“While they can avoid pork in the menu, they have no way of knowing that other foods are sprinkled with pork ingredients.

There are days when I feel guilty dining in restaurants with non-Muslim friends. They are so respectful of my religious sensibility that they sacrifice their gastronomical preferences and refrain from ordering pork and its derivatives. Not that I forbid them, but it has become an unwritten rule within our golf group we fondly call TGers (no intention to hijack the name of legendary Tiger Woods), short for Tuesday Golfers, whose members are in the winter of life. It’s plain and unadulterated friendship. Oftentimes, I would preempt their abstinence by telling them in advance that I don’t feel offended if they order pork.

What I describe is a glimpse of the dilemma of practicing Muslims living in Christian Philippines. Their religion greatly influences their daily existence in several ways.

Islam is not only a religion. It is a way of life that regulates almost all spheres of human activity. It teaches behavior in certain circumstances, even how one dresses, especially among women. It lays down the dos and don’ts. It even regulates such a simple act of wearing a man’s pants, requiring “right foot first” and taking off “left foot first.” But perhaps the widely-known proscription concerns food that a Muslim can take and not take, including the rituals to be observed in their preparation.

“Halal” is an Arabic word for “permissible” or lawful. When used as an adjective, it could mean proper or legitimate. It commonly refers to the dietary preparation of food that follows Islamic process. Thus, you see promotion and marketing posters in some eateries declaring that they serve halal food. Who certifies that a food is halal? The National Commission for Muslim Filipinos is the lead government agency that regulates the halal industry.

Strictly, if animals, chicken and fowl are not slaughtered following Islamic ritual, it could be haram or forbidden. The procedure goes like this: slaughtering them with a well-sharpened knife to make a swift cut on the throat and lessen pain, with the head of the animal facing qibla, where the Holy Kaaba or Grand Mosque in Mecca is located, the same direction towards all Muslim must face when praying. Also, the slaughterman must utter the phrase “Bismillah” or “In the name of God” before the execution.

Think of the predicament of Filipino Muslims. If they travel outside their homes or study in Metro Manila, chances are they will eat food not prepared in accordance with the rituals just described.

Food abounds that is haram or prohibited. Chickens being served in giant multinational fast-foods are slaughtered not in the Islamic way. Are they? How can they determine with precision that their supplier has not delivered them with food sprinkled with pork ingredients?

When Rep. Simeon Datumanong, now deceased, and I were members of Congress, we went to dine at a popular restaurant after a round of golf. The Chinese owner of the restaurant, upon knowing that he has congressmen as customers, joined us at our table and, perhaps to impress us, bragged that his chicken is most delectable because the oil they use comes from pork. The poor guy did not know that we are Muslims. And to think that we have been patronizing the restaurant since our student days in the metro.

You must have heard of the incident played up in trimedia involving a congresswoman who made a scene when she learned that the food she was served contained pork. There are many episodes like this.

Recently, social media was abuzz with the issue about food being served in fast-foods, particularly gravies that go with chicken. Some claim it is mixed with pork oil and therefore haram. I consulted golf buddy, building contractor cum restaurateur Roberto “Bong” Monroy who cautioned me that most gravies are mixed with pork fat because it makes it more “malasa” or flavorful.

While they can avoid pork in the menu, they have no way of knowing that other foods are sprinkled with pork ingredients. Perhaps they just have to hold on tight to the Islamic tenet similar to the idiom that what one doesn’t know, won’t hurt one. The controlling consideration is intention or what Muslims call ni-at, akin to the favorite invocation of defense lawyers, which in Latin says, “Actus non facit rheum nisi mens set rea,” meaning there is no crime where there is no intention to commit it. And as a cardinal belief of Muslims, Allah, SWT, is most beneficent and merciful.