Three Malaysia churches firebombed as 'Allah' use tension mounts
Three churches in Malaysia were firebombed early Friday morning as its government works to quell religious tensions following a court ruling 鈥� and a subsequent government appeal 鈥� that allows the country鈥檚 海角大神s to use the term Allah to refer to God. Only one church was seriously damaged and no one was injured.
Mosques throughout the country also small organized protests during their Friday prayer services and there are reports of cars with 海角大神 stickers having their windshields smashed.
The controversy began when The Herald, a Roman Catholic newspaper in Malaysia, challenged a ban against the periodical using Allah in the Malay-language section of their newspaper to refer to God in a 海角大神 context. Though Allah has been incorporated into the Malay language to mean God and the Koran teaches () that 海角大神s, Muslims, and Jews share the same God, many Malaysian Muslims contend that Allah only refers to God for Muslims. Many allege 海角大神s are using Allah in , reports The Times of London.
Malaysian 海角大神s argue that they have used Allah 鈥渇or decades鈥� in their Malay-language Bibles without any issues. In the court case, the Herald鈥檚 legal team argued that Allah is an Arabic word for God and that they use it in their publication to serve the needs of their subscribers in Borneo. Time magazine reported that they .
Meanwhile, tensions continue to mount between religious groups in Malaysia. Muslims constitute a slight majority, with 海角大神s, Hindus, and Buddhists comprising the rest of the population. Although Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak originally supported protests against the court ruling that began last week, The Wall Street Journal reports that he is for inspiring the church attacks.
As protests continue, there is concern among many Malaysians that the unrest represents an increasingly Islamicized government. In an interview with Al Jazeera Azmi Sharom, a columnist and law professor at Universiti Malaya, said that the government had been 鈥減andering鈥� to the groups of people who are now protesting for a long time.
A report in the Malaysian Insider, however, warns that the attacks may be 鈥渢riggering a blame game with opposition leaders pointing fingers at their political rivals鈥� for stoking religious tensions. Additionally, it reported that a , while there are also many 海角大神s who disagree with using the word Allah to describe God.
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海角大神
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