Religiosity must renounce vengeance<\/p>\n
I was petrified to read your interview with the acting
\nchairman of Muhammadiyah, Ahmad Syafii Maarif in The Jakarta Post
\nedition of Feb. 12, 2000. Although he claimed he and his
\norganization were \"not radical\", almost in the same breath he
\nirresponsibly uttered that in the Maluku case, a jihad is the
\nright thing to do. What is even more horrible was his statement,
\n\"The Koran says whoever is acting outlandishly, then make him or
\nher pay as much as what he or she has done (to you). If they
\ndestroy your house and kill your brothers or sisters, you may
\nalso burn their houses and kill them.\" To soften this
\nphilosophical bravado, he added, \"Of course, it would be better
\nif you could forgive them.\"<\/p>\n
I believe the Koran, as with the Bible, could be
\ninterpreted in any way to suit one's own need, either
\ncompassionately or by way of vengeance (peace or war). However,
\nthe fact this statement was coming from a supposedly pious and
\nlearned Muslim and the head of the second largest Muslim
\norganization in Indonesia with 20 million followers is really
\nmortifying and upsetting. One can only imagine what radical
\nMuslims are like if their \"moderate and sensible\" leaders believe
\nin the philosophy of vengeance. And one can only imagine what
\nkind of pathetic situation our country and people are facing. I
\nthink he should have been decent enough to realize that revenge
\ncannot be justified, either morally or intellectually. He should
\nhave also been wise enough to know that it never works to solve
\nproblems. If it could, we would not have seen the Ambon tragedy
\nin the first place. Hatred cannot be appeased with hatred, that
\nis the golden rule pure and simple. And besides, what moral
\ngrounds do you have to judge and point a finger at others if you
\nstoop to the same level they do: they killed our sons, so let's
\nkill their sons; they raped our daughters, so it's okay to rape
\ntheir daughters. It doesn't take a religion for anyone to
\nsubscribe to common sense and common decency.<\/p>\n
I am not a Christian, but how universally true rings Jesus'
\nsaying \"do unto others as you would have them do unto you\". I
\nreally hope that his irresponsible statements are not the
\n\"official\" view of mainstream Muslims and Muslim leaders in the
\ncountry. Perhaps anyone with Islamic authority could clarify this
\nfor the sake of Muslims themselves, the majority of whom, I
\nbelieve, are not violent people. Only Muslims can purify their
\nnot-so-favorable image in the eyes of non-believers worldwide by,
\namong other things, standing up and condemning their mind-
\nnumbing, insensible mullahs' fatwa or statements. We are in the
\ninternational spotlight and, for heaven's sake, this kind of
\nshallow religiosity won't entice foreign investors to step foot
\nin our country. I sincerely hope that in the future the Post will
\nnot be so quick to disseminate this kind of inflammatory, profane
\nphilosophy from a so-called God-fearing religious leader.<\/p>\n
RAHAYU RATNANINGSIH<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/religiosity-must-renounce-vengeance-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }