Saturday, April 26, 2014

An Atheist on a Christian Mountain

"But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it."


Micah 4:1

On the 5th of April, a Saturday of no particular note, I decided to check out a mountain near Kuching on the recommendation of one of my patients who once tried to commit suicide by swallowing a lot of over-the-counter flu meds. She's a Christian and she regularly makes pilgrimages to a church there. The mountain, called Singai, is located in the neighbouring town of Bau and on a clear day, it is visible from my apartment (and from the hospital I work in). If you are looking for it, it's that little flat-topped peak to the west standing beside the sprawling and towering mountain range that houses Mount Serapi and the Kubah National Park.


Mount Singai from Sarawak General Hospital
Shot from the 9th floor of the main block of the Sarawak General in the same day after I got down from it.
Mount Singai is that volcano-shaped protuberance to the left of the large mountain range on the right.

I cannot find any official figures on Singai's height but the number that comes up most frequently is 562 metres - and it is also the number that makes most sense when we compare it visually to the 911 metres Serapi standing right beside it. To get to it, I had to drive about 30 clicks from Kuching and I deliberately chose a Saturday to make my ascent to avoid the Sunday throng of worshippers.

The climb up to the church (known as CMPC or the Catholic Memorial Pilgrimage Centre) is a short 30 minutes to 1 hour stroll through a long series of boardwalks and wooden stairs that was punctuated at regular intervals by more than a dozen crucifix-shaped shrines in which bronze plaques with bas-reliefs depicting the Passion of Jesus were embedded. They covered the moment of Jesus's condemnation to his death on the cross and finally his interment, but (for some reason) no further. I approved of it.


Mount Singai Trek Boardwalk
The way up to CMPC.


Mount Singai Trek Glimpse of View
Glimpses of neighbouring mountains on the way up.

The CMPC is nestled on a plateau midway up the mountain and consists of a series of wooden structures including the baruk-style Church of Christ the King (which is in actuality a glorified gazebo), the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes, a retreat house, a 10-door longhouse, a chalet, a mess hall, a hostel, the caretaker's abode and even an "mini-amphitheatre" (which structurally speaking, is really just a regular theatre). I am not a churchgoer but I must admit that the CMPC has a sort of rustic charm to it. However, I must question the wisdom of building a church that requires an hour of mountain-climbing to get to when Catholic church attendance is at an all time low.

A sign by the Gazebo of Christ the King had the following message embossed on it in all-caps:


This Catholic Memorial & Pilgrimage Centre Mt Singai, Bau was officially declared open jointly by Most Rev. Datuk Peter Chung, DD, DCL, PNBS and Y.B. Peter Mansian, ADUN Tasik Biru, Bau. Blessed and dedicated to Christ the King and as a centre for pilgrimages during the Jubilee Year 2000 by Most Rev. Datuk Peter Chung DD, DCL, PNBS on 21-11-1999 (Feast of Christ the King). May all who come to this centre know the presence of Christ, experience the joy of his friendship and grow in his love.

CMPC was also built through the voluntary efforts of its congregation in carrying lumber, sand, bricks, cement and other construction materials up the mountain every time they make a pilgrimage. Faith may not actually move mountains (Matthew 17:20) but it sure can get you loads of free labour. On my way down later, I actually encountered a pair of youths lugging a length of two-by-four on their shoulders uphill. I think it is meant to be a metaphorical act simulating Christ's Procession to Calvary in which he had to carry his own gruesome torture-slash-execution device.


Mount Singai CMPC Christ the King Church
Gazebo of Christ the King.


Mount Singai CMPC Mary's Grotto
Grotto of Their Lady of Lourdes.


Mount Singai CMPC Amphitheatre
The theatre that calls itself a mini amphitheatre.

You'd notice that the middle seats of theatre had been refashioned using new wood because in September last year, an Act of God™ have toppled a mango tree right onto it.

Anyway, the CMPC was not the destination I had in mind so after pottering about for a few minutes, I continued my trek up to the summit of Mount Singai. Finding the trail posed a bit of a challenge but I finally located it by the "retreat house" marked by a faded yellow signboard. From here onwards, there were no more boardwalks and stairs - just stones, moss, roots, leaf litters and earth.

If you are interested in that sort of thing, Singai is an excellent repository of bugs and I was fortunate enough to come cross a fair share on my way up.


Mount Singai Long Legged Spider
A very tiny, highly-caffeinated harvestman I spotted right the start of the summit trail.


Mount Singai Spider Under Leaf
An unidentified spider (probably Nephila sp.) taking refuge under a leaf when I disturbed its web.


Mount Singai Lacessititermes
Termites from either the genus Hospitalitermes or Lacessititermes.


Mount Singai Dew Drinking Butterfly
A Dark Glassy Tiger (Parantica agleoides) suspended upside down, drinking from a single drop of dew.


Mount Singai Round Bodied Coloured Legs Millipede
A large black round-bodied millipede with bright pink and yellow legs.


Mount Singai Polydesmid
A savage looking millipede from the order Polydesmida.


Mount Singai Tailed Butterfly
A Common Imperial (Cheritra freja) near the summit of Mount Singai that I managed to get very close to.


Mount Singai Gasteracantha on Leaf
An brightly-yellow freaky-looking orb-weaving spider from the genus Gasteracantha. It looks like Gasteracantha hasselti (Hasselt's spiny spider) but its lateral-most spines seem to preceded by a knob. Maybe it is a Bornean subspecies.


Mount Singai Gasteracantha
Another specimen of the same Gasteracantha spider. I accidentally knocked this one down to the forest floor.


Mount Singai Gasteracantha Spinnerette
Interestingly, it seemed to retract its limbs like a tortoise when I prod it a few times. Note the spinneret at the end of the abdomen.

Aside from arthropods, I also came across many different species of mushrooms, none of which I am capable of identifying, exposing yet another gaping hole in my own knowledge to me.


Mount Singai Large Red Mushrooms Cluster
Some unhealthy looking red bolete mushrooms.



Mount Singai Single White Mushroom
A solitary white mushroom.


Mount Singai Small Blue Mushrooms Cluster
A cluster of grey-blue caps.


Mount Singai Small Brown Mushrooms Cluster
A group of flesh-coloured mushrooms.

The trail itself was broadly divided into two phases. The first part was a gentle 10 to 20° uphill climb with abandoned makeshift structures made out of bamboo littered the wayside (I figured they might have been erected by scout troops). There were some false trails I accidentally took twice (going up and coming down) which forced me to backtrack so if you are attempting a hike up to the summit of Singai without a guide, pay attention to which paths you take. On the way back to the CMPC, all you need to do is follow the sound of unanswered prayers, and you'll find your way just fine.

The second half of the climb is a 30 to 45° slope that is far more challenging but helpful ropes were provided to aid you through the hardest spans (so bring gloves if you value the skin covering the palms of your hands). I am not losing a lot of weight since I started hiking in late January this year, but I have made noticeable inroads into improving my stamina and even managed to overtake some of the other hikers I ran into on my way up to Singai's top.


Mount Singai Single Split Rock
A huge split rock you'll encounter on the second (steeper) part of the climb up.


Mount Singai Top Rock
A massive boulder you'll encounter very, very near the summit.

Near the very top of the climb, you'll come across a large two-storey tall boulder that will loom right over your trail. There are even crude seats build on top of it but don't be fooled into thinking that this is the summit (thought it is a great shady spot to rest). At this point, you should take the path to the left of the rock and continue till you reach an unshaded spot which offers you an unobstructed view of the plains below. I mention this because I took the path to the right of it and wandered some distance along the ridge of the mountaintop before that trail sort of faded.

I had to retrace my step back to the huge stone to take the correct path to the summit proper.


Mount Singai Summit (watermarked)
The real summit of Mount Singai.


Mount Singai Summit Panorama (watermarked)
A panoramic photograph taken of the view from Singai's summit. Do click to embiggen.

I looked at the clock on my phone and calculated that I took about two hours to reach the summit from the church grounds, which wasn't too bad considering that I spent quite some time on wild goose chases down ghost paths. It was pleasantly overcast at the time so I need not suffer the midday heat either - which was good because I only brought a 500ml bottle of water with me and there was only about a mouthful left in it.

After taking in my fill of the scenery, I decided to go rest on top of the gigantic boulder I passed earlier and eat some of the chocolates I brought with me on the hike, but it was already occupied by the two hikers I overtook earlier.

And you wouldn't believe it - one of them was smoking a cigarette. No wonder I overtook him so easily.


Mount Singai Summit Smoker
Just look at how retarded his face is.

Just this year, I climbed Santubong, Serapi and Pha Ngeun in Laos, and at the top of all those peaks, I had to suffer the noxious presence of smokers poisoning and polluting the fresh mountain air. I seriously don't think these people deserve to live. If I see one of them dying of a heart attack or something when I'm on a hike, I'll just move him or her off the trail into the undergrowth and cover them with dead leaves before going on my merry way just to ensure that one else can come along and rescue them.

So instead of relaxing after my climb, I was forced to make my descent thanks to that cigarette-chomping son-of-a-bitch because I sure as heck don't want to breath in any more of his fumes than I already did.

The journey down was quite a task and I had to rely on the ropes for most of the way giving my hands a bit of a rope burn in the process because I left my gloves in my car. In about one hour, I found myself in CMPC again and there seemed to be a crowd of people there already. Some churchy stuff was about to begin but I wasn't at all inclined to stick around and find out what.


Mount Singai CMPC Boy Jumping
A boy leaping from bench to bench in front of the Grotto of Their Lady of Lourdes.

Some drinks were laid out in the mess hall and failing to find anyone to ask, I helped myself to one of their water dispensers and filled my bottle before descending the rest of the way down to the bottom of the mountain where vendors hawk soft drinks and coconuts. Have you ever had an ice-cold can of 100PLUS after an entire morning's worth of exertion? Now that's a religious experience right there. Gatorade just can't compare, if you ask me.

Anyway, this piece represented just half the story of my climb up Mount Singai. There was so much commentary I would like to make about the racism and hypocrisy I encountered along the way that I think I need to write another article just to address that. Stay tuned for the next one, aye? And it's done.




RELATED POST: Racism and Hypocrisy at Mount Singai

Trespassed into a kingdom of God,
k0k s3n w4i

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

You obviously think lowly of those churchgoers merely because they believe in a God, yet you are not too proud to help yourself to their water, which they would have given to you anyway if you had asked. Or else suppose you had injured yourself on the trail, need first-aid, you wouldn't be too proud to reject treatment from these worshippers?

k0k s3n w4i said...

Anonymous: You obviously think lowly of those churchgoers merely because they believe in a God...

If you paid attention, I never said anything bad about any of the churchgoers. Every snide remark I made was directed to the religion itself - which I think is fair since the Bible outright insults me, calling me a fool and incapable of doing good (Psalm 14:1) so I assumed that it can take criticism as well as it dishes out.

... yet you are not too proud to help yourself to their water, which they would have given to you anyway if you had asked.

Of course they would have given me water had I asked. If you read what I wrote, I said that there was no one in the mess hall at the time for me to ask and since they laid it out for visitors anyway, I took some. Likewise, if someone ask water from me, if I have any to spare, I would gladly give it to that person as well. That's just basic human decency.

Or else suppose you had injured yourself on the trail, need first-aid, you wouldn't be too proud to reject treatment from these worshippers?

And of course I wouldn't reject medical help from believer if I need it. Just like how I would give medical treatment to every patient in my clinic and ward regardless of their faith.

Anonymous said...

I not paid attention?
These are your words -
1. "I want to question the wisdom of building a church that requires an hour of mountain-climbing to get to when Catholic church attendance is at an all time low."
- the worshippers are some kind of fanatics?

2. "CMPC was also built through the voluntary efforts of its congregation in carrying lumber, sand, bricks, cement and other construction materials up the mountain every time they make a pilgrimage. Faith may not actually move mountains (Matthew 17:20) but it sure can get you loads of free labour."
- they have been mindless suckers for a cause?

3. "On the way back to the CMPC, all you need to do is follow the sound of unanswered prayers, and you'll find your way just fine."
- they have been wasting their time at prayers?

And your pitiful explanation for an intelligentsia is that you criticize the religion, not the followers. Oh yeah, as in 'hate the sin, not the sinner'?

You want to win-win so badly in your viewpoints, are you sure you are not born immediately south of Johore Bahru?

k0k s3n w4i said...

Anonymous: I not paid attention?

Yes.

1. Church attendance IS at an all time low. You can follow the links I've provided. I am wondering if the inaccessibility of the church will drive attendance down further.

2. I never said that they are mindless suckers but it is true that the Catholic Church is one of the richest organisations in the world. I just thought they had capitalised on its congregation's faith in saving on construction bills.

3. Yes, they have been wasting their time at prayers. As scientific evidence [The Powerlessness of Prayer] and everyday practice [The Whole World Prayed for One Thing and God Couldn't Give a Damn ] proved, prayers don't work at all. That is fact and truth. Do you want me to lie about it?

And your pitiful explanation for an intelligentsia is that you criticize the religion, not the followers. Oh yeah, as in 'hate the sin, not the sinner'?

Are you saying that Catholic thought is pitiful? Because cum dilectione hominum et odio vitiorum (love the sinner, hate the sin) is from St. Augustine, in his Letter 211.

You want to win-win so badly in your viewpoints, are you sure you are not born immediately south of Johore Bahru?

I'm not the one who returned here again to my blog to try to win so badly in his viewpoints. Quite hypocritical of you, eh?

Navin said...

I'm deeply hurt at your dismissal of the Church of Gatorade. I used to be a follower of 100PLUS for a long time despite only marginally helping after heavy exertion. I was awoken to the true powers of Gatorade during my first ever 10k marathon. I had just completed the first 6km and I didn't feel like I could go on. Then I passed by the first water station and grabbed a can of Gatorade. Immediately after finishing the can, a burst of energy filled me and it propelled me all the way to the end.

I have participated in a few marathons since then but they've never had Gatorade as a sponsor since and 100PLUS just doesn't give the same amount of energy. Furthermore, 100PLUS is gassy and it makes you feel bloated.

Since that day, I converted to the Church of Gatorade and I've never looked back. My faith in Gatorade has never faltered as Gatorade is always there in my time of need. While I still partake of 100PLUS when doing mild strenuous activity, only Gatorade will do when I feel like I can't go on anymore.

Anonymous said...

1. That these churchgoers would spend an hour trekking uphill - making a mini-pilgrimage - to their place of worship shows they have a deep faith in their religion. As you are an atheist, of course, it doesn't make sense to you.

2. True, you didn't say they were mindless suckers. But your words "loads of free labour" shows you are truly adept in the art of making snide remarks.

3. People pray to their gods to express things they find difficult to confide in others - they don't always pray for personal wealth and success. And if they experience a catharsis after praying, well, better than to keep things bottled inside, right?

4. I was making a comparison. The Catholic thought 'love the sinner, hate the sin' carries a message of the healing power of forgiveness and helping the fallen get up. Whereas your explanation that you criticized the religion, not the followers, is a load of whitewash BS excuse for making personal attacks and getting away untouched. You are a medical professional and a formidable intellectual, hence for you to come up with such a glib dismissal is a poor pathetic piteous reflection of you as a doctor and an educated human being, hence my use of the term 'pitiful explanation'. (I hereby apologise to all Catholics if I have unwittingly offended their sensibilities, as hinted by you.)

5. It is not that I want to win-win thus I replied. I have certain viewpoints but I am willing to agree to disagree if the opposing perspectives are presented well. Your arguments/propaganda/persuasions have been shallow, evasive, self-promoting and self-congratulating. They have to be debunked, ridiculed, mocked and utterly put in their place - of nothingness.

k0k s3n w4i said...

Navin: Infidel! You dare cast away the sports drink of your people?!

k0k s3n w4i said...

Anonymous: 1. That these churchgoers would spend an hour trekking uphill - making a mini-pilgrimage - to their place of worship shows they have a deep faith in their religion. As you are an atheist, of course, it doesn't make sense to you.


And as global church attendance shows, that "deep faith" of theirs seem to be waning. Also, when I questioned the wisdom of building a church in an inaccessible area, my critique was directed solely at the Catholic Church administrators that decided on the church's location. Talking about believers who have deep faith and would climb a mountain to reach their church is irrelevant.

2. True, you didn't say they were mindless suckers. But your words "loads of free labour" shows you are truly adept in the art of making snide remarks.

Is it not an accurate representation of what occurred? Or do you want me to lie and say that the labour wasn't free? The truth sounds awful doesn't it? But remember the, the truth sounding awful is not my fault.

3. People pray to their gods to express things they find difficult to confide in others - they don't always pray for personal wealth and success. And if they experience a catharsis after praying, well, better than to keep things bottled inside, right?

Did you even notice that I never made any comments on whether the prayers are emotionally helpful to the people who prayed or not? If you actually read my very-carefully-chosen words, you'd notice that I wrote "all you need to do is follow the sound of unanswered prayers."

k0k s3n w4i said...

Anonymous: 4. I was making a comparison. The Catholic thought 'love the sinner, hate the sin' carries a message of the healing power of forgiveness and helping the fallen get up. Whereas your explanation that you criticized the religion, not the followers, is a load of whitewash BS excuse for making personal attacks and getting away untouched. You are a medical professional and a formidable intellectual, hence for you to come up with such a glib dismissal is a poor pathetic piteous reflection of you as a doctor and an educated human being, hence my use of the term 'pitiful explanation'. (I hereby apologise to all Catholics if I have unwittingly offended their sensibilities, as hinted by you.)

So you think it is a "glib, load of whitewash BS excuse for making personal attacks and getting away untouched"? I AGREE! And the bloody Catholic Church had been using it for centuries to discriminate against LGBT people, non-believers, Jews and others. The Catholic Church had historically witch-hunted and tortured these people so spare me that rubbish about them being all "healing power and forgiving and helping the fallen get up". The Catholic Church's critique of other people had been deadly. Me? I present my opinions in a sarcastic fashion, but I have never in my life treated anyone differently because they don't share my non-belief, and this is reflected in both my professional and personal life. I do not discriminate and I have never harmed anyone who disagreed with me.

And again. Go through my entire post. Comb through it syllable by syllable. My criticisms are all worded towards religious beliefs and practices. The only personal attack I made to an actual person in the entire post was directed at a cigarette smoker.

5. It is not that I want to win-win thus I replied. I have certain viewpoints but I am willing to agree to disagree if the opposing perspectives are presented well. Your arguments/propaganda/persuasions have been shallow, evasive, self-promoting and self-congratulating. They have to be debunked, ridiculed, mocked and utterly put in their place - of nothingness.

It is not that I want to win-win thus I replied. I have certain viewpoints but I am willing to agree to disagree if the opposing perspectives are presented well. Your arguments/propaganda/persuasions have been shallow, evasive, self-promoting and self-congratulating. They have to be debunked, ridiculed, mocked and utterly put in their place - of nothingness.

See the above? I can reverse it back on you verbatim because it contains absolutely no substance, only ad hominem attacks. And who the hell says "win-win"? How old are you? Nine?