Christians and the election: What?
I will not fork out money to buy The Star, I told myself after the dissapppointing episodes of dishonest journalism top-down ever since BERSIH 10/11.
But last Sunday, I did - RM1.50 to the coffer of The People's-as-if Paper, because the small caption on the front page was too interesting to be passed: Christians and the elections > F25 & 26
I bought the paper in the morning, but it was until late evening when I read the section - I didn't even bother to look at the news.
After reading it and rereading it (and rereading for the third time
here today), I begin to hit my head to remind myself that there was a reason I didn't want to buy The Star, it's crappy.
The whole interviews, it had a good representations from national leaders and politicians from various church traditions and political parties, lacked the substance so much promised by the title.
Rev Wong Kim Kong's repeated "the Church is apolitical", "the Church is spiritual" was such a dissappointment. To be sure, I understand that the Church ought not to be partisan, but I thought the issue was sort of settled in OHMSI's forum, Was Jesus Political? How can anything not be political when situated within the society of people? How can we say that we are biased towards truth, justice and righteousness AND be apolitical? Perhaps Rev. Wong meant "the Church ought NOT to be partisan in politics" or "Pastors should not get involved in party politics" but language is so crucial here. I am not nitpicking, but it reflects our mentality and sentiment. Apolitical is like an apathetic period to the whole issue. And I cannot bear with that, especially when an ordained minister who helm an umbrella Christian body claimed that the bible calls us to be apolitical and "not be involved directly in the political process".
Again and again, we hear the call to spirituality, and Teresa was on the spot when she asked, "Why are not many Christians involved in politics?" and she answered her own question: "they are involved in evangelical activities [whatever that means]...they don't want to dirty their hands". What a terrible indictment against us, no wonder people said, I don't want to have anything to do with religion.
If religion is about airy fairy kingdom with no concern for god's good earth and dear Creation, if religion is about what happens after death, about a closet relationship with some supreme being and does not give a heck about the rampant injustice, unrighteousness and evil that distort all the beauty of god's handiwork - Creation and human beings - who with a right and sensible mind would think religion is of much value?
My heart ached when Teresa said, "There are also Christians who ask me to leave politics and get involved in more spiritual work." Rip the last of the good folks from this dirty work, what are we thinking?
I refused to believe that spirituality is not about the material world. I believe god did not call us to do "church", but to live life, and that means relationship with one another, with the society around us, with Nature. And can we escape politics? Preaching spirituality without these elements is not the fullness of god's truth. Unless we say, Christian spirituality is like what the platonic or buddhist philosophers taught, a sort of soul-ish, immaterial afterlife and period. That our ultimate aim is to get rid of this prison body - that St. Paul called "god's temple" for goodness' sake - and go to heaven somewhere.
Our ultimate aim is to arrive at a point where the material becomes so much washed in god's redeeming truth that it will respond to god in worship at all time while we go on living. Our ultimate aim is the whole cosmos, the world, fully reconcilled to god and all human beings properly reflect his beauty, the beauty of his glory in worship and adoration - not by singing songs in immaterial existence, but by living a life, a resurrected life, in joyous and loving obedience to god's will. And while we await the day of redemption, it is our duty, the Church's duty to challenge the powers that sought to oppose the radical movement towards that day. The powers which distort human dignity by the oppressing acts of political hegemony, economics bullying and moral distortion. And when we speak the language of "the Church is to be apolitical", what we managed to do is to reduce the spirit of being counter culture to an indifference "waiting for things to happen".
I am not sure if the conversations are edited and if the articles really reflected the original interviews or even the full views of the participants, but I only say I was utterly dissappointed reading it.
Datuk Lee Hwa Beng, was surprisingly mature in his opinions and I respect him for that; making a stance about Malaysia not being a theocratic Islamic state (very careful though to reflect the PM and DPM's emphasis on the word "theocratic"), acknowledging the rights of Christian leaders to be be political and even partisan and attend rallies (although he added, "off the pulpit") and acknowledging the paramount of freedom of religion among the concerns of the people.
Wong Chun Wai's concluding remark was really nothing but some sort of a textbook-like safe statements:
"In conclusion, the Christians make up a substantial chunk of votes in the elections and these are issues of concern to them. In the battle for hearts and minds, their voices and their votes certainly matter."
Every votes matter, I do not think based on what we have read in the interviews, Christians have any so called "Christians voices", after all we are said to be "apolitical", whatever which was meant by that really confusing word (is it like "amoral"?). Without being aware and directly concerned about politics in the Country and even the political process, how can our voices matter. Any candidates can probably tipu their way into our "hearts and minds"
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I am interested to hear the views of other Church leaders now. Especially one Pastor Jeffrey Kumin from Sabah who was rumoured to be fielded as one of the candidates for coming General Election. I am trying to get his contacts from YB Teresa, if anyone has Ps. Kumin's contacts, I would appreciate if you can email me - just drop a msg at the comment in this post.
