Religious education..

Assalamualaikum..

Alhamdulillah, Malaysia has a higher religious tolerance rate as compared to other countries in the world. Its one of the main reasons why i enjoy being here. Some Malaysians pandang rendah kat negara sendiri maybe because they don't know any better. They always see other countries blooming and developing, with tall sky scrapers, wide streets, flashing lights and all the glamor on telly, that they sometimes forget to appreciate what they have in the country. As a result, we end up complaining to each other about all the shortcomings Malaysia and skipping all the good parts about it. I've gotta admit, i used to do that too and still do once in a while, but now that I'm older, i can really weigh the goods and bad much more clearly.

When i first came back to Malaysia, all i saw was the bad. I compared everything to the experiences i had in England and never understood why certain things are the way they are here. Alhamdulillah, i'm getting a better understanding of things and can really appreciate what Malaysia has to offer. Like i said, once in a while i still talk about what our country lacks, but now, i say it because i know Malaysia can do and be better, not out of spite anymore. If my emotions get the better of me and i start feeling angry again, i usually try to stop talking about it and just change the subject. (if i forget, please do remind me yea)

InsyaAllah, any comparison i make in my posts about Malaysia and England, remind us all that we should want to improve and be better for our country. Take the constructive ideologies from other nations and disregard the not-so-sesuai ones. For those who are in a position or who have the opportunity to make a change, make it a positive one.

Religious Education (RE) was one of the subjects in Junior school. Unlike the subject Agama/Moral in Malaysia, we weren't separated into groups based on our religion. We sat as a class, learning eachothers cultural and religious beliefs. For example, in week 1 we would learn the basic beliefs and traditions of Muslims, in week 2 we would learn about Christianity. Once in a while we would even visit each others places of worship for example we went to a Gurdwara. By not segregating us, we got to know each other more and learn to respect one another regardless of our beliefs. We felt open enough to ask questions and discuss such a sensitive issue at a young age, yet we know when to agree to disagree and let each other do what they need to do according to their religion. There is religious tolerance because the kids have religious understanding through religious education lessons.

However, religious tolerance have been decreasing nowadays and it seems like a growing trend. The cause and effects of this would be a whole different post, if you know what i mean 0.0

The issue I'm addressing now is on Malaysia's religious understanding. We have a good sense of religious tolerance here, but what surprised me was how little Malaysians knew about beliefs other than their own. For example, how many of you (Malaysians) knew that Gurdwara's are the place of worship for Sikhs?

I know I'm taking a bit of a risk by putting a poll but i can't put my finger on it exactly or give a clear simple example of how and why i think Malaysians have a lower degree of religious understanding. I can see it and feel it and experience it bit by bit the longer i stay in Malaysia but i can't describe it to you in words how i sense this or give you a specific event. I'm sorry but i hope my little poll will speak for itself though. Please vote =) thank you..







Moving on, i think it would be a good idea if we were taught RE in Malaysia for sekolah rendah kids. If its not for all the 6 years, we can do it for just one year, lets say, darjah 5 maybe. Some people may worry that it would shake the faith of a child from his/her original religion that they were born into. But actually, it would encourage the sekolah-sekolah agama, church groups and etc to improve their way of teaching, find and try different methods to reinforce faith among the believers. Since I'm Muslim, I gotta say InsyaAllah, if we are sincere in what we do, which is our amalan and we are sincere in our dakwah and keeping the ummah together, InsyaAllah, things will only improve.

Other than this, religious understanding would encourage children to get to know other cultures and beliefs. Understand why some people pray 5 times a day or go to church on Sundays or give offerings to their ancestors. Sometimes, by investigating other peoples actions, it may reinforce our viewpoint and outlook for what we stand up for and why we believe in our religion (bukan buta-buta ikut je) and it may even give us a boost to lebih mendalami our religion. It can also instill the value of respect in our children, promote healthy discussions and give them confidence to discover and explore whatever interests them.

Agree? What do you think?


Assalamualaikum...