Malaysian Churches Attacked Over Use of "Allah"

[Pearl]

There have been more attacks on churches in Malaysia, in a growing dispute over the use of the word Allah by non-Muslims.

The police say petrol bombs were thrown at a church and a convent school in the northern state of Perak, and at a church on the island of Sarawak.

Another church in the south of the country was daubed with black paint.

The attacks come days after four churches near the capital, Kuala Lumpur, were hit by petrol bombs.

Religious tensions in Malaysia have increased since a court ruled last month that a Roman Catholic newspaper could use the word Allah in its Malay-language edition to describe the Christian god.

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Correspondents say some of Malaysia's majority Muslim community suspect Christians of wanting to use the word Allah to encourage Muslims to convert to Christianity.

The government has appealed against the ruling, in contrast to countries like Indonesia, Egypt and Syria where Christian minorities freely use the Arabic word to refer to God.

BBC News - More Malaysian churches attacked in Allah dispute

I don't understand the fuss some Muslims are making over this. If Muslims say that their God is the same one in Judaism and Christianity, then why should they get upset if Christians say "Allah"? If a Muslim were to say "God", it wouldn't offend me.

I just posted this so we could keep an eye on the situation, in case anything comes of it.

 

[Bonoa]

The word "Allah" literally means "God" in Arabic. The Muslims mentioned in the article must be the fundamentalist ones who dont care about human life.

 

[BVS]

I don't know much about the workings of Malaysia but found it interesting that the government was ruling what word a church can use to say "God".

Also, my first reaction was if this was a church in the US it would more than likely have been attacked by so called "christians" who thought their churches were becoming too PC or too Muslim.

 

[INDY500]

Ya, one can hardly switch on the Evening news or open the morning paper without reading about some "so called Christian" group here or there heaving petrol bombs at churches or schools they feel are too PC or Muslim.

 

[BVS]

INDY, the last time you read about attacks on churches here in the US, who were they committed by?

So called "christians". Do you miss points on purpose?

 

[INDY500]

Give me an example. I remember a rash of black church arsons being blamed on racists in the 90's. Turned out to be a bunch of Aleister Crowley wannabes.

Which ones were you talking about?

 

[BVS]

Give me an example. I remember a rash of black church arsons being blamed on racists in the 90's. Turned out to be a bunch of Aleister Crowley wannabes.

Which ones were you talking about?

There was another string of black churches attacked in the early 2000's from so called "christians", and the most recent a few years ago 4 or 5 churches vandalized and one attempted arson on churches who supported gay marriage.

 

[deep]

Muslims have a legitimate complaint.


Allah and Jesus are not the same.

Only Christians have the cockamamie concept that Jesus and God are same thing.

 

[INDY500]

There was another string of black churches attacked in the early 2000's from so called "christians", and the most recent a few years ago 4 or 5 churches vandalized and one attempted arson on churches who supported gay marriage.

You'll have to link me to a story.

 

[BVS]

You'll have to link me to a story.

Trying to find it, it happened in Dallas while I lived there, I remember an uproar of it not being covered by national media. But the first attack was an openly gay congregation so of course people just said it was expected and then 3 or 4 United Church of Christ churches were attacked with the last one having a failed arson attempt.

 

[A stor]

The word "Allah" literally means "God" in Arabic. The Muslims mentioned in the article must be the fundamentalist ones who dont care about human life.

Yes it does. And I agree with what you are saying.