The Council of Churches of Malaysia (CCM) is an ecumenical fellowship of Churches and Christian organizations in Malaysia. It is one of the three constituent members of the Christian Federation of Malaysia

Christian Federation of Malaysia

The Christian Federation of Malaysia is an ecumenical umbrella body in Malaysia that comprises the Council of Churches of Malaysia , National Evangelical Christian Fellowship and the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Malaysia...

.

It is affiliated with the Commission on World Mission and Evangelism of the World Council of Churches

World Council of Churches

The World Council of Churches is a worldwide fellowship of 349 global, regional and sub-regional, national and local churches seeking unity, a common witness and Christian service. It is a Christian ecumenical organization that is based in the Ecumenical Centre in Geneva, Switzerland...

 and a member of the Christian Conference of Asia

Christian Conference of Asia

The Christian Conference of Asia is a regional ecumenical organisation representing 17 National Councils and 100 denominations in 21 countries:- Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Burma, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Laos, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Nepal, Pakistan,...

. It also participates in the Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism

Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism

The Malaysian Consultative Council of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism is a non-profit interfaith organization in Malaysia...

 as part of the Christian Federation of Malaysia.

History

In 1947, the Malayan Christian Council was mooted and officially inaugurated on January 9, 1948 under the leadership of John Leonard Wilson

John Leonard Wilson

John Leonard Wilson KCMG was an Anglican bishop. He was Bishop of Singapore from 1941 to 1949 during the time of Japanese occupation and subsequently Dean of Manchester and Bishop of Birmingham.-Education:...

, the Anglican Bishop of Singapore

Bishop of Singapore

The Bishop of Singapore is the diocesan bishop for the Anglican Diocese of Singapore, founded in 1909.-List of bishops:*1881 Rt Revd George Frederick Hose, Bishop of Singapore, Labuan & Sarawak 1881*1909 Rt Revd Charles James Ferguson-Davie...

, with Hobart Baumann Amstutz

Hobart Baumann Amstutz

Hobart Baumann Amstutz was a bishop of the American Methodist Church and the United Methodist Church, elected in 1956.-Early years:...

 of the Methodist Church acting as General Secretary to promote Christian unity among the Churches and Christian organizations in Malaya and Singapore.

Despite the 1963 federation of the British Crown Colonies of Singapore

Singapore

Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...

, British North Borneo, and Sarawak

Sarawak

Sarawak is one of two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo. Known as Bumi Kenyalang , Sarawak is situated on the north-west of the island. It is the largest state in Malaysia followed by Sabah, the second largest state located to the North- East.The administrative capital is Kuching, which...

 with the Federation of Malaya

Federation of Malaya

The Federation of Malaya is the name given to a federation of 11 states that existed from 31 January 1948 until 16 September 1963. The Federation became independent on 31 August 1957...

 into the new nation of Malaysia, the Malayan Christian Council continued to function using the old name. In 1967, the Malayan Christian Council was renamed the Council of Churches of Malaysia and Singapore. In view of Malaysia and Singapore having separated and become independent sovereign nations, it was considered desirable to have separate Councils of Churches for each nation, therefore, the Council was divided into 2 national organizations; the current Council of Churches of Malaysia and the National Council of Churches of Singapore in 1975.

Basis

The Council is founded

• on a common belief that God has revealed His eternal purpose for mankind in His Son Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit. Its members accept the scriptures of Old and New Testaments as the supreme standard of faith and practice, and confess their common faith as expressed in the Apostles'
  Apostles' