A week ago, I received a very strongly worded, or shall I say, a very angry letter sent via private message (PM) in my Facebook Page. In his letter, the sender lambasted me for “mixing up Christianity and Islam” by my writing of posts related to these two religious traditions. In a gist, the sender told me in no uncertain terms that I need to choose between one or the other because “it is blasphemy to believe both religions to come from God”. He further said that only one religion contains the truth because there is only One God. In closing his private message to me, the sender showed concern that I may be “leading people to destruction”, especially the readers of my posts who may believe what I wrote therein (i.e. “mixing up Christianity and Islam”). [Note: phrases and sentences inside quotation marks were direct quotes from the sender of the PM.] To start with, I extend my profuse thanks to the sender of the said private letter for his deep concern of my spiritual welfare as well as that of the readers of my post. It is a very laudable thing to be concerned for the good of others—and in this case, me and the sender share the same commitment namely; wishing the readers of my post their integral welfare including their spiritual good. However, let me strongly deny the insinuations that I am “mixing-up Christianity and Islam”, for whatever this phrase means to the sender. When I wrote posts concerning Islam and Christianity, I made it a point to show the beauty of the uniqueness of both religions. In fact I made it a point to write posts about Islam and Christianity at a span or a gap of a week’s posting: this is due to a reason: that I want readers of my Page to see the beautiful uniqueness of both spiritual traditions. There is a deep affinity between Islam and Christianity. Since both spiritual traditions claim to have come from the same One God, then there exists similarities and affinity in both faiths. There is only one Supreme Beloved and since Islam and Christianity claim to originate from this one Supreme Beloved, it therefore behooves us to appreciate their affinity and similarities in ethos, creed and value-systems. Despite the similarities of Islam and Christianity, still this did not diminish the fact that these two religions are beautifully unique in their very own way—unique in the same manner that a red rose is different from say, a white rose. (I will be talking on the metaphor of the red and the white rose at length in the latter portion of this my post.) It is very pathetic and depressing to realize that despite the glaring affinity between Islam and Christianity, and despite the spiritual treasures and riches that both faith-traditions have to offer to the world, adherents of both faiths continue to vehemently attack each other, misunderstand each other, and vilify each other with no qualms at all. The reason why I wrote posts showing the beauty of both Christianity and Islam is for me to be able to contribute in my own little way towards making Muslims and Christians inwardly realize that they are spiritual brethren in this side of heaven (as well as on the other side). By doing so, I hope to have contributed my insignificant part in bringing about peace, amity and harmony among Muslims and Christians right where I am, i.e., in my own sphere of life. My deep commitment and abiding advocacy towards Muslim-Christian harmony started during my early teenage years growing-up in Leyte; and my zeal or enthusiasm to work for the cause of Muslim-Christian dialogue was steadily fanned through the years. During my teenage years, I developed close friendships with the Maranao traders and their children in my hometown of Bato. These friendships with Muslims were firm and enduring for until now my Muslim friends who are now of middle age (like me) are still my best of friends and I make it a rule to visit these small Muslim communities in our hometown and in nearby Leyte towns whenever I go home. I remember with nostalgia how these Muslim children and youth of my age positively responded to my entreaties of friendship with them. They gave their best hospitality to me whenever I visit their homes; they extended their unconditional fraternity to me. I was accepted with openness, warmth, sincerity and love in their community—even much more than I experienced with my Christian friends! However, as my knowledge of Maranao culture grew, and as my friendships with them deepened, I too felt and came to notice the seething prejudices that both communities harbor against each other. Christians negatively stereotyped Muslims as being violent and Muslims also returned the favor by saying that Christians are land-grabbers of their ancestral lands in Mindanao. These misunderstandings and prejudices robbed both Muslims and Christians of the wonderful experience of truly knowing who they really are as human persons and how beautiful their religions are. Realizing this heart-rending fact, even in my early teenage years, I began to pledge myself to be a “bridge-maker” in my own little way so that adherents in both faith-traditions may start to genuinely dialogue with each other and journey with each other by respecting each others’ unique understanding of spirituality. That was the start of my lifelong advocacy for Muslim-Christian dialogue towards harmony, amity and peace. … In the middle of his letter, the sender (in his strongly worded private message sent to my Facebook Page) told me to “choose Islam or Christianity and do not be confused”. Again, I do not quite understand what he means by this. Who is confused? Me or he? I am still figuring it out up till now! After reading his PM, I recalled a very beautiful quote from the great Turkish Sunni-Sufi Muslim saint Hazrate Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi. Hazrat Rumi once said: “Let the beauty of what we love be what we are; and let the beauty of what we are be what we do. There is only one way to be: Love. However, there are a thousand ways to kneel and kiss the ground” (Rumi, The Sufi Path of Love, p. 92). Reading this poignant quote, I imagine my heart to be a beautiful garden of love. In this garden, I the gardener tends two beautiful roses—one white and the other red. I cultivated and watered these two kinds of roses in the garden of my heart for many long years already; I watered them with my tears, I marveled at the beauty of the row of white roses and the row of red roses in my heart’s garden. Should I uproot one and tend one kind only? I must answer this question in the strongest negative. My heart shouts: No!—a thousand times No! My garden of love tends these two species of sweet-smelling roses. I, the gardener of my soul, will go on tending both the red rose and the white rose species. I refuse to uproot one for the sake of the other! Both these types of roses are roses in my soul’s garden. They are my roses—making the garden of my heart more beautiful, serene and fresh. My above-mentioned metaphor is true when applied to my appreciation and marvel at the beauty of Islam and Christianity. From my experiences as a teen growing up with both Muslim and Christian friends surrounding me, I grew-up with deep respect and heartfelt devotion to the beauty of both faiths. My parched heart needs the spiritual gifts that these two faiths have to offer to my being. Our world is enriched by the presence of both faiths—and indeed all faiths! It is a great loss to me and to the world if we throw out one for the sake of the other. We need both roses in the garden of our heart for these two roses came to us from the plantings of the Beloved. Therefore, who are we to cut one off? Who are we to command our fellow humans to throw each other off? You readers of this my post, what do you have to say? (Written by Prof. Henry Francis B. Espiritu on July 9, 2013 at 9:08 PM.)
Posted on: Tue, 09 Jul 2013 15:46:31 +0000
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