Article by Archbishop Datuk Bolly Lapok on the Allah issue

This is the latest response on the Allah Issue that has plagued the Church in Malaysia for many years now. Looks like our Church leaders are rising up and saying, "Enough id Enough". Let us all link our hearts as we join our Christian leaders in prayer for wisdom and courage to do and say the right things at this critical times that we are living in today.

This article has been taken from The Malaysian Chronicle.

Saturday, 29 March 2014 19:56

ALLAH: No more turning the other cheek - Archbishop warns

Written by Archbishop Datuk Bolly Lapok

Today, we are gathered here in Bandar Sri Aman, a town whose very name means peace. This is indeed an historic assembly. History will surely judge us by what we say and do from today henceforth. We are on a prophetic threshold as children of God.

The Bible reminds us in Ecclesiastes 3:8 that there is a time for war and a time for peace. It seems a paradox that we are called to be peacemakers by our Lord and Saviour Christ Jesus (Matthew 5:9). Yet at the same time we are also to brace ourselves for war. Herein lies the mystery of living out our faith in obedience to our calling as Christians and to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

In the words of a highly respected clergyman, “Because by the grace of God we are defined as family with a call to action in reconciliation, then we have to find not only the call but also the means of being reconcilers, when our instincts and passions often lead us in the opposite direction.”

“If the Church is not a place both of conflict and of reconciliation, …it is a failing or failed church. It has ceased to be the miracle of diversity in unity, of the grace of God breaking down walls.”

Turning the other cheek is not the right answer in this situation

With its multi-ethno-religious makeup, Malaysia can present itself as a model to be a miracle of diversity in unity. Unfortunately, the scourge of that ethno-religious strife is fast approaching its flashpoint with extremist elements of political Islam relentlessly stoking the fire of hatred and bigotry.

How then do we live? Some among those who mean well have suggested that when slapped on one cheek we are to offer the other. This is half-baked theology if turning the other cheek tantamount to sending a wrong message to the provocateurs and extremists in political Islam that we are willing abandon our calling to being peacemakers and reconcilers.

These extremists among political Islam are, in fact, a tyranny by the minority while the rest of us including peace-loving Muslims and non-Muslims, have been sucked into the spiral of silence only to become the suffering majority. Ultimately, it is for all Malaysians of goodwill to ensure that Malaysia is not hijacked by the deluded minority.

To turn the other cheek in these circumstances is indeed to bear false witness to the Gospel of reconciliation itself. This we will not do.

Systematic insanity

The insanity that we are facing has become so systemic that even the judiciary has seen it fit to abandon sound principles of jurisprudence and taken an unprecedented extra-judicial position that the use of the word ‘Allah’ to refer to God is not an integral part of the faith and practice of Christianity. This is an uncalled for, unnecessary and a gross insensitive provocation.

This is a travesty of our constitutional and human right for the Church to manage its own affairs including translation of our Holy Scriptures into Bahasa Malaysia and our native languages. This is the exclusive ecclesiastical authority of the Church that neither the state nor the judiciary should trespass in accordance to settled international convention and law.

The continuing prohibition on the use of the word “Allah “has far reaching consequences affecting the profession and practice of the Christian faith amongst the Bahasa Malaysia and other indigenous language speaking Christians of Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak (including those who are currently residing in Peninsula Malaysia) who constitute 64 % of the Christians in Malaysia.

The recent finding of the Court of Appeal that the word “Allah” is not an integral part of the faith and practice of Christianity affects the rights of 1.6 million Bumiputera Christians in Sabah and Sarawak who use Bahasa Malaysia and their own native tongues as the medium to profess and practice their Christian faith.

The word “Allah” as referring to God has always, continuously and consistently been used by these Bumiputera Christians in all aspects of the Christian faith including all forms of religious services, prayers, worship, liturgy, and religious education and there is irrefutable historical evidence in support of this.

Extremists so bold now, even copies of Alkitab are being seized

The finding of the Court of Appeal has emboldened certain extremist Muslim religious authorities to seize copies of the ALKITAB BERITA BAIK and the BUP KUDUS the Bible in the Iban language (in which the word “Allah” is used) which were specifically imported into Malaysia for the use of our Bumiputera Christians thereby violating their inalienable rights to complete religious freedom as guaranteed under the Malaysia Agreement and the Federal Constitution.

We must be reminded of our cultural heritage as Christians that it is neither accident nor coincidence that Sarawak is the only Christian majority state in the country. Our status is one of divine appointment. It is not surprising then that Sarawak is known as the Bible belt of Malaysia.

The fact that the Church in Sarawak has not for once demanded that the post of the Chief Minister or that of the Governor be picked from among Christians bears testimony to the extent the Church is willing to go for the sake of reconciliation and peacemaking.

We have and are doing our part in reconciliation. We feel that it is incumbent on the Federal government to recognise our cultural heritage and our constitutional rights to practise our faith without undue interference and intervention.

Revert to status quo

We, therefore, urge the Federal government to revert to the status quo by entering into consent judgments for the three cases still before the courts related to the use of the prohibited word.

It has not been easy for us. But because by the grace of God we are defined as family with a call to action in reconciliation, it is our sacred responsibility to find not only the call but also the means of being reconcilers, when our instincts and passions often lead us in the opposite direction.

We have gone the extra mile for the sake of reconciliation.

May God bless Malaysia.

Bumiputera churches hit back at anti-Christian campaign by Bob Teoh

This is an article taken from the Online Portal, mysinchew. Click on the Title to go to the Original Source.

