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GlobalPrayerGuide

Malaysia
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Overview:

Malaysia has three major ethnicities: Malay (60 percent), Chinese (30 percent), Tamil (7 percent) and native tribes. The Malays are the most powerful group in the country, and being Muslim is considered an important part of their identity. Most Christians are from the tribal and Chinese people groups, and most churches experience relative freedom as long as they do not evangelize the Malays.

Major Religion:

56 percent of Malaysians are Sunni Muslims, but there is also a significant Buddhist population. 9 percent are Christians.

Persecutor:

The government has severely punished Malay Christian converts.

What It Means To Follow Christ In Malaysia

While Christianity is not illegal, Christians are marginalized by the ruling Muslim ethnic group and have difficulty acquiring building permits for new churches. Most churches work in the languages of Mandarin, Tamil and English, with very few using the Malay language. Those that do are not targeting Malay people. Christian converts who are caught are confined to so-called reeducation camps that use torture and propaganda to force them to return to Islam. Many indigenous people have come to Christ in eastern Malaysia.

Access To Bibles

It is illegal for Malay people to own a Bible, and Malay-language Bibles are largely unavailable outside Christian-majority areas. Give Bibles

VOM Work

VOM supports front-line workers and persecuted Malay Christians. Give to VOM’s Global Ministry

Prayer Requests:

  • Pray for Pastor Raymond Koh's wife and children as they continue to seek the truth behind his 2017 abduction.
  • Pray for creative ways to share the gospel with the Malay people, who are legally prohibited from becoming Christians.
  • Pray that Muslim Malaysians will become curious about Christ and seek the truth through Christian media.
  • Ask the Lord to bless churches in Malaysia, using them to spread the gospel despite government restrictions.
  • Pray for Christian converts from Islam who have been arrested and harassed because of their faith.