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Anglican National Identity: Theological Education and Ministerial Formation in Multifaith Malaysia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 January 2009

Albert Sundararaj Walters
Albert Sundararaj Walters
Affiliation:
albertwalters@gmail.com
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Abstract

Malaysia became an independent nation in 1957 and has grown dramatically in prosperity since that time. The main groups in this ethnically diverse nation are Malays (65 per cent) Chinese (26 per cent) and Indians (7.7 per cent). Sixty per cent of the population are Muslim which is the official religion of the nation. Christians represent about 9 per cent of the population and there are 80,000 Anglican members. There has been political pressure against Christians in recent years and there is growing concern about the position of minority religious groups. Anglicans came with the British, though indigenous mission was the work of Indian and Chinese Christians. Theological education is mainly focused on the Seminari Theoloji Malaysia where a holistic curriculum has been developed. A sense of Anglican identity is developing in relation to the context in Malaysia but this has hindered clarity on the nature of the Anglican heritage. The challenges facing the Anglican Church in Malaysia are identified.

Keywords

MalaysiaAnglicantheological educationidentityIslam
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Anglican Studies , Volume 6 , Issue 1 , June 2008 , pp. 69 - 87
Copyright
Copyright © SAGE Publications (Los Angeles, London, New Delhi and Singapore) and The Journal of Anglican Studies Trust 2008

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