Churches are packed for Good Friday across Sabah
Published on: Saturday, April 20, 2019
Kota Kinabalu: Hundreds of thousands of Christian faithful took the opportunity of the Good Friday public holiday that is only afforded to Sabah and Sarawak to attend church services statewide.The day marks the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ 2,000 years ago in what is now Israel. The event ended with the veneration of the Cross where the congregation approached a cross or crucifix and offered a gesture of respect to all that it represents.
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Catholics at St Simon Church in Likas.
This usually includes kneeling or bowing before the cross and kissing the wounds of their Saviour. Big crowds also packed Catholic churches to attend mass on Holy Thursday that falls on the eve of Good Friday to commemorate the Last Supper of Christ with the Apostles in Jerusalem before he was crucified.
St Peter’s Catholic Church in Kudat.
Jesus was put to death on the cross on Good Friday and resurrected on Easter Sunday. The Holy Thursday Mass saw the feet washing ceremony which symbolised humility. The practice of washing feet was derived from the Gospel of John, where Jesus washed his followers’ feet to show his humility before the Last Supper.
In NABAWAN, over 500 people from the Sidang Injil Borneo (SIB) church took part in a 1km procession led by Community Development Leader Ampulas Kaluhu who said it was to remember the Passion of Jesus Christ.
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Churchgoers at Church of Mary Immaculate, Bukit Padang.
“It’s a time of year for Christians here to reflect upon the significance of this religious event,” he said.
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He also said it was an occasion to be grateful for the religious harmony in the state and country.
“All religions have their own practices. Here in our state and country, we maintain respect for one another’s religious belief,” he said.
St Theresa Catholic Church in Kota Marudu.
In KUALA LUMPUR, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri’ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah and Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah conveyed their greetings to those observing Good Friday and celebrating Easter.
“Wishing all of our Christian friends a blessed Good Friday and a joyous happy Easter,” their Majesties said in a posting on Istana Negara’s Instagram account on Friday (April 19).
Meanwhile, former PPBM women’s chief Anina Saadudin was criticised by netizens, mostly from Sabah, after she questioned the use of billboards in the State to promote the Christian holy week of Easter.
In the post uploaded yesterday, Anina said previously, such an advertisement was only displayed on banners or buntings, but the advertisements have been upgraded now to billboards.
“If it’s not high enough, use a crane. If it’s not big enough, add more pillars so the size can be doubled. Next year, advertise on television. We are equal, right?” her post read.
The billboard was put up by the Church of Mary Immaculate in Bukit Padang, one of several billboards put up by the Catholic Church statewide to promote the four-day celebration, which started yesterday.
The advertisements are in Bahasa Malaysia, depicting the Last Supper and the Crucifixion, with wordings reminding Christians of Maundy Thursday and the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
Institute for Development Studies executive director Johan Ariffin Samad told FMT that Anina’s comments were neither helpful nor necessary.
“It only creates division and disharmony. Freedom of religion is guaranteed under our constitution and in Sabah our interfaith relationship has always been good and promoted by successive state governments,” he said.
He added that every faith which has money can acquire space on a commercial billboard to celebrate festivities.
Soon, he said Malaysians will be celebrating Hari Raya and billboards will be used for the same purpose by the Muslims to celebrate a significant religious day.
“I don’t think any Christian will criticise such billboards or make an issue of it.
“Sabah is unique in religious tolerance and it should continue to be so. This kind of negative social media postings should be taken down or blocked,” he said.
Sabah PKR Youth information chief Razeef Rakimin said such billboards promoting Good Friday and other religious celebrations are common.
“This has been the norm for years, especially in Inanam and Penampang. But my faith as a Muslim has never felt threatened.
“In Sabah, this is normal because we are not racists, unlike the Umno ilk in the peninsula. That is why Sabahans rejected Umno,” he said.
In less than 24 hours, the post had been shared more than 4,200 times and received more than 9,000 comments from mostly Sabahans, both Muslims and non-Muslims, who took the trouble to “educate” Anina on Sabah’s unique religious tolerance.
One netizen, Suzalina Tungking, said she is a Muslim and her house is opposite a big church with a huge picture of Jesus.
“Every Sunday, I hear the Christians sing their religious songs but my faith never wavers and I never thought of changing my religion. Besides, in Sabah, this (the advertisement) is normal.
“There are some bigger advertisements than this and we were never insulted. I have many non-Muslims in my family and we live in harmony here,” she said.
Another netizen, Mohd Saiful Ismail, said the advertisement is better as it promotes “good things” compared to some advertisements which promote nonsense.
He said although he is a Muslim, his non-Muslim friends are also his brothers.
“So, respect (their religion) and, God willing, our religion will be respected too. I am from the peninsula and I totally agree, people from the peninsula should learn from Sabah and Sarawak about tolerance,” he said.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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