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. ）
國際恐怖主義的威脅,使回教徒成了矚目的焦點(diǎn),也突顯了國人以國家為重,拋開種族、宗教和文化的差異,互相了解和團(tuán)結(jié)一致的重要。
身為一個(gè)回教徒,九一一事件后我一直留意非回教徒新加坡人會(huì)不會(huì)對(duì)我“另眼相看”。
然而,一切似乎完全沒有改變,這令我感到非常驚喜。我的非回教徒朋友,甚至陌生人,還是和以前一樣友善。
可能是我比較幸運(yùn)吧。一個(gè)和藹的華人非回教徒德士司機(jī),告訴了我他的一位回教徒乘客的不愉快經(jīng)驗(yàn)——一個(gè)非回教徒國人不允許女兒和她共乘電梯。我用“非回教徒”這個(gè)字眼是因?yàn)榛亟掏絹碜圆煌N族,包括一些新加坡華人。
一些新加坡回教徒朋友告訴我,九一一事件后,他們必須向同事強(qiáng)調(diào)他們不是“虔誠”的回教徒。
在我們這個(gè)以宗教和諧為榮的國家,這現(xiàn)象應(yīng)該讓我們感到羞恥。很明顯的,要達(dá)到“不分種族、宗教、和文化,大家團(tuán)結(jié)一致”的目標(biāo),我們還有很長的一段路要走。
我們的政治領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人,在九一一事件后告訴新加坡回教徒,他們無需為自己辯白。然而,本地一家新聞機(jī)構(gòu)卻形容這里的回教徒,對(duì)有關(guān)回教和回教徒的報(bào)道太“敏感”,雖然該機(jī)構(gòu)承認(rèn)許多海外報(bào)道具有偏見。
讓我感到奇怪的是,對(duì)于不顧及新加坡回教徒感受、對(duì)回教或回教徒具有偏見和不正確的外國評(píng)論,為什么新加坡回教徒不應(yīng)該過于“敏感”并加以反駁？不管你是不是回教徒,如果你的宗教信仰被攻擊,你會(huì)無動(dòng)于衷嗎？
不過,對(duì)于他們的回教徒朋友無辜的成為眾目焦點(diǎn),非回教徒一般似乎抱著同情的態(tài)度。
人們對(duì)回教有什么普遍的誤解呢？
一是錯(cuò)誤的把回教徒的文化習(xí)俗理所當(dāng)然的當(dāng)成回教習(xí)俗。事實(shí)上,世界各地回教徒信仰的雖然是同一個(gè)宗教,他們卻有不同的風(fēng)俗習(xí)慣。
當(dāng)然,回教徒的許多文化習(xí)俗還是和回教有關(guān)。但是,一些非回教徒可能不知道,某一些習(xí)俗甚至可能和回教教義背道而馳！
另一個(gè)錯(cuò)誤的觀念牽涉到回教和恐怖主義?；亟谈静蝗菰S恐怖主義?；亟痰闹弊g意思是“和平”和“服從”。全球有12億人信奉回教,在中國便有5000萬信徒。
一個(gè)擁有如此眾多信徒的宗教,怎么可能是一個(gè)鼓吹暴力的宗教呢？回教徒遵循的《可蘭經(jīng)》說：“為上帝而對(duì)抗侵犯你的人,但不要先攻擊他們。上帝不喜歡好挑釁的人?！本退銘?zhàn)爭無可避免,也必須遵守一些準(zhǔn)則,例如,不能傷害婦女、孩子、老人、甚至牛群和植物。此外,回教認(rèn)為自殺是非常嚴(yán)重的罪過,是對(duì)上帝完全缺乏信心的表現(xiàn)。
既然回教不準(zhǔn)人們殘害自己的生命,當(dāng)然也禁止人們殘害他人的生命,所以自殺性的炸彈攻擊行為絕對(duì)不能說成是正當(dāng)?shù)男袨?。根?jù)《可蘭經(jīng)》,沒有理由的殺害一個(gè)人,等于殺害一個(gè)民族。
個(gè)別信徒有選擇遵循或拒絕教義的自由,所以宗教本身不能對(duì)每一個(gè)追隨者的行為負(fù)責(zé)。對(duì)抗壓迫是合理的行為,但是,進(jìn)行恐怖行動(dòng)、殘殺包括非回教徒無辜平民的回教極端分子,完全違反了回教的教義和回教所代表的一切。
我們必須糾正人們對(duì)回教的誤解。因?yàn)槲覀円氖且粋€(gè)具有強(qiáng)大凝聚力的多元宗教新加坡社會(huì)。非回教徒如果相信一般的成見或不正確的說法,就會(huì)對(duì)回教和回教徒有錯(cuò)誤的認(rèn)識(shí)。推而廣之,不同宗教信仰的新加坡人,將不能在相互信任、尊敬和了解的基礎(chǔ)上,建立真正的友誼。
新加坡回教徒會(huì)不斷的向非回教徒朋友解釋回教的真正教義。不過,我們希望他們也同樣會(huì)作出努力嘗試了解我們。
（作者是一名自由撰稿人,也從事顧問工作,過去5年來一直活躍于回教徒社會(huì)。葉琦保譯。）
