As I have noted here many times, Arabic-speaking Christians were using the word "Allah" for God from time immemorial -- the whole controversy over this in Malaysia is just another supremacist initiative. And now it is getting really ugly.
An update on this story: "Malaysian church fire-bombed ahead of Muslim protests," from AFP, January 7 (thanks to Pamela):
KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - A church in Malaysia has been fire-bombed in an attack that gutted its ground floor, church officials said Friday, escalating a dispute over the use of the word "Allah" by non-Muslims.A fire department official said all stations were on alert for more blazes at religious buildings, ahead of planned nationwide protests Friday by Muslim groups angry over the use of the word as a translation for "God" by Christians.
The three-storey Metro Tabernacle church in suburban Kuala Lumpur, part of the Assemblies of God movement, was set ablaze in the attack which took place around midnight, said church leader Peter Yeow, 62.
"Witnesses saw four people smash the glass and throw incendiaries into the church building. They came on two motorcycles," he told AFP at the scene as fire department forensic officers picked through the wreckage.
There were no casualties in the attack on the church, which occupies the corner lot of a row of shop houses and which Yeow said draws some 1,500 people weekly....
The High Court last week ruled in favour of the Catholic "Herald" newspaper which has used "Allah" as a translation for "God" in its Malay-language section. The government has said the word should be used only by Muslims.
The ruling was suspended on Wednesday pending an appeal, after the government argued the decision could cause racial conflict in multicultural Malaysia, where Muslim Malays make up 60 percent of the population....
Racial? What race is Islam? What race is Christianity?
The Herald's editor Father Lawrence Andrew has warned of a campaign of intimidation including hacker attacks against the weekly's website, protest plans and widespread criticism in the media over last week's ruling."We believe these actions (are designed) to create a climate of fear and a perceived threat to national security so as to pressure the court in reversing its decision," he said this week....
Looks like it.
Arguing over use of a word. How infantile.
Not just that. I know as Malaysia is where I live.
Judiciary website hacked over ‘Allah’ issue
http://www.malaysia-today.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=29462:judiciary-website-hacked-over-allah-issue&catid=19:newscommentaries&Itemid=100131
EDITOR'S NOTE
We were also told that eight churches were attacked, one an attempted arson, but we are yet to get confirmation about the matter.
It sure doesn't take much to piss the Muslims off does it?
As I have noted here many times, Arabic-speaking Christians were using the word "Allah" for God from time immemorial -- the whole controversy over this in Malaysia is just another supremacist initiative.
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True. In fact, the tiny remnant of Jews surviving in the Muslim world such as Yemen are often Arabic speakers. I had a Jewish friend in college who had spent a summer in Israel helping new immigrants settle. She was surprised when she realized that her Yemeni clients referred to God as "Allah".
"Allah" is a *pre-Islamic* Arabic word—whatever most Muslims might believe—and is used to mean "God" by most Arabic speakers, whatever their faith.
The odd thing is that Muslims infiltrating the West-and their clueless non-Muslims supporters in the "inter-faith" movement—have encouraged Infidels in Europe to use the word "Allah" as just another word for "God".
This would seem to be hypocritical—or at least contradictory—except that both stances promote Muslim supremacy under differing circumstances.
from above:
The High Court last week ruled in favour of the Catholic "Herald" newspaper which has used "Allah" as a translation for "God" in its Malay-language section. The government has said the word should be used only by Muslims.
The ruling was suspended on Wednesday pending an appeal, after the government argued the decision could cause racial conflict in multicultural Malaysia, where Muslim Malays make up 60 percent of the population....
Racial? What race is Islam? What race is Christianity?
...................
Islam is *not* a race—except in Malaysia, where it is. *All* ethnic Malays are considered, °by state law*, to be Muslim. It is difficult for anyone of any group—Chinese, Indian, Malay, whatever—to apostize in Malaysia, as it is in virtually any Muslim nation—but it is especially difficult for ethnic Malays, who are considered born into Islam.
Imagine the horror of being unable to leave Islam *because of your ethnicity*-and yet some idiots consider Malaysia a "moderate" Muslim nation.
The fact that the word "Allah" is going to be used to denote the Christian God in the Malay-language section of a Catholic newspaper—the fact that a Catholic newspaper *has* a Malay-language section—especially enrages Malaysian Muslims.
keywords: Religion of Perpetual Outrage
The Bumiputra system in Malaysia is essentially a tax on non-Muslim citizens of that country. That is, it is a disguised Jizyah. The economically more entrepreneurial non-Muslims, chiefly Chinese and Hindus, are forced to take Muslim Malays as partners, or otherwise share the revenues that through their own industry they take in.
Furthermore, the real "Sons of the Soil" (Bumiputra) are not the Muslim Malays, who came from elsewhere, but rather the indigenous tribes, such as the Dayak. And the indigenous tribes are mostly Christian, and have to fight like hell to keep the Muslim Malays from encroaching on what little land the indigenous tribes have left.
If the Chinese and Hindus were to leave, the famed "economic development" in Malaysia would halt, and the country collapse. Do the Muslims know it? Some must. Does that stop them from treating with contumely, and worse -- as in the arson attacks, and other attacks not with arson, on eight or nine churches -- non-Muslim citizens of Malaysia? Of course not.
I fear a pogrom against non-Moslem groups, especially the Christians. The government has already furnished the pretext for it.
Correct. Malays must be Muslim by Constitutional definition - ethnic descent or genetics is not a factor. If you aren't Muslim, you can't be a Malay no matter how many generations of Malays are in your direct ancestry.
Article 160 of the Constitution defines a Malay as a Malaysian citizen born to a Malaysian citizen who professes to be a Muslim, habitually speaks the Malay language, adheres to Malay customs, and is domiciled in Malaysia or Singapore. As a result, Malay citizens who convert out of Islam are no longer considered Malay under the law.
So you can be a blonde-haired, blue-eyed Caucasian, but as long as you match the criteria (especially religion), you are legally a Malay.
Indeed.
In short, it is the ultimate fascist state.
Allah, Allah, Allah. Take that, Malaysia.
Sikhs use the word Allah to mean God in some of their scriptures. Sikhs know that muslims most often use the word Allah for God while Sikhs use the word Waheguru for God most often. But the fact remains that before Malaysia existed Sikhs were using the word Allah for God. I understand the Malaysian Gurdwara Council has told the government already that they will continue to use the word as it is against Sikh religion to change any word of scripture.
Also, last time Malays fought the Chinese it resulted in the break up of Malaysia and Singapore as one country. There were riots and fighting from both sides. I'm sure Singapore won't mind if the minorities in Malaysia bring their wealth to Singapore. It might not be bad for the western countries either. Although, I don't know who would buy their properties and businesses in Malaysia.
"Islam is above all. Every citizen must respect that," said Ahmad Johari, who attended prayers at the National Mosque. "I hope the court will understand the feeling of the majority Muslims of Malaysia. We can fight to the death over this issue."
3 burned churches now:
http://infidelsunite.typepad.com/counter_jihad/2010/01/3-malaysian-churches-attacked-in-allah-dispute.html
Robert:
In Singapore, there's a report that a 4th church- the Luthern Good Shepard suffered a minor arsonm attack. Damage was superficial.
Also the insperctor general of the Malaysian police suggested that car owners remove their resoraies and other religious devices since people would smash such cars. And what about the same advice to Moslems? O yeah right the Christians don't smash cars with Islamic paraphernalia nor commit arson on mosques.
This conflict is so manufactured it's revolting.
xavier