PAS Preachers - Marry for God or Money? (2)

I had blogged on Kelantan’s PAS rather lucrative missionary proposal in PAS Preachers - Marry for God or Money?

Rights activists have emerged to criticise PAS ‘cash and perks’ missionary work in converting the Orang Asli, the original inhabitants of Malaysia.

S Arutchelven from human rights group Suaram averred: "This is a violation of human rights. It looks like religion is being made a commodity."

Denison Jayasooria, a commissioner with the government's Human Rights Commission (Suhakam), described the reward offer as an improper use of state funds.

He said: "The utilisation of state resources as a motivation for preachers to convert ... is an abuse of power."

The Orang Asli make up less than one percent of the nation's population and are disadvantaged in terms of income, health, education and living standards. Most Orang Asli are animists and still embrace traditional medicine-men or witch-doctors to communicate with the spiritual world.

There are two issues here: (1) converting the Orang Asli, and (2) promoting the conversion effort through a ‘cash & perks’ motivational scheme that I highlighted in PAS Preachers - Marry for God or Money?

I certainly think the second issue is not correct. The missionary effort for money would be an insult to God because it’s based on the greed or material reward for the preacher, rather than love of God’s words. Additionally, I don’t believe that the preachers should be so lavishly rewarded with public money on what they ought to be doing as their principal jobs anyway.

However, I have no objections to the first, about the conversion of the Orang Asli into Muslims, provided no threat or unfair pressure woudl be brought to bear on those indigenous people. In this regard, PAS' missionary programme would be no different to the missionary activities of Christians or those of the Bahai faith.