{UAH} Are religious leaders taking our respect for granted?
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3:29 AM |
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Growing up as a catechist's son (a lay teacher of the principles of Christian religion), I had to quickly learn that there were words I would never use and there were events and activities I could never indulge in.
Even as a child, the blame and public rebuke I would get for any kind of social misconduct was disproportionate to what other kids of the same age would get. For any public indulgence in any social misconduct, I would get statements like, "Even you?" A catechist's son? I, therefore, grew up knowing that by virtue of my father's job, the community had a certain degree of expectations regarding the quality of my conduct.
For a notoriously religious community that Uganda is, religious leaders are generally held in very high regard as they are considered fountains of morals, or, to be exact, custodians of good manners. It is, perhaps, for the same reason that even when there are some irreconcilable differences amongst various religions, all religious leaders enjoy an almost unanimous level of respect compared to the lay people.
For instance, Christians generally recognize and respect Muslim clerics and the Muslims, too, recognize and respect Christian leaders unless the particular religious leader behaves in a manner that invites contempt.
Following Sheikh Muzaata's inappropriate indulgence and irresponsible verbal rants during artiste Rema Namakula's pre-introduction ceremony, there has rightly and expectedly been widespread condemnation from various sections. Granted, no human being is perfect and there comes a moment when even the politest people must use a tough language in order to emphasize a crucial point.
However, there is a clear difference between emphasizing a crucial point and being abusive, obscene or using words which border on abomination. Also, the old adage that mistakes are human loses its force when the same person keeps indulging in the same mistakes such as those seen previously in response to the Kabaka and the prime minister of Buganda kingdom, Charles Peter Mayiga, at the peak of the nationwide fundraising campaign dubbed "Ettofaali"
Because of the almost uncontested respect, one would expect that as a reciprocal, any top-notch religious leader, who nationally commands respect and recognition is always expected to behave and speak in such a way that doesn't embarrass their followers.
About three months ago, when Pastor Bugingo publically spewed some irresponsible rants about his wife, I wrote, in this very paper ("After Pastor Bugingo, what next?") and argued that "what I hoped for is a precedent that can be duplicated in the event that any other leader (political or religious) indulges in similar misogyny and bigotry.
If not guided by arrogance, what most religious leaders perhaps forget is that in the wake of widespread access to social media platforms, there is no longer such a thing as preaching or talking to a small audience.
It does not require several minutes for a sermon that was intended for a few family members to end up receiving millions of views worldwide. One would, therefore, hope that what any religious leader says to a small group of people is what they intend the whole world to know.
Unfortunately, because they are widely regarded as the custodians of religion and morals, there is a general tendency by the public to infer that whatever the religious leaders say reflects the core ideals and teachings of the religions they represent. How I wish that each irresponsible utterance by a religious leader is accompanied by a caveat to distinguish between their personal views/interests and those that relate to the actual religious instructions!
On a positive note, I strongly support the view that religious leaders should always use their positions to weigh in on social, political and economic matters that affect not only the specific people they preside over but the entire community. Sheikh Muzaata is indeed one of those religious leaders who does not hesitate to speak his mind on prevailing political and social injustices. However, petty issues such as taking sides in love relationships that have turned sour does not help him, the lovers involved and the entire community.
Finally, whenever a top religious leader indulges in any irresponsible verbal warfare, I always wonder if they ever consider what their choices actually mean for not just their immediate followers but the entire community.
For a Christian or Muslim, it feels awkward to have to defend the verbal excesses of their religious leaders. Also, due to the high stakes, even those of us in the business of social critiquing don't find it fun at all to write about the very important religious leaders.
The writer is a social worker in Alberta, Canada.
https://observer.ug/viewpoint/62415-are-religious-leaders-taking-our-respect-for-granted--
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