by fundamentalist Islamic militants."
Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgement ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast the mote out of thy brother's eye. (The Bible. Matthew 7:1-5)
HRH Prince Charles will one day - on the demise of his mother Queen Elizabeth II - ascend the
British throne. Fidei Defensor or 'Defender of the Faith' will be one of his assignations. He will be the 'Defender of the Anglican Faith' (as of 1544) and this signifies the British monarch's position as the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, a position that is superior (formally) to the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Another inherited title is Dieu et mon droit - meaning God and my right - referring to the divine right of the king/queen to govern.
This you can observe in the British Passport
Note 'Dieu et mon droit' at the base of the logo
and the British coin.
The 50p coin. FD stands for 'Fidei Defensor'.
In 1994 HRH did declare that "I personally would rather see (my future role) as Defender of Faith, not the Faith."
If that is HRH's desire then maybe he should be a bit more circumspect about apportioning blame to Islam for causing agony to the Middle Eastern Christians - in the same way that Catholics and other Christian groupings are doing. Such people are merely 'menanggok di air yang keroh' .... or making hay while the sun shines and striking while the iron' s hot.
Let us remember: allegations that Islam and Muslims are more violent, than any other faith and groupings on this planet must always be seen in a context - and a context Westerners usually forget:
1. Countries with the Christian heritage have killed off tens of millions of people in the wars of the twentieth century, 16 million in World War I, 60 million in World War II. Some have attributed more deaths during WW II to "Buddhists in Asia" - because Buddhists in the Zen orders supported Japanese militarism. And today you have the Buddhist monks of Myanmar pushing for the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingyas.
2. Then there were those killed in the Colonial (Christian) wars against non-Christian natives. In India we have the Battle of Plassey, the Indian Mutiny and other colonial 'skirmishes". Belgium - a strongly Catholic country, - in its conquest over the Congo killed off half of the Congolese - at least 8 million.
3. Does Christianity want to be reminded of the Holocaust of over 6 million Jews - that Christianity thrived on the belief that Jews were the killers of Jesus Christ. Who pays for this 'indescribable' crime? They are mainly the Muslims in Palestine and by default the Christians of the Christian Holy Land.
4. Most recently, Christian civilization has surpassed itself in inflicting civilian deaths on Muslim populations in Bosnia, Iraq (twice), Afghanistan - using the "official" excuse of a "War on Terror". Their direct involvement in 'wars of liberation' in Libya and Egypt, their support for Muslim radical/extremist groups like al-Qaeda, Muslim Brotherhood and ISIS is well-documented. Of course you will not find such facts in documents and videos publicised by Christian charity groups like 'Aid to the Church in Need'.
5. If Muslims are slaughtering each other today, do take into account the inter-Christian butchery that took place during the Christian Reformation and Counter-Reformation. And Christian civilization seems to have little stomach to analyze and discuss the "indescribable tragedy" of the African Slave Trade that claimed 10 million African lives or the number of Native Americans in North, Central and South America hunted and massacred during Christian Colonial Conquests.
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The killing of Fusilier Lee Rigby in May 2012 sparked off blood-curdling cries against Islam in Britain. David Cameron regarded it as an "an attack on the British way of life". One sane voice dared to differ. Seumas Milne of the Guardian had this to say: "When Rigby became a target by Muslim extremists, it was a predicted consequence of an avalanche of violence unleashed by the US, Britain and others in eight direct military interventions in Arab and Muslim countries that have left hundreds of thousands dead, Only the wilfully blind or ignorant can be shocked when there is blowback from that onslaught at home. The surprise should be that there haven't been more such atrocities."
When it comes to selecting victims, it seems that some victims, - especially Christians and Israelis - are more equal than others. The Judaeo-Christians shield themselves, through their media machine, from the atrocities committed by their culture on others especially in Muslim countries.
Other than perusing videos presented to him by sources related to his Faith - HRH might try to catch some of these .......
Bound and gagged: A Taliban insurgent in US custody in Afghanistan
A few days after the end of the Gulf ground war, an American soldier inspects the carbonized bodies of Iraqi soldiers killed when their convoy ... was bombed and strafed by Allied Aircraft.
