Al Ngu, December 25, 2024
Peter Riddell has written on page 159 in his groundbreaking book “ Islam in context past, present, and future”, a hugely interesting perception and understanding of the interaction between western culture and Islam, and in some ways you can apply that to Christianity. What I’m trying to bring up is there is some similarities and contrast between Christianity and Islam in facing the Western culture.
Riddell expounded, “the perception among Muslims or western culture would be decadent and debased is fueled by regular statements in the Muslim media, both in the Middle East and among mostly minorities in the west, that reflected and often exaggerated moral decay in Western society.”[1]
The following quote from invitation to Islam encapsulate the view: “Man in the West feels no obligation to protect women from the harms of society. This is why a man will allow his wife to be a stripper, a call girl, and even a prostitute. Honor knows no place in the West.”— startling alarming cutting statement of the West. What we see is not representative of the Western society at all of course, but nonetheless, these films are spread all over the country, continent, and in reality the followers of these movie vulture FAR exceed number of Christ followers, Christians. The point is, the gigantic influence mental, cognitive, intellectual on the society is beyond the grip of society perception and understanding an beats Christan influence hands down. Imagine in Genesis 11-God told Abrahm to “Walk before me faithful, and be blameless”, and here we are in our generation or before, we totally butchered many of the commandments of God thru Moses, and ‘blameless’ is a vocab that’s hard to find.
Genesis 17 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty[a]; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. 2 Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”
Now there is some truth to it. It is true Western culture has become so liberal that especially in the Hollywood movies and media that actually promote promiscuity of women and movies essentially play on the lustful desire of men in our society. What’s worse media like Disney who has been famed to promote children’s wholesome activities, now promote LBGTQ agenda and themes on that line. Go figure? That is a degradation of moral values. Of course we are not talking about regulating movies so that none of those will come forth, but excessive sensual stuff needs to be curtailed to say the least. In fact, the wind of Hollywood depends on the mood, political power, and the Christian influence on the society as a whole. They are all interlinked. The last straw is the blasphemous show what they did in the Olympics opening ceremony 2024 in Paris, totally obliterated any sense of good faith and sense in France, with putting the abomination figures on the most holy sacred “The Last Supper” of Christ to be turned into some LBGT transgender table! It’s that dark and irreverent to God that’s akin to the abominatio figure that’s prophecies to stand in the most holy place in the Temple as prophecies by Jesus himself in the bible. You can only believe when you see that. Try that on the Islamic faith teaching with Paris done to Christan faith, there will be uproar even revolution! I heard that some decent actors like Mel Gibson and the like are putting together a new Hollywood broadcast to challenge the downright filth of the present. What we are seeing is just not good to promote a healthy wholesome society. So in that sense, I will agree with what invitation Islam mentioned.
Riddell writes, “ no doubt Hollywood has a significant role in this process of stereotyping through his worldwide distribution of films, including sexually explicit material. However, this does not justify the broad extent of negative stereotyping on the west of the media around the world.” [2]
Everything is a balance, right? Yes I agree that the cultural backdrop of the west does not justify a total negative stereotyping on the West but mostly media around the world however there is definitely valid point, which in contrast Christianity has remained very silent and feeling helplessly in actuality in reality pretty much catapulted to the vast influence of Hollywood.
Riddell writes, “Western phobia refers to entrenched and endemically hostile attitude to the West, and to perceived cultural traits of the West.” He is right to say that this hostility to the West because of the downfall of moral values precisely.
Riddell writes, “ The phenomenal phobia in capsule in common printed in common sense, the newsletter of Islamic party of Britain: “there’s nothing in western societies… The remotely resembles good behavior. They all walk in Haas, vanity and pump: insulin, arrogant and boastful.”
So I just thought about what Jesus said on exposing them.
Eph 5:8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) 10 and find out what pleases the Lord. 11 Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. 12 It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. 13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.
Granted Paul was talking about having nothing to do with the deeds of darkness, but rather exposing the deeds of darkness amongst God’s people in the context of Ephesians 5. But if you look into it, it’s not going to be too big to extrapolate that to this world outside the church, although I wouldn’t do it in the exact same format, nevertheless, the principle of doing that remains unchanged. Jesus rebuked Pharisees of their hypocrisy with some strong blatant words:
Matt 23 27 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean. 28 In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.
This is definitely something good serious reflection for all Christians today you find that the one is protesting about immoral deeds of a society mostly from the Catholic Church if there’s anything, for example the abortion issues on the public arena, bravo to them, as much as evangelical disagree their doctrines. But we Evangelical have remained pretty quiet sadly. But take it to a step further looking at what Islam has done even though the principle of such is definitely a doctrine issue. We are disagreeing with them on a whole host of things and how God is different from theirs, nevertheless, there’s something to be applauded in the conviction and bold speaking out in the public square, which is sadly much of a silence among the evangelicals, and reformed world.
[1] Peter Riddell, Islam in Context, (Baker academic, Grand rapids, Michigan:2003) 159
[2] Ibid
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