God of the Gallows

Karen Armstrong is no longer a stranger in the religio-literary world. Often embroiled in controversy for her writings about religions, especially in Judaism, Christianity and Islam, she is both loved and hated by the respective communities for telling histories and consequences of faiths to an already troubled world.
Armstrong, formerly a Catholic nun, has also been [...]

OnAsia 2008

On the final night of the 4th Angkor Photography Festival last November, I had the privilege (among many other privileges) to watch an incredibly well-curated set of photo slideshows by Sujong Song.
The projection is by OnAsia agency, where 10 Asian photojournalists documented various Asian societies and stories. Special thanks to Li Wei for putting them [...]

2009

Just five days before year 2008 drew its curtains, air raids and missiles tore the Gaza strip, where thousands of Palestinians have called home, in spite of being the apex of the Israel-Palestine conflict.
The Chinese has an old saying that goes like these- “Bullets are blind”, describing aptly the stray missiles that more often hit [...]

How time flies

“How time flies…” is perhaps the phrase most used everywhere these days. In cities and towns, villages, buses, train rides and lunch meetings, people start conversations with this very line, which is usually then recipocrated by vigorous nods and smiles, or a dramatic exclaimation of “I know!”
Then, the real conversations begin, each person reminiscing the [...]

Crossing

The imagery of slavery is just like arsenic, each dosage hits you harder each time you take it,” William Wilberforce, slave abolitionist, said to his friend William Pitt in the film “Amazing Grace”.
Dear friends,
                     I am raising to you the issue which is like arsenic to me- the slavery of North Koreans under a ruthless regime. [...]

The Great Divide

Sundays are made for Christians. That is when they have it the easiest, for every good thing that Christians can do, can be done in church grounds.
   

 The simple duty list is as follows-
 1)      get to church 10 minutes earlier to show one’s enthusiasm and sincerity in worshipping in “the house of the Lord”
2)      sing [...]

A flickering thought

This thing called ‘calling’, ‘vocation’, ‘mission’ is a puzzling thing. Because I have always attached these words to ’commitment’ and ‘life-long’.
However, as though by divine warning, I have been told that perhaps, this isn’t necessarily the case.
Someone important told me that I may be basking under the sun of youth, but in the blink of an [...]

Failed to love

On a particular Sunday, in a particular church, an elder (who is also a lawyer by profession) told the congregation that he once met an Orang Asli pastor in London who said to him- “Please go back to our country and help my people.”
The elder then broke down in tears at the pulpit, overwhelmed by [...]

Lions for Lambs

“I am not afraid of an army of lions led into a battle by a lamb. I fear more the army of lambs who have a lion to lead them”- Alexander the Great.
Questions: Where do you draw the line between heroism and cowardice? When does idealism becomes too dangerous? What will you do to protect [...]

Stories in Songs Unheard

“Thank you for pretending to read magazines when I know you are actually listening to me,” Mia Palencia cheekily teased the audience standing some distance away from the stage at a neighbourhood bookstore.
The 24-year-old singer-songwriter, who is also popularly known as the vocalist for acclaimed duo Double Take, has just completed recording her album in Sabah, [...]