Pluralism : Easy to say, but hard to implement<\/p>\n
Yani Prasatya, Jakarta<\/p>\n
"Yani, read this please," my grandmother once showed me a
\npiece of her writing that had been published in the Ahmadiyah
\nnewsletter. I reluctantly read it for the sake of being polite.
\nIt was titled Finally I found it. It was about her spiritual
\njourney that ended blissfully after she became a member of the
\nAhmadiyah sect. The whole family disapproved of her converting
\nbut she stubbornly persisted with her beliefs.<\/p>\n
Behind her back, we jokingly twisted the title of her piece
\ninto Finally I found my lost purse. To the disappointment of many
\nin the family, she passed away as a devout Ahmadiyah.<\/p>\n
That was twenty-five years ago. Recently to my horror, I read
\na report in The Jakarta Post saying that the government is
\nconsidering banning the Ahmadiyah organization on the grounds
\nthat it had sparked public disorder.<\/p>\n
I remember my grandma. Lucky that she did not have to go
\nthrough this ordeal as I cannot imagine how she would feel to be
\ntreated as a criminal and locked in a filthy cell. Despite the
\ncold response she received from the family, at least she could
\nlive in peace and not be attacked by a mob.<\/p>\n
I, personally, have evolved. I really believe in pluralism
\nnow. I truly believe that if we want to survive in this century
\nwe have no other choice but to acknowledge diversity and
\npluralism. "We" means us as people, humankind. Upholding
\npluralism means being open-minded and tolerant toward others.
\nServe others equally.<\/p>\n
To do this, we have to change our beliefs. This does not mean
\nthat we have to change our religion but rather we need to expand
\nit. We have to dare to challenge the religious exclusivism that
\nhas been taught since our childhoods, i.e., that we are the true
\nbelievers, and others who are not will go to hell.<\/p>\n
Most people claim that they are tolerant, but are they? They
\ndo not say "Merry Christmas" to their neighbors (often they wait
\nuntil New Year when it is "safe" to say Happy New Year instead of
\nMerry Christmas). They mock Christians for believing that Isa
\n(Jesus Christ) was born on Dec. 25. They despise them for
\nbelieving that God has a son. They cannot help feeling disgusted
\nseeing their Christian neighbors eating pork. They are against
\nthe building of church.<\/p>\n
They are not radicals or fundamentalists who like to commit
\nviolence. They claim to be moderate Muslims, and society
\ngenerally agrees with them. They are ordinary people walking down
\nthe street, your colleagues, your next-door neighbors, and even
\nyour brothers and sisters.<\/p>\n
Instead of asking the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) to revoke
\nits edict, as hoped by many, the government is considering
\nbanning the Ahmadiyah sect. If this happens, people will see that
\nviolence does work. Others will be led to believe that all the
\ntalk about pluralism is just lip service from the government. And
\nwho will be next? If you do not like the Liberal Islam Network,
\njust gather ten thousand people and attack them! And the next day
\nit will be banned by the government.<\/p>\n
Ah, I miss my grandmother. Now I feel so sorry for her; it
\nmust have been so hard for her to stand up for her beliefs
\nagainst all the family. I should have understood her better. I
\nshould have shown more empathy for her. God, please forgive me. I
\nwas only a child back then. What I can do now is to educate my
\nchildren to become genuinely tolerant people.<\/p>\n
I remember what Neale Donald Walsch said in his book: "You
\nteach your children to believe in an intolerant God, and thus
\ncondone for them their own behaviors of intolerance. You teach
\nyour children to believe in an angry God, and thus condone for
\nthem their own behaviors of anger. You teach your children to
\nbelieve in a vengeful God, and thus condone for them their own
\nbehaviors of vengeance."<\/p>\n
The writer is an Independent Human Resources Consultant. She
\ncan be reached at yanipras@yahoo.com.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/pluralism-easy-to-say-but-hard-to-implement-1447893297",
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