Bumiputera churches hit back at anti-Christian campaign

By BOB TEOH, 2013.05.02

Stung by the incendiary anti-Christian campaign in the run-up to polling day, Bumiputera churches in Sabah and Sarawak are hitting back with unprecedented vigour. A "pastoral communiqué " on the 'Allah' issue has been hammered out to be circulated on Friday, just two days before polling to all city and interior churches. A copy of the communiqué was obtained by MySinchew today.

The move is unprecedented in its unusually hard hitting language which is uncharacteristic of Bumiputera pastors and church leaders who traditionally maintain a cordial relationship with the government.

"We, the native Christians of Sabah and Sarawak have kept silent for a considerable length of time. Some have taken our silence to mean something else. Therefore, the time has now come for us to speak," the communiqué said in its opening line.

"Surely the way forward is no longer found in the status quo which expects the Bumiputera Church in Sabah and Sarawak to remain silent," it added.

"Two thirds of the Church in Malaysia is made up of Bumiputera Christians in Sabah and Sarawak. In this respect, we speak with pastoral and moral responsibility and authority against religious bigotry, racism and extremism in any form. But we are not alone as our non-Bumiputera brothers and sisters in Christ have also expressed similar concern over the 'Allah' issue on other occasions. We, therefore, speak as one voice," the communiqué said.

Meanwhile, their non-Bumiputera counterparts in the peninsula issued an equally hard hitting statement yesterday.

The Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM), the umbrella Christian body, issued a strongly-worded statement at what they call a "despicable and heinous" anti-Christian message on election campaign boards and demanded the Election Commission act swiftly to douse the sparks of such religious fear-mongering from catching fire once more.

"These fears are real given the recent history of Church burnings and threats to burn the Bible in Bahasa Malaysia," said Rev Eu Hong Seng, chairman of CFM, and its executive committee.

"The message pits one community (Muslims) against Christians by spreading fear through scare tactics using the issue of 'Allah' which the High Court had allowed as a right to freedom of religion."(The decision is under appeal by the government to be heard on 8 May, three days after polling day). Barisan Nasional has since denied the allegations and claimed they did not put up the advertising boards.

Clearly upset with Najib Razak's flip flop over the 'Allah' and Aliktab controversy, the Bumiputera communiqué pointed out that, "when the caretaker Prime Minister first mooted the Global Movement of Moderates, we were enthusiastic in extending our support for the initiative.

But ironically, the movement is being incessantly and blatantly distracted by unscrupulous elements from within its own ranks, whose strange proclivity is leaning more towards racism and extremism."

"A manifestation of such extremism is the extent to which fringe groups within our midst would go to advance their racism and religious bigotry over the controversy of the use of the word 'Allah' to refer to God by non-Muslims. They have even suggested an open season for burning Bibles (pesta membakar Alkitab). Nothing can be more seditious and incendiary. Yet they were tolerated by the authorities," it added.

It argued that the 'Allah' controversy is not really about religion as such but about unreasonable government policies and laws.

"In the face of such unreasonableness we cannot and should not remain silent. The time for us to speak has come," it said.

It was also careful to point out that, "Indeed, in speaking we are mindful to extend love to those who may not agree with us. The essence of God is love (1 John 4:8) thus we are compelled to love even our enemies (Matthew 5:44)".

The outrage has been simmering for a while but it was at the recent biennial general meeting in Kuching of the Association of Sarawak Churches, the umbrella Christian body in the state, that its chairman, Rev Datuk Bolly Lapok, the Anglican Archbishop of Sarawak as well as the newly appointed Archbishop of the Anglican Church in Southeast Asia, gave his no holds-barred address.

Those involved in drafting the communiqué revealed that the body of the text was largely taken from the Archbishop address with his consent. It was known as the three "Ks initiative" with members of the drafting committee including their lawyers drawn from Kuching, Kota Kinabalu and Kuala Lumpur scrutinising the numerous drafts.

Meanwhile, most churches, especially those in the remote interior are shifting the Sunday worship to Saturday to ensure their members vote in time as polling there closes earlier at 1.00 p.m.

Christians mark 400 years of Malay Bible

This is an article taken from The Malaysian Insider, shedding a little light to the "Allah" issue.

Christians mark 400 years of Malay Bible as ‘Allah’ case drags on

By Debra Chong

March 02, 2012

KUALA LUMPUR, March 2 — The opportunity to use the word “Allah” in a non-Muslim context remains a struggle for Christian Malaysians as they mark 400 years since the Bible was first published in the Malay language.

Christian scholars are huddling at a seminary in Seremban today, on the 400th anniversary of the Alkitab, in a conference that could shore up the Catholic Church’s case after it won, in 2009, the right to use the Arabic word to refer to God in its newspaper, The Herald.

The Malay version of the Bible embossed with the words ‘Christian Publication’ and a cross appeared from 2005 following a Home Ministry agreement with local distributors. — Picture by Choo Choy May

While Putrajaya has allowed churches nationwide to import the Malay-language Bible — first translated in 1612 — government lawyers refuse to withdraw their appeal against the Catholic Church’s suit.

Organised by the Seminari Theoloji Malaysia (STM) and the Bible Society of Malaysia (BSM), the two-day conference kicked off this morning at 10 with an examination of the historical and theological perspectives on the translation of the Alkitab as well as the legal aspects concerning its print and distribution here.

The day-long closed-door conference will see speakers representing, among others, the BSM, local Christian think-tank Kairos Research Centre and the United Bible Societies, the world’s biggest Bible translator, publisher and distributor organisation with 146 members across 200 countries and territories.

Among the highlights of the conference is an exhibition of the Alkitab, first published in 1612 with the Malay translation of the Gospel of Matthew.