Afghani children - victims of the War on Terror
More victims
Victim of sanctions on Iraq
Victim of phosporus in Iraq - the very same 'weapon' used by Israel in Gaza. With the phosporus bomb, "as the charge bursts, fragments of the white phosporus would be scattered ... at speed, and the particles spontaneously ignited on contact with the air. They had a marked tendency to adhere to naked skin, where they would continue to burn and cause painful flesh wounds." How different is this from ISIS's beheading??
Onward Christian soldiers, marching as to war, with the cross of Jesus going on before.
Of course the minority Christians in the Middle East are victims of this terror war in their homeland but no more and no less than the majority who are Muslims. To simply blame their plight on the Muslim extremists is mischievous - and perfidious. For 2000 years these early Christians have lived in peace under Muslim rule. Think: would they have survived the inter-Christianity wars in Europe in the Middle Ages, in the battle for supremacy between the Catholics and the Protestants? Think again - when did their world (and the Muslims too) began to fall apart. Who made it difficult for Christians to make their pilgrimage to the Holy Land?
Perhaps HRH should also listen to other concerned voices like CAAT (Campaign Against Arms Trade).
Prince Charles dressed up in the costume of a ceremonial sword dance in Saudi Arabia to "help enhance military links"
And Jesus said, "Father, forgive them for they know not what they do." And they cast lots to divide his garments. (Luke 23:34)
Dr Mahzan bin Haron, this posting is for you. You (among a couple of others) nagged me incessantly to get to work on writing. Three days ago you wrote me "If you stop, it's like a doctor who stops practicing because there's so much diseases and sick people around and it's only getting worse now." I'm weary and the leaves are turning brown ...
Victoria Park - Our Haven.
....... but you're making sense, just like my Abah, just like your Tok Antan.
.... and this annual remembrance of those British soldiers who died in the Wars, is this year celebrated in a most impressive and glorious style.
Artist Paul Cummins placed 880,246 ceramic flowers throughout the grounds of the Tower of London as a tribute to the soldiers who fell during World War 1.
These ceramic poppies will be sold, after Armistice Day, for GBP25 and 10% will be donated to service-related charities like The British Legion.
Again this year, there's a reference to Muslims - whose loyalty to Britain is often questioned - and so this year they demonstrated their commitment to this commemoration of Our Glorious Dead.
Here's how the Muslims of Britain parade their allegiance and prove that they are not extremists. British Muslims (of course it will be the women only) are encouraged to wear a "Poppy Hijab" to challenge the Muslims (men mainly of course) who denounce the 'activities' of the British Armed Forces in Muslim countries. The "Poppy Hijab" costs GBP22 and the proceeds from the sale will go to the Poppy Appeal.
Ella Abubaker Farooq (left), Rukea Azougaya and Taslima Chowdhury (right) from London show off the new 'Poppy Hijab' in several styles.
There is another aspect to this year's remembrance. It is to highlight Muslim participation during the bloody wars in Europe. In fact 400,000 Muslims fought for the Empire during World War I. And also to remember that 100 years ago a Muslim soldier Sepoy Khudadad Khan became the first Indian soldier to be awarded the Victoria Cross.
So, this year the Muslims (the women, that is) have made a pointed contribution to indicate their trustworthiness as British Muslims. What will they have to plan for 2015, I wonder?
Every year 'at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month' the Brits remember their Glorious Dead.
And every year, I will wonder - other than Hari Pahlawan', - how will those who declare themselves as proud citizens of Negara Ku demonstrate their worthiness as Malaysians - all those Malays, Kadazans, Ibans, Muruts, Chinese, Indians, Eurasians, Sri Lankans etc ; all those Muslims, Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, atheists etc affirm their appreciation of those who enabled and protected their present standard of life? Just like immigrants in Britain do,even though they are recent arrivals.
I wrote this last year and I think it bears repeating.
What about Malaysia? Will we have a Bunga Raya Appeal to remember the sacrifices of our soldiers during the Second World War, the Emergency, Confrontation, and Lahad Datu? There was no question that they died defending their country - their multi-cultural country! Should we remind our children by asking them to wear the paper or plastic 'bunga raya' each year and make a little donation to support the veterans and the family of those who died? We, the schoolchildren of the 1950s, did it when we were ruled by the British Empire. Just 10 cents from each student for each year will go a long way. It's not too much to ask, is it - from all Malaysian children and all Malaysian adults? If Malaysians are committed enough to various causes by buying and wearing pink and red and green ribbons and bracelets , surely pinning a little bunga raya on your shirt is no great sacrifice. It would truly be a wonderful demonstration of patriotism, integration and unity if all our religious organisations, political parties, NGOs, Media and other concerned Pressure Groups will participate in a one-minute-silence to remember "our glorious dead" in the centre of Kuala Lumpur, Georgetown, Kota Kinabalu, Kucing and every city and town up and down the country.
