My interest in inter-face dialogue lead me to a news story from Malaysia about political correctness (PC) and religious expression. I was reminded of the ban on Christmas trees from public schools and buildings (our own British Columbia Legislature, for instance), the sanitizing of Christmas cards to read Seasons Greetings, and the ongoing controversy surrounding hijabs (headscarves) worn by Muslim girls and women.
Even my little world of volunteering in a hospital palliative care unit has felt the heavy hand of PC censorship. Senior staff have told me to stop telling co-workers about this blog as “someone complained of being sent to a Buddhist website.” The hospital has one chaplain and one chapel, both clearly Christian. The District has a policy of honouring all religious and spiritual practices; its website offers twelve prayers from several faith traditions, including two Buddhist blessings.
The following excerpts come from “Similarities in faiths not unusual” by Wong Chun Wai, posted at OneStarOnline on December 30, 2007:
“The Malaysian government has prohibited the word Allah to be used by non-Muslims. The Deputy Internal Security Minister …was quoted as saying that ‘only Muslims can use Allah, it’s a Muslim word, you see. The word Allah as published by the Catholics, it’s not right.’
“Anyone travelling across the Middle East can tell you that tourists would be greeted with Assalamualaikum, even among Christian Arabs, but Malaysians are told that it is for use exclusively among Muslims. Even the Arabs are perplexed by this. ’Peace be upon you’ is such a beautiful and meaningful greeting, and we wish for it to be used by Malaysians of all races. It is also such a positive introduction to the world of Islam, where followers wish others well. The Arabs prefer salam, as with the Malays here, while the Jews use shalom. There is no religious context in such greetings.
“Christians in Egypt, Lebanon, Iraq, Indonesia and many parts of Africa with huge Muslim communities have used the word with no problems. In fact, the Church of Nativity where Jesus was born is located at the Palestinian side and Muslim leaders have no problems attending the church mass annually, as part of the respect accorded to the church. … A Muslim holds the keys to the Church of Nativity because of the factional fight between church groups.
“There is something positive [in all] this controversy – it’s good to learn and appreciate each other’s religions. As individuals, we are all constantly seeking out God in our personal journey …. Let us do so with our eyes, our minds and our hearts open.“
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