Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah has not banned Wesak although he restricted Christmas.
Brunei has a 10.3 percent Chinese population. Buddhists are 7.8 percent in Brunei while Christians total 8.7 percent. Christians in Brunei are not comprised of Chinese alone. They’re growing through conversion – see write-up below.
Christians are estimated to compose 14 percent of Brunei’s population by the year 2020, according to the Center for Study of Global Christianity.
Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia all have – on paper – Christian populations of around nine percent currently. Since this trio of countries are staunchly Muslim, however, their Malays who embrace Christianity may choose to remain as closet Christians.
In Malaysia …
The documentary below by Christian Broadcasting Network (CBN) News claims that Malays who converted to Christianity have been tortured in isolated rehab centres.
Click to watch the videos
In the region …
Christianity is overall trending in Southeast Asia.
In Indonesia, the Chinese are merely 1.2 percent of the vast, sprawling population and Christians are “only 9 percent”. Nonetheless a Chinese Christian is today the governor of Jakarta.
In Chinese-majority Singapore however, it is the Buddhist numbers that have fallen by the magic “nine percent” (9.2%) figure and projected to keep decreasing – see HERE.
Meanwhile, Singapore’s mega churches have exploded in growth and two years ago (2014 data), Christians made up more than 18 percent of the island republic.
In Brunei …
Brunei is worried because it is among the Top 20 countries in the world where Christianity is growing fastest. Furthermore, eleven countries on this list of twenty are Muslim majority countries.
Shockingly, Christianity is spreading quicker in Brunei (highest percentage growth rate) compared to even Singapore although the Chinese ratio in Brunei is far, far less than in Singapore. See comparison table of Christianity in southeast Asia.
asiaharvest.org
What must be worrying Brunei most of all is that the country is in the Top 20 globally for the growth of Christianity through conversion – see table here.
Brunei also ranks fifth in a Top Ten list for “highest marginal Christian rate” in a World Christian Trends survey – see table here.
Question: Does the Brunei statistics hint that its Malays have been converted?
ABOVE: In the old Roman empire, Christians were fed to the lions
‘Crosses’ on the Langkawi roofs just so spooky
Kedah housing exco Tajul Urus Mat Zain said, “I want them [the developer] to sit down and point out whether they are meant to be crosses.
The Christians are very prominent, especially in the English-language media and their writings particularly over this Christmas.
They’re everywhere! Now their religious symbol – inadvertent or not – can be seen even when you’re sailing on the sea approaching Langkawi.
The design of crosses on the roofs could be coincidental but Malays are spooked regardless.
This sublimal promotion of the faith, even if by accident (i.e. appearance of the roof not on purpose), is what freaks Malays out over Christianity in the way that they’re not spooked by Buddhism, Taoism, Hinduism or Sikhism.
The doctrine of “Christianity admitted no compromise [and] was intolerant to all other systems” and that was why the Roman emperors threw its new convert-martyrs proverbially to the lions.
Related:
Helen Ang 
Hi Helen,
For too long christians in Malaysia have been doing all sorts of evangelism, evangelisation to spread the Gospel and are involved in all sorts of mission work. The exact and specific extent of such work is never fully admitted or disclosed or reasons best know to themselves – some very obvious and some are rather sneaky.
My unhappiness with this group of christians and pastors is simply that while they may be passionate in their work, they are often dishonest n the kind of work that they do and lie openly when confronted. This is simply cowardice to me and is an unethical way to avoid legal consequences which in turn result in many misunderstandings and blaming the government and authorities for alleged victimisation. The truth is out there but not seen or known by many. As a christian, I am really ashamed of such people.
Is there an email that I can send you something for your private reading? You can reach me at my email as per submitted for these comments.
Thanks.
Jason
Please I will like you to mail me on joshuaoguche@rocketmail.com
Expecting your reply, Thank you.
Ms Helen,
I attended all my early education at a mission school till my 5th Form (1960s-1970s).In fact all my Muslim peers attended mission schools as well.There were the only schools around.They were run by the Methodist Mission.
Fortunately not a single one of us were “turned” Christians.The “orang putih” and a handful “Filipinos” were all good teachers.We attended every religious (Christian) event organised by our schools.Bible was taught as a subject.I took a Bible Knowledge subject in my Senior Cambridge and scored 3.
Never once,during those years,our teachers or the school’s authourity ever “preached or evangelised” their faith upon us.Respect them for that.NOWadays the stories aren’t the same.Maybe because the preachers aren’t the same stocks of evangelists.We have the “Harvesters” now with ulterior motives.Now the “LOVE” theme is no longer pure.U can elaborate on that.
Church should not be made a medium of politic.
The Christian era is divided into two: BC (Before Christ) and AD (Anno Domini).
I would further divide the Christian era in Malaysia into two: pre-2008 and post-2008.
Since your schooling was in the 1960s-1970s, you belong to the ‘before’ Year Zero (Ubah) era. Understandably your experiences – like Rina’s too in the convent school – were different.