Catholic bishop, Penang mufti in inter-faith meet

comments     Susan Loone     Published     Updated

Penang PAS has organised a meeting between state mufti Wan Salim Mohd Noor and a group of Christians led by Bishop Sebastian Francis on Feb 29.

Abdul Rahman Kassim, the state PAS coodinator on interfaith issues, said Parti Amanah Negara vice-president Mujahid Yusof Rawa will also be present.

State PAS commisioner Fauzi Yusof is expected to lead the party's delegates to the meeting, which will be held at the state mufti's office in Komtar.

"The mufti is prepared to answer questions on the Islamic State, hudud, cases of custody involving children of divorced parents, civil and syariah court rulings and matters pertaining to religious issues that affect non-Muslims," Abdul Rahman told Malaysiakini .

"Let's listen to the experts. This is part of our mission to foster better relationships with other faiths and raise awareness of Malaysians on the need to talk, engage, and discuss inter-religious issues.

We want people to see that we are truly Malaysians," he stressed.

'Emulate religious leaders'

Abdul Rahman said he felt encouraged that respected religious heads were willing to meet and discuss social issues affecting religious communities.

"Why can't we, the laymen on the streets, emulate them?" Abdul Rahman asked.

He said he is aware that PAS has often been perceived as religious fundamentalists, especially because of their insistence on implementing hudud law in Kelantan.

PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang had tabled a private members bill on hudud in Parliament in March 2015. The move led to a split between PAS and DAP.

Abdul Rahman was instrumental in promoting dialogue between Christian and Muslim religious heads in the northern region, in concert with Mujahid, who was then national unity bureau chief in PAS.

During the time, Mujahid held the national unity bureau chief post, and had organised several meetings between Christian and Muslims leaders in Penang and Kedah.

On Dec 14, Penang PAS hosted Bishop Sebastian and a Catholic group on a visit to Masjid Abdullah Fahim, in a continuing effort to forge closer ties with between the two religious communities.

The relationship between the two faiths has been strained especially after the Federal Court decided that Christians were not allowed to use the word 'Allah' in their religious publications, such as The Herald , a Catholic publication.



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