Wednesday, July 2, 2014

Kisah 2 Seminar: Yang Mana Kebenaran Dan Yang Mana Ajaran Sesat?

Diterbitkan pada 1 Julai 2014 oleh The Malaysian Insider.

Jawatankuasa Fatwa Negeri Terengganu sebulat suara memutuskan bahawa kenyataan bekas aktivis politik dan sosial Kassim Ahmad pada satu seminar Februari lalu sebagai pemikiran yang kufur dan murtad.

Pesuruhjaya Hal Ehwal Agama Islam Terengganu, Datuk Mohd Rozali Salleh berkata keputusan itu dicapai dalam satu mesyuarat khas kali pertama jawatankuasa itu yang bersidang pada 9 Mac lalu.

"Seminar Pemikiran Kassim Ahmad: Suatu Penilaian" itu berlangsung di Putrajaya.

Mohd Rozali berkata, "Fahaman atau golongan tersebut adalah sesat, menyeleweng dan menjadi ancaman kepada ketenteraman awam serta merosakkan akidah mereka.

"Berdasarkan kepada ucapan yang telah disampaikan oleh Kassim Ahmad, terdapat unsur penyelewengan antaranya mempertikaikan syahadah yang kedua, mengingkari dan mempertikaikan hadis sebagai sumber hukum, mempertikaikan hukum rambut perempuan sebagai aurat, hukum selawat dan membenarkan jenayah murtad berlaku dalam masyarakat," katanya dalam sidang media hari ini.

Sehubungan itu, jawatankuasa fatwa turut memutuskan apa jua fahaman yang berunsurkan penolakan hadis ini perlu disekat dari berkembang.

Mohd Rozali berkata sebarang penerbitan, penyiaran dan penyebaran apa-apa buku, risalah, filem, video dan apa sahaja berhubung fahaman ini adalah diharamkan dan orang Islam dilarang memiliki, menyimpan mencetak, menjual atau mengedarkan semua bahan terbabit.

"Mana-mana orang Islam sama ada secara individu atau berkumpulan yang mengikuti fahaman anti hadis ini dengan berselindung di sebalik aktiviti ekonomi, perniagaan, pendidikan, kesenian dan sebagainya yang mempunyai unsur persefahaman anti hadis ini adalah dianggap mengamalkan fahaman yang bercanggah dengan syariat.

"Oleh demikian, orang ramai di negeri ini hendaklah menghindarkan diri daripada terlibat dengan fahaman golongan tersebut," katanya.

Mesyuarat jawatankuasa itu juga bersetuju supaya keputusan berhubung fahaman anti hadis ini diwartakan untuk dijadikan fatwa yang mengikat bagi membolehkan tindakan diambil terhadap kesalahan yang terbabit, katanya. – Bernama, 1 Julai, 2014.

Link: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/bahasa/article/jawatankuasa-fatwa-terengganu-putuskan-kassim-ahmad-kufur-dan-murtad


Oleh Uthaya Sankar SB. Diterbitkan oleh The Malay Mail Online pada 19 Mei 2014.

Maklumat mengenai “Seminar Kalimah Allah dan Kristologi Nusantara” anjuran Majlis Agama Islam Selangor (Mais) dan Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) sebenarnya sudah saya ketahui sejak bulan lalu.

Akhbar Utusan Malaysia (21 April 2014) melaporkan pengerusi Mais, Datuk Mohamad Adzib Mohd Isa sebagai berkata, “ia bertujuan meningkatkan kefahaman masyarakat Islam dan mencari penyelesaian berhubung isu tersebut (kalimah Allah).”

Kononnya, seminar itu “akan memberi penjelasan kepada umat Islam tentang isu penggunaan kalimah Allah serta mencari penyelesaian secara efektif dan menyeluruh untuk menangani masalah yang timbul.”

Pada waktu itu, dilaporkan bahawa apa yang bakal berlangsung adalah “satu seminar yang besar dengan melibatkan lebih 5,000 peserta daripada pelbagai lapisan masyarakat seperti penuntut institusi pengajian tinggi, pertubuhan bukan kerajaan dan ulama dari seluruh negara.”

Bagaimanapun, apa yang sebenarnya berlaku pada 6 Mei 2014 ternyata adalah sebaliknya. Bukan sahaja jumlah peserta hanya sekitar 1,000 orang (berbanding jangkaan 5,000 orang), malah seminar ini dijadikan medan untuk mempersenda ajaran Kristian dan penganut Kristian secara keseluruhan.

Sebagai seorang pengamal media, penulis dan pengamal multifaith (percaya pada ajaran semua agama), saya amat terkejut dan kecewa apabila UiTM bersekongkol dengan Mais dalam menganjurkan sebuah seminar yang secara terang-terangan berciri anti-Kristian, anti-perpaduan, berniat jahat serta tidak mengambil kira sensitiviti masyarakat.

Kandungan seminar berkenaan juga secara jelas membawa unsur-unsur serta anasir-anasir yang mampu mengancam ketenteraman awam dalam kalangan masyarakat pelbagai kaum, agama, etnik, kepercayaan dan mazhab.

