Ramadhan and terrorism

Ramadhan and terrorism

Fasting is a very special religious duty. Even the descent of
Koran (Nuzulul Koran) took place during the fasting month.
Unlike other obligatory religious duties or those based on
Prophet Muhammad's practices, whether or not you fast will be
known only to you and Allah.

Meanwhile, when you do other religious duties such as
performing obligatory ritual prayers, making the haj pilgrimage
or giving alms and practicing charity, these will be known to
you, Allah and other people.

In short, it is only you and Allah that will know whether or
not you do your fasting correctly and in accordance with Islamic
law.

In this fasting month, all Muslims are called upon to perform
this religious duty in order to improve their moral quality so
that they can impress non-Muslims as good, polite, corruption-
free and tolerant people.

During the fasting month, Muslims must also improve their
understanding of Islam to ensure that they will gage the right
interpretation of the Islamic teachings.

Regarding the allegation that Muslims are terrorists,
Indonesian Muslims must respond to it in a patient and non-
violent manner. Those who hate to see the development of Islam in
Indonesia will provoke Muslims to resort to violence when
responding to this allegation.

Therefore, Indonesian Muslims must respond to this allegation
by demonstrating that their good conduct befits a polite and
democratic society. Who knows maybe there is a silver lining to
this allegation, something that prompts Indonesian Muslims to
save the country and pull it out of the ongoing multi-dimensional
crisis.

Life is the mystery of Allah. What we, human beings, can do is
to improve our morality by doing good things. This is the essence
of the holy fasting month of Ramadhan.

TONI ERVIANTO

Jakarta