Musaevna approached the podium. She was dressed in the typical Tamoran garment for women: an
abaya dress and a
hijab. The garments were exquisite, showing from a mile away they were very expensive. She proceeded to address those present in the room:
"First allow me to thank you for your invitation, for allowing me to see the graduation and for giving me the opportunity to speak. I commend you for choosing to open the doors to your faith and allow others to see what is inside. It is the best possible decision. We Tamorans always believed that if a religion has value then people should practice it in the open for all to see."
"My topic for today might seem a little odd considering the prestigious institution in which the event takes place and also the honorable hosts that made it all possible" she pauses for a couple of moments, looks at the Duke and Duchess in the front row and bows respectfully before continuing " but please bear with me".
"I would to talk to you about the system of banking we have in Tamora. Our religion does not allow usury, any practicing Tamoran that follows the Prophet would not charge interest on any loans they give. It doesn't matter who the borrower is, the lender cannot, under any circumstances, take any interest from the borrower. So it comes to no surprise that our banking system does not charge interest at all. Want to buy a house? You can come to the bank, tell the teller what house you'd like to buy and the bank will buy the house for you. Afterwards, you can move in the house and pay rent to the bank. After a certain number of years( pre-agreed with the bank), the institution then gives ownership of the house to you. The same goes for cars and other items. On the other hand, those that deposit money at the bank will not receive interest themselves. They put money in the bank and when the bank buys the house they get part of the rent the bank receives. "
"Now we, who follow the Prophet, shun debt in general because it can enslave you should you no longer be able to pay your debts. This way of handling banking minimizes the risk and spreads it between the lender, bank and borrower. "
"Now many of you in attendance are probably wondering "Ok, fine. That works in Tamora. Why should we care? We are religious people, we couldn't care less about what banks do."
"I would differ on that very much. For us Tamorans religion is everything. God, family and country are the three things we care most in life and they are all intertwined. And because these three things are at the core of who we are, we live our lives according to our faith. We show our religion in public: in the way we dress, in the symbols we wear, in the gifts we make etc."
"I have seen in many countries a tendency to separate religion and everyday life, like you go to your temple, you pray and worship God and when you walk out of there you live a different life. Not for us, if you truly care for your religion then you live it night and day. If you reject usury, then you won't take a single loan that charges you interest and you also never ask for interest, you never work at a bank that asks people for interest and you make sure to tell any banks that engage in such practice that what they do is morally wrong. The same goes for anything that is against your religion. You have to fight against offences against decency and morals everywhere you see them. And should anyone even think of pressuring one of you to give up something that defines your religion: whether it is the hijab, a religious symbol or anything no matter how small then you are morally bound to come to that person's aid. It doesn't even matter if that person shares your faith or even if she likes you. It doesn't matter if you like that person, do not let anyone trample on religious beliefs, do not accept any compromise. You protest, write letters, boycott, spread the word in your community, in your temple parish etc. Some people might say what if it's a small issue? Nonsense I say, who are you to say it's a small issue? No, you have to show that you will "overreact", go "overboard" for the slightest of offenses so that people don't even dare to think of causing further offense or doing something "big".
"What are a results of such an attitude? While in other countries people lament that bankers are in control of the finances and that are doing immoral things, our banks follow our religious customs, the bank employees all wear religious symbols, they display in their windows religious symbols, banks advertise proudly that they are closed on religious holiday because they honor the Prophet and God. They don't do it because there is a law that mandates them to do it, they do it because they'd be forced to close shop for lack of customers if they acted any different. This is why in the regions of Tamora where our religion is not the dominant one, banks dare charge interest, because people there do not react. The same is true for all businesses and not just banks. "
"Now I understand this is not easy for your religion. You are currently engaged in a war for your country. All your energies are focused there. I thank God that I was born in Tamora and we take for granted the right to worship as we please. But while Kataine is your focus and should be until you prevail. And you will prevail since no government that stands against religion can ever win in the long term. Please do not forget to publicly practice your faith and proselytize. Let people know what you stand for. That you want a theocracy in Kataine, a return to your clan system, to be lead by your Reverned Mother and so on. Do not worry about offending some, worry about offending God for not having the courage to say what you stand for. People know what we stand for: the laws of our ancestors, worshiping God, modesty, men ruling over their families and yes, even slavery. We couldn't care less what other people think of us and neither should you for when God will judge you in the afterlife He won't ask you what other thought of you but what did you do to please Him."
"In conclusion, for I have talked a bit too much already, I would like to say to the young ladies here that you will help determine the future of your religion just as we, Tamoran women, determine it for our faith. Practice your faith, speak of it, be proud of it, show it for all to see. "
"Thank you so much for your time. God bless you all and may God have mercy on those that seek to suppress religion. "