"Judging" the World
INTERVIEW
Rama Ramanathan is actively involved in the public square, writing weekly columns for the Malaysian Insider and the Ant Daily on various matters in and out of the country. He recently appeared as panel for CNBM’s Open Day on the 25th of May 2015, and agreed to share his replies on email. The interview below includes questions that could not be covered at the event due to time.
cnbm: How would you describe your work in the public square?
Rama: This year I approached two publications and asked to become a columnist. Since February, I’ve written two columns every week. The Malaysian Insider publishes my column every Thursday. The Ant Daily publishes my column about every seven days. The editors require my columns to be 800 words or less, and to intersect with current affairs. The subjects can be national, international or personal.
My writing evolved from my blog Rest Stop Thoughts, which I started in January 2009. I started my blog as a public thought experiment when my brother revealed that he had a congenital heart defect. I wondered why the defect went to him, not me; but my interest in genetic family affairs ended there.
I was elated when my first Teoh Beng Hock article “No sticky notes, just sticky thoughts,” was republished in MySinChew’s 2009 Yearbook. In October 2009 the website rejected my review of Asne Seirstadt’s book “With their backs to the world.” It was rejected because I pointed out similarities between the Serbian and Malaysian governments. One editor felt my comparison lacked humility (see Micah 6:8).
But I felt the heart of my article was this sentence: “I recommend the book because it subtly raises questions about what good citizenship means and shows the consequences of failing to converse deeply about race and religion.” In response to the rejection, I examined myself. I concluded my problem was not a lack of humility, but a trait of prophecy. I realized I was likely to be shunned by many in the community of faith, for even “radicals” had trouble with me!
I then decided to publish one article on my blog each week, to “judge” the world. Later I sent some articles as letters to editors – The Malaysian Insider carried all of them.
cnbm: How does this link to your belief in God through Christ?
Rama: I try to show what it means to be a good neighbour in the everyday events of life. I try to show the struggle and the glory of living out the great commandment: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and mind and soul and love your neighbour as yourself.”
I write as a layperson who believes the most important thing in life is to follow Jesus, to be a fragrance for Him and be Kingdom-focused. I’m not ordained, so I’m not constrained by the party-line of any group. For instance, I’ve published columns with titles like “Blessings upon those who wish to translate the Qu’ran” and “Should they be called ‘Muslim Evangelicals.’”
cnbm: What are the personal struggles you face in your sphere, especially amid your social networks?
Rama: Most people view me with suspicion. I mostly identify with evangelicals a la John Stott; though my evangelical friends think I’ve left the fold. My friends on the left gasp when I say I’m an evangelical, but my urge to share the gospel makes evangelical the best label for me; my second choice is “non-conformist.”
I’m associated with pro- and anti- establishment people, both Protestant and Catholics. I’m critical of the government and of the opposition – this makes party groupies wary of me. I’m mostly associated with Bersih 2.0, a non-religious group whose goal is to restore and establish democracy in Malaysia.
After following Christ for over 3 decades, I think the defining feature of a Christian is found in non-conformism, in the answer to the question “how am I different?” Because my calling is to judge, I’m conscious of always being judged, first by Christians, then by non-Christians, and most importantly, by God.
I believe that if there’s a way to be misunderstood, someone will find it. My struggle is common to all Christians: “We live under conviction, in uncertainty.”
cnbm: Have you ever felt alone in your work and how do you press on?
Rama: I feel alone all the time, except for my wife who is my faithful partner. She encourages me, she prays for me, she emboldens me. I also remember the cloud of witnesses and the audience of One.
cnbm: How would you like the body of Christ to work together to bring God’s justice to our society?
Rama: Christians haven’t agreed on so much for so long. Our differences signify not disunity but grace. Our response to grace is shown when the Spirit grabs our guts with specific needs and leads us to work in smaller arenas, e.g. migrant workers’ rights. We simply need to believe God will guide His people to do His work in His Kingdom. How do we do this?
We must speak more about the Kingdom of God, the Messiah’s chief concern. Such speech will awaken many who slept like me for decades, and push us into the world, to live experimentally with God.
We must take our citizenship of the world as seriously as we take our citizenship of heaven.
We must engage in theology publicly, even attend non-Christian meetings on Sundays so we can speak about our beliefs.
We must show the world how our scriptures inspire us to be good citizens, and we must do this “against the world” because we are for the world. We must be living examples of contradiction.
We must encourage Christians to recognize protest marches as valid expressions of democracy.
We must encourage ordained ministers and prominent Christians (Datuks, CEO’s) to show-up at the trials of people like Ambiga Sreenevasan and Azmi Sharom.