Saya bersama-sama Perzeus James membuat laporan rasmi di Balai Polis Taman Sri Muda, Shah Alam pada 8 Mei 2014 selepas berpeluang meneliti laporan berita mengenai seminar itu di beberapa portal berita dalam talian. Rujuk www.uthayasb.blogspot.com untuk maklumat.

Pada 7 Mei 2014 pula, salinan fotokopi buku atur cara seminar tersebut diberikan kepada kami oleh seorang individu yang tidak dikenali semasa kami sedang minum di sebuah restoran.

Maklumat ini juga telah kami berikan (bersama-sama salinan atur cara tersebut) kepada pegawai penyiasat jenayah, Inspektor Rohaini Baharom apabila kami dipanggil ke Ibu Pejabat Polis Daerah (IPD) Shah Alam pada petang 16 Mei 2014.

Usaha terancang oleh UiTM dan Mais?

Perkara-perkara di atas juga saya dan Perzeus nyatakan kepada peguam kami, Annou Xavier dan Bernard Scott yang menjadi tempat rujukan memandangkan isu berkaitan agama adalah amat sensitif. Mereka berdua turut mengiringi kami ke IPD Shah Alam.

Seperti yang saya ceritakan kepada Rohaini, peserta seminar ternyata bukan hanya orang Islam. Pelajar beberapa sekolah menengah turut dibawa bagi memenuhkan ruang di Dewan Agung Tuanku Canselor UiTM.

Malah, fakta yang pasti tidak boleh dikatakan “terlepas pandang” oleh Mais dan UiTM adalah bahawa pelajar institusi pengajian tinggi itu sendiri terdiri daripada orang Islam (majoriti) dan Bumiputera beragama Kristian (minoriti), khususnya dari Sabah dan Sarawak.

Usahlah penganjur memberikan alasan bahawa pelajar terbabit diberikan pilihan sama ada mahu hadir atau tidak ke seminar berkenaan. Beberapa pensyarah, tutor dan pelajar UiTM yang saya hubungi mengesahkan bahawa rata-rata pelajar diwajibkan hadir.

Mereka adalah pelajar diploma dan sarjana muda yang mengambil mata pelajaran wajib seperti Tamadun Islam dan Tamadun Asia (Titas), Hubungan Etnik, serta Islam dan Agama. Kehadiran mereka ke seminar ini telah diwajibkan oleh pensyarah.

Sekiranya diperhatikan, pengendalian dan pelaksanaan seminar ini dilakukan secara terancang. Maknanya, UiTM tidak ada alasan untuk mengatakan bahawa ia tidak tahu apa yang akan berlaku dalam seminar berkenaan.

Naib Canselor UiTM, Dr Sahol Hamid Abu Bakar menjadi penaung sementara Dekan Akademi Pengajian Islam Kontemporari (ACIS) UiTM, Dr Mohamad Rahimi Osman bertindak sebagai penasihat.

Terdapat jawatankuasa yang lengkap dan nama-nama mereka dipaparkan pada buku atur cara. Memandangkan bekas perdana menteri, Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi diundang sebagai tetamu khas, tentulah perancangan seminar tidak dibuat secara ala kadar.

Malah, dalam buku atur cara diakui bahawa “adalah menjadi tanggungjawab pihak UiTM bersama-sama dengan Warisan Ibnu AABY untuk mengambil inisiatif bagi menganjurkan seminar ini bagi menyebarluaskan lagi kefahaman masyarakat Islam terhadap isu (kalimah Allah) yang sedang diperkatakan serta mencari jalan penyelesaian bagi menangani masalah ini secara efektif dan menyeluruh”.

Jika benarlah itu “niat” sebenar UiTM, maka terbukti institusi pengajian tinggi itu telah “ditipu” pihak tertentu sehingga akhirnya ia menjadi platform untuk mengendalikan sebuah seminar yang secara terang-terangan berciri anti-Kristian.

Menghancurkan reputasi pusat pengajian tinggi

Mungkinkah juga akhbar Utusan Malaysia, Kumpulan Media Karangkraf, TV Al-Hijrah, Kumpulan Zikay dan Kumpulan Pantai Bharu turut “terpedaya” untuk menyokong seminar anti-Kristian ini?

Kalau kita teliti akhbar Utusan Malaysia dan Sinar Harian, liputan terhadap seminar ini tidak meluas. Mungkin mereka akhirnya menyedari kandungan, motif dan niat sebenar seminar tersebut dan memilih untuk tidak melaporkannya.

Hasil luahan perasaan masyarakat pelbagai kaum dan agama menerusi laman rangkaian sosial seperti Facebook, amat jelas bahawa rata-rata orang ramai tertanya-tanya bagaimana sebuah institusi pengajian tinggi seperti UiTM boleh melakukan “pekerjaan terhina” seperti ini yang menghancurkan reputasi dan kedudukan UiTM serta para pensyarah dan graduannya.

