What is a Muslim after 911?

The threat of global terrorism has put Muslims under the spotlight. It has also shown how important it is for Singaporeans to understand each other and pull together as a nation regardless of race, religion and culture.

　　As a Muslim, post-911, I am constantly looking out for signs that my fellow non-Muslim Singaporeans are looking at me with a different set of “eyes”。

　　To my pleasant surprise, everything has been the same, more or less. Many non-Muslim Singaporeans I met, even strangers, were as friendly as ever.

　　But perhaps I am just one of the lucky ones. A friendly Chinese non-Muslim （I say “non-Muslim”here because Islam is a religion that cuts across races and is embraced by some Chinese Singaporeans） taxi driver I met recounted his Muslim passenger's experience. A fellow Singaporean, a non-Muslim, had refused to let his child go into the lift with her.

　　I also talked to a few Muslim Singaporeans who said ever since the 911 tragedy they have had to reassure their office colleagues that they were not “pious”Muslims.

　　This is indeed a crying shame in a country proud of its inter-religious harmony. What this means is that there is still a long way to go before Singaporeans can call themselves “one united people regardless of race, religion and culture”。

　　Post-911, Islam and local Muslims were put under the spotlight. Singaporean Muslims were told by local politicians they had no reason to be “defensive”。 Yet, Muslims were also described by one local news provider as being “sensitive” to reports on Islam and Muslim although it acknowledged that many overseas reports were biased.

　　Strangely, Singaporean Muslims were expected to be less “sensitive” by not objecting to insensitive, biased or inaccurate foreign commentaries about Islam or Muslims. But, whether you are a Muslim or not, if your religion or your beliefs are attacked, would you not be sensitive？

　　But on the whole, many non-Muslims seemed to sympathise with their Muslim friends for being thrust into the limelight involuntarily.

　　So, what are common misconceptions？ One common mistake is to assume that cultural practises of Muslims are Islamic practises. Muslims from all over the world may profess the same faith but they do not share the same culture.

　　Many cultural practises of Muslims worldwide are associated with Islam, but unsuspecting non-Muslims may not know that some of them may even be against Islamic teachings！

　　Another popular misconception has to do with Islam and terrorism. Islam does not condone terrorism. The word “Islam” itself literally means “peace” and “submission”。 It is a religion shared by over 1.2 billion people on this planet, including 50 million Muslims in China.

　　This alone would suggest that a religion shared by so many people in the world could hardly be a religion of violence. The holy book of Islam, the Qur'an, which Muslims turn to for guidance says, “Fight for the sake of God those that fight against you, but do not attack them first. God does not love aggressors.”

　　Even in unavoidable war that is a last resort, there are rules of conduct. No women, children or elderly should be harmed； not even cattle and living plants. Suicide is a grave sin in Islam because it reflects a total lack of faith in God.

　　To kill oneself is just as forbidden as it is to commit murder. This is why suicide bombing is never justifiable. The Qur'an states that taking one life unjustly is equivalent to taking the life of a whole people.

　　Any religion cannot be held accountable for the actions of individual followers who have the free will to practise or rejects its teachings. Fighting oppression is legitimate but Muslim extremists who perpetuate acts of terrorism, killing innocent civilians including non-Muslims, violate the teachings of Islam and all that it stands for.

　　Why is it so important that misconceptions about Islam are cleared up？ It has everything to do with a multi-religious Singapore that is strong and cohesive. If non-Muslims were to believe in stereotypes and inaccuracies about Islam and Muslims, their understanding would be based on a false image of Islam.

　　This would in turn hinder the formation of genuine relationships built on solid trust, respect and understanding between Singaporeans of different faiths.

　　So, as we Singaporean Muslims continue to do our part to show our non-Muslim friends what true Islam is, our hope is that they too will meet us halfway.

　　（The writer is a free-lance writer and consultant. She has worked closely with the Muslim community for the last five years. ）

　　国际恐怖主义的威胁,使回教徒成了瞩目的焦点,也突显了国人以国家为重,抛开种族、宗教和文化的差异,互相了解和团结一致的重要。

　　身为一个回教徒,九一一事件后我一直留意非回教徒新加坡人会不会对我“另眼相看”。

　　然而,一切似乎完全没有改变,这令我感到非常惊喜。我的非回教徒朋友,甚至陌生人,还是和以前一样友善。

　　可能是我比较幸运吧。一个和蔼的华人非回教徒德士司机,告诉了我他的一位回教徒乘客的不愉快经验——一个非回教徒国人不允许女儿和她共乘电梯。我用“非回教徒”这个字眼是因为回教徒来自不同种族,包括一些新加坡华人。

　　一些新加坡回教徒朋友告诉我,九一一事件后,他们必须向同事强调他们不是“虔诚”的回教徒。

　　在我们这个以宗教和谐为荣的国家,这现象应该让我们感到羞耻。很明显的,要达到“不分种族、宗教、和文化,大家团结一致”的目标,我们还有很长的一段路要走。

　　我们的政治领导人,在九一一事件后告诉新加坡回教徒,他们无需为自己辩白。然而,本地一家新闻机构却形容这里的回教徒,对有关回教和回教徒的报道太“敏感”,虽然该机构承认许多海外报道具有偏见。

　　让我感到奇怪的是,对于不顾及新加坡回教徒感受、对回教或回教徒具有偏见和不正确的外国评论,为什么新加坡回教徒不应该过于“敏感”并加以反驳？不管你是不是回教徒,如果你的宗教信仰被攻击,你会无动于衷吗？

　　不过,对于他们的回教徒朋友无辜的成为众目焦点,非回教徒一般似乎抱着同情的态度。

　　人们对回教有什么普遍的误解呢？

　　一是错误的把回教徒的文化习俗理所当然的当成回教习俗。事实上,世界各地回教徒信仰的虽然是同一个宗教,他们却有不同的风俗习惯。

　　当然,回教徒的许多文化习俗还是和回教有关。但是,一些非回教徒可能不知道,某一些习俗甚至可能和回教教义背道而驰！

　　另一个错误的观念牵涉到回教和恐怖主义。回教根本不容许恐怖主义。回教的直译意思是“和平”和“服从”。全球有12亿人信奉回教,在中国便有5000万信徒。

　　一个拥有如此众多信徒的宗教,怎么可能是一个鼓吹暴力的宗教呢？回教徒遵循的《可兰经》说：“为上帝而对抗侵犯你的人,但不要先攻击他们。上帝不喜欢好挑衅的人。”就算战争无可避免,也必须遵守一些准则,例如,不能伤害妇女、孩子、老人、甚至牛群和植物。此外,回教认为自杀是非常严重的罪过,是对上帝完全缺乏信心的表现。

　　既然回教不准人们残害自己的生命,当然也禁止人们残害他人的生命,所以自杀性的炸弹攻击行为绝对不能说成是正当的行为。根据《可兰经》,没有理由的杀害一个人,等于杀害一个民族。

　　个别信徒有选择遵循或拒绝教义的自由,所以宗教本身不能对每一个追随者的行为负责。对抗压迫是合理的行为,但是,进行恐怖行动、残杀包括非回教徒无辜平民的回教极端分子,完全违反了回教的教义和回教所代表的一切。

　　我们必须纠正人们对回教的误解。因为我们要的是一个具有强大凝聚力的多元宗教新加坡社会。非回教徒如果相信一般的成见或不正确的说法,就会对回教和回教徒有错误的认识。推而广之,不同宗教信仰的新加坡人,将不能在相互信任、尊敬和了解的基础上,建立真正的友谊。

　　新加坡回教徒会不断的向非回教徒朋友解释回教的真正教义。不过,我们希望他们也同样会作出努力尝试了解我们。

　　（作者是一名自由撰稿人,也从事顾问工作,过去5年来一直活跃于回教徒社会。叶琦保译。）