(Transcript from World News Australia Radio)
Religious tension is simmering in Malaysia, undermining its image as a multicultural and tolerant state.
Many see the tension between the Muslim majority and minority Christian communities as being driven by political forces following a divisive election last year.
Santilla Chingaipe has the details.
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(Sound effects of church singing)
Part of a Catholic Church service in Malaysia, conducted in the national language, Bahasa Malay, by an ethnic Chinese priest, with a mix of other ethnicities in the congregation.
But the use of the word 'Allah' for God in this and other Christian services has become a festering source of contention, deepening ethnic divisions.
Many Malaysian Muslims say only they should be using the word 'Allah'.
Churchgoer Richendra Raphael says that doesn't make sense to her.
"It's so ridiculous to fight for such a word (Allah), because you have the right to use it. It's just a matter of faith, is not that we using the word we can change your faith. No. It's actually depends on you."
One Muslim, Hamidzun Khairuddin, believes Christians are being disrespecful of Islam when they use the word.
"(Starts in Bahasa Malay, then English translation): I believe If we could respect the belief of other religions the conflicts and misunderstandings would not happen anywhere in the world, including in Malaysia. That's why I think the Christian priests and the followers should learn to show respect."
A large number of international Islamic scholars say 'Allah' is not exclusive to Muslims.
Many have noted that Allah is not a name, with a literal meaning in Arabic of 'the God'.
They argue term predates the founding of Islam and the Koran does not prohibit other religions from using it.
Executive director of the Sisters in Islam organisation in Malaysia, Ratna Osman, is not opposed to Christians saying 'Allah'.
"Allah it's a language, it cannot be the point where you announce enemies from your own Christian friends when in fact in the Koran you will see God said that, if you want to know who are the closest to Muslims it is those say: 'I am Nasara', we are Christians."
Earlier this month in Selangor, Malaysia's most populous and richest state, a Catholic newspaper was banned from using the word 'Allah' after legal action brought against it by the state government.
That action was based on a little-known state law that restricts more than 30 Arabic words and phrases to Muslims.
Following the court case, Islamic authorities staged a raid on the Selangor office of the Bible Society of Malaysia.
Chairman of the Bible Society, Lee Min Choon, says hundreds of Bibles were seized.
"It was a very physical affair, I was surrounded by a group of 10, speaking loudly and threatening me. So eventually we let them in and they searched our premises, went through our books. They seized 16 boxes of Bibles: 321 Malay Bibles and 10 copies of the Bup Kudus, which is the Iban bible."
Lee Min Choon is hoping the issue can be sorted out.
"We call upon the Christian community to remain calm and we call upon our Muslim fellow citizens to also be understanding in this matter because more than half of the Christian community in this country are BM (Bahasa Malaysia) speaking. So this Bible, which is the subject of the raid, is the only scriptures that they use, and that they have access to."
Critics say the national government led by Prime Minister Najib Razak government has given confusing signals on the issue and at worst encouraged conservative Islamist elements within his United Malays National Organisation.
In elections last May, ethnic Chinese voters and many urban Malays deserted the long-ruling coalition, and since then the government has tilted away from liberal reforms.
The critics say while promoting his anti-extremist Global Movement of Moderates on foreign trips, at home Mr Najib has allowed senior party members and ministers to raise their rhetoric against perceived threats to mainstream Islam.
Opposition politician Tony Pua says it's up to Mr Najib to defuse the situation.
"It is started by the federal government and it's up to Najib to stop it based on his own version of so-called 'moderation' that he has been preaching."
The head of Art and Social Sciences at Monash University's Malaysia campus, James Chin, also sees political forces at work behind the religious tensions.
And he thinks it's hurting Malaysia's international image.
"This issue is driven primarily by domestic political concerns. So I think although they (the ruling government) know the word 'Allah' is not exclusive to the Muslim religion for the rest of the world I think they don't really care. Now in terms of effects on Malaysia it's more on reputational damage rather than anything else. I think it's quite clear that the international community suddenly realize that all this talk about Malaysia being a moderate country may not be true any more."
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