I wonder how the Navigators (Pemandu) of Malaysia will approach this notion?
What millions died - that Caesar might be great! ( Thomas Campbell 1777-1844)
I had planned to finish the posting "Oslo Freedom Movement - Aristocracy of Activists" last night but the weather's beginning to bite a little and all I wanted to do was to snuggle down and watch "War and Peace" on TV. Woke up this morning and read this news about the electricity problem and the possibility of a 'rumble in the jungle' at Universiti Malaya.
Read : http://www.nst.com.my/node/46664
There's this same character playing the starring role - he has appeared at the Oslo Freedom Forum before - and at other countless shows at home and abroad. The other stars are Leong Yu Sheng, the "student leader" engineering this big pageant and the hapless UM Academic Prof Datuk Dr Rohana Yusoff. What delights await us? Are we to be indulged with the same 'demotainment' as in the Hong Kong Student's Protest Movement - as tutored by the "aristocracy of activists" at the Oslo Freedom Forum? Perhaps security officials may have noticed a run on the sale and stock-up of mineral water, Coca-Cola and Diet Pepsi. (See paras 2 and 3 of my posting below) Watch out too for a rise in the sale of snacks like nuts and other junk food. I also reckon some macik and ah soh and achi somewherecan expect big orders for nasi lemak, vaday and char siew pau to feed the rally?? Also keep an eye on how the rally marshalls get their members to pick up their litter - something which all Malaysians should learn from. ( Again, see paras 2 and 3 of my posting below) However, the theme for the rally - "40 Years from University of Malaya to Jail" - is not really catchy enough. Can't they get some panduan from the media-savvy experts in the protest-movement industry?
Hopefully, my original post below should enlighten us (at least some of us) about the human rights, democracy and freedom movement.
I am old - but I am a cynic and I don't swallow most things I see, read and hear about. There is a fine line between knowing "everything" and gullibility. The next step from gullibility is manipulation and exploitation. I often impressed upon my students the importance of reading between, behind and beyond the lines. We should apply these prepositions to many aspects of our thinking and doing. Here's the first post.
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Being "old dears", we spend our evenings watching re-runs of Midsomer Murders, Lewis, Morse, Foyle's War , Poirot and Miss Marples. We don't bother much with News on BBC or ITV. They're all very predictable, serving the same old Eurocentric agenda - with self-righteousness and double standards thrown in and of course with a good dose of fluffy news about the Duchess of Cambridge, Dame Angelina Jolie, and Mr and Mrs George Clooney's wedding extravaganza.
But last night (22 October), I came down to earth. I clicked on BBC2 Newsnight (by accident) at 11pm and caught a bit about the "aristocracy of activists" attending the Oslo Freedom Forum. We heard about "meetings in the basement" where concerned and committed activists were instructed on how to organize and plan protest movements. According to Newsnight, the student protest in Hong Kong was hatched two years ago and Jianli Yang, the well-known activist from China was keeping in touch with the protestors every hour, giving them the benefit of his expertise and experience.
In an interview with a young female activist we learned about how to use nonviolent action as a "weapon of mass destruction". She mentioned a series of "hows" when one is organizing and running a protest: like how to keep ranks, how to use marshalls (during the protest) how to speak to the police, how to behave when arrested, how to manage a water cannon and the need to arrange the logistics of providing food and water - because a protest movement can last longer when people are taken care of. ( I may be wrong, but I have the feeling that defenders of "free speech, democracy and human rights" in Malaysia must be taking down notes from this Forum and from the Hong Kong protestors for their next big do).
The BBC reporter - Laura Kuenssberg - also spoke to Srdja Popovic, leader of the Centre of Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies - the man credited with bringing down Slobodan Milosevic. He claimed that he had taught in almost 40 centres but only about 6-7 had applied his teachings, including the Arab Spring Movement.
At this "Freedom Forum", according to Newsnight, deals were done - and there was schmoozing for democracy - over glasses of champagne and Norwegian canapes, against a backdrop of activists dressed up like penguins (males) and Hollywood celebrities (females). The reporter described this setting as "Davos for Dissidents".
You may ask - what is this group that managed to get the attention of the pukka BBC's Newsnight? And why should we even care?
The Oslo Freedom Movement is a gathering held annually in Norway's capital city by the Human Rights Foundation (HRF) which is headquartered in the Empire State Building, New York. HRF was founded by Thor Halvorssen Mendoza, a Venezuelan film producer and freedom activist. (Wiki).
The Oslo Freedom Forum's founder Thor Halvorssen speaks at the opening sessionMonday. To his left is Amnest International Norway's general secretary Joh Peder Egenaes. (Berit Roald/AFP/Getty Images)
Its mission is to "unite people in the common cause of defending human rights and promoting liberal democracy" (Wiki).
Aaahh, now I see why Datuk Ambiga Sreenevesan and Dato Seri Anwar Ibrahim (DSAI) have been guest speakers at this Freedom Forum. After all, in their book, Malaysia is a violator of human rights; and according to DSAI an example of Governments "that hide behind a facade of democracy and commit crimes in its name".
Pardon me for being a simpleton, but doesn't this 'facade of democracy' also apply to UK and USA as well - don't they too commit crimes in the name of democracy and human rights?
Furthermore, at this Freedom Forum, DSAI claimed that Malaysia "has suffered under this new type of authoritarian rule". (See link above). If that's the case how do you explain the results of the 2013 Election and the fact that the Opposition are 'alive and kicking' - not only in their "home states" Penang and Selangor but in the rest of Malaysian politics?
Their antics in my home-state Selangor in the last few months would not inspire their comrades, the aristocracy of activists, at the Oslo Freedom Forum
Democracy in India (the world's "largest democracy") has brought to power the Hindu fundamentalist-inspired Bharatiya Janata Party - a party that advocates Hindutva (Hindu-ness), with an "ideology that sought to define Indian culture in terms of Hindu values" - and a leader like Narendra Modi, who is proud to describe himself as a "Hindu nationalist". Halvorssen's HRF and Oslo Freedom Forum would have no quarrel with India as a model of democracy. Is this therefore a good model for 'authoritarian' Malaysia? Is this the 'democracy' that DSAI and his acolytes 'trust' and spout about?
DSAI implored the audience (at the 2010 Freedom Forum) "to scrutinize the validity of vote-winning slogans such as freedom, democracy, and human rights, which are now too often used as empty promises or skewed in meaning". Of course, he was referring to the Government. But these very same slogans of freedom, human rights and democracy are also bandied about and manipulated by the NGOs (religious and secular) and by the Opposition!
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But in the global scheme of world politics, Malaysia is just a small fry. Of greater concern is the make-up of HRF and the Oslo Freedom Forum and their ties with funding groups who inspired the mass killer and Islamophobe Anders Breivik - Norway's "crusading knight" on his 2011 mission to save Europe from the scourge of Muslim Immigration.
Read the article by Max Blumenthal in the link below.
When I was a sprightly and happy-go-lucky 17-year-old, my Sixth Form History teacher Miss T - who was normally an unfriendly and po-faced character - turned on her smile and niceness at me when she 'lent' me a book about Christianity. She said, "Do read this, take your time and let me know if there's any other information you want." Of course I was astounded, wondering "what did I do to deserve this special treatment"? I kept it for two weeks, and just gave it a quick scan. I had no interest in another religion, what I already had suited me very well, thank you very much. Something told me there was an agenda in this 'kindness' and I returned Miss T her book with a thank you. She "sweetly" asked me what I thought of it and I gave a timid reply of "it's quite interesting". I can't really tell her what I thought of it and how I suspected her motive - after all, she's my History teacher and an authoritative figure in my time at RGS !
When I was a 30-year-old 'woman of the world' (or so I thought), I was doing my Academic Diploma in Education at London University. I was invited by my Greek classmate to a party at her flat. I am (and am still today) very uncomfortable when I attend such social gatherings. And when, as a party piece, my classmate's English husband imitated the genuflections of his Pakistani Muslim flatmate at prayer and watched how the others found this quite hilarious - I left the room in tears. I vowed then that no Christian or non-Christian shall denigrate and mock my faith, leaving me in tears and unable to defend myself.