Kualiti pensyarah dan graduan UiTM memang sudah sedia dipertikaikan pada peringkat kebangsaan dan antarabangsa. Malah UiTM memang dikenali sebagai “lubuk” melahirkan gnerasi muda dan pemimpin masa depan yang etnosentrik, ultra kiasu, rasis dan pelampau. Maklumat ini saya peroleh menerusi komen orang ramai di pelbagai portal berita dalam talian.

(Mungkin UiTM perlu “belajar” daripada Datuk Seri Najib Razak untuk segera menyaman semua portal berita terbabit supaya orang ramai tidak akan berani lagi untuk mengkritik institusi pengajian tinggi itu sewenang-wenangnya.)

“Budak-budak UiTM yang berdemonstrasi untuk memboikot pelajar bukan Bumiputera masuk UiTM tu mesti hendak bekerja dengan majikan yang menjual pisang goreng di tepi jalan,” kata Komrad Haizal menerusi catatan di Facebook baru-baru ini dan ia menggambarkan realiti.

Memanglah kita mengalu-alukan UiTM menggunakan hak kebebasan akademik untuk menganjurkan seminar, forum, dialog dan debat berkaitan pelbagai topik yang mampu mengembangkan minda dan intelektualiti pelajar.

Akan tetapi, apa yang kini mengundang kemarahan dan kekecewaan masyarakat pelbagai kaum adalah apabila UiTM menggunakan tiket “kebebasan akademik” untuk menganjurkan seminar anti-Kristian yang ternyata tidak ada sebarang unsur “akademik” dan “intelektual” di dalamnya.

Tindakan terbaik, paling bijak dan paling waras bagi UiTM pada masa sekarang adalah dengan tampil membuat kenyataan terbuka bahawa institusi pengajian tinggi itu telah “dimanipulasi pihak tertentu” dan UiTM tidak tahu-menahu mengenai kandungan seminar berkenaan.

Apa-apa pun, apabila “lubuk perkauman” tampil mengatakan ia tidak terlibat dalam penganjuran “seminar anti-perpaduan” di tempatnya, tentulah orang tidak akan menjadi bodoh dan percaya begitu sahaja. Sebaliknya mereka akan ketawa terbahak-bahak.

Dalam pada itu, memandangkan laporan polis sudah dibuat oleh sekurang-kurangnya enam orang dan kertas siasatan di bawah Seksyen 298 dan 298A sudah dibuka di IPD Shah Alam, eloklah para penganjur dan penyokong seminar anti-Kristian itu disiasat sepenuhnya.

Monday, June 30, 2014

It’s all a political game in Allah row


By Stephen Ng. 30 June 2014.

Although the Christian community in the country has been made the scapegoat, things have to be put into perspective for the sake of unity and harmony. Both the Alkitab and the Sikh scriptures use Allah as a name referring to God, but only the Christian scripture is being targeted, ridiculed and confiscated.

Despite having only the flimsiest argument against the use of the name Allah by non-Muslims, the religious bigots calling themselves “champions of Islam” continue to victimise the Christians in this country. They say that when the name Allah is used in the Alkitab, it confuses the Muslim community.

Exactly who are these Muslims being referred to? Why is that Muslims in Malaysia can be easily confused when Muslims around the world have no problem with the name being used by other religious communities?No one, including the man behind the 1Malaysia slogan, who promised Muslim NGOs that he would defend the exclusive use of “Allah” by Muslims, has ever quoted any part of the Quran that prohibits non-Muslims from using the name Allah.

Instead, Opposition Leader Anwar Ibrahim and former Kelantan Menteri Besar Nik Aziz Nik Mat who, disagreeing with Umno ministers, quoted the Prophet as saying: “Our Allah and your Allah is one.”

Tracing back the Allah controversy, Mahathir, who was then Home Minister, was the first to ban the Indonesian Alkitab in 1982, barely one year after he became the fourth Prime Minister. This has helped him achieve his objectives. In his early years, Mahathir had initially faced resistance from within Umno, especially those who were Malays and pro-Tunku (Abdul Rahman). By making it illegal to possess or distribute the Alkitab, Mahathir managed to consolidate his power with the support of the Malays by championing Islam.

Different scenario
In 1986, when Mahathir was again challenged by Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah from Team B, he saw another opportunity to use the same tactic to unite the Muslims to defend his position. Within the next few years, one state enactment after another was passed. The rest is history.

Today, the scenario is different. In 2007, when Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar slapped a prohibition order on the Herald, it kick-started a lengthy and painful litigation, which ended in the controversial Federal Court ruling.

Although the Catholic Herald was never intended for proselytisation of Muslims, it earned the ire of authorities because of the Bahasa Malaysia section that is supposed to cater to the Catholic congregation in East Malaysia. Most of us who are not Catholics have never even heard of the Catholic Herald until the High Court ruling in 2008.

How could the publication be used to proselytise the Muslims? It’s all an Umno game. The same observation is made by Shah Alam MP, Khalid Abdul Samad, who openly said that Umno is using the same strategy to attack the Pakatan Rakyat Selangor government.

