Zion Cathedral was built in 1924 by its pioneer members.— Photos: AZLINA ABDULLAH/The Star
THE first Lutheran church in the country celebrated its century milestone with a special service.
Zion Cathedral in Jalan Sultan Abdul Samad at Brickfields, Kuala Lumpur, stands proud as a symbol of history and culture for Lutherans in Malaysia.
During a special service at the church, Bishop Steven Lawrence said during the British occupation, many migrants from India, mostly the southern part, came to Malaya to work in plantations.
“Among them were Tamil Lutheran Christians.
“There were no organised Lutheran congregations then, so many attended worship services in other churches,” he said.
“As the years passed, the numbers grew and the thought of establishing the first Lutheran Church in Malaya gained momentum.
“As such, a 0.8ha land was bought on June 2, 1909, and the Zion Church was opened on Nov 30, 1924,” he said.
Members listening to Lawrence at the special service to commemorate the centennial.
On Oct 31, 1976, the Zion Church was renamed Zion Cathedral, Lawrence said.
He expressed his gratitude for the commitment and dedication of the clergy, leaders and congregation members, praising their foresight in building a permanent place of worship.
He was deeply moved by their unity and shared purpose despite facing challenges and limitations from the time the land was purchased until the completion of the building.
Lawrence said they could emulate three key lessons from the past leadership.
“First, they learned the Tamil language.
“Even though they were from different countries, they did not consider their cultural differences as barriers to learning the Tamil language,” he said, adding that they knew that language was essential to connect people.
“Secondly, they shared their resources.
“There was a joint effort to share human and financial resources on a global scale in planning the workforce to build the cathedral.
Lawrence said the visionary leaders also invested in the future well-being of the congregation.
“We know how difficult it is to acquire land to build a place of worship.
“They did not consider building the cathedral as an expenditure.
“Rather, they were convinced that this was an investment for the future generation of worshippers,” he added.
His hope was for the current clergy, leaders and congregation members to reflect on the lessons and continue to build on the legacy of their predecessors for future generations.
