Catholic Bishop Emeritus Dr Paul Tan Chee Ing described the Christmas celebration message by Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi as “significant for the change it implies about a position he had taken earlier that is at odds to the one he has now assumed”.

Paul Tan was referring to the Christmas celebration message from the DPM which urged Malaysians to respect the religion of one another so that one’s own is respected.

“Zahid is simply promoting a truism that even agnostics and atheists acknowledge - that you do unto others as you would like them do unto you,” asserted the Jesuit-trained prelate.

Paul Tan pointed out that Zahid’s statement was “significant” because it implied a change to something he had said before.

He said that two years ago Zahid’s position on the Shiite sect in Islam contravened his current counsel on the need for Malaysians to accept religious diversity as a pre-condition of national harmony.

“Then Zahid had displayed public distaste for the Shiites which, correct me if I am wrong, is not a sustainable position in Islamic theology,” reminded the bishop.

“Perhaps after seeing what has happened to Syrian Alawites and Iraqi Shiites at the hands of the Sunnis of the Islamic State, the DPM has recanted his past position on the Shiites. If that is true, it should be noted and lauded.

“That position on the Shiites did have ramifications for the situation of religious diversity in our country. If you can’t accept diversity in your own religious backyard, how are you going to accept it in the forecourt?” he asked.

Paul Tan also hailed Zahid’s reminder that the country’s forefathers had defended the need for acceptance of the diversity of religious belief among Malaysians.

“It’s good the DPM has reminded young Malaysians of this tradition espoused by our forebears. Many of our young don’t know about this tradition and acceptance of religious diversity has weakened as a consequence and harmony threatened as a result.

“We have to revive this tradition or else risk continuing the slide into disharmony that has beset us in recent decades,” warned the bishop.