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  DharmaProtector on February 8, 2010 23:38

Extra Tips:

(1) Study this book ‘Beyond Belief’ at
http://www.buddhanet.net/pdf_file/beyond-belief02.pdf
to know how to compare Buddhism with the above using Buddhist perspectives.

(2) Study this book ‘What Not to Look for in a Religion’ at
http://www.justbegood.net/Downloads/e-books/WhatNotToLookForInAReligion.pdf
to reaffirm your confidence in the Buddha’s teachings.

  Harmony on February 9, 2010 09:02

ISD calls up pastor for insensitive comments

The Straits Times, February 9, 2010, By Yen Feng

Leader of independent church apologises to Buddhists and Taoists

The Government called up a Christian church leader yesterday after receiving complaints about online video clips that show him making insensitive comments about Buddhism. The Internal Security Department yesterday met Senior Pastor Rony Tan, founder of the Lighthouse Evangelism independent church, and told him that what he did was wrong. Last night, he posted an apology on the church’s website, promising to respect other faiths and ‘not ridicule them in any way, shape or fashion’.

The video clips, which first appeared on the church’s website two weeks ago, showed Pastor Tan questioning two church members as they recounted their past experiences as Buddhists. In the exchanges, some of Pastor Tan’s comments – on Buddhist precepts of rebirth, karma and nirvana – drew laughter from his audience. [Correction: Rebirth, Karma and Nirvana are not precepts but some of the central tenets of Buddhism.]

The Ministry of Home Affairs said last night that his comments were ‘highly inappropriate and unacceptable as they trivialised and insulted the beliefs of Buddhists and Taoists’. It said the ISD told him that in preaching or spreading his faith, “he must not run down other religions, and must be mindful of the sensitivities of other religions”. Singapore’s Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act makes it unlawful for a person to make insensitive comments about other religions.

In his apology last night, the pastor did not refer to being at the ISD. Instead, he said he had received e-mail messages from people who had been “saddened and hurt” by what he said, and realised that his presentation and comments were wrong and offensive. “So I sincerely apologise for my insensitivity towards the Buddhists and Taoists, and solemnly promise that it will never happen again,” he said.

Although the video clips are no longer on the church’s website, netizens have reposted them on other forums. Two short clips show Pastor Tan asking church member Joseph Wee about the time he was a Buddhist in the 1980s, including a short stint as a monk. Mr Wee described chanting words he did not understand, and his frustration at not getting answers to his questions about attaining nirvana – the Buddhist state of enlightenment. Pastor Tan drew laughter from his audience with his remarks on the chanting, and compared Mr Wee’s effort to seek answers from his mentors as “the blind leading the blind”.

In a third video clip, a woman claimed she could recite an ancient Buddhist chant even though she had never heard it. Pastor Tan suggested that words were put into her mind by “demons”. The video clips, carrying the church’s “Miracle TV” logo, first appeared on the online forum HardwareZone on Feb 3. By last night, the forum thread had chalked up nearly 1,600 comments and more than 63,000 page views. On YouTube, the three videos have garnered about 4,000 views each. Many viewers who left comments felt that Pastor Tan’s comments about Buddhism were insensitive and unfair.

Lighthouse Evangelism has branches in Tampines and Woodlands, and describes itself as a “megachurch”. It has more than 12,000 members and is not affiliated with the National Council of Churches of Singapore. The church was founded in 1978 by Pastor Tan, who in his online autobiography, said he was born into a Taoist family. His son Pacer is the church’s youth pastor, while his daughter Tracy leads the church’s drama ministry.

Buddhist and Taoist groups who had received complaints said last night that while it was good the authorities intervened, more should be done to ensure that such incidents did not recur. Venerable Kwang Phing, secretary-general of the Singapore Buddhist Federation said, “We put in so much work to maintain religious harmony in Singapore; it takes only one or two persons to jeopardise that process.”