A similar public discussion will take place at the Trinity Methodist Church in Petaling Jaya tomorrow, STM spokesman Reverend Lim Kar Yong told The Malaysian Insider when contacted.

However, he stressed that the event was strictly for Christians.

Despite the Catholic Church winning a High Court decision on December 31, 2009 to publish the word “Allah”, its weekly paper The Herald has been blocked from doing so the past three years pending the Home Ministry’s appeal.

The case has been languishing in the Court of Appeal since.

But the controversy spilled over into the rights of Malaysia’s Christian population at large as shipments of Malay-language bibles catering to the Bahasa Malaysia-speaking Bumiputera Christians were also blocked or confiscated last year.

It was turned into election fodder in the run-up to last year’s Sarawak polls as Christians there make up nearly half of the state’s total population.

And despite Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s historic meeting with Pope Benedict XVI in Rome last July to establish diplomatic relations between Muslim-majority Malaysia and the Vatican, there has been little progress in resolving the “Allah” dispute.

Christians form 9.2 per cent of Malaysia’s 28.3 million-strong population.

The Christian and Muslim religious communities have been engaged in a tug-of-war over the word “Allah”, with the latter group arguing that its use should be exclusive to them on the grounds that Islam is monotheistic and the word “Allah” denotes the Muslim God.

Christians, however, have argued that “Allah” is an Arabic word that has been used by those of other religious beliefs, including the Jews, in reference to God in many other parts of the world, notably in Arab nations and Indonesia.

Solutions to address Bible issue - The Star Online

Sunday April 3, 2011

Solutions to address Bible issue

Press statement by Datuk Seri Idris Jala, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, on a 10-point solution.

THE Government confirmed that it has been in dialogue with the Christian groups to look into their specific requests on the Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia Bible and also other religious issues. Taking into account the polarity of views of the different religious groups, including the Muslims, the Government decided on a 10-point solution.

1. Bibles in all languages can be imported into the country, including Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia.

2. These Bibles can also be printed locally in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak. This is a new development which should be welcomed by the Christian groups.

3. Bibles in indigenous languages of Sabah and Sarawak such as Iban, Kadazan-Dusun and Lun Bawang can also be printed locally and imported.

4. For Sabah and Sarawak, in recognition of the large Christian community in these states, there are no conditions attached to the importation and local printing of the Bible in all languages, including Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia and indigenous languages. There is no requirement for any stamp or serial number.

5. Taking into account the interest of the larger Muslim community, for Peninsular Malaysia, Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia, imported or printed, must have the words “Christian Publication” and the cross sign printed on the front covers.

6. In the spirit of 1Malaysia and recognising that many people travel between Sabah and Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia, there should be no prohibitions and restrictions for people who bring along their Bible and Christian materials on such travels.

7. A directive on the Bible has been issued by the Ketua Setiausaha (KSU) of the Home Ministry to ensure proper implementation of this Cabinet decision. Failure to comply will subject the officers to disciplinary action under the General Orders. A comprehensive briefing by top officials, including the Attorney-General (AG), will be given to all relevant civil servants to ensure good understanding and proper implementation of the directive.

8. For the impounded Bibles in Kuching, Gideon, the importer can collect all the 30,000 Bibles free of charge. We undertake to ensure the parties involved are reimbursed. The same offer remains available for the importer of the 5,100 Bibles in Port Klang, which have already been collected by the Bible Society Malaysia (BSM) last week.

9. Beyond the Bible issue, the Govern­ment wishes to reiterate its commitment to work with the Christian groups and all the different religious groups in order to address inter-religious issues and work towards the fulfilment of all religious aspirations in accordance with the Constitution, taking into account the other relevant laws of the country. In order to bring urgency to this work, the Prime Minister will meet the representatives of the Christian Federation of Malaysia (CFM) soon to discuss the way forward.

10. The Christian ministers in the Cabinet will meet on a regular basis with representatives of the various Christian groups in order to discuss their issues and work with the relevant ministries and the PM in order to resolve them.

I hope this 10-point solution will be received positively by the Christian groups as being fair and reasonable. We have to look for a solution that deals with the Bible issue and also put a way forward to handle other issues raised by the Christian groups.

I think the Bible issue is very unfortunate, and in the spirit of Lent, it is time for sacrifice, reconciliation and forgiveness.

In our history, as a young nation, we achieved a lot in a short period of time, but we have our shortcomings.

The Government and our civil servants are not perfect as indeed all human beings are “beautifully imperfect” in the eyes of God.

And for all our shortcomings in handling the Bible issue, I hope the Christians would find it in their hearts to forgive us.

In my Church at SIBKL, we have been praying for a Christian revival to take place in our country. For all the hurt that exists as a result of our differences, I believe that we need healing, forgiveness and reconciliation in this country.

The Bible says in Matthew 18:21-22 – Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered: “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.”

Green light to import and print the Bible locally in all languages - The Star Online

Sunday April 3, 2011

Green light to import and print the Bible locally in all languages

PETALING JAYA: The Government has decided to allow the Bible in all languages, including Bahasa Malaysia and Indonesia, to be imported into the country.

The Bible can also be printed locally in Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak and in indigenous languages such as Iban, Kadazandusun and Lun Bawang.

For Sabah and Sarawak, there will be no conditions attached to the importation and local printing of the Bible in all languages, with no requirement for any stamp or serial number.

For Peninsular Malaysia, the Bible in Bahasa Malaysia/Indonesia, imported or printed, must have the words “Christian Publication” and the cross sign printed on the front cover.

No restriction would be imposed on people who bring their Bibles and Christian materials on travels between Sabah and Sarawak and Peninsular Malaysia.

These were part of a 10-point solution announced in a statement yesterday by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Idris Jala, who said the views of the various religious groups, including Muslims, had been considered.

For the impounded Bibles in Kuching, the importer The Gideons International could collect all the 30,000 Bibles free of charge, he said, adding that the same offer was applicable to the importer of the 5,100 Bibles in Port Klang.

Articles on the New Stamp for BM Bibles Detained.

Just added on 28 March 2011.

This is an interesting read written by someone not a Christian regarding the Stamped BM Bibles. Click on the link to read : 

Bible desecration shows puerile insensitivity — NH Chan (loyarburok.com)

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This is the latest news taken from The Star Online. Click on the title for the original link.

Wednesday March 23, 2011

New stamp for Bible copies

By P. ARUNA
aruna@thestar.com.my

Full text of the statement by Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Senator Datuk Seri Idris Jala is below:

PETALING JAYA: The 35,100 impounded Bahasa Malaysia Bibles will be released without the need to be numbered, but will be stamped “For Christianity”, said Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Idris Jala.

The announcement is a major move as the Home Ministry had earlier used the stamp “For Christians Only” on copies of the Bible held at Port Klang and Kuching.

Church groups had protested against the decision, saying it would be unconstitutional and deprive people of other faiths from reading the Bible.

“The Government has agreed to issue a directive so that future Bibles in Bahasa can be brought in, as long as they have the words “For Christianity,” Jala added in a statement yesterday.

He said copies of the Bible were not being singled out and that imported copies of the Quran were also checked to see if they were authorised copies and stamped with serial numbers before they were released.

The minister, who is a Christian, said the Government urged Chris tian groups to collect copies of the Bible at the ports.

“The focus should be in getting the Bibles into the hands of people who want to read them,” he said.

Jala added that the groups could choose to put a sticker “For Christianity” over the serial number and the stamp “For Christians Only” in the impounded copies of the Bible, and the impound costs would be paid by Christian sponsors.

Alternatively, Christian sponsors would pay for the import of new copies with the words “For Christianity” printed at the source, he said.

“This is a fair and reasonable solution from the Government and with the help of Christian donors, all 35,100 copies are to be released at no cost to the importers,” he said.

According to the statement, a special Cabinet committee had met on March 17 to find a solution to the matter, taking into account the polarity of views between Christians and Muslims.

Jala said he and the Attorney-General had met with Christian groups the following day to present the proposed solution, adding that the Government wanted to resolve the issue amicably in line with the spirit of 1Malaysia.

On his role in helping to sort out the matter, Jala said he was requested to discuss with the Christian groups in his capacity as Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (not as CEO of Pemandu), as a Christian and more importantly as the only Cabinet minister who was not a member of any political party.

THE following is the full press statement by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Senator Datuk Seri Idris Jala on the Bahasa Malaysia Bible issue:

The Government wishes to reiterate that, since March 15, it had given the directive to release all Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia which had been impounded in Port Klang and Kuching.

However, to date, the Christian groups who imported the Bibles have yet to collect them because they do not accept the stamps and the serialisation on these Bibles.

Home Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein mentioned that the act of stamping and serialisation was standard protocol.

For example, Qurans imported into the country are also checked to ensure they are authorised, and are stamped with serial numbers before they are released.

Qurans which are not authorised are impounded and destroyed.

The act of stamping and serialisation of the Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia and the Qurans should not be perceived as desecration of holy scriptures.

A special Cabinet committee on this matter comprising the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, Home Minister, Unity Minister, Minister in the PM’s Department

(Law and Parliamentary Affairs), Religious Affairs Minister and Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department/CEO of Pemandu and the Attorney-General (AG) met on March 17 to discuss the issues at hand and find a fair and amicable solution.

The solution should take into account the polarity of views between the Christians and Muslims within the context of the existing laws of the country.

Subsequently, on March 18, Jala and Tan Sri Abdul Gani Patail, the Attorney-General, met with representatives from the Christian Federation of Malaysia, the Council of Churches of Malaysia, and other relevant Christian groups together with their legal advisors.

At this meeting, Jala said: “AG and I presented on behalf of the Government what we believe is a workable solution for all parties.”

The solution put forward by the Government is as follows:

> The BM Bibles currently impounded in Kuching and Port Klang will be released with the words “For Christianity” stamped clearly in Arial font, size 16, in bold. No other words or serial numbers will be stamped on the Bibles.

> To ensure that there is no misrepresentation in its implementation by civil servants, the Government will issue a directive from the director-general of the Home Ministry.

As with all similar directives, failure to comply with this directive will subject the relevant officers to disciplinary action under the General Orders.

> To highlight the Government’s commitment to resolving this issue amicably, the Government has received an offer from Christian donors

who are prepared to pay for the cost of all the Bibles that have already been stamped and serialised.

These BM Bibles can either be released in their present state (with stamps and serial numbers) or arrangements can be made to put stickers with the words “For Christianity” to cover the existing stamps and serial numbers. The choice is for the importers of these Bibles.

In the event they do not wish to take possession of these impounded Bibles in the present state, the Christian donors will pay for the full cost of new Bibles to be brought in with the words “For Christianity” printed at source or stamped with these words “For Christianity” by the Home Ministry at Port Klang and Kuching.

At the end of this meeting, the representatives from Christian groups requested time to meet and discuss, and have advised the Government that they would revert on their decision as soon as practicable.

Jala said: “In presenting the above solution, the AG and I have been authorised by the Prime Minister and the special Cabinet committee to convey the Government’s proposed solutions to the Christian groups.”

