Wael Ibrahim – Reviving The Past Values For A Better Future

			Today we live in a society in which spurious realities are manufactured by the media, by governments
by big corporations, religious groups, and political groups. This is something said by Philip K
Dick. Nothing is closer to the truth in the heat of this current political climate, in the political
climate that we have seen in the past week alone. However, an older issue of greater input, or
mutual understanding of different religions in our city has not been quite discussed enough. Well,
Libra Han is the founder serving Islam here in Hong Kong, originally hails from Egypt. And he will
delve into the issue for us today in his talk, reviving the past values for a better future.
		

			I'm here primarily to
		

			share with you my own personal experience. So this is not an attempt to convince you will change
your views on anything, or even to convince you with the content of my talk. This is simply a part
of a life story which led me to become an advocate of interfaith dialogues and religious
discussions. And in order for me to relate this story, you will have to go
		

			back in time, to where I came from, I grew up in Egypt. So
		

			second, expenses will be on Ted, don't worry.
		

			So Egypt, where Muslims and Christians used to live side by side, no madness, no hatred, no noise,
no fight, it was deadly quiet.
		

			And all the neighbors, Muslims and Christians, they used to live like one family. despite their
differences.
		

			I can still remember my father telling me that if you wish to buy fruits buy from no one other than
uncle Semyon, and who was uncle Samuel, he was our Christian neighbor, who used to sell fruits at
the end of our street, he would come and deliver the fruits up to our doorsteps and return my father
that if you didn't, like my fruits don't pay. And of course, my father would take advantage of that.
		

			I could still remember Auntie Aziz, our Christian neighbor, who would send her son and not on every
Muslim occasion, with plates full of tasty food and big cake. And of course, these plates will not
be returned empty. So my mother would cook equally delicious food for the pleasure of a man and his
mother, I could still see my Christian neighbors, helping uncle Mohammed in setting up his stole
every morning, and I could see alcoholic giving them drinks as a way of appreciation for the help
that they have offered, I can still see our mathematic Christian teacher on command, who would
attend every Muslim funeral. Not only that, but he will sit with the Muslims, and listen with them
		

			to the poor and the Holy Book of the Muslims, I could still sense that peace, love, respect and
tolerance between the Muslims and the Christians back in it.
		

			When I moved to Hong Kong,
		

			I start meeting different types of Christians.
		

			Unlike the Christians, you know, backing into my neighbors, my class mates, my friends, they were
different, they will call missionaries.
		

			And I wanted to make things clear that not all missionaries are alive.
		

			They are different. But I'm speaking about those particular Christian missionaries who have met me
and intended to convert me to Christianity. I'm talking about very specific type of Christian
missionaries. All right. So if any Christian missionaries in the room, please don't take this
person.
		

			Those people had very clear plan to convert me
		

			and to cast doubt in what they used to or what I believed in and what they valued in life.
		

			On a peaceful Sunday morning, I met a married couple missionaries who approached me and the wife
started the conversation by saying, good morning sir, can we share with you some good news
		

			I sent
		

			Of course, who doesn't want to hear some good news?
		

			As you go ahead, tell me. So the husband start shouting with excitement. Jesus Christ is alive.
		

			I look back at him and I told him, I know
		

			I'm a Muslim. And as soon as I said, I am a Muslim,
		

			all cheerful faces that they came up with, and all a smile, the smiles have gone right away. I start
observing one of the most interesting ping pong match between the husband and the wife. And our was
basically the the table tents.
		

			So they start going like,
		

			Girl Muslim.
		

			Muslims are terrorists, Mohammed is a liar Jesus Christ is Lord Mohammed is a false prophet. Have
you heard about the Bible come with us to the church, the Bible is the Word of God, the man was
forced to marry the
		

			girl named Arusha and so on and so forth. We have started to, you know, load up with a tattoo on my
face, and all my belief and be wrapped up there, you know, conversation by an amazing closing
remarks, he told me, we love you.
		

			Serious you have you have the whole path. You know, imagine with me Just imagine me who's married
here.
		

			Or, I mean, husbands
		

			male.
		

			So imagine the husband wake up in the morning, and went up to his wife, with a cheerful face,
smiling face, hypothetical.
		

			And then we told her, before telling her anything, he lays off his head and landed on her face. Then
he told her Honey, I love you.
		

			When she really just forget about her slapping you back?
		