When I was 42 and happily married to a Caucasian academic, I got to meet a couple of the spouse's students. There was a couple, extremely friendly and nice, who visited us several times at our house.
They were too sweet and too nice and they reminded me of Miss T, my History teacher at RGS. One day, I was cycling at Victoria Park near the University, when I bumped into this sweet couple. After the usual chit-chat, they invited me to a meeting that they were heading for. I asked what it was all about - they mentioned a Christian Fellowship - I gently declined. For heaven's sake, I was as old as their parents and they reckoned they could inveigle me into their flock. I wonder why they did not try it on the spouse!
[And this particular story has a special twist: that very same year, my spouse's Head of Department and senior professor (a fervent evangelical Christian) invited us both to dinner. He didn't know me well, but he did know very well that I was a Muslim. However, he assumed that I was a lapsed Muslim - and we were served pork, twice (once for starters, and once for the main meal). I was stunned. Twice, very politely, the spouse refused the food we were given, and in the end we were given a hastily prepared omelette each. With great irritation on the host's part, and without apology - after all, we had the effrontery to actually both be Muslims!! And to stand firm. So much for the sweet approach.]
As a Muslim in a foreign country and especially today, as a Muslim in Malaysia, one's radar system has to be carefully tuned to the siren song of Christian evangelists. Today their agenda is camouflaged in secular outfits of education, health, welfare and anti-poverty schemes, 'human rights' campaigns and environmental concerns. Their tactics are very different from Miss T's approach and you ignore them at your peril.
More crucially, for those who are concerned about evangelization in their community and country, they have to learn how to counter the arguments the evangelists (and other anti-Muslim groupings) put across to plug their faith and diminish that of others.
I have compiled in this posting the 'dialogue' that followed the previous "The Trojan Horse and Footballers from Brazil" (28 September 2014). Both the article in the posting and the reply to the Comments belong to Iain Buchanan.
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The First Part of the Dialogue
********************************************************************************************************************************** The Second Part of the Dialogue
Iain Buchanan's reply The issue is not simply one of evangelization - it is also one of honesty. The evangelical movement has long been corrupted by two rather unhealthy tendencies: a belief in the utter supremacy of Christianity as the basis for global government (the ideology of the New Apostolic Reformation is an example); and a belief that the end (of fulfilling the "Great Commission") justifies all manner of means - many of which are at best morally questionable, and at worst downright dishonest. In a myriad ways, these two tendencies interweave, leading to a form of evangelization which is often aggressive, surreptitious, and extremely seductive. And the key to the problem is the packaging - or the "contextualization". The entire "contextualization" strategy is based upon the intention to subvert, by whatever means possible, and involves tactics which (if practised by businessmen) would be winked at as barely permissible. Of course when evangelicals talk about penetrating "closed " or "difficult" countries under secular guise, they don't use the word "subversion"; no, they talk about "creative access", "tent-making", and "Business as Mission". It is one thing to be all things to all men; it is quite another to set out deliberately to deceive - as evangelicals have done, on a well-coordinated, industrial and global scale. Especially since the 1970s under the Lausanne Movement. Two examples - "Insider Movements" and disaster aid - illustrate the problem. (a) Insider Movements. Since the start of the Lausanne Movement, much of the "contextualization" effort has been geared towards infiltrating Muslim societies, in a variety of ways calibrated along the "C1-C6 Scale" of penetration (from friendly conversation to "messianic mosque"). The intent to deceive has been very clear, and is even given biblical justification by academics: in the words of Rick Love, Professor of Muslim Studies at Columbia International University, "Jesus, after all, did not raise his and say 'I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth' ". The intention is often presented as a kind of discretion: again and again, evangelicals talk about the need to keep a low profile, to go behind doors, to affect local styles, to hide real names and motives. The Red Sea Mission put it this way: "Think of us as 'secret agents'. Inside the raincoat pockets are hidden gospels in Urdu, Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Gujerati. We are not what we seem. And our best stories cannot be told. If our target is the hidden people ....... then we must be somewhat hidden ourselves." Of course not all evangelicals approve. According to Patrick Sookhdev: "Many mission agencies are keeping secret their