He further clarified: “I was requested to discuss this matter with the Christian groups in my capacity as Minister in the PM’s Department (not as CEO of Pemandu), as a Christian

and, more importantly, as the only Cabinet minister who is not a member of any political party.

“The Government wants this matter to be resolved amicably in a non-partisan manner and in line with the spirit of 1Malaysia. The AG’s involvement is obviously necessary because we have to ensure that the solution must be in the context of the existing laws of the country.”

The Government urges the Christian groups to collect the Bibles immediately for three reasons:

> The focus should be on getting the Bibles into the hands of people who want to read them; it has been established that the Home Ministry is not singling out the Bibles

for stamping and serialisation because this is also the same practice as they appear in the Quran.

> Notwithstanding (1) above, an arrangement has been made by the Government with the help of Christian donors to pay for the cost of all 30,000 impounded Bibles in Kuching and the 5,100 Bibles in Port Klang.

The importer can take these Bibles completely free of charge. If the Christian groups do not wish to take the Bibles, then the Christian donors have agreed to pay for the cost of bringing in new Bibles as replacement and these will be printed or stamped with the words “For Christianity”.

> The Government has agreed to issue a directive so that future Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia can be brought in as long as these have the words “For Christianity” in Arial font, size 16 either printed at source or stamped at the receiving port.

Finally, Jala said: “This is a fair and reasonable solution from the Government and with the help of Christian donors, all 35,100 Bibles are to be released completely free of charge at no cost at all to the importers.

“In addition, by virtue of the Government directive, there is an assurance from the Government that future Bibles in Bahasa Malaysia can be imported and released with the words ‘For Christianity’.” – Bernama

CFM MEDIA STATEMENT - HOLY SCRIPTURES DESECRATED

CHRISTIAN FEDERATION OF MALAYSIA

(PERSEKUTUAN KRISTIAN MALAYSIA)

Address: 10, Jalan 11/9, Section 11, 46200 Petaling Jaya, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

Telephone: (03) 7957 1278, (03) 7957 1463, Fax: (03) 7957 1457

Email: cfmsia@yahoo.co.uk

17th March 2011

CFM MEDIA STATEMENT

HOLY SCRIPTURES DESECRATED

The Christian community in Malaysia is deeply hurt that the Government has desecrated and
defaced the Bible.

Initial news that the Government had agreed to release copies of the Bible in Bahasa
Malaysia which had been impounded in both Port Klang and Kuching was greeted with joy.

However, this joy soon turned into grief and mourning when it was discovered that the
release was subject to certain conditions. Each copy has to be stamped with a serial number,
the official seal of the relevant department of the Bahagian Kawalan Penerbitan Dan Teks Al-
Quran, and the words “by order of the Minister of Home Affairs”.

This means that the Bahasa Malaysia Bible is now treated as a restricted item, and the Word
of God has been made subject to the control of man. This is wholly offensive to Christians.
Any person who respects the Holy Scriptures of any religion would be appalled by this action.

The Christian community in Malaysia has always acted in good faith and with great patience
to find amicable solutions without compromising our fundamental beliefs. But that good
faith has not been reciprocated by the Government. It is the Government that has moved the
“goal posts” over the years through a systematic imposition of unreasonable conditions and
restrictions.

We have never agreed to any wording to be endorsed on Bibles to say that it is only for
Christians. The 1982 order issued under the Internal Security Act 1960 did not state that any
form of words had to be endorsed on any copy of the Bible in Bahasa Malaysia.

The latest letter from the Ministry of Home Affairs dated 15 March 2011 is therefore a set of
new conditions imposed on the release of the impounded Bibles which is wholly
unacceptable to us. We will never accede to any desecration of the Bible since the Word of
God to us is sacred.

We also wholly reject the Government’s contention that the Bible in Bahasa Malaysia is
prejudicial to the national interest and security of Malaysia, and treated as a subversive
publication.

As Christians we wonder how our Holy Scriptures can become a national security threat
where countless number of us find it helpful in bringing hope and healing to broken lives and
homes which we can testify to. Besides it commands us to be better citizens of our beloved
nation.

We therefore insist that the Government withdraw the conditions imposed on the release of
the Bibles impounded in Port Klang and Kuching. Given that copies may already have been
endorsed, we will NOT take delivery of those endorsed copies.

We call on all Malaysians, from Semenanjung and in Sabah and Sarawak, and from all walks
of life, to come together in unity to reject any attempt to restrict the freedom of religion in our
beloved country.

We invite all Christians in Malaysia to remain calm and to continue to pray for a dignified
and respectful resolution of this issue. As Sunday 20 March 2011 marks the 2nd anniversary
of the impounding of the Bibles at Port Klang, we call on all those in Malaysia and elsewhere
to dedicate themselves to a day of prayer and quiet reflection.

Bishop Ng Moon Hing
Chairman and the Executive Committee,
Christian Federation of Malaysia

Latest on the Detention of the Al-Kitab in Port Klang

This is another interesting article found in The Star Online touching on the same issue. To read click on the title.