			Once you leave you, of course not. So what happened is I started to defend my faith in a no better
way than I even became more aggressive in approach that the Christian missionaries, and all of a
sudden, I realized that what I used to criticize and dislike have become part of my way in defending
Islam. When I was very fortunate to meet some of the most eloquent learned, Muslim scholars around
the world who taught me the proper way of sharing the message of Islam,
		

			basically, is to share, not to scare.
		

			And I came across the life of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon, and how to deal with Christians
and people of different faiths. And then I discovered beautiful values that if we can revive today,
we will have a better future. That's my own observation. No one had, you know, no one is obliged to
believe in what I'm saying. But this, these values are seen as very, very important to every living
being. And I believe that these values are universal. They are found in the poor, and they are also
found in the Bible. They are also found in different different religious scriptures. The argument
I'm making is that these values are not widely practiced by for example, the art of gentle dialogue
		

			and effective listening.
		

			You see, gentle dialogue, and effective listening goes hand in hand, they are intertwined. You
cannot have a gentle dialogue without someone who's listening to you attentively. And you cannot
also listen attentively to someone who's bashing your faith. Yes, so they have to go hand in hand.
So I remember one story and I came to the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him and started preaching
him.
		

			away way of life which, contrary to what the prophet Muhammad peace be upon, brought to the people,
which is the message of worshiping one God, and He spoke to the Prophet Muhammad for an hour, and
never did the Prophet Muhammad once interrupt the man.
		

			In fact, after the man finishes his speech, he told him, did you finish
		

			indicating that I was listening attentively and I'm just making sure that you have finished so I can
respond. When on the earth Do we have a manner like that today? You just go watch any news channel.
When people are debating Do they really listen to each other?
		

			Not only that, but the Prophet Muhammad
		

			about him, he asked him a second question. He told him, can I talk now?
		

			indicating that as I was listening to you attentively, now it's time for you to listen to me and to
my argument,
		

			gentle dialogue.
		

			attentive listening, the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon himself. Nothing is added, in any
conversation better than Jensen's, gentleness, speech, gentlemen, gentleness, and in even in arguing
and in reasoning with one another. Another element which is also absent from our society, which
everyone in the room believes in is justice,
		

			applying justice, even against your own family members.
		

			You have to apply justice,
		

			even though against your own people. And I remember this story. All I have is a figure in Islam, who
was the third leader after the demise of the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him. During his era, he
assigned another man called us to be the governor of Egypt. And during this region, the son of the
governor was raising with a Christian boy, and who won the race.
		

			Take a guess who won the race, the Christian boy
		

			and the son of the governor
		

			fell, you know, like how dare this Christian boy want to race against the son of a noble man. Then
he started beating him up.
		

			And when he beat him up, the Christian boy knew that all of the above the leader of the Muslim would
never accept such an action. So he went, he and his father all the way from Egypt, to Saudi Arabia,
to meet the owner of the hotel and to complain about that Muslim man who's the son of the governor,
assigned by the Muslim leader is what happened when he heard the story. He said for us and his son
to show up in the city of Medina immediately.
		

			When he asked the man in the rich Medina, he asked the boy, did you be that Christian boy? He said,
Yes.
		

			Then he went to the Christian boy, and he gave him his own stick, and he told him, go and pick them
up in the same way.
		

			Not only that, but he told him now after he beaten him, go and beat his own father.
		

			And then he went to talk to us and told him since when, on, we have been enslaving people, since
when the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him said, I shall believe I shall play on the day of
judgment on behalf of a non Muslim, whose right was taken forcefully by Muslim.
		

			The Prophet Muhammad will be the judge of a non Muslim, whose rights being taken by a Muslim in a
Muslim land. These elements we all believe in, we all adhere, yet, in my humble opinion, they are
not widely practiced. But as you a couple of questions here, who is in this hole? is a Muslim?
		

			Don't be scared.
		

			Please, is not here.
		

			All right, who is a Christian?
		

			Right, who is a Buddhist?
		

			Great, who is a Hindu?
		

			Who doesn't believe in God at all?
		

			We are no different coming from different backgrounds and different beliefs and so on. So here are
three questions for you. Who among you would like to achieve peace on earth? Are everyone reasonably
		

			100%? Good You have now second question who would like to live a life of happiness, joy and
contentment on earth is 100% All right, who does it who wants to live a life of prosperity and
compassion for everyone?
		

			Is 100% agreement despite our differences,
		

			imagine with me if we can cooperate to achieve these noble goals, not through bashing each other's
face.
		

			So my dear respected, beautiful audience, if you now excuse me, and have to get back in time, dig
for much more values and bring to our future. So stay peaceful and CRM
		

			Thank you Mr. librium for target