Muslim clerics at loggerheads after “infidel” label on those who oppose Allah ban
Former Perlis mufti Datuk Dr Mohd Asri Zainul Abidin (pic) has scoffed at a suggestion by an Islamic bureaucrat that Muslims who question the "Allah" ban on non-Muslims could be regarded infidels.
Asri was responding to a statement by Datuk Noh Gadut, a former Johor mufti turned adviser to the Johor Islamic Council, who warned Muslims who questioned the ban of the word Allah in non-Muslim religious texts.
"Even if you are a diehard supporter of the goverment and everything that they do, you cannot say things that will make you look foolish," Asri told The Malaysian Insider today, referring to Noh Gadut's statement.
Asri pointed out that the use of the word Allah was only an issue in West Malaysia.
"In Arab-Muslim countries, there is no such problem and non-Muslims are allowed to use the word. Countries like Jordan and Egypt see Allah being used in big churches which date more than 1,400 years ago.
"So, is he (Noh) saying that all the Muslim scholars and clerics around the world, except for those in Peninsular Malaysia, are infidels?"
Asri warned that Noh's statement would have wide repercussions as the Allah issue was non-existent in other Muslim countries.
"He is accusing the other Muslims around the world of being apostates for allowing Christians to use the word. This is big," he charged.
Umno's Utusan Malaysia had quoted Noh as saying that those questioning the decision were deviant and disloyal to the religion.
“If the Muslims question it consciously they can be ruled as being infidels or becoming apostates,” he said.
On Monday, the Court of Appeal banned the use of the word Allah in Catholic weekly Herald, ruling that the word was not an integral part of the Christian faith and practice. It said such usage, if allowed, will inevitably cause confusion within the community.
Asri clarified that as long as the word Allah was used to refer to 'the most supreme being', the non-Muslims could use the word.
"So actually it is non-issue. Muslims believe in one God. So how can we say your God is different from mine?" he asked. - October 16, 2013.
