A position shared by Christian churches after a video went viral on the Internet and risked being exploited to create new tensions. “In spreading their faith, religious groups must follow an ethic that respects the places of worship of others.”
Kuala Lumpur () – The Malaysian Advisory Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism has urged a Surau committee in Malacca to file a complaint with the police against an unidentified group that was promoting a free Bible course outside its premises, in front of a mosque. A gesture that risks being exploited in a country that cannot afford a new escalation of religious misunderstandings following the recent broadcast of a video of the 1999 Malaysian government’s announcement. socks with an inscription referring to Allah.
The Interfaith Council said in a statement that it is very wrong for any religious group to propagate its beliefs outside another faith’s house of worship. Council Chairman Tan Hoe Chieow said religious groups must follow ethics by respecting others when propagating their faith.
The incident arose from a 16-second video that is making the rounds across the country on social media. The footage shows a small group of people sitting and standing next to a book cart with a sign reading “Free Bible Course”. Tan expressed his belief that the people involved could belong to some “deviant sect” as the country’s traditional Christian churches do not break the law by proselytising Muslims. He asked churches and Christian leaders to help identify the group. “The federal constitution provides for the right to profess and practise any religion, but it is forbidden to propagandise other religions among Muslims,” Tan reiterated.
DAP politician Cassel Krishnan strongly condemned the promotion of free Bible classes outside a mosque, calling the incident irresponsible, but also warned against politicising the incident. Krishnan said that “respect and tolerance are not optional, they are imperative,” adding that “Churches and Christian groups in Malacca have always been prudent and wise in carrying out their activities in public.”
Malacca was the city through which the Portuguese conquerors brought the first seeds of the Gospel to the Malay Peninsula in the 15th century. They were followed by the Dutch. Although Terengganu is said to contain the oldest evidence of the arrival of Islam in the Malay Peninsula, Malacca was in the 14th century an important commercial centre and a regional stronghold of Islam due to the presence of numerous Muslim traders who spread their beliefs among the locals.
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