The limited screening of Mel Gibson's controversial film 'The Passion of the Christ' was a right move because it would have created problems among Malaysians, said a senior Islamic scholar based in Universiti Malaya.

Former director of Islamic Studies Academy, Prof Mahmood Zuhdi Ab Majid felt that a nationwide screening of the movie would have touched on raw nerves of Muslims in particular.

"There are some fundamental issues in Islam that is contained in the film and our people are not mature enough to appreciate the historical value or the ability to distinguish between what is right and wrong in the movie," he opined during a recent interview with malaysiakini.

Among the issues open to Muslim misunderstanding are the identity of Jesus Christ as the Son of God (a prophet in Islam) and the scene of Christ's crucifixion (who didn't die according to Islam).

"The masses won't be able to understand the historical value or gauge what is right and wrong, and this could lead to a possible misunderstanding among the Muslims especially. The move should not be seen as imposing on others.

"Sometimes, we simply cannot expose everything to everyone. There are factors to be considered given our diverse religious and cultural history," he said.

Thorny issues

Unfortunately, added the professor, Malaysian society was not even open for an inter-faith dialogue due to some thorny issues that the Muslim segment had trouble dealing with, although he listed several attempts by UM to have an open dialogue some years back.

"Strange enough, the UM-organised dialogue failed because non-Muslims did not show much interest in having a dialogue. The non-Muslim turnout was very poor despite trying to organise it five or six times."

Mahmood became UM's Syariah Faculty dean in 1985. He was later director for the Academy for more than 12 years and retired in January.

Citing the 'perils' or challenges of living in a plural package complete with religious and racial sensitivities, Mahmood said people are generally not interested in another religion but may be enthusiastic about having a dialogue with the authorities to clarify or demand certain rights.

Recently, a heated debate ensued in the media over an article on religious tolerance that appeared in the Malaysian Bar's official newsletter Infoline.

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The subsequent police report by an Umno division against the allegedly seditious article saw instant reactions from politicians, religious authorities and even the royalty.

The entire episode revolved around - religious practices and noisy pets, particularly dogs - with the latter rather mischievously linked to the former in the police report with the aim of jolting the public into reacting negatively.

Mahmood said this sets a good example of how knee-jerk reactions on sensitive issues, which is mostly spread through the media, could lead to bigger problems.

"A reactionary response to religious issues can be very damaging. It does nothing to bridge the differences that exist among our people but serves to worsen the situation. It evokes accusatory remarks and causes more suspicion among the races," he cautioned.

He denies that Islam was a rigid way of life that infringes on other people's rights. "The truth is that Islam teaches that neighbours have rights too and that Muslims have to respect and protect those rights."

Common problem

Citing a personal experience to make a point on the rearing of dogs in residential areas, Mahmood said it is something that should not be turned into a religious or racial issue by anyone.

Talking about the time when he used to rear several geese behind his bungalow in Kuala Lumpur, he said the birds made a lot of noise at the sight of people and soon enough he was served an official notice.

"Dogs are pets and are mostly kept for personal security. The noise of barking dogs is enough to annoy anyone regardless of religious beliefs. No reason for Muslims to look at it from a religious angle or for others to think of it as a Muslim issue.

"The point here is that noisy pets are a nuisance to everyone regardless of race or religion. So why not see it as a common problem instead of a religious or racial one?" he reasoned.

Nevertheless, he said he has never come across Malays who complain about having to tolerate other religious practices but acknowledged that he knew of several cases where they felt repressed but chose not to voice out their grievances.

"You must understand that Malay culture is generally not very open or confrontational. But that doesn't mean the problem is understood and accepted. It is there simmering beneath the facade of cordiality.

'The main threat to Malay insecurity is Western culture that flows through television and closer to home, the unequal economic distribution among the races in Malaysia. Both affect the Malays more than the other races."

He said the issue of haram (prohibitions in Islam) or halal is not an issue which the Malays would want to harp on.

Beyond the realm

"I wonder if the non-Malays/Muslims could perhaps try to understand and maybe compromise a little bit on the daily differences in order to co-exist, minus the hostility and animosity?" he said, reminiscing about life in remote villages and small towns in the country.

"They (rural communities) are still the best models of community living. Everyone is happy and nobody faces problems adjusting to each other's beliefs and practices," he said, noting that intolerance was more of an urban phenomenon that negates racial integration.

Speaking of open religious discussion, one issue that has irked a number of Malays/Muslims is the discussion or questions by non-Muslims about Islam and related issues because they believe that Islam is beyond the realm of the non-Muslims.

Mahmood explained that this should not be the case.

"An open discussion is always welcome as long as no one degrades or demeans Islam, or any other religion for that matter. An open discourse is based on logic and daily encounters. As long as it stays clear of theological arguments, there is no reason to bar anyone from the discourse."

In fact, added the 59-year-old Muslim intellectual, Islam itself encourages open discussion and teaches its followers that acceptance or rejection of any matter must be based on understanding.

"Based on the Islamic doctrine contained in the Qu'ran, belief is based on understanding. But the reality is somewhat different because this is not happening around us. I have also realised that Muslims are not serious enough about making others understand their way of life.

"Perhaps it is a problem of understanding themselves first...an internal dilemma which needs to get sorted out first."

Only when Muslims are confident of their religion can they can reach out to others in terms of providing the inter-religious understanding that forms the backbone of our country.