Sunday March 20, 2011

Find a way out of this deadlock

On The Beat
By WONG CHUN WAI

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- Your Prayers Are Solicited As Members Of The Body Of Christ -

Dear Arch/Bishops, Please note that the EXCO of the Christian Federation of Malaysia met this morning at an emergency meeting to discuss the recent Al-Kitab issue. I attach herewith our Media statement for your onward distribution to your respective parishes, organisations and bodies. CFM is also asking for a nationwide day of prayer this Sunday, 20th of March 2011, as it is the 2nd anniversary of the detention of the Al-Kitab (Berita Baik with Deuterocanonicals) in Port Klang. For your reference, I append herewith a short summary of events leading to the issuing of this statement: a) Monday 14th March - CFM leaders met with Datuk Seri Idris Jala (he called for the meeting) in an emergency meeting to discuss resolution of detention of Al-Kitab in Port Klang and Kuching port. After much deliberation, it was agreed that the bibles would be released and a statement issued by both Govt and CFM that this matter had been resolved. The agreement was that the words "Penerbitan Kristian" together with a cross (which already appears on the front cover of the Al-Kitab in Port Klang) be endorsed as per 2005 agreement. We also stressed that we wanted to have sight of the Kementerian Dalam Negeri (KDN) letter before issuing our statement. b) Tuesday 15th March - Govt through Datuk Seri Idris Jala issues press statement that Bibles have been released after an amicable compromise with the Christians; c) Tuesday 15th March, 3 pm -  Mr Lee Min Choon from the Bible Society of Malaysia was called for a meeting with Dato' Zaitun Abdul Samad the head of the Publications Control and Quranic Text division of KDN in Putrajaya.  He was expecting a letter for the release of the 5000 Alkitab held in Port Klang. Instead he was given a litany of complaints from her re our Alkitab. There was no discussion about the release of the Alkitabs in Klang and Dato' Zaitun said she will send the letter to BSM office. d) Tuesday 15th March , 5.30 pm . The release order was faxed to BSM office at 5.30pm (attached herewith). The new conditions (which had never been discussed or agreed upon):  1. "For Christians Only" instead of the Dec 2005 agreement of "A Christian Publication"  2. serial nos. stamped 1-5000 to each copy of the Alkitab.  3. the official seal of the department - Bahagian Kawalan Penerbitan dan Teks Al-Quran  4. and the stamp "by order of the Menteri Dalam Negeri"  e) Wednesday 16th March, 5.00 pm, Mr Lee of BSM received a call from Dato' Zaitun who told him that the Alkitab was being stamped and serialised by the department. And was again told to come and collect the Alkitab.  Mr Lee protested that this was unacceptable and a desecration. f) Wednesday 16th March, 6.30 pm, BSM issued a media statement condemning the defacing and desecration of the Bibles by this unilateral and unauthorised stamping. g) Thursday 17th March 9.30 am - 11.00 am - An emergency meeting of CFM EXCO decided and have advised both BSM and Gideon not to collect the Alkitab in Port Klang and Kuching port, given the present unacceptable conditions.  Thank you. Warmest regards, Michael Chua Rev. Fr. Michael ChuaEcclesiastical Assistant, Archdiocesan Ministry of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur

A Testimony from a Metro Tabernacle Church Member.

We received this email from a reader who is not a Calvarite, and we publish this testimony here as an update to what God has done and how He has answered our prayers regarding the "Allah" issue which has led to the burning of a few churches in Malaysia. Our God answers our prayers and He has a plan and something good for all His Children in every situation that we face. We must also remember that God does not necessarily answer every prayer the same way. Just remember He works in mysterious ways.

We have withheld publishing the author and the friend's name.
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Subject: Testimonies - MetroTabernacle Church

Very encouraging testimonies.

Anyway, the reason for writing is to encourage each and everyone of us. My colleague, "the church member" (TCM) is a member of the Metro Tabernacle church. This morning,  (TCM) shared with me the wonderful testimonies that has happened since the burning of their church. And I would like to share the same with you all too.

1) The night before the church was burned their Pastor was at the church past 11pm because he wanted to check his emails. He is a very hardworking person and has a habit of wanting to complete his work as much as possible. But he is also very sensitive to the Holy Spirit. When he got to the church premise and was about to swipe the card to open the door, he had a terrible stomachache that he had never had before. He knew that the Lord was telling him to go back home and he obeyed and left the church premise. It was past midnight that the church was torched. If he had not obeyed he would have been burned alive and would not be able to live to tell this wonderful testimony. God still has work for him to do on earth. His time was not up yet.

2) The MT Church had trouble moving to the new premises in Batu Caves. They had been waiting for approval from the Local Authorities and is still pending. Then they were facing financial difficulties as they needed to buy new furniture for the new premise. They had been raising funds on their own to relocate to Batu Caves but had been “stuck” due to approval permits and raising more $ to buy new furniture and equipment. So when the church was burned it was all the old stuff that they had been wanting to get rid off! And our Govt compensated them RM500K and CIMB and many other donations started to pour in. From an adversity it turned into a blessing! Our God truly provides!

3) (TCM) has been rejoicing in the office and shared with my MD. Today at our Management meeting, the MD said I had never seen anyone so full of joy when the church got burned down but instead, (TCM) said it was a blessing.

4) (TCM) said the church leaders and members shook hands with Najib and they released forgiveness for whatever that has happened in the past.  said Najib felt very welcomed at the church. Hishamuddin commented that during his visit he has never seen so many smiling faces when their church had just been burned down. To God be the glory!

5) They also requested for the Batu Caves new church premise to be turned into a place of worship and not a commercial zone. The Selangor Govt is looking into it and the MB, Khalid gave his assurance that he will look into it personally.

6) The Metro Tabernacle worship service appeared in the International Herald Tribune (they were on international news) and the photo of the worshippers with their hands raised was taken in the Wisma MCA hall. My MD asked what was happening and my friend told him, "we were praising and worshipping God." My MD didn’t know that this was how we praised and worshipped God.

7) A few years ago a visiting speaker from overseas prophesied that the MT Church would be in international news. At that time the congregation thought that their Pastor would be traveling around the world to preach as he was already doing that but she said now they understood what the speaker said. I told (TCM) if it was the doing of man, God would not be glorified but when it is not of man, then God would be glorified like in this situation.

