PENANG (UCAN): Malaysia presents a microcosm of the Catholic Church and Asia where diversity of cultures and religions offer Catholics and people of faiths opportunities and challenges of pluralistic society for progress together, said Sebastian Cardinal Francis of Penang.
“It is the pluralism of cultures and ethnic groups that makes Malaysia a ‘miniature Asia.’ The coexistence of different components allows the Catholic community to experience the interaction of differences that takes place in diversity,” Fides reported Cardinal Francis as saying on June 15.
The cultural and religious diversity in Malaysia is “reasonably healthy” although ethnic Malays and Islam are considered “national” and Muslim Malays are considered “special” due to their constitutional status and protection as Bhumiputera [Sons of the Soil], the cardinal said.
“The Malays are protected and are only Muslims, as enshrined in the Constitution. But a democratic nation like ours cannot today choose to be completely monocultural or monoreligious. Our country is characterised by an interesting pluralism that makes it a truly Asian country, a microcosm in which one can experience the constituent dimension of Asia,” he said.
Ethnic Malays make up about 60 per cent of Malaysia’s estimated 34 million people, according to official statistics. About 24 per cent are Chinese, 7 per cent are Indians and 10 per cent are indigenous non-Malay communities most based on the Malaysian side of Borneo Island.
About 10 per cent of Malaysians are Christians, mostly located in Sarawak and Sabah states in Borneo.
The ethnic and religious diversity of Malaysia offers both opportunities and challenges for development towards a truly pluralistic society, Cardinal Francis said, pointing out that the path of “synodality” and “dialogue” are keys to overcoming differences and the formation of a society based on the richness of diversity.
The cardinal noted that despite ethnic and cultural differences within Catholic communities in Malaysia, the Church has been keen on serving all people. He explained that in various parts of the country, the Church celebrates liturgies in four official languages: Bahasa Malay, English, Chinese, and Indian Tamil.
It is the pluralism of cultures and ethnic groups that makes Malaysia a ‘miniature Asia.’ The coexistence of different components allows the Catholic community to experience the interaction of differences that takes place in diversity
Sebastian Cardinal Francis
“Although we are not such a big country, we have many immigrants who come from Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Bangladesh. Some of them also bring Christian traditions with them, of course [like some Vietnamese or Filipinos],” he added.
Despite Catholics being a minority, the Church has the necessary resources for pastoral life, he said. However, a lack of priestly and religious vocations is filled by missionary congregations, mainly from France, Ireland, and Italy.
Since the Second Vatican Council, the local Church has emphasised faith formation and empowerment of laity, Cardinal Francis said.
“We care about the Christian life of the laity and after the Second Vatican Council we have emphasised the formation of the laity, especially through training courses or continuing education events in the parishes,” he said
However, the cardinal lamented that political change in the country has had negative impacts on the Church’s mission.
“Our influence in the field of education has decreased enormously because the government has taken control of education in public schools, both state and private,” he said.
“If we want to be present in the field of education, we must act as private actors, but the government also controls private education, decides on the curricula and pays teachers their salaries. So, we own the real estate and the land on which the schools are built, but it is the government that controls school life. So, technically we own the building but not the system. We contribute, but we cannot give concrete shape to the education system,” he said.
