Day of reckoning
Malaysia is at the crossroads! Should we continue to move along the racial path of the recently failed attempt at collaboration initiated by the PAS-UMNO meetings for an agenda of Malay-Muslim Unity or embrace the Bangsa Malaysia reality of the multi-racial parties? This is not going to be an easy question to answer. However, one acknowledged fact is that every Malaysian who travels with a Malaysian Passport to a foreign country is seen and accepted as a citizen of Malaysia rather than as a member of his race. We are Bangsa Malaysia!
Definitely we are Malaysians first and then members of our racial community. So, the impending by-election is also a test case of our status as Bangsa Malaysia. If we can all accept ourselves as Bangsa Malaysia, there will be no clamour for the supremacy of one race over the other.
This by-election is a new journey for all Malaysians rather than one only for those of the Permatang Pauh Constituency! Rightly then, it is being hailed as the Mother of all by-elections. And what is at stake is how the votes will determine the orientation of this country for the next four years and even beyond. It is a serious election which we need to pray for; we cannot leave God out of this picture. He is the creator of all human beings — Muslims, Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Sikhs, Taoists or followers of any other religion — who owe obedience to this One God. Although we may express this obedience differently, all of us must submit our last breath to the one God and to no other! Yes, as Shakespeare reminds us, even kings are subject to death, the great leveller.
Theologically, we are all journeying to eternity, and we begin that journey not tomorrow but today. We had turned our backs on God when we upset the equilibrium of our nation, Malaysia, through the racial hatred and riots on May 13, 1969. Yet our God, far from abandoning us, stirred in the hearts of ALL — including the leaders of the various races and religions — the need to once again honour God. Thus was born the first principle of the Rukun Negara.
When Belief in God, the first principle of our Nation, is ignored, we may be infecting ourselves with racial prejudice and hatred. These are sins to be avoided in any religion or else we destroy truth in ourselves and society and live a life of lies. What a disastrous way to live, one that can only beget injustices. And we know that there are many abuses and injustices in our land because we deceive ourselves with pseudo-privileges.
How can we overcome them? The answer is simple. We must live truth in our lives and distance ourselves from abuses. To achieve this we need “to act in accordance with the objective demands of morality,” (CSDC #198).
It may seem a tall order, but it is not! With God’s help we can do it. Let us during the next ten days go down on our knees and pray to God that our nation will live Truth and experience a Fair and Just by-election.
Remember, God hears the cry of the oppressed. “The Lord said, ‘I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come to deliver them,’” (Ex 3:7-8).
Yes, God will visit us in Permatang Pauh and deliver us! Let us pray!
Prayer for Permatang Pauh By-election
O God, we acknowledge You today as Lord,
not only of individuals but also of nations and governments.
We thank You for the graces you have given us
to exercise our political charity in Malaysia.
We also thank You for the opportunity of free choice offered
to the people of the constituency of Permatang Pauh for electing a leader.
Lord God, give them the courage to exercise their solemn duty
as citizens of Malaysia to vote on behalf of the whole nation!
Guide those voters with the wisdom of the Holy Spirit
so that they may choose a suitable and trustworthy candidate
to become the next Member of Parliament for Permatang Pauh.
We ask this through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen
Reprinted from Herald with permission. Herald also runs a website, herald.com.my
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