Church group says not fighting just for Alkitab but rights of all

Shastri said it is not an ‘us versus them’ position. — Picture by Jack Ooi

PETALING JAYA, April 14 — The Council of Churches of Malaysia (CCM) said last night that the church is not merely making a stand in the Alkitab row but it is also concerned for the rights of all Malaysians.

Speaking at a prayer meeting here, its general-secretary Rev Dr Hermen Shastri said that the position of the church should not be viewed as “us versus them” but for the “full expression of every human being to seek, live and practise the faith inspired by their holy books.”

“The elections are not being used just to push on the Alkitab issue but on all other aspects such as oppression, greed, poverty and even the damage to our natural environment,” he toldThe Malaysian Insider later.

Faced with an unyielding Christian community days ahead of a crucial state poll in Sarawak, the government offered early this month a 10-point solution to the Alkitab impasse which will allow the Bible to be freely distributed across the country in all languages.

The Cabinet offered a new list of suggestions to put an end to the month-long stand-off over 35,000 Alkitab seized by the Home Ministry in a bid to head off a possible backlash against the ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) during Saturday’s vote by Christians who make up half the population in Sarawak.

However, it insisted that Malay-language bibles in the peninsula be marked with a cross and “Christian Publication” on the front cover.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak also gave his assurance yesterday that his administration would never again impound bibles.

But Muslim groups and leaders have accused the government of capitulating to pressure from Christians and failing to uphold Islamic laws and dignity.

The Control and Restriction of the Propagation of Non-Islamic Religions Enactment bars non-Muslims from using Allah to refer to God as is done in the Alkitab.

The law applies in all states besides Sabah, Sarawak, Penang and the federal territories.

A CCM Youth leader, Yoshua Chua, also told about 50 Christians who attended the night service that standing up for “our brothers in Sabah and Sarawak” to use the Alkitab and the word Allah to refer to God was “the least we can do.”

“The church should remain non-partisan but we cannot ignore the plight of the oppressed. We cannot shut our eyes or turn a deaf ear to what is happening in society,” he said.

Shastri also touched on the “unimaginable devastation” of the forests in Sarawak by “those in power” who were oppressing the poor.

“When necessary for the good of society, we will exert the influence that God wills for his church,” he said.

The CCM is one of three organisations representing different Christian denominations that make up the Christian Federation of Malaysia, an umbrella body for over 90 per cent of churches in the country.