There you go! The same reason is what motivated the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) to raid the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) and a Hindu wedding. Apart from Perkasa, Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma) has been very vocal. Along with Mais, it was involved in a Christian-bashing seminar held at UiTM.

Government script
We cannot blame the BN government for everything that is happening today. Our fellow citizens in East Malaysia have voted the present regime into power. Although it was Syed Hamid who first prohibited the Catholic Herald from using the name Allah, now, the East Malaysian churches cannot blame the Federal Court decision for ruling that Allah is now a banned word as far as all non-Muslims are concerned, since its decision is binding on a lower court and the Federal Court is the supreme authority in this country.

No state, including Sabah and Sarawak, can cushion itself against the ruling of the Federal Court. The moment a group of Muslim extremists in Sabah or Sarawak complain against the church for using the name Allah, or choose to bring this matter to the court, the decision by the apex court will be binding.

As usual, after the apex court ruling, the government read out its part of the script: “Christians can still use the term ‘Allah’ in their churches and (we are still) committed to the 10-point solution.” Let it be known that no amount of balm from Putrajaya will be able to comfort the non-Muslim community, unless the Federal Court’s decision is overturned.

For our Muslim brethren, Ramadan is a good time to get close to God. Our God is a great God, who will forgive when we turn to Him. I would not risk using the name Allah here, but you know I am referring to the One and Almighty God.

Link: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/highlight/2014/06/30/its-all-a-political-game-in-allah-row/

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Najib’s praise for Isis an assault to humanity, civilisation

Published by The Malaysian Insider on 25 June 2014.
Bersih 2.0 condemns in the strongest language Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s call upon Umno members to emulate the “bravery” of Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (Isis, also known as Isil) terrorists and views this as a grave threat to parliamentary democracy.
Isis has been committing gruesome crimes against humanity of beheading and indiscriminate killing of civilians and prisoners of war.
The group is turning Iraq and Syria into another killing field of ethno-religious hatred after the former Yugoslavia and Burundi-Rwanda.
Najib’s praise for Isis is an assault to humanity and civilisation. His call for its emulation is a covert call for the politics of blood.
It is an international embarrassment to Malaysia and the people of Malaysia that their prime minister has lauded a terrorist group for its criminal actions.
Glorifying the terrorism of Isis signals a readiness of Umno to replace electoral and parliamentary competition with military and violent domination.
This statement is extremely alarming given the growing number and intensity of hate speech under Najib’s premiership since 2009.
Bersih 2.0 calls upon the prime minister to immediately retract and his terrorism-glorifying statement and apologise to all Malaysians as well as the people of Iraq and Syria.
Najib's outrageous statement is both an insult to the thousands of victims in Iraq and Syria, making Malaysia a terrorism-friendly country, and a betrayal to Malaysia’s parliamentary democracy, which he has taken an oath to defend when he was sworn in as a parliamentarian.
Bersih 2.0 urges all Malaysians including Najib’s colleagues in Umno and Barisan Nasional to condemn Najib's statement and demand his retraction and apologies – unless they agree with the call for Umno to emulate Isis.
This is a critical juncture that all Malaysians must stand together and put the interest of nation and humanity before that of parties and factions. – June 25, 2014.
* Issued by the Steering Committee of Bersih 2.0.
* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.
Link: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/sideviews/article/najibs-praise-for-isis-an-assault-to-humanity-civilisation-bersih-2.0?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed

KUALA LUMPUR, June 24, 2014 — Umno must emulate the bravery of a Middle Eastern militant group that defeated an Iraqi force outnumbering it nearly 30 to one if the Malay nationalist party is to survive, Datuk Seri Najib Razak said yesterday. The Umno president and prime minister was listing virtues that were needed to allow the Malay nationalist party to continue in power, during a dinner to commemorate the 20th anniversary of its Cheras branch yesterday. “For example, when someone dares to fight to their death, they can even defeat a much bigger team. “As proof — whether we agree or not is another matter — the group ISIL with the strength of just 1,300 people, can defeat an Iraqi army of 30,000 soldiers, until four, five generals with three, four stars run for their lives, jump out the window at night. Why? Because they are afraid of those who are brave,” he told more than 1,000 Umno members in attendance.

Read more here: http://m.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/be-brave-like-isil-fighters-najib-tells-umno

Mais has refused to comply with instruction of AG & state government

By Md Izwan. Published by The Malaysian Insider on 25 June 2014.

The Selangor Islamic Religious Council (Mais) today insisted it will continue to seize Bibles that contained the word Allah in the state, adding that it had every right to destroy the holy books it had already seized earlier this year from the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM).

Its chairman Datuk Mohamad Adzib Mohd Isa (pic) said operations to counter the distribution of such Bibles in Selangor will continue and warned that it will not hesitate to arrest those distributing it. "This process will go on and we will also make arrests," he said in his speech at an event in the Tabung Haji Complex in Kuala Lumpur today.


