The world of modern material science created and crafted a black and white worldview. It was a valid and real worldview, except they did not call it a worldview; they called it the black and white view of material modern science, and then generalised to all other reality!

Thereby and thereafter, even the then Catholic Church took a position on the “the earth being centre of the Universe!” But then, two scholar-philosopher- scientists, Galileo and Copernicus, counter argued the black and white worldview and established the scientific truths about the universe; that the Sun and not Earth was the centre of the universe.

Thereby and therefore my language of “colours of the rainbow worldview” was born. It simply means that while the black-white worldview is valid for material science, as established by modern science, but it cannot be blindly extended to the worldview of social sciences.

If one uses this worldview to look into all aspects of the world of faith and action, every human being can and must be held responsible for their individual choice of actions; both talk and walk, including ignorance or lack of knowledge about things they do not understand.

Zamihan’s ignorance

The now discredited and sacked JAKIM Preacher, was simply ignorant and revealed his stupidity about his faith and related actions of others. I hear that he is an UKM graduate and those who knew or have met him personally to talk about his “weird interpretation of Islam in Malaysia.”

The root word for ignorance is gnosis. Gnosis is the presence of knowledge about some defined content of knowledge. The science of knowing is called epistemology. It has both objective and subjective dimensions of knowing some truths. Such truths are convictional and yet other truths are traditional knowledge.

Traditional truths are not owned or personally possessed by the actors and therefore they cannot defend them in rational and objective ways. Material or scientific truths are owned and fully believed by the actors, who are able to speak or giving testimony about their real and life experiences about the same.

Therefore, when a non-scientific preacher spoke out of turn about truths he knows little about, or does not know in all dimensions, he is flirting with ignorance and therefore he has now been appropriately spanked by three sets of different Royalty in Malaysia.

I think he should now be spared more pain and hurt and maybe should be allowed to drift into the wilderness. Let us forgive his ignorance.

* KJ John worked in public service for 32 years, retired, and started a civil group for which he is chairman of the board. He writes to inform and educate, arguing for integration with integrity in Malaysia. He believes such a transformation has to start with the mind before it sinks into the heart!

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.