The annotated budak

Just trying to help....

An ex-colleague now in Thailand writes (in a letter to the Straits Times) of her encounter with bureaucrase (a word which I found doesn't exist but still seems apt) in Bangkok. It certainly seems Singapore's international men of ministry who are based in the Land of Smiles have succeeded in immunising themselves from the earnest charity and open-heartedness that the Siamese (even those not who don't cater to the farang trade) extend to all who come with good faith and fair hopes.

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"I am heartened to read that so many Singaporeans are showing great compassion and sympathy for the victims of the tsunami disaster.

As a fellow citizen, I feel the same and have been trying to offer my assistance in any small way that I could in Bangkok. Besides donating money and clothing, I had wanted to do more.

As a Singaporean, I had thought the best way for me to offer my assistance was through the Singapore embassy here, and that prompted me to call the embassy. To my disappointment, my help was not required. What was more discouraging was the slightly condescending tone of the reply by the Singaporean embassy employee –  “How can you help” – after I had identified myself as a fellow Singaporean here in Bangkok and would like to offer assistance in ANY way that I could.

I had rather expected that the embassy was in the best position to inform what help it requires if any; and if it doesn’t require any help at all, I thought my call could at least warrant a “We do not require assistance at the moment, but thanks for trying to help” reply.

This was in stark contrast to a Thai hospital worker whom I met while I was trying to donate my A+ blood. She had informed me that the hospital currently requires only RH-Negative blood, and thanked me profusely for my intentions and for offering to help.

I do understand that the embassy is probably swamped by calls and enquiries at this point, but turning a volunteer away in this manner will surely discourage people from volunteering in the future. This is especially true when the Singapore government is trying so hard to promote volunteerism in Singaporeans."

Der Kölner Dom

"...like something out of gotham city or... lord of the rings!" is a fair newbie's reaction to the gigantic cathedral in the German city of Cologne. Nearly 160 metres high, spanning a length of 145 metres and breadth of 86, the Kölner Dom is the spiritual centre of Catholic Rheinland (and indeed of Gothic Europe), harking back to the chivalric days when Teutonic knights and the prelate of Cologne tugged the powercords of the Holy Roman Empire. 600 years in the making, construction began in the 13th century and the edifice, which miraculously survived the wholesale bombing of Cologne by Allied Lancasters, now towers above the heart of the city, offering its vast surrounding square as a platform for all peaceful faiths, persuasions and trades to proclaim their causes.

Beneath its sepulchral bowels rests an even more ancient church, and deeper still resides the remains of a temple dedicated to Mercury, the speedy Roman god of travellers and trade. Less illustrious is the underground carpark that shares the plot with these ghosts of altars past, where Daimlers and Datsuns may back up against a wall enshrined with Latin benedictions.

Today, pilgrims from Tokyo to Taipei continue to converge by the banks of the Rhein, where one's first step from the steel caverns of the Hauptbahnhof yields a sight that that stretches the neck and strains the eye in disbelief at the sheer space and sky that a monolith of scarred stone and screaming spires can consume in its vertical quest for the celestial spheres. Have you no 35 mm lens or less, spare the effort to capture this black mountain in its entirety and buy a postcard instead. Or a picture book at the souvenir counters and bookshops that dot the cobbled Altstadt in its far-reaching shadow. And don't forget that vial of Eau de Cologne to ward off the stench of lingering centuries, whose persistent intrusion into modern metropoles is an anomaly to those who have forgotten the lessons of history and are doomed to an eternity of solitude with no second chance on earth. 

Side view of Dom with mrs budak's head for comparison.

Windows whine

Nothing to do with the world's greatest softwar company, just that I have been stoning alone at home for half the afternoon, waiting for the repairmen who are supposed to come redo the bathroom windows before they fall off and kill some poor kitty downstairs. And while they fix the sills, I won't be able to perform my regular excretory functions in private comfort!

The mercy of God

Caught while trawling the worldwideweb is the following email appeal by an apparently respectable Christian outreach organisation. As is evident, the unsurpassed grace of God and his unlimited output of mercy and forgiveness for those who do not know what they do is manifested in the touching words of the letter-writer....

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"... in Banda Aceh, the gateway to Mecca and the gathering of terrorists in Indonesia, it was hard to find a dry place to bury the bodies. In Phuket which is known globally as the sin resort of Thailand, the tidal waves swept half a kilometer inland and wiped out all of its massage parlors, brothels and bars. In Sri Lanka where a terrorist plan was afoot to burn all the churches in the east coast on Jan 1, 2005, God wiped out the other buildings of worship and spared the churches. Sri Lanka pleaded utter helplessness. And Andaman's many islands, that may yield India's worst causalities, remain cut off from the world.

CNN reported the warning of meteorologists that the entire earth is “shaking” and changing its course “like a drunkard”. This is a warning of God which came many years ago in Isaiah 24:18b-20 and Joel 2:10. Hebrews 12:26 warns that shaking is inevitable and “what cannot be shaken shall remain”. The Word speaks of yet another earthquake to come, the worst “since man has been on earth” Rev 16:18. What has happened is a clear wake-up call within God’s perfect plan, not His permissive plan....

