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| − | ==A Pearl in the Orient — Penang, Malaysia==
| + | #redirect [[Missionary Work 2: Malaysia, Russia, Middle East]] |
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| − | Matthew 13 includes a one-sentence parable ─
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| − | :“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it” (v. 45–46).
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| − | [[Image:Penang1.jpg|alt=Malaysian Mormons|left|frame]] | |
| − | Penang, Malaysia is typified in this scriptural vignette. This island paradise is known as “The Pearl of the Orient.” Back in the 1700’s its strategic location at the top of the Straits of Malacca made it the perfect trading post for the British East India Company. Merchants have stopped here for hundreds of years. Georgetown, Penang’s World Heritage neighborhood on Penang Island, became a bustling port city of the international spice trade. The population burgeoned. Malay fishermen were joined by indigenous settlers from the mainland. Over time, Chinese and Indian laborers, Siamese, Burmese, Arabs, Armenians, Acehnese, and even Scots, Germans, and other Europeans migrated to Penang.
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| − | The spice trade collapsed as Napoleon launched his wars, but Penang re-emerged as Malaya’s financial capital. Today, Penang is still a melting pot of Asian cultures, famous for its eclectic cuisine and emerging as the “Silicon Valley” of the East. It is the rare Islamic state that accommodates different religions and cultures ─ mosques, churches, and Chinese and Indian temples coexist as well as do the friendly people of a myriad of faiths. Each faith has its own festivals, and Penang celebrates them all. With five New Year’s celebrations a year, any time can be a time of renewal.
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| − | The Singapore Mission opened in 1974, with Malaysia as a part of the mission. In those days, missionaries spent just one month at a time in Malaysia in order to conform to government policies. The government officially recognized the Church in 1977, and the Church procured its first property on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia’s capital. There were few members of the Church in the country, and most were American or Australian “expats.” The first district was organized in 1981. The country was dedicated for the preaching of the gospel in 1995 by Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin.
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| − | Malaysia is still part of the Singapore Mission. Missionaries do not teach the Moslem Malays, but do teach expatriates and Malaysians of faiths other than Islam. There are over six thousand members of the Church in Malaysia in twenty-three congregations.
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| − | On Penang Island there is a small jewel ─ the Penang Branch of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ─ part of Ipoh District, along with the branches of Butterworth, Ipoh, and Sitiwan, all on the mainland. On conference Sunday, the first weekend of October, the branch held a fast and testimony meeting. The branch planned to watch general conference according to the traditional conference schedule, but one week late, on DVD. Penang Branch conducts its meetings in English, one of the three official languages of Malaysia (the others being Malay and Mandarin Chinese). Two expatriate families from the U.S. were in the branch, both working with Intel. The other members were mostly Asian, but with a variety of backgrounds and ethnicities.
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| − | Sacrament meeting began on a spiritual high, with three confirmations. Two young men from Mongolia were confirmed, along with a sister of Chinese descent, formerly a Buddhist. Elders Robison and Vance had taught her the gospel in fluent Mandarin. Hers had been a journey of over ten years of studying religious and philosophical texts. When she read the Book of Mormon, though her mind couldn’t comprehend all the words, she felt a wonderful spirit of truth, a spiritual power she had never felt. When she prayed to know if the Book is true, she felt not only comfort and peace, but the healing of skin problems that had plagued her. Her doubt had to do with giving up coffee, which she dearly loved. However, after a week of living according to the Word of Wisdom, coffee was no temptation.
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| − | She is not the only member of the branch whose journey has been long. A brother also bore his testimony. A world traveler, he had delved deeply into the realms of eastern religious thought, reading hundreds of books through the years. Though comforted by hatha yoga, the mantras of Hinduism seemed to unleash a streak of bad fortune in his life with attacks on his health and well-being. When he finally opened himself to Christ and closed other doors, he discovered that the truth sets one free.
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| − | [[Category:Missionary Work]]
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