This was the consensus reached at the inter-faith dialogue titled “Religion and the Poor: An opium or Liberator?” yesterday.
Organised by the Islamic Renaissance Front (IRF), the dialogue featured National University of Singapore Assoc Prof Syed Farid Alatas, Christian Federation of Malaysia executive committee member Dr Patricia Martinez, Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism honorary secretary-general Prematilaka K.D. Serisena and Pusaka founder and director Eddin Khoo as speakers.
Prof Syed Farid said there was a lack of critical thinking when it came to discussing religion’s role in poverty in the country.
“For example, there is no critical thinking on what exploitation means.
“We need to draw upon intellectual traditions in Islam and other religions to start a discourse,” said Prof Syed Farid, adding that a critique of Islamic economics was that many of the ideas were bourgeois.
Khoo felt a major issue in the country was the lack of deep dialogue on important topics.
“A major problem (with us) is that we have hardly intellectualised anything,” he said, giving as example the often-cited theory that terrorism was linked to poverty, but failing to discuss the fact that there were terrorists from middle-class backgrounds too.
Dr Martinez said the discussions on the topic should be inclusive, adding that there was a socialist premise in the Bible itself.
IRF research fellow and spokesperson for the event Imran Mohd Rasid said the dialogue was meant to introduce a new dimension to the role religions played in poverty.
“There is always a conversation about the poor, especially in religious narrative, in that as individuals we have to give charity.
“But the poor are a product of social injustices, so the job is not to just give them charity but to liberate them (from poverty),” Imran told The Star, adding that the IRF wanted to raise awareness on this.
The dialogue was held at University of Nottingham’s Chulan Tower branch.
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