support for the Insider Movements for fear that donors will stop giving to them in protest. Some of their missionaries also keep their identities secret, presenting themselves as ordinary foreign workers rather than as preachers of the Gospel. This apparent lack of integrity calls the Christian ethical basis of the Movement into question." And it is not only "Insider Movements". (b) The disaster aid industry also involves a lot of evangelical double-dealing. There are hundreds of evangelical agencies posing as altruistic providers of vital practical aid. But what are their motives? Well, many see catastrophe as a God-given opportunity to increase their flock (and even to punish non-believers) rather than as a cause for altruism: John Piper, of Desiring God Ministries, claimed the 2004 tsunami was "just and good"; Pat Julian (Southern Baptist relief coordinator) saw it as "a phenomenal opportunity", while K.P. Yohannan (of Gospel for Asia) saw it as "one of the greatest opportunities God has given us to share His love for people." And then, of course, there is Beram Kumar, responding to Cyclone Nargis as " a tremendous opportunity to see the Kingdom of God expand." Clearly when you see disaster as a golden opportunity, you have to be pretty "creative" in the way you present your case to the public. In other words, evangelization has to be "contextualized" to be attractive to those in the direst of straits. A truly "good Samaritan" will give succour with no strings attached. You cannot say that about a great many of the evangelical agencies which rush into disaster areas. (c) It is the same with "Business as a Mission" (and the "Seven Mountains Theology" for taking over whole societies, sector by sector, for Christ); it is the same with the "human rights" industry (which is overflowing with agencies which, at best, are coy about their evangelical connections - witness the policing of human trafficking by World Vision and and its spin-off International Justice Mission). And it is the same with sport. There is no question whatsoever that evangelicals (at the highest levels) have devised a thorough-going and systematic project to infiltrate sport in order to evangelize surreptitiously. As the example of Brazilian footballers testifies. And so, once again, it is NOT so much a problem of evangelization, as it is a problem of dishonesty. People of all faiths evangelize, or seek to spread their own particular gospel. There's nothing wrong with that. The problem arises when we seek to deceive. ********************************************************************************************************** Welcome, thou kind deceiver! Thou best of thieves; who, with an easy key, Dost open life, and, unperceived by us, Even steal us from ourselves. ( Dryden, 1631-1700)
Looking around me, I do not see a state-of-the-art world. That's to be expected when one is (for the moment) residing in and looking at the world from behind the eyeballs of the West. But it's no better when I read the news and views from my tanah air and all I can see is this.
I think it's time for a a little pick-me-up.
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It will be a full moon tonight on 8 October at 11.50am BST. Also on this day the eclipse of the moon will be visible from countries around the Pacific Ocean including Malaysia.
Down here , this is all the moon I can get. I think it's just as spectacular because I love the moon and moonlight in whatever shape and colour it comes.
Here are my feeble attempts at capturing the full moon, using my not-the-state-of-the-art camera (for dummies) from the vantage point of our not-the-state-of -the-art abode in a middling midland city.
Image 1. The full moon playing hide-and-seek behind the clouds, taken from the front of our abode at 8.10pm.
Image 2. Same place, same moon, a few minutes later - the moon (like The Truth) is veiled from our eyes
Image 3. The moon has shifted, clockwise to the rear of the house at 11.25pm.
The moon has always been a symbol of romance and childhood (and witchcraft and lunacy as well!). I have often been described as loopy, loony and a right old wicked witch of the east. But my love of the lure of the moon comes from schooldays, the beginning of a fascination which I picked up from Malay and English school textbooks.
In Malay: from my Primary School textbook Beneh Akal.
In English: from a poem by Mathias Barr (1831 - ?)
Moon, so round and yellow, Looking from on high, How I love to see you, Shining in the sky. Oft and oft I wonder, When I see you there, How they get to light you, Hanging in the air. Where you go at morning, When the night is past, And the sun comes peeping, O'er the hills at last. Sometimes I will watch you,
Slyly overhead, When you think I'm sleeping, Snugly in my bed.
Nevertheless, I still hope to see 'Hey diddle, diddle's' The cow jumped over the moon! ========================================
Murni sungguh ciptaan Tuhan, Bulan bintang lampu alam. Andai kata bintang menyepi, Bulan tidak berseri. Malam menjadi sunyi. Tidak berseri lagi.
We still have the moon and the stars over Malaysia but there is very little light - it has been obscured by the heat of hypocrisy, greed, deceit and opportunism.
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