8) It was good to see many church leaders of other denominations coming together at the MT Church worship service over the last few days, united and praying together.

9) Lastly, sometime last year (TCM) approached me and said that she has been praying and she was convicted in her heart to give me an invitation to ask our church/cell to partner with them in prayer with regards to the move to the new church premise in Batu Caves. They were facing a lot of spiritual warfare. I remember sharing with the cell. We didn’t know very much about them then. God is moving amongst us and we could choose to obey his call to pray or disregard and miss the excitement and blessing

I hope the above sharing would have encouraged us all to press on and serve our Almighty God. MT Church has found favour with God and so has many other churches. We must increase our faith to the next level and stay united. PRAYER is the only powerful weapon God has given to all of us. Let’s use it mightily for His Glory!





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Bishop Paul Tan's Statement on the "Allah" issue

This is a statement from Bishop Paul Tan taken from theZENIT, The world seen from Rome News Agency
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Malaysian Bishop Laments Allah Ban Says Church Holds Firm on Minority Rights KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, JAN. 6, 2010 (Zenit.org).-

A Malaysian bishop is underlining the rights of minority religions faced to the controversy over a ban prohibiting non-Muslims from using the word "Allah."

Bishop Paul Tan Chee Ing of the Melaka-Johor Diocese in Malaysia told ZENIT that the controversy over the use of the word "Allah," as well as other Arabic words, is "not a linguistic battle."
Rather, he said, it is a political "battle for votes."

On Dec. 31, the Kuala Lumpur High Court overruled the ban, which was instated three years ago, affirming that it was unconstitutional and that the word "Allah" is not exclusive to Islam. It granted the Catholic Herald, which was using the word as a translation for God in the Malay language section of the periodical, permission to print "Allah."

However, today the decision was suspended after days of protests. Meanwhile, the Home Ministry is appealing the act in an attempt to uphold the ban.

Muslim groups are protesting that Christians and other minorities should not use "Allah" for "fear of confusing Muslims," the Herald reported today. Muslims constitute some 60% of the country's 28 million people.

Pre-Islamic Bishop Paul Tan Chee Ing explained that the debate has a definite political tone, as the ruling party "is afraid of losing the Malay votes, which make up of about 60% of the population."

He added, "In Malaysia, unfortunately, Malay is identified with Muslims -- the only country in the world where religion is tied to a race in the constitution."

Yet in the Quran, the bishop pointed out, "it is said that Jews, Christians, Sabeans and Muslims worship Allah."

He continued: "How can a Muslim go against its Holy Quran? Not possible.

"It is due to sheer ignorance or due to some political expediency. Any objective scholar can tell you that the word 'Allah' is pre-Islamic. It has its root in the Semitic language."

Not all Malay-Muslims are against non-Muslims using the word, Bishop Tan Chee Ing clarified, as long as it is not being "abused."

Those who are sparking the controversy, he said, are acting "due to ignorance or motivated by political biases or for some personal gains."

The "public declaration that non-Muslims can use the word 'Allah' is a contradiction to what the National Fatwa Council issued," the bishop affirmed, and "contradiction is another game for playing politics."

Non-Muslim rights In the midst of this, he said, "the Church's stand should be calm, firm in its stand for the rights of non-Muslims as enshrined in our federal constitution."

We must "cooperate with all reasonable persons, try to keep harmony by not provoking the other side with words or actions and not putting them down those who want to stop non-Muslims from using the word," the prelate said.

"It is a tightrope walk," he affirmed.

Bishop Tan Chee Ing told ZENIT that despite the current issues, the Church in his country is "very stable, united and strong."

"Our ecumenical movement and inter-religious cooperation have been good in spite of a few hiccups here and there," he said.

Although statistics are showing that the Catholic population is stagnant in numbers, the bishop acknowledged, this is due to the fact that "Chinese and Indian Catholics tend to have fewer children than the Malays."

As well, he continued, "their children are sent abroad to study because of discrimination against them in the universities and many of them do not return to Malaysia because of the fear of being discriminated."

Stand for truth "In spite of all this," the prelate affirmed, "the churches are generally full to their capacity with men, women and children."

He continued: "It is a vibrant Church. The local Church has been reaching out to help other poorer dioceses in other countries."

Bishop Tan Chee Ing reported that the people of his diocese, "in spite of the fact that we are not rich," has been sending money to the Church in Kenya, Myanmar and Laos.

"This is in imitation of the earliest Catholic Church during the apostolic times," he affirmed.

The prelate continued: "We have also cooperated with the Protestants and even the Buddhists, Sikhs and Hindus.

"The one contribution we can offer to the Universal Church is standing up for the truth and the rights of people against all odds because we know that God who is the Lord of history, sees and knows all and will in his time and in his way right what is wrong. Patience!"

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This is another report taken from the ZENIT, The world seen from Rome News Agency. Click here to link to the original source : http://zenit.org/article-28034?l=english

MALAYSIAN BISHOPS RESPOND TO VIOLENCE

Note Muslim Support; Say Root Is Politics, Not Religion

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, JAN. 12, 2010 (Zenit.org).- Malaysian bishops are urging reconciliation in the wake of attacks against nine Christian churches over the weekend, and affirming the incidents stain the reputation of the country's Muslim majority.

The prelates responded to attacks on three Catholic and six Protestant churches in a communiqué made public today by the Fides news agency. The prelates are beginning their plenary assembly of bishops from Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei.

The assembly, planned some time ago, had to change its agenda completely in the wake of the violence.

