Same difference
There are probably four positive faculties that distinguish man from other mammals. The first is the fortitude to persevere and overcome the greatest of challenges. The second is a proclivity to acts of immeasurable compassion. The third is the creative wonders which produce art and science. And the fourth, is the social penchant to live within a community irrespective of the racial or religious differences between individuals.
After last months' Idul Fitri, some among us will be celebrating Christmas in less than a fortnight. Several weeks after that comes Imlek, the Chinese New Year, and then the Hindu commemoration of Nyepi. Year after year, the cycle of our life is marked by events that anchor our faith and bring sanity in a world of perpetual confusion. Events which remind us of the significance of our existence. No requisites are required to appreciate the meaning of these observances. In spite of the diversities, deities and different ethnicities, the spirit of the celebrations invoke a common theme: Goodness toward one another.
These commemorations may be peculiar to one particular denomination but the richness of its theme transcends any human barriers. From the pious to the atheist, all can benefit from the blissfulness these occasions often radiate.
This is a fact incontrovertible to anyone with an open mind. The Indonesian state has prided itself in the diversity if its people, the richness of its culture and multiplicity of faiths thriving harmoniously across the archipelago. In a way, we are fortunate in not having endured significant wars of faith. From the age of kingdoms and sultanates, most battles have been rooted in "prosaic" issues of greed, power and empire. The archipelago has not been a battlefield for bloody religious propagation.
But the harmony emanating from our rich diversity has increasingly been tested. Since 1998 we have seen too much blood spilt based on erroneous religious convictions. Communities have been partitioned based on ignorance of faith. Terrorism has spread by abusing differences in religion and using God as a placard to justify any means to an end. Bigotry and ignorance are forever busy. They are perpetuated by obtuse fanatics who either have a hole in their head, or have their head in a hole.
In some ways we should feel sorry for these individuals for their inability to look beyond the worm's eye view of the world. They are lost souls because they looked for God too high up and too far away. But our sympathy for their ignorance quickly turns to revulsion when their methods utilize terror and murder.
Ironically, it is the most spiritual, not the pious, who are likely to promote tolerance and celebrate the splendor of our diversity.
Similarly, only those who truly value the depth of their ethnic culture can appreciate the uniqueness of the 300-something ethnic groups in Indonesia. The bridge across the cultural divide is the very thing that makes this country so great.
Such pluralism, thus, is something that we should celebrate and be proud of. It is, in fact, something worth fighting for.
They often label those who ascribe to tolerance as "moderates". Well, we believe that it is time for moderates like us to be more "fanatic" in upholding the belief of a multiethnic society. To fight against those religious and ethnic chauvinists who wish to disrupt tension in our country.
This means actually speaking out against those who propagate hate. It is about standing firm to stop acts of prejudice. And it involves all of us making a contribution to enlighten people whose heart has been poisoned by ignorance.
We must prove together that this idea of unity in diversity is a greater monument than any cathedral ever erected.