Except for Aceh where communication is lost with our graduate pastors, all other places where *** has its presence have been spared by the Lord. In Nias... buildings were swept into the sea but the churches remain. Praise the Lord!.....

Your urgent prayers are requested.

With blessings.

*******"

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Budak's gentle reply (emailed) to this man of God is as follows:

Mr ****,

While nobody should begrudge your email call for help for ***'s work in Southeast and South Asia, your painting of the tragedy as a divine manifestation of God's wrath is heinous, totally un-Christian in your absence of mercy for both saved and unsaved, and appalling in the presumptuousness of the pride with which you cast judgement on the victims.

You seem to rejoice in the wiping out of "massage parlors, brothels and bars" as if the lives lost therein are worth naught in the eyes of Christ. Pre-emptive strikes by God are also part of God's love, I suppose, since his destruction of Sri Lanka's houses of worship bar churches is a act of heavenly justice that no Christian may condemn, but indeed sing hallelujah at the perishing of God's enemies. 

Whatever good works *** has done, I now know better than ever consider supporting such Christian leaders as yourself who arbitrarily invoke Biblical curses onto innocent victims of earthly disaster. No doubt you would shed not a tear should further blights strike all un-believing individuals in the world, allowing the remaining saints to bring forward the establishment of an earthly kingdom of God.

Sincerely...

Political prophets

Some friends have queried the budaks' decision to abandon our hall of worship after nearly a decade of fellowship and service. Though I now suffer from a general allergy to organised religion in general, it suffices to say that one facet of this not-unwelcome hiatus from much-too-early Sunday mornings and drawn-out afternoons stems from the growing congregational influence of characters such as the author of the thoughtful words below, extracted from his devotional website. I leave it to you, gentle reader, to judge the conclusions that the faithful should deduce from such teachings:

"Rise of the European Superstate.... Over the last few years we have watched closely as the European Union has emerged as a growing world power. The value of the Euro has surpassed that of the dollar, and in May the EU welcomed 10 new members increasing its influence in the UN and expanding its potential for economic growth... the EU has begun to challenge the US in an effort to increase its influence in international politics. The bitter debate over Iraq between the United States, Germany, and France has been seen by many as a foreshadow of what is to come. A battle in which the EU, lead by France and Germany, is positioning itself to surpass the United States as the dominant world power....

Global Government.... Often seen as the future embodiment of global government, the UN has been the subject of increased scrutiny. While the investigation into the Oil-for-Food scandal is at its height, the UN has been bombarded by accusations of corruption and mismanagement... it should come as no surprise that amidst the scandal the UN has announced plans for a massive overhaul. The huge reforms will be unlike any changes made since the organization was founded in 1945. Historically, government never downsizes voluntarily; it always increases its power and minimizes accountability to its citizens. Government reinvention is frequently an effort to avoid the consequences of failed policies in the past, or to justify a government's continued expansion by posing solutions to the problems it has created. Over the last decade, the United Nations has unabashedly pushed for what it calls "global governance." A recent thrust for support of the International Criminal Court is just one example of how the UN is positioning itself for global power. It has become very clear that they will use the scandal and the ensuing "reforms" to advance closer to that goal....

The Magog Invasion.... Since Putin took power in 1999 he has established unrivaled dominance of both houses of parliament, reasserted control over the country's huge energy industry, forced the closure of the last independent national television network, strengthened Russia’s ties to its former communist allies, and employed what he calls "managed democracy".... once thought to be a growing capitalist ally, Russia is returning to its Soviet roots. This change may eventually pave the way for the Magog Invasion to take place....

The Rise of the Far East.... China has quickly become a global power. In recent years, China has bought, borrowed, or stolen technology, which has catapulted its military capabilities into the modern high-tech arena... the Chinese military is preparing for a war with the United States, a war which its commanders believe is inevitable....

Global Religion.... It may seem difficult to imagine the world united under one ruler and one religion, especially with the bloody ethnic battles taking place in the world today. However, the violence caused by religious and cultural conflicts could in fact be the catalyst that brings about drastic change. The desire for world peace, the deterioration of moral values in the Western world, the restriction of religious freedom in America, and the continued persecution of Christians in other parts of the world could all pave the way for the emergence of a global religion...."

Burn baby burn!!

According to an article from this site on how you should dispose of your own remains, "Cremation was a practice introduced by the Greeks as early as 1000 BC. It, therefore, has pagan roots. Likewise, cremation with the scattering of ashes has religious connotations and a Christian who subscribes to this practice inevitably endorses the spiritual belief(s) behind it."

Wonderful. Now let's strive to know about all the other practices started by these fell pagans that good Christian men may shun these hellish fires. A good start would be renaming our days and months after prophets and martyrs instead of those darned Norse and Roman gods.

Next, we should discard all relics of our clearly pagan Oriental names, traditions and foods (don't forget how dumplings and mooncakes are heinous offerings to the dead and demons!) which came into being without the express sanction of our true spiritual father Abraham and are unquestionably cursed and condemnable acts by virtue of their non-mention in holy scripture.

It is fitting to add as well that Eddy, being an ancient Anglo-Saxon moniker denoting a "guardian of the mists" (nothing Biblical at all!!) should rightly be forsaken as a worthy title for a saint's christening....