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Singapore consists of 62 small islands and one large island (699 km2) just south of mainland Malaysia and north of Indonesia. While about 23% of Singapore’s land area consists of forest and nature reserves it is also the world’s second most densely populated independent country. Singapore has one of the world’s busiest ports and is a commercial, financial and technical hub for Southeast Asia. It has the highest standard of living in Asia (11th worldwide).

The Culture Mix

The city has a fascinating mix of cultures. Singapore is known as the largest Chinese city outside of China since 76% of its peoples trace their heritage back to the mainland. Other major ethnic groups include the Malay, 14% and Indian, 7%. Singapore is also a multi-religious country, due mainly to its location on one of the world’s major transportation routes. More than 40% of Singaporeans practice Buddhism (from the Chinese influence), About 15% practice Christianity (mostly Chinese and Indians), and 15% profess no religion.

The Muslim Peoples

In Singapore, there are two major groups of Muslim peoples - those of Malay origin and those of Indian origin. According to the year 2000 census, there are about 315,000 Malay Muslims and some 46,000 Indian Muslims (over 15 years) in addition to Pakistanis and Arabs and others. In the region being Malay is pretty much synonymous with being Muslim. Happily now there are close to 1,000 Malays who profess Christ.

The Singapore government has established a religious harmony law with recommendations on how different faiths should interact and how they ought to be separate from politics. The law doesn’t prohibit proclaiming the gospel to the Muslim peoples but it does discourage it. The fear is that there would be a public outcry within the community and from the surrounding nations if evangelism was encouraged.

MUIS

The Government maintains a semi-official relationship with the Muslim community through the Islamic Religious Council (MUIS). The MUIS advises the Government on concerns of the Muslim community, drafts the approved Friday sermons, regulates instruction in Islamic schools, and oversees a mosque-building fund financed by voluntary payroll deductions. It also supervises obligatory giving “zakat” by a centralised and computerised collection.

The Indecision Issue

Recently a Christian had the opportunity to pray for a Malay Muslim and also share the Gospel with him. He was quite open to listen but stopped short of making a decision for Christ. This is characteristic of the young Muslims in this nation. They tend to be a little less traditional and a little more open. A Malay Christian once made the comment that, in Singapore, the Muslims could easily become an unreachable people group (through restrictions and their own indecision).

Please pray with us for Singapore:

* Pray that God will give local Christians opportunities, training and the ability to proclaim Christ to the Malay, Indian, Pakistani and other communities in an appropriate way (Isaiah 60:1-3).

* Pray that Christians will be able to forge relationships with Muslims and open the way for them to hear the good news (Romans 10:14).

* Pray that believers involved in business will be able to share Christ with their Muslim counterparts (Psalm 49:6-8).

Background on Singapore (World Factbook)

Singapore was founded as a British trading colony in 1819. It joined the Malaysian Federation in 1963 but separated two years later and became independent. Singapore subsequently became one of the world’s most prosperous countries with strong international trading links (its port is one of the world’s busiest in terms of tonnage handled) and with per capita GDP equal to that of the leading nations of Western Europe.

Economy of Singapore

Singapore has a highly-developed and successful free-market economy. It enjoys a remarkably open and corruption-free environment. The economy depends heavily on exports, particularly in consumer electronics and information technology products. It was hard hit from 2001-03 by the global recession, by the slump in the technology sector, and by an outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) in 2003, which curbed tourism and consumer spending. Fiscal stimulus, low interest rates, a surge in exports, and internal flexibility led to vigorous growth in 2004-06 with real GDP growth averaging 7% annually.

Statistics of Singapore

Population: 4,608,167 (July 2008 est.)

Life expectancy at birth: 81.89 years

Ethnic groups: Chinese 76.8%, Malay 13.9%, Indian 7.9%, other 1.4%

Religions: Buddhist 42.5%, Muslim 14.9%, Taoist 8.5%, Hindu 4%, Catholic 4.8%, other Christian 9.8%, other 0.7%, none 14.8%

Languages: Mandarin 35%, English 23%, Malay 14.1%, Hokkien 11.4%, Cantonese 5.7%, Teochew 4.9%, Tamil 3.2%, other Chinese dialects 1.8%, other 0.9%

Literacy: 92.5%; male: 96.6%, female: 88.8%

Hear the Gospel Recording for Malay (there are 10 different varieties recorded)
Panjabi (there are 22 different programs in this language)

Singapore Video

The diversity of Singapore

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Filed under: Asia, East by TDI | Email this story