Spectacular Himpun flop signifies an Umno in its death throes

COMMENT There was the promise of the fury of thunder and lightning, there was the promise that the very heavens and Earth itself will shake, shiver and shudder under the feet of a million ummah, this much and more hype, hype and simply even more hype were unleashed in the pro-Umno media and blogs in recent days.

The organisers of the Himpun Gathering of a Million over the weekend claimed that their several hundred, if not thousands, of pro-Umno NGOs had four million Muslim members. So, in their thinking, getting one million out onto the streets for “Islam” was no big deal. In hindsight, they should have engaged Hindraf Makkal Sakthi as their consultants for the Himpun march.

In the end, a motley-looking crowd of a mere 4,000 to 5,000 miserable Muslims, including many illegal immigrants and other foreigners paid for their presence, huddled in one forlorn corner of the Shah Alam Stadium which can seat at least 100,000 spectators. This is more than an anti-climax for a brazenly Christian-baiting movement from the lunatic fringe.

Yet Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin claims that Umno is poised to re-take Selangor from Pakatan Rakyat. He must be high on something or other! Himpun failed as Umno’s ticket to re-take Selangor.

True followers of Islam vs the political opportunists

True followers of Islam will not discredit themselves by taking on Christians as the latter, like them and the Jews, are “People of the Book”.

There’s little to differentiate between Judaism, Christianity and Islam in their roots.

The difference is that the Jews claim to be the “Chosen People of God” and Islam claims to be the true religion first preached by the Prophet Abraham and that Mohamad, the Last Prophet, had to come along several hundred years after Christ to bring the people back to their true religious, if not spiritual, roots.

Again, the difference is that Islam since Mohamad and the four Hadiths have ossified like Confucianism into something that harks back more to a forgotten era. Hence, the continuing disconnect with the present, as evident in the acts of global terrorism by those claiming to profess Islam.

Hence, the calls within Islam itself to abandon the Hadiths once and for all and return to the Quran to re-interpret the Holy Book for contemporary times and in keeping with its theme that “Islam is for all time and for all mankind”.

Himpun failed because Muslims could sense the politicians behind the call

It was the great Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran who once thundered in the streets: “Islam! Not one word more, not one word less.”

However, the politics of Islam is getting in the way of a great religious, if not spiritual, revival.

The spectacular flop, Himpun, is a case in point of Muslim politicians not hesitating to politicize Islam for their selfish, narrow self-serving political ends.

Christianity not the ogre made out by Himpun

Christianity was truly a great historical Reformation of Judaism and having had a Reformation, there was little need for subsequent reformations as claimed by the protestant branches of Christianity including the Islam of the four Hadiths. That’s the take in the Vatican and among Roman Catholics everywhere.

Anyone who mocks Christianity, mocks Jesus himself, and anyone who mocks Jesus, mocks Islam itself. Again, the Prophet Mohamad himself said that Abraham – the Father of Jews, Christians and Muslims – was the Founder of Islam and that he was the Last Prophet.

Christians have no need to convert anyone to their faith although Jesus prophesized that “unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Ghost, he shall not enter the gates of heaven”. Every man must choose his own destiny. One can bring the horse to the water’s edge but cannot force its head in the water to drink. That’s the essential message of Christianity and not as distorted by Himpun. If Himpun is to be believed, Christianity is degenerating into deviations and distortions to snare Muslims. That’s not the case at all!

Butt out, politicians!

It looks like it's not only the Muslims in Selangor who are reassessing their roles in the faith. Himpun is being myopic. Thanks to education and the fast pace of global development, Muslims everywhere are renewing their thinking about Islam and how it can be adapted to modern times. Now, Muslims find that they are being left behind in this world by others in many fields of human endeavour. The fault lies not in their faith but in the four Hadiths where the interpretations of the Quran are not in accord, not in harmony with the contemporary, not with the times.

Muslims are clearly at a crossroads as they have never been before since the fall of the Islamic Empire which spanned three continents before the advent of the west. The continuing worldwide acts of terrorism have proven to be no answer for Muslims and Islam but only bring more death and destruction in its wake. It’s a Catch 22 situation in more ways than one.

One can remain with the faith as espoused by the four Hadiths and pray that one does not fall prey to terrorism in the process, or as many do - hope and pray that the four Hadiths will be set aside to allow a return to the Quran in all its purity, or quietly abandon the faith altogether.

Muslim politicians must stay out of the personal as individuals take the ultimate responsibility for their religious and spiritual quest and development. Politicizing the dilemma of the ummah, as apparent with the Himpun fiasco, brings no credit to Islam and Muslims.

More good will come if Muslims embrace their Christian brothers and sisters, especially those in Sabah and Sarawak which are both Christian states, and jointly continue their religious and spiritual development in search of the salvation promised to the “People of the Book”.

Malaysia Chronicle