The Herald is a weekly published in four languages including English, Tamil and Chinese.
The idea is that the Catholic church drop plans to use Allah in the Peninsular Malaysian edition notwithstanding the use of the Malay language in prayer, service, worship and the Bible.
However, the caveat here is that Sabahans and Sarawakians in Peninsular Malaysia should be allowed to buy the East Malaysian edition of the Herald using the term Allah for God in the Malay pages."To ensure strict compliance, the Herald should grant the Home Ministry the exclusive right to retail the weekly to Christians from Sabah and Sarawak in Peninsular Malaysia," said the JPs who requested anonymity on the grounds of "the issue being too sensitive."
"This will satisfy that there is no hidden agenda to convert Muslims to Christianity on the basis of the term Allah being used for God in the Malay pages of the Herald."
In turn, the JPs urged that the Home Ministry should not interfere with the local printing of the Bible in Malay for Sabah and Sarawak and using the term Allah for God.
In Malaysian Borneo, the JPs noted, people have been using Allah in Christian worship for at least 300 years.
The Customs Department, in that case, will be free to release the Bahasa Indonesia Bibles which have been held up for the use of the term Allah for God.
Should not be seen as surrender
"A re-think by the church should not be seen as surrender," according to the JPs. "There's a world of difference between compromise and surrender."
Many JPs conceded that they are not really sure about the history of the term Allah among Christians in Peninsular Malaysia. One opined that it probably would not be an issue among Peninsular Malaysian Christians.
"I had some of my education at a mission school in Kuala Lumpur many decades ago and I don't remember the local Catholics using the term Allah for God," said a JP.
"I think that the issue has now arisen because there are so many people from Sabah and Sarawak in Peninsular Malaysia. Also, they have all been educated in Malay."
The JPs acknowledged that they are by no means unanimous on this decision but stressed that the majority urge a compromise "so that we can move ahead from history to the more pressing issues of the day."
The JPs could not say how many of them were practicing Christians but it is learnt that they are in the minority excluding the fallen ones.
The JPs lamented the fact that the Allah issue has been politicised and distorted out of recognition "by people in Peninsular Malaysia who don't care to read or know the truth."
They are only interested in their "narrow politics", the JPs added.
"The Catholic church is not asking the permission of the court for the right to use Allah in print, service, prayer and worship," pointed out the first JP.
"The question of seeking the court's permission does not arise. You cannot seek the intervention of the court in such matters. What is there to prevent millions of Christians from uttering Allah in their prayers?"
The issue, according to the first JP, must be kept in its perspective: i.e. whether the home minister has the right or otherwise to prohibit the Herald from using the term Allah.
The weekly also wanted to add pages in Kadazandusun, the JP noted, but this was shot down by the Home Ministry who reportedly feared another battle with an increasingly assertive Catholic church over the use of the term Allah in print.
Bogged down in court
The Allah issue is currently bogged down in court over the moot point: former home minister Syed Hamid Albar disallowing the use of the term Allah for God in the Malay pages of the Herald.
The high court has since declared that Allah is not exclusive to Islam, a non-issue, instead of ruling exclusively on the power of the home minister and adding the history of Allah as a footnote.
The Home Ministry's appeal process is currently before the court with no date set.
Generally, the JPs conceded that the Home Ministry and the authorities raised a valid point when they feared the possibility of Malays being confused by Christians using the term Allah in the Malay pages of the Herald.
"We are not saying that the Malays would be confused but the possibility exists," conceded a second JP.
"Previously, the issue did not arise because there were very few Christians from Sabah and Sarawak in Peninsular Malaysia. Also, education in the Malay language had not taken root."
A third JP saw great difficulties in arguing "in the people's court" that just because Muslim Arabs were not confused by Christian Arabs using the term Allah for God, "the Malays would not be confused either."
Indonesia has also been cited by the Catholic church as a point in its favour on the issue.
Asked whether the JPs were in favour of the suit, currently in court, being withdrawn by all parties concerned, they answered in the negative.
"The compromise that we are advocating has nothing to do with the suit," clarified the first JP.
"The suit involves important issues of law which should be determined by the court. We cannot have the home minister running around like some kind of tinpot dictator."
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