3 Malaysian Churches Attacked as Protests Rage Over 'Allah' Ruling (Christians cannot use 'Allah')

Christian Post ^ | 01/09/2010 | Aaron Leichman

[SeekAndFind]

Three churches in Malaysia were attacked with firebombs Friday as Muslims in the country pledged to stop Christians from using the word “Allah” to refer to God.

Many in the predominantly Muslim country are fuming over the recent decision by a Supreme Court that found a ban on the use of the word “Allah” by non-Muslims to be unconstitutional.

After last Thursday’s landmark ruling, Muslim activists were quick to mobilize, including the National Union of Malaysian Muslim Students, which urged the government to take the case to the Appeals Court, arguing that Christian missionaries using the word Allah could trick Muslims into leaving their faith.

Some even managed to hack into the website of the Roman Catholic Church’s weekly Malaysian publication, The Herald, which sparked the internationally-watched court battle.

On Dec. 31, 2009, two years after The Herald first filed suit against the government over the “Allah” ban, High Court Judge Datuk Lau Bee Lan announced that the word “Allah” is not exclusive to Islam and that the government’s Home Ministry is “not empowered” to ban non-Muslims from using the word.

“This … means that the Bahasa Malaysia-speaking community of the Christian faith can now continue to freely use the word ‘Allah’ without any interference from the authorities,” the Rev. Fr. Lawrence Andrew, editor of The Herald, told reporters in Kuala Lumpur.

On Monday, however, Malaysia’s government appealed the court ruling, contending that the word “Allah” is an Islamic word and if used by non-Muslims could confuse Muslims into converting to those faiths.

Those sentiments and more were expressed Friday as young Muslims emerged from two main mosques in downtown Kuala Lumpur, carrying banners and delivering fiery speeches, vowing to defend Islam.

"We will not allow the word Allah to be inscribed in your churches," one speaker shouted into a loudspeaker at the Kampung Bahru mosque, according to The Associated Press. About 50 other people carried posters reading "Heresy arises from words wrongly used" and "Allah is only for us."

Earlier, before dawn, unidentified assailants on motorcycles threw a firebomb at a church in a suburb of Kuala Lumpur, destroying the ground-level office of the three-story building. Hours later, two other churches were attacked - one of which sustained minor damages while the other was reportedly undamaged.

Prime Minister Najib Razak, who condemned the attacks, said the government would "take whatever steps it can to prevent such acts."

No arrests, so far, have been made.

According to the CIA World Factbook, 60.4 percent of Malaysia's 25.7 million people ascribe to Islam. Around 19.2 percent, meanwhile, is Buddhist, and 9.1 percent is Christian.

In general, Muslims enjoy special privileges in Malaysia as Islam is the dominant religion.

[SeekAndFind]

Muslims protest outside a mosque in central Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Friday, Jan. 8, 2010. Three Malaysian churches were attacked with firebombs, causing extensive damage to one, as Muslim worshippers pledged Friday to prevent Christians from using the word 'Allah,' escalating religious tensions in this multi-racial country. Many of the country's Malay Muslims, who make up 60 percent of the population, are incensed by a recent High Court decision to overturn a ban on Roman Catholics using 'Allah' as a translation for God in the Malay-language edition of their main newspaper, the Herald.

[Northern Yankee]

Ahhh... the religion of peace at it again.

They can keep Allah.

[SeekAndFind]

Which brings up the interesting question -— before Islam was born, prior to Muhammad — how did the people in that region refer to GOD ?

I’m sure most were polytheistic, but there SHOULD BE monotheists in the Arab region. How was God referred to in their language ?

In China for instance, long before Buddhism and Taoism, the Chinese had a concept of one God who they refer to as Shang Di ( Emperor of Heaven ). The missionaries who went to China to preach the Gospel have always used this term and it is still used in the Chinese Bible.

I wonder what term was used to refer to THAT one God in Arabic BEFORE Muhammad formed Islam....

[Westbrook]

They can have their “allah”.

It’s the name of an ancient desert moon god, and, by my reckoning, a pseudonym of Satan.

[dog breath]

I am sure that many Christians will be happy to acknowledge that Allah is not God. Maybe the Christians in response should make a statement to that effect.

[SeekAndFind]

Which brings up the interesting question -— before Islam was born, prior to Muhammad — how did the people in that region refer to GOD ?

I’m sure most were polytheistic, but there SHOULD BE monotheists in the Arab region. How was God referred to in their language ?

In China for instance, long before Buddhism and Taoism, the Chinese had a concept of one God who they refer to as Shang Di ( Emperor of Heaven ). The missionaries who went to China to preach the Gospel have always used this term and it is still used in the Chinese Bible.

