(Photos by Brian Jeffery Beggerly)
Malaysia (MNN) ― Angry Muslims have attacked four churches since Malaysia's High Court decided to allow Christians to use the Malay name for God. Three were firebombed, and in one church building, the incendiary device failed to go off. The intent is clear.
We spoke with an MNN listener living in Malaysia, working in ministry. For security purposes, we'll call him 'David.' He lives in the same metropolitan area as the churches that were attacked. David says what happened is alarming. "This is totally shocking to us Malaysians, because as far as this generation can remember, this has never happened. We've always had peaceful relations."
Muslims contend the name "Allah" should be exclusive to Islam. David counters that. He says "Allah" is used to translate "Elohim," and "Tuhan" is used to translate "Adonai" -but it is also applied to Jesus Christ in the New Testament. The end result: both of the terms are used often to describe the character of God in the Malay Bible.
David says in the 1980s, the government made it illegal for non-Muslims to use "Allah." Churches quietly protested, and the government agreed not to enforce the ban but left it on the books.
In recent years, they decided to enforce the ban and have been confiscating Bibles because they use the word "Allah."
The Herald, a Catholic newspaper, publishes in several languages, including Malay. In keeping with their other crackdowns, the government addressed the "Allah" issue with the paper. However, they challenged the government ban, and it went all the way to the High Court.
As ire over the most recent court decision broke, hackers attacked the Herald's Web site as well as that of the Malaysian judiciary. Protestors gathered outside mosques across the country, and there were significant concerns over the safety of worshippers gathering for Sunday services in area churches.
Yet, there's another angle to consider. Is this the sectarian conflict it appears to be or is it a racial one tied to political power? The majority of Muslims in Malaysia are ethnically Malays. Most Christians are ethnically Chinese, Indian, or East Malaysian. Could this be an issue of nationalism?
'David' sidestepped the point, but carefully noted, "I think this is not so much a Muslim-Christian conflict, per se, but political forces taking advantage, perhaps even instigating, in a sense, artificially making this crisis for their own ends."
Jonathon Racho with International Christian Concern says there's bigger concern. "The Malaysian government has sided with the Muslims," which means the fight over who gets to use "Allah" is not over yet.
The government has appealed the decision. The instability kicked up by this case has been disruptive to outreach. Racho says, "It's very difficult for Christians to carry out their work, but we hope and pray that this thing will come to an end very soon."