Known as moderate

The bishops' communiqué noted harmony between Islam and Christianity in Malaysia, and said the attacks stain the reputation of Malay Islam, "known for its moderation and its peaceful coexistence with other religions."

In fact, Fides reported, moderate Muslim groups have organized watches in churches to prevent a repeat of the violence.

The communiqué stated Christians "are committed to do everything possible to keep calm, not to respond to the provocations, and to pray so that the violence will not spread."

The attacks over the weekend come in the context of a Dec. 31 high court decision overturning a ban on Christian groups referring to God as Allah.

Both Christians and Muslims pointed to political motivations behind the violence.

© Innovative Media, Inc.

Reprinting ZENIT's articles requires written permission from the editor.

Allah can’t be substituted with Tuhan in Bible translation

This article is reproduced from The Malaysian Insider. Click on the title to get to the said link.
Allah can’t be substituted with Tuhan in Bible translation — Dr Ng Kam Weng

JAN 6 — Muslims in other parts of the world (Arabs, Persians, North Africans, Pakistanis and Indonesians) have no objection and are not worried about getting confused when Christians using the word “Allah”. In contrast, some Malaysian Muslims claim to be confused; a strange phenomenon indeed.

This observation lends credence to the suggestion that the Allah issue is an artificial Malay issue and not a genuine Muslim issue. The truth is that the current orchestrated protests against the recent High Court decision to allow the Catholic Herald (and Christians) to use the word Allah must be seen to be as cynical manipulations by Malay politicians to gain votes from their community.
I am more interested in going beyond these political manoeuvres. Politicians (and that includes government bureaucrats) are happy just to stay at the level of vague suggestions since they have no competence nor care to address real issues of translation. In contrast, Christians must ensure their arguments for the right to use the word Allah are based on concrete evidence supported by a coherent linguistic philosophy of translation of Scripture.

One major demand from the Malay protestors is that Christians stop using the word Allah on grounds that Christians can find a simple alternative, that is, simply substitute the word Allah with the word Tuhan. Unfortunately, this demand only betrays the ignorance of the protestors.
I would have thought that any Malay would know that the meaning of the words Allah (God) and Tuhan (Lord, Rabb) are not the same. How can they suggest that Christians simply use the word Tuhan to substitute the word Allah? To express the issue linguistically, Allah and Tuhan have different senses even though they have the same reference.
Both the terms Allah and Tuhan are used in the Malay Bible. Following the precedent set by Arab Christians, Allah is used to translate el/elohim and Tuhan (or TUHAN in caps) is used to translate Yahweh (YHWH). The two words are sometimes paired together as Yahweh-Elohim in 372 places in the Old Testament (14 times in Genesis 2-3; 4 times in Exodus; 8 times in Joshua; 7 times in 2 Samuel; 22 times in Chronicles; 12 times in Psalms; 32 times in Isaiah; 16 times in Jeremiah and 210 times in Ezekiel, etc.).
More importantly, the word Tuhan is also applied to Jesus Christ in the New Testament. Thus we read of the LORD Jesus as Tuhan Yesus (The word LORD was used to translate the word kurios 8,400 times in the Septuagint, the Greek version of the Old Testament. It refers to human beings in only 400 times and refers to God 8,000 times. Of these 8,000 times, 6,700 are substitute for the word YHWH). The transference of the title kurios LORD/YHWH to Jesus Christ is testimony to the belief in the deity of Christ right at the beginning of Christianity.
This simple statistical survey shows clearly that the demand by Muslim demonstrators that Christians simply substitute the word Allah with Tuhan is unreasonable since it renders many Biblical references to God and Jesus Christ incoherent. First, the substitution is incorrect since the meaning of Allah and Tuhan are different.
Second, it creates an absurd situation when Christians try to translate the paired words Tuhan Allah (LORD God). Are Christians now required to call the LORD God, Tuhan Tuhan? This sounds like committing linguistic redundancy. Worse still, the repeated words Tuhan Tuhan come across to Malay readers as suggesting that Christians believe in a plurality of Lords/Gods (since the plural form in Malay is expressed by repeating the noun and setting them in apposition).
Finally, Christians are unable to express the Lordship of Jesus Christ as one who is distinct from the Father and yet shares with the God of the Old Testament, the name that is above every other name — kurios/Tuhan (Philippians 2:9, cf. Isaiah 45:23). In other words, Christians are rendered unable to affirm the deity of Jesus Christ and teach the doctrine of Trinity without the foundational words that maintain the semantic relationship between the words Allah and Tuhan as they are applied distinctively in the Malay Bible.
Christians in Malaysia would do their utmost to maintain religious harmony in Malaysia. Indeed, the Christianity community has made many concessions to accommodate the concerns of the Malay community.
However, it cannot accept the demand that it abandons the use of the word Allah and adopts the word Tuhan as the substitute simply because some ill-informed Malays take offence at their practice — an offence which would not have arisen if only these people set aside emotions and prejudices and examine the historical and linguistic evidence in a calm and rational manner. At the very least, Malays (or rather Muslims) should understand that believers are not at liberty to change the meaning of their Scriptures, the word of God, to satisfy the unfounded scruples of man.
Postscript
I refer readers to the accompanying post, “Translating the Names of God” published in the learned journal (The Bible Translator) that gives more concrete examples of how the names of God are translated in the Malay Bible.
The article also discusses the controversy among some scholars on how words Allah and Tuhan should be used in the revision of Shellabear’s version of the Malay Bible. In any case, all the scholars in the controversy agree that Christians need to use both the words Allah and Tuhan in the Malay Bible. Please note that the article is reproduced (partially) with permission from the author Dr D Soesilo. — mysinchew.com