Adzib also stressed that Mais will not accept the decision of Attorney-General Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail in the seizure of the BSM Bibles, adding that it will not return them to the BSM. Gani decided to close the case against BSM after finding the Selangor Islamic Religious Department (Jais) had erred in the seizure of the Bibles, which he said were not a threat to national security as alleged. However, Mais has refused to comply with instruction from the A-G and the state government but instead said that it would be getting a court order to dispose of the holy books.

The religious council said that it will not close the case as was ordered by Gani and insisted that there is a provision in the 1988 state enactment to charge BSM. Adzib today said that although the council would accept the A-G's decision not to prosecute BSM but it maintained that the reason given not to take action against the society was not valid. "We accept the decision not to prosecute as it is under the purview of the A-G. But we do not agree with the reasons he gave," he added.

"On the seized Bibles, actually Jais could dispose it themselves. But because we care about harmony and justice, we leave it to the prosecutor to decide."

On January 2 this year, Jais seized the 321 AlKitab (Bahasa Malaysia Bible) and Bup Kudus (Iban-language Bible) from the then BSM office in Damansara Kim, sparking an outcry and criticisms aimed at the religious authority.

Read more here: http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/malaysia/article/we-will-continue-to-seize-bibles-with-banned-words-says-muslim-body

Published by The Malay Mail Online on 23 June 2014.

Malaysian Christians are free to call their God “Allah” in churches, a government official said today, reiterating the Najib administration’s commitment to its 10-point solution from 2011... The official stressed that the Federal Court’s decision only upheld a ban on the Catholic Church from publishing the word in its newspaper, Herald. “Malaysia is a multi-faith country and it is important that we manage our differences peacefully, in accordance with the rule of law and through dialogue, mutual respect and compromise,” the statement added.

Christians make up about 10 per cent of the Malaysian population of 30 million. Almost two-thirds of the Christians are Bumiputera and live in Sabah and Sarawak, where they routinely use Bahasa Malaysia and indigenous languages in their religious practices, which include describing God as “Allah” in their prayers and holy book.

Christian groups and churches nationwide voiced concern today over the validity of the government’s 10-point solution allowing the distribution of Christian bibles containing the word “Allah” in the select states in the wake of the Federal Court’s refusal to hear an appeal on the usage of the word.

Bishop Datuk Dr Thomas Tsen, president of the Sabah Council of Churches, said the Federal Court’s decision in dismissing the Catholic church’s application to appeal the government ban on the word “Allah” in its weekly was a “huge disappointment”.

“People will bring this decision of the highest court and say no, even though the prime minister has the 10-point solution, the highest court still says you cannot freely use the term ‘Allah’ to address your God,” Tsen told The Malay Mail Online today.

“Even though the prime minister did say this will not affect East Malaysia, it’s no guarantee because this is the law. And we wanted the guarantee from the legal side,” he said. Tsen said Christians in Sabah and Sarawak have for centuries worshipped in the Malay language and have been using the Al-Kitab replete with the word Allah to refer to God. “Our freedom of religion is being restricted,” he said. “Since we were born, we have been using the term. That is our language,” Tsen added.

He also expressed concern that the Selangor Islamic authorities might use the Federal Court ruling to justify their seizure of 321 copies of the Malay and Iban-language bibles from the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM) last January.

A seven-member bench at the country’s highest court decided by a 4-to-3 majority this morning to deny the Catholic Church the right to appeal a lower court decision preventing it from using the word ‘Allah’.

Chief Justice Tun Arifin Zakaria, Court of Appeal President Tan Sri Md Raus Sharif, Chief Judge of Malaya Tan Sri Zulkefli Ahmad Makinudin and Federal Court judge Tan Sri Suriyadi Halim Omar had rejected the Catholic Church’s application.

The dissenting judges were Chief Judge of Sabah and Sarawak Tan Sri Richard Malanjum, and Federal Court judges Datuk Zainun Ali and Tan Sri Jeffrey Tan.

Last year, the Court of Appeal ruled that “Allah” was not integral to the Christian faith and that the home minister was justified in banning the Herald from using the Arabic word on grounds of national security and public order... The Cabinet, through Minister Datuk Seri Idris Jala, stated in the resolution that the large Bumiputera Christian population in Sabah and Sarawak could use their holy books in the Malay, Indonesian, and indigenous languages.

Tuesday, June 24, 2014

周慧敏的公公、香港多产作家倪匡:我为何弃佛信耶稣?


2014-06-15 邮报 阿摩司的训诲.

“我本来信佛教,但佛经太艰深,我太懒,受不了,”科幻小说作家倪匡在香港书展“卫斯理五十周年座谈会”上与书迷见面时,被问到为何弃佛信耶稣,他回答说,“基督教的《圣经》简单,只有一个字──便是‘信’,你信他就得!”