I wonder what term was used to refer to THAT one God in Arabic BEFORE Muhammad formed Islam....

[SeekAndFind]

Which brings up the interesting question -— before Islam was born, prior to Muhammad — how did the people in that region refer to GOD ?

I’m sure most were polytheistic, but there SHOULD BE monotheists in the Arab region. How was God referred to in their language ?

In China for instance, long before Buddhism and Taoism, the Chinese had a concept of one God who they refer to as Shang Di ( Emperor of Heaven ). The missionaries who went to China to preach the Gospel have always used this term and it is still used in the Chinese Bible.

I wonder what term was used to refer to THAT one God in Arabic BEFORE Muhammad formed Islam....

If they don’t want the designation ALLAH to be used, then how the heck are Christians to refer to God ?

[Ransomed]

Many Freepers have a hard time with your points. I always think, who was using the word first, arab Jews and Christians or Muslems? Why should Muslems get to define the word?

If the Wodanists want “gott” back they can take a leap, right?

Freegards

[punchamullah]

The use of the word ‘Allah’ in reference to God predates the birth of Mo and his lunatic cult.

[SeekAndFind]

It’s very similar to the term used historically to refer to blacks — Negro.

See the etymology of the word -—

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=Negro

IT SAYS :

1555, from Sp. or Port. negro “black,” from L. nigrum (nom. niger) “black,” of unknown origin. Use with a capital N- became general early 20c. (e.g. 1930 in “New York Times” stylebook) in ref. to U.S. citizens of African descent, but because of its perceived association with white-imposed attitudes and roles the word was ousted late 1960s in this sense by Black (q.v.).

“Professor Booker T. Washington, being politely interrogated ... as to whether negroes ought to be called ‘negroes’ or ‘members of the colored race’ has replied that it has long been his own practice to write and speak of members of his race as negroes, and when using the term ‘negro’ as a race designation to employ the capital ‘N’ “ [”Harper’s Weekly,” June 2, 1906]

SUDDENLY, THE TERM IS TABOO and people who use this word are considered racist ( Rush Limbaugh doesn’t care though because he still parodies Obama using the music of Peter, Paul and Mary — ‘Bam the Magic Negro’.

In the same manner, Allah has been used by Christians to refer to God for CENTURIES. Suddenly, it is now a controversial word and Malaysians want to ban its use to refer to God.

Why do we give people such power to CONTROL the use of words ?

[SeekAndFind]

EDIT TO ADD :

This news is doubly troubling in that Malaysia is considered, together with Turkey to be one of the ‘model’ ( AKA moderate ) Muslim countries that are tolerant to people of other religions.

Churches of all sizes and shape exist in Malaysia.

If this trend can occur in ‘moderate’ Malaysia and SUCCEED, imagine how it will spread in less tolerant Islamic countries.

[livius]

The word Allah was simply an Arabic word referring to the One God of Christianity (and, obviously, of Judaism before it). Mohammed probably came from a pagan tribe that had many deities, but most of North Africa was Christian (or Jewish) at that time and had been for so for centuries. When Mohammed was creating his syncretist cult, he obviously drew upon the Christian/Jewish concept of one God (Allah, in Arabic). He didn’t use the name of one of his tribe’s deities, which he could have done.

This also gave his cult a little more scope, and when he launched his attacks on Christians (who already used the word Allah or some variant thereof), it confused them and at the same time made it easier for them to bow to superior military force and “convert” to his new religion.

[The Comedian]

More proof that Arabs are not the disease that needs to be exterminated.

Islam is.

Frowning takes 68 muscles.
Smiling takes 6.
Pulling this trigger takes 2.
I'm lazy.

[Ransomed]

All I’m saying is that the folks who don’t want Christians and Jews to use the word Allah seem to come in two kinds, Muslems and westerners who only associate the word with Muslems because they don’t realize some Jews and Christians are and have been using the word.

Freegards

[John-Irish]

I’ll be sure and burn down the mosque a few miles from my house the next time I hear Muslims saying Jesus was a prophet. (sar.)

[Northern Yankee]

If I remember correctly of my history, Muhammad went to the Jewish elders and asked if they would accept his rendition of the Muslim faith. The Jewish rejected it.

Muhammad became incensed and started his own religion, and war.

[dog breath]

I had read a interesting article several years ago about how polytheistic Mecca was before Mohammad. The site of their sacred pilgrimage was a pagan shrine which honored all the Gods equally including Jesus. The people of Mecca thought Mohammad was a crazy person which supports the case for trusting first impressions.

[livius]

The people of Mecca thought Mohammad was a crazy person which supports the case for trusting first impressions.

LOL! Actually, I guess it was the fact that he was a violent, heavily armed crazy person with an army of the same behind him was probably what "convinced" them.