In is apology, Pastor Tan urged netizens who have been circulating the videos to stop doing so. He said also that he wanted to tell his followers “not only to to continue to love souls, but also to respect other beliefs and not to ridicule them in any way, shape or fashion.” He added: “Let’s put our goal to build a harmonious Singapore a top priority.”

Leaders of Buddhists, Taoist groups urge restraint

The Straits Times, February 9, 2010, By Grace Chua

Pastor did right thing by apologising, but Buddhist group wants to make sure there is no repeat

The Singapore Buddhist Federation said Senior Pastor Rony Tan’s act of apologising was the right thing to do – for a start. But it will still approach the authorities and have its voice heard in order to prevent similar incidents in future, it said last night.

“It is good that the authorities have looked at this matter, but this is a matter of national concern. We want to make sure there is no second time,” said the federation’s secretary-general, Venerable Kwang Phing. “Singapore is a multi-religious, multi-racial society. There is no point arguing over who is right and who is wrong,” he added. Singapore Buddhist Lodge chairman Lee Bock Guan urged restraint on the part of Buddhists so that tension does not escalate. He said: “Buddhism teaches us to forgive; everybody makes mistakes.”

Singapore Taoist Federation chairman Tan Thiam Lye shared Mr Lee’s view. “If (Pastor Tan) is sincere, we accept his apology, and hope this sort of thing does not happen again,” he said. “We Taoists prize harmony, and would rather not bicker with others. We hope other religious groups can treat the beliefs of other faiths with an open and generous attitude.”

Mr Ameerali Abdeali, general secretary of the Inter-Religious Organisation, a non-governmental inter-faith outfit that aims to strengthen religious harmony, said leaders of the 10 religions represented in the group had been notified of the issue. When asked if the incident meant the organisation needed to work harder at promoting religious harmony, Mr Ameerali said: “Promoting religious harmony and understanding is a continuing effort. We have been promoting religious harmony for 60 years, and we will continue to do that.”

ISD acts

The Home Affairs Ministry issued this statement last night: “The Internal Security Department (ISD) has called up Pastor Rony Tan of Lighthouse Evangelism (LE) today in connection with his comments and insinuations about Buddhism and Taoism at LE sessions. These sessions were video-recorded and made available on YouTube and other websites.

Pastor Tan’s comments were highly inappropriate and unacceptable as they trivialised and insulted the beliefs of Buddhists and Taoists. They can also give rise to tension and conflict between the Buddhist/Taoist and Christian communities. The ISD told Pastor Tan that in preaching or proselytising his faith, he must not run down other religions, and must be mindful of the sensitivities of other religions.

Pastor Tan has expressed his deepest apologies and remorse. He deeply regrets that he has been insensitive and offensive towards the Buddhist and Taoists faiths, and that his comments have saddened and hurt their followers. He has promised that it will never happen again and has also affirmed that he will tell his members to respect other beliefs and build a harmonious Singapore.”

Pastor’s apology

This apology was posted on the website of the Lighthouse Evangelism church last night, headlined “Urgent message from Pastor Rony”:

I have received a number of emails from people who have been saddened and hurt by the testimonies of an ex-monk and an ex-nun. I realized that my presentation and comments were wrong and offensive. So I sincerely apologize for my insensitivity towards the Buddhists and Taoists, and solemnly promise that it will never happen again.

When we have received those emails, we immediately removed the video clips from our website. I urge those who have posted those clips on the YouTube to remove them as well. After reading the frank views from those emails, I was also prompted to tell my members not only to continue to love souls, but also to respect other belief and not to ridicule them in any way, shape or fashion. Let’s put our goal to build a harmonious Singapore a top priority.

  Newsman on February 9, 2010 14:41

Singapore denounces pastor for ridiculing Buddhists

SINGAPORE (Reuters Life!) – Singapore has warned a Christian pastor that his online videos are offensive to Buddhists and Taoists, underlining the city-state’s concerns that religion is a potential faultline for its multicultural society.