       倪匡这位与金庸、梁羽生并称“香港武侠三大家”的创作者所塑造的人物“卫斯理”早已深入许多武侠迷的心中。然而谈到信仰,倪匡确实毫无虚构,他坦诚地告诉书迷们:“你只要真的很虔诚地信,很由衷地信,没有半分勉强地信,必可以得到回应。”

       据香港基督教媒体报道,早年信佛的倪匡归信基督的经历也颇具传奇色彩。思考人生的意义未果,而借着基督徒梁上元向他传福音,他的心结逐渐解开最终受洗归入基督。而且,因着牧师祷告医治他多年的酒瘾后,他的信心更加坚定,多次在港台做见证。

       这位在武侠小说中把人物写活的“才子”曾经也遇过人生的低谷,因想不通人活着的目的甚至有过轻生的念头。“只知道不快乐,人生没有了活下去的意义,每一个明天都是今天的翻版,后天又是明天的翻版,”据福音站报道,倪匡曾经如是分享,“一眼可以看到底了,作为一个人,生活和昆虫一样,那有什么趣味?”

       然而,神听到了他的心声,藉着梁上元的基督教资料和开导,他慢慢地从迷茫和挣扎中看到“这真是真理”,心中的一个个疑问也渐渐解开,1986年复活节,他在台北一间教会受洗归入基督。

       不仅如此,神还以戒烟戒酒的奇迹祝福了他在主内的新生。倪匡在视频中见证说,一次跟牧师交流时,牧师鼓励还不怎么会祷告的他,想向神说什么大声念出来就可以;他说他真的很诚心地祷告说,“我酒瘾很痛苦,我又不想这样被酒控制一生……”就在当晚,他就不再恋酒了,他说这一神迹连自己都难以相信。

       年近八十的倪匡,家庭也十分蒙福。儿子倪震与其艺人妻子周慧敏在2010年也一同受洗归于基督。

       喜欢本文请转发:
http://mp.weixin.qq.com/s?__biz=MzA3OTM0MDYxOQ%3D%3D&mid=200266419&idx=1&sn=c17f8339263c83a5196a5c270a6f346e&scene=4#rd

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

US Supreme Court Permits Jesus Prayers at Government Meetings


By Ruth Moon. Published by Christianity Today on 5 May 2014.

A divided U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that explicitly Christian prayers at government meetings do not violate the establishment clause of the First Amendment. At least in the 94,000-person town of Greece, New York, which may continue to open its council meetings with sectarian prayer after the court's 5-4 reversal of an appeals court's ban on the tradition.

Requiring prayers to be nonsectarian would require courts to "act as supervisors and censors of religious speech," wrote Justice Anthony Kennedy for the majority opinion, "thus involving government in religious matters to a far greater degree than is the case under the town's current practice of neither editing nor approving prayers in advance nor criticizing their content after the fact."

Two residents of Greece had sued the town board for its practice of beginning meetings with prayer, saying the practice violated the establishment clause (full summary below). The Second Circuit Appeals Court agreed, saying that even though the town board allowed members of any faith to pray, functionally, a majority of the prayers contained "uniquely Christian language."

But the Supreme Court reversal highlights the difficulty of determining where the line is between sectarian and nonsectarian prayer. Phrases like "Lord of Lords," Kennedy points out, might seem ecumenical to many Christians but exclusive to practitioners of other religions. "The First Amendment is not a majority rule, and government may not seek to define permissible categories of religious speech," Kennedy said in the opinion. "Once it invites prayer into the public sphere, government must permit a prayer giver to address his or her own God or gods as conscience dictates, unfettered by what an administrator or judge considers to be nonsectarian." 

Such prayers might offend people, Kennedy acknowledged. "Offense, however, does not equate to coercion," he said. "Adults often encounter speech they find disagreeable; and an Establishment Clause violation is not made out any time a person experiences a sense of affront from the expression of contrary religious views in a legislative forum."

The court handed down several opinions: Kennedy wrote the court's opinion, which Chief Justice John Roberts and Samuel Alito joined. Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas joined in part and filed a partially concurring opinion; Stephen Breyer, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Sonia Sotomayor joined a dissenting opinion by Elena Kagan.

Kagan in the dissenting opinion said the Greece prayers were "more sectarian and less inclusive" than any allowed in the precedent case, Marsh v. Chambers. That 1983 case upheld the state of Nebraska's tradition of opening legislative sessions with a chaplain's prayer.

"When citizens of all faiths come to speak to each other and their elected representatives in a legislative session, the government must take especial care to ensure that the prayers they hear will seek to include, rather than serve to divide," Kagan said.

The Greece case, the first legislative prayer case taken by the Supreme Court since 1983, has been closely watched. CT, which previously examined whether Christians must pray in Jesus' name at public forums, noted how the Second Circuit ruled that the town didn't try hard enough to find non-Christians to give the invocations—even if that required recruiting beyond the town's borders. But many expected the Supreme Court to reverse the ruling, and wondered how narrow or broad the reversal would be.

Most of Kennedy's opinion "is devoted to refuting respondents' argument that the Establishment Clause requires legislative invocations to be non-sectarian," explains Religion Clause's Howard Friedman in his analysis, while most of Kagan's dissent "emphasiz[es] the differences between city council meetings and state legislatures" on religious equality.

