Kuala Lumpur lifts ban on Bible importation and printing

Some Bible-related controversies are major news around the world. And some controversies are kept quiet, even as freedom to worship is under attack. One such case which garnered little media attention is that of Malaysia, where Bibles had been seized and impounded over the use of the word "Allah" to refer to God. (For those who are not aware, in Arabic that actually is the word for God, which predated Islam.) But now, the government has done the right thing and has released the Bibles and formally approved Bible printing in the country in all languages.

Malaysia is a multiracial country comprising approximately 60.4% Muslims adherents. Malaysia is a de-facto secular regime, with Islam as the state religion. Christians make up 9.1% of the Malaysian population. The other important thing to know is the geographical interweaving of Malaysia and Indonesia, the largest Muslim country in the world, with its own very pointed challenges in Muslim-Christian relations, especially related to the East Nusa Tenggara province and the horrible affairs on Timor Island. Malaysia's interreligious tensions and whether or not they are resolved peacefully have enormous implications for the region, and beyond. The Bible translation issue in Malaysia represents a vital test case for Christian-Muslim relations worldwide.