Pastor Rony Tan, of Lighthouse Evangelism, apologized and pulled the video clips off the internet after being visited by the government’s Internal Security Department on Monday, the pastor and the government said on their websites.

The Ministry of Home Affairs said in a statement on Tuesday Tan’s comments were “highly inappropriate and unacceptable,” and could “give rise to tension and conflict between the Buddhist/Taoist and Christian communities.”

The clips are no longer available online, but the Straits Times said they involved ridiculing beliefs, including Buddhist concepts of rebirth, karma and nirvana, drawing laughter from Tan’s audience.

Singpore’s move comes after rising religious tensions in neighboring Malaysia, where churches and mosques have been hit by arson and vandalism in recent weeks amid a row over the use of the word “Allah” by Christians.

Singapore last week arrested three youths aged between 17 and 18 for posting remarks on Facebook that have been deemed to be racist, local media reported.

They are likely to be charged under the Sedition Act, under which anyone found guilty of promoting feelings of ill will or hostility against other races or religions faces fines of up to S$5,000 ($3,520) as well as the possibility of being jailed for up to three years.

Singapore, which saw deadly racial riots in the 1950s and 1960s, is a base for many multinational companies which value its stability, infrastructure and proximity to fast-growing Asian markets.

Buddhists and Taoists account for half of Singapore’s nearly 5 million population. Muslims and Christians account for 15 percent each.

Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said in a speech last August that religious and racial tensions were the country’s biggest potential social faultlines.

(Reporting by Nopporn Wong-Anan; Editing by Neil Chatterjee)

  shian on February 18, 2010 02:42

From http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1036694/1/.html

Religious leaders urge followers to speak out if rule of respect is breached

By Hoe Yeen Nie, Channel NewsAsia | Posted: 10 February 2010 2157 hrs

SINGAPORE: Religious leaders say followers must speak out if they feel a religious elder has breached the rule of respect between religions.

The call came in the wake of the case involving Pastor Rony Tan, who had made insensitive comments about the Buddhist and Taoist faiths in three widely-circulated videos recently.

“Recent headlines have been dominated by a church pastor who made insensitive comments about the Buddhist and Taoist religions,” said Syed Hassan Al-Attas, Imam of Ba’alwi Mosque.

“This episode prompted various religious leaders to issue statements on the need to be respectful to other religions. But how do they ensure that the message is being heeded on the ground?”

The head of Ba’alwi Mosque acknowledged that at best, what he can do is to caution mosque elders to be mindful of their words at all times.

“To talk bad about other religions is a serious matter, whether it be in private,” he said. “Because in private, even in a small group among your own members, you will plant uneasiness and hatred towards other religions and other people. (It’s even worse) when you talk in public.”

There is a small museum in the Ba’alwi Mosque, which includes Taoist and Jewish artefacts among its displays – an example of how the mosque promotes greater understanding of other faiths. The museum is open to the public.

The mosque also has guidelines for overseas speakers – no politics, and no discussing other faiths. Syed Hassan said that these guidelines have been in place as far back as 20 years ago. They were later adapted by the Islamic Council of Singapore (MUIS).

The mosque also encourages followers to speak out if they feel the line has been crossed – a sentiment which is shared by others.

“I’ll walk up to (the speaker) and tell him, actually what you said is wrong, you should not be criticising other religions,” said a member of the public.

“If it’s a first time comment, I’ll probably write to the person who did the comment. But if it’s many times already … I’ll write to the bishop,” another said.

On Tuesday, Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan, who is a Buddhist, also told TODAY newspaper that if the rule of respect has been breached, “we should blow the whistle and remind all about it”.

For many, the government’s response to Pastor Tan’s videos highlighted the swiftness with which it will act in such a situation. Some said the episode revealed a silver lining.

Dr R. Theyvendran, a member of Sri Senpaga Vinayagar Temple, said: “No matter what you do, the fringe few would always give you that shocker once in a while, which is good, which would shake up the people’s complacency, and not take things for granted.”

Pastor Tan has since apologised for his remarks.

- CNA/yb

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