"The Supreme Court has again affirmed that Americans are free to pray," said David Cortman, senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), which represented the town of Greece before the Supreme Court. "Opening public meetings with prayer is a cherished freedom that the authors of the Constitution themselves practiced. Speech censors should have no power to silence volunteers who pray for their communities just as the Founders did."

ADF believes the ruling has ramifications for similar cases in other courts, and "will seek to resolve those cases in light of the decision."

"Today's Supreme Court decision is a great victory for religious liberty," said Eric Rassbach, deputy general counsel of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which filed an amicus brief in the case. "Prayers like these have been taking place in our nation's legislatures for over 200 years. They showcase our nation's religious diversity, highlight the fact that religion is a fundamental aspect of human culture, and reinforce the founding idea that our rights come from the Creator—not the legislature."

The decision highlights U.S. freedom to enjoy religious liberty, said Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, which also filed an amicus brief in the case. "I am very thankful the Court did the right thing," he said. "Prayer at the beginning of a meeting is a signal that we aren't ultimately just Americans. We are citizens of the State, yes, but the State isn't ultimate. There is some higher allegiance than simply political process."

Here is the Supreme Court's summary of Greece v. Galloway:
Since 1999, the monthly town board meetings in Greece, New York, have opened with a roll call, a recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, and a prayer given by clergy selected from the congregations listed in a local directory. While the prayer program is open to all creeds, nearly all of the local congregations are Christian; thus, nearly all of the participating prayer givers have been too. Respondents, citizens who attend meetings to speak on local issues, filed suit, alleging that the town violated the First Amendment's Establishment Clause by preferring Christians over other prayer givers and by sponsoring sectarian prayers. They sought to limit the town to "inclusive and ecumenical" prayers that referred only to a "generic God." The District Court upheld the prayer practice on summary judgment, finding no impermissible preference for Christianity; concluding that the Christian identity of most of the prayer givers reflected the predominantly Christian character of the town's congregations, not an official policy or practice of discriminating against minority faiths; finding that the First Amendment did not require Greece to invite clergy from congregations beyond its borders to achieve religious diversity; and rejecting the theory that legislative prayer must be non-sectarian. The Second Circuit reversed, holding that some aspects of the prayer pro- gram, viewed in their totality by a reasonable observer, conveyed the message that Greece was endorsing Christianity.

Link: 

Friday, May 2, 2014

Haters Under The Facade Of Atheism

By Michael Gryboski. Published by The Christian Post on 30 April 2014.

A West Virginia school district has painted over a Bible verse formerly located in the gymnasium of one of its high schools. Philippians 4:13, which was inscribed on Parkersburg South High School's gymnasium wall more than a decade ago, was painted over last week after the district received a letter from the Freedom From Religion Foundation, an atheist group based in Madison, Wisconsin.

"Last week, the Bible verse was painted over after a recommendation from our legal council informing the administration we were in violation of State and Federal Law," Tim Yeater, president of the Wood County Board of Education, told The Christian Post on Wednesday.

Yeater also told CP that the decision to paint over the verse has received a "mixed response" from the community. "The local media and a few community members have taken the viewpoint that we need to maintain a definitive separation between church and state, while most community members I have heard from thought we reacted too quickly and should not have painted over the Bible verse," said Yeater.

"I think the bigger issue from the public was protecting the rights of our students and ensuring we permit the students to wear T-shirts with the verse while in school or attending athletic functions," he added.

In a statement to local media Pat Law, superintendent of Wood County School District, said, "We asked them to take it down. We have to follow the law, whatever that law might be. We're going to be certain that everyone's rights are being protected."

The verse, Philippians 4:13:  "I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me," was placed in the gymnasium wall outside the wrestling room at Parkersburg South High. Philippians 4:13 was not only on the wall, but is also the motto of the high school wrestling team and is on their official T-shirts.

The FFRF sent a letter of complaint recently to Wood County regarding the presence of the Bible verse on both the gym wall and the T-shirts. "We needed to point out the obvious fact that this cannot be a team's motto; that this is unconstitutional for a public school to endorse or advance religion," Patrick Elliott, an FFRF attorney, told WTAP regarding his organization's action. "And so, that was our letter to the superintendent on April 11 about that being the team's motto."

The debate about whether or not the Bible verse will remain the wrestling team's motto and if the T-shirts will continue to have Philippians 4:13 on them is ongoing. Supporters of the T-shirts and motto have argued that, since parents purchased the shirts, no public funds were used, and thus no public funding of a sectarian enterprise.


Published on 18 April 2014. By Michael Gryboski.

A Wisconsin-based atheist organization has announced their intention to "scrutinize" the Bible class that an Oklahoma school district recently approved. The Freedom From Religion Foundation of Madison expressed their intentions Wednesday in response to Mustang Public Schools approving a Bible class elective championed by Hobby Lobby President Steve Green. In the statement, FFRF announced that they are "keeping a close eye on the Bible course developed by Green for public school students."

Dan Barker, FFRF co-president and a former pastor, stated in the press release that he was troubled about the possible content of the elective course. "In the religious climate of the Bible belt, given the impetus for this class, we are seriously concerned," stated Barker. FFRF, along with other groups focused on church and state separation, have expressed their concerns since last November.

A letter from FFRF Staff Attorney Andrew Seidel was sent to Mustang Schools Superintendent Sean McDaniel last year. "The Green family's constant attempts to impose their evangelical Christianity on Hobby Lobby employees has secularists naturally suspicious that any Hobby Lobby Bible class will not conform to the law," wrote Seidel. "Previous investigations have revealed that Bible classes in Texas rarely comport with the law, that teachers lack training, and that teachers impose their personal religious beliefs on all students."

Last November, Hobby Lobby's president announced his effort to create a Bible course for public schools that focuses on its history, meaning and impact. "With the history, we want to show the archaeological evidences of the Bible and then we want to show the impact of the Bible," Green told the Mustang Times. "The Bible has had an impact on just about every area of life, whether you like it or not, it has. It has impacted government, education, art, science, literature, you name it. Thirdly, is the story, meaning what does the book say."

Earlier this week, Mustang Public Schools voted to approve the elective for Mustang High School, with the course being introduced in the fall. In an earlier interview with The Christian Post, McDaniel said that he's "excited to offer the elective." "The Green Scholars Initiative has brought in more than 70 renowned scholars of different faiths from Jerusalem and Oxford to Baylor University to create the curriculum," said McDaniel. "The course is an elective. When our pre-enrollment packets were returned by students earlier this semester, more than 170 students indicated the course would be their first choice for an elective class."

Regarding church and state concerns, McDaniel told CP that it is a voluntary course, so "no student will ever be required to take it." "Also, the professors with the Green Scholars Initiative who put together the curriculum come from different personal faith backgrounds, not just Christianity," said McDaniel. "The curriculum has been through a rigorous review to check for bias and to ensure the content is neutral."


By Katherine Weber. Published on 19 April 2014.

A small, coastal town in central California has settled a lawsuit regarding prayer at City Council meetings, ultimately agreeing to no longer hold any form of prayer, whether sectarian or non-sectarian, ahead of the local government meetings. City officials say they decided to settle the lawsuit to avoid further legal costs paid by taxpayer money. 

Pismo Beach city officials announced their settlement earlier this week, nearly six months after the Freedom From Religion Foundation [FFRF] and the local chapter of Atheists United San Luis Obispo filed a lawsuit against the city, arguing that it had violated the U.S. Constitution's separation of church and state and the state Constitution's "No Preference" Clause by allowing predominately Christian-themed prayers before city council meetings.

The groups argued that the city had allowed its volunteer chaplain, the Rev. Paul E. Jones, to lead predominately Christian prayers ahead of city council meetings from 2008 to 2013. The lawsuit alleged that Jones often called on Pismo Beach citizens to live a "Christian lifestyle in accordance with the bible," among other sectarian statements.

As part of their settlement, city officials agreed to do away with the volunteer chaplain position, and Jones has resigned. The city has admitted no liability in the lawsuit, but said it would settle with the FFRF to avoid using taxpayer money to fund what would likely be a costly litigation process.

"[…] in keeping with the city's goal of carefully managing taxpayer funds, the City Council determined that it would not be a prudent use of public monies to contest the suit through trial," City Attorney David Fleishman said in a statement, according to The San Luis Obispo Tribune. The city will be paying $47,500 in attorneys' fees.

David Leidner, a board member of the local Atheists United San Luis Obiso group, told the Times Press Recorder that his group is "very happy the city of Pismo Beach has decided to end this exclusionary and unconstitutional practice and make their government meetings welcoming to all citizens."

The Pismo Beach ruling comes as the Supreme Court currently weighs the case of Greece vs. Galloway, in which residents of Greece, N.Y. are contesting their city council's references to "Jesus Christ" during government meetings. A decision is expected to be reached by June.

Another battle over prayer at government meetings is currently taking place in Carroll County, Md., where one city commissioner disobeyed a judge's recent ruling to temporarily stop sectarian prayers when she referenced "Jesus Christ" and "God" in a prayer prior to a commission meeting. Carroll County Commissioner Robin Bartlett Frazier decided to deliver the sectarian prayer in spite of the judge's injunction because she said the ruling was an "infringement on my First Amendment rights of free speech and free religion."

U.S. District Judge William D. Quarles Jr. had temporarily banned Carroll County commissioners from saying sectarian prayers at their government meetings after the American Humanist Association filed a lawsuit against the county, arguing their prayers were a violation of the Constitution's Establishment Clause.

Carroll County commissioners have since passed a resolution agreeing to comply with Quarles' injunction as the lawsuit proceeds through court. If the Carroll County lawsuit is resolved before the Supreme Court rules on Greece vs. Galloway, the ruling could become moot depending on the higher court's ruling.