KUALA LUMPUR, June 2 — A video trailer for a Christian conference scheduled in Johor Baru this week has been removed from Youtube, barely a day after it was highlighted in an online article by conservative Islamist group Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (Isma).
In addition, Christian news website Christianity Malaysia has also taken down its post promoting the MforJ 2015 Take Possession of the Land Kingdom Conference dated May 26 after the Isma website posted a link to the event.
“Following an expose done by IsmaWeb yesterday, the trailer and advertisement video for Christian conference ‘MforJ 2015 Take Possession of The Land Kingdom Conference’ has been taken down,” Isma posted in an article today.
“IsmaWeb also found that the new entry promoting the conference at www.christianitymalaysia.com has been deleted,” it added.
In a separate article yesterday, Isma had featured the trailer on its website, taking issue with several remarks made by Christians in the video.
Among remarks that appeared to irk the Islamist group were “Johor for Jesus”, “Take possession of the land”, and “Johor never be the same” [sic].
The conference is organised by the Johor chapter of Christian evangelical group Malaysia for Jesus Revival Movement (MforJ).
When contacted today, a representative from the church told Malay Mail Online that they were aware of the criticisms, but declined comment, saying the organisers were currently discussing the issue and would release a statement later.
On its official Facebook page, Johor MfoJ described its vision as “to ignite the fire of revival in Johor state, Malaysia, stir up churches in every corner of this land to experience growth, and create a trend of believing in Jesus and winning souls for the kingdom of God”.
The conference will feature speakers from across the region including Rev Philip Mantofa and Rev Sumiati Supit from Indonesia, Rev Ewen Chow from Taiwan, and Rev Jonathan Loh and Rev Wong Chee Meng from Malaysia.
The event is scheduled in Berjaya Waterfront Hotel between June 3 and 5, with tickets ranging from RM120 to RM220 each.
The conference will run concurrently with an outdoor faith healing event called Festival of God’s Power in Sutera Square in the Johor capital.
The trailer of the festival, hosted on video sharing website Vimeo, has also been made private.
Muslims and Christians ties appear to have become tenuous over the years as religious conservatism kicked in, which led to a protracted court battle over the use of the Arabic word “Allah” for God.
The Catholic Church lost its final legal battle for the right to publish the word in its weekly paper in in January after the country’s highest court rejected its appeal for a review.
Other Christian groups and individual have mounted separate challenges to protect their constitutional rights, and these remain yet to be heard in court.