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. ）
國際恐怖主義的威脅,使回教徒成了矚目的焦點(diǎn),也突顯了國人以國家為重,拋開種族、宗教和文化的差異,互相了解和團(tuán)結(jié)一致的重要。
身為一個(gè)回教徒,九一一事件后我一直留意非回教徒新加坡人會(huì)不會(huì)對(duì)我“另眼相看”。
然而,一切似乎完全沒有改變,這令我感到非常驚喜。我的非回教徒朋友,甚至陌生人,還是和以前一樣友善。
可能是我比較幸運(yùn)吧。一個(gè)和藹的華人非回教徒德士司機(jī),告訴了我他的一位回教徒乘客的不愉快經(jīng)驗(yàn)——一個(gè)非回教徒國人不允許女兒和她共乘電梯。我用“非回教徒”這個(gè)字眼是因?yàn)榛亟掏絹碜圆煌N族,包括一些新加坡華人。
一些新加坡回教徒朋友告訴我,九一一事件后,他們必須向同事強(qiáng)調(diào)他們不是“虔誠”的回教徒。
在我們這個(gè)以宗教和諧為榮的國家,這現(xiàn)象應(yīng)該讓我們感到羞恥。很明顯的,要達(dá)到“不分種族、宗教、和文化,大家團(tuán)結(jié)一致”的目標(biāo),我們還有很長的一段路要走。
我們的政治領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人,在九一一事件后告訴新加坡回教徒,他們無需為自己辯白。然而,本地一家新聞機(jī)構(gòu)卻形容這里的回教徒,對(duì)有關(guān)回教和回教徒的報(bào)道太“敏感”,雖然該機(jī)構(gòu)承認(rèn)許多海外報(bào)道具有偏見。
讓我感到奇怪的是,對(duì)于不顧及新加坡回教徒感受、對(duì)回教或回教徒具有偏見和不正確的外國評(píng)論,為什么新加坡回教徒不應(yīng)該過于“敏感”并加以反駁？不管你是不是回教徒,如果你的宗教信仰被攻擊,你會(huì)無動(dòng)于衷嗎？
不過,對(duì)于他們的回教徒朋友無辜的成為眾目焦點(diǎn),非回教徒一般似乎抱著同情的態(tài)度。
人們對(duì)回教有什么普遍的誤解呢？
一是錯(cuò)誤的把回教徒的文化習(xí)俗理所當(dāng)然的當(dāng)成回教習(xí)俗。事實(shí)上,世界各地回教徒信仰的雖然是同一個(gè)宗教,他們卻有不同的風(fēng)俗習(xí)慣。
當(dāng)然,回教徒的許多文化習(xí)俗還是和回教有關(guān)。但是,一些非回教徒可能不知道,某一些習(xí)俗甚至可能和回教教義背道而馳！
另一個(gè)錯(cuò)誤的觀念牽涉到回教和恐怖主義?；亟谈静蝗菰S恐怖主義?；亟痰闹弊g意思是“和平”和“服從”。全球有12億人信奉回教,在中國便有5000萬信徒。
一個(gè)擁有如此眾多信徒的宗教,怎么可能是一個(gè)鼓吹暴力的宗教呢？回教徒遵循的《可蘭經(jīng)》說：“為上帝而對(duì)抗侵犯你的人,但不要先攻擊他們。上帝不喜歡好挑釁的人?！本退銘?zhàn)爭無可避免,也必須遵守一些準(zhǔn)則,例如,不能傷害婦女、孩子、老人、甚至牛群和植物。此外,回教認(rèn)為自殺是非常嚴(yán)重的罪過,是對(duì)上帝完全缺乏信心的表現(xiàn)。
既然回教不準(zhǔn)人們殘害自己的生命,當(dāng)然也禁止人們殘害他人的生命,所以自殺性的炸彈攻擊行為絕對(duì)不能說成是正當(dāng)?shù)男袨?。根?jù)《可蘭經(jīng)》,沒有理由的殺害一個(gè)人,等于殺害一個(gè)民族。
個(gè)別信徒有選擇遵循或拒絕教義的自由,所以宗教本身不能對(duì)每一個(gè)追隨者的行為負(fù)責(zé)。對(duì)抗壓迫是合理的行為,但是,進(jìn)行恐怖行動(dòng)、殘殺包括非回教徒無辜平民的回教極端分子,完全違反了回教的教義和回教所代表的一切。
我們必須糾正人們對(duì)回教的誤解。因?yàn)槲覀円氖且粋€(gè)具有強(qiáng)大凝聚力的多元宗教新加坡社會(huì)。非回教徒如果相信一般的成見或不正確的說法,就會(huì)對(duì)回教和回教徒有錯(cuò)誤的認(rèn)識(shí)。推而廣之,不同宗教信仰的新加坡人,將不能在相互信任、尊敬和了解的基礎(chǔ)上,建立真正的友誼。
新加坡回教徒會(huì)不斷的向非回教徒朋友解釋回教的真正教義。不過,我們希望他們也同樣會(huì)作出努力嘗試了解我們。
（作者是一名自由撰稿人,也從事顧問工作,過去5年來一直活躍于回教徒社會(huì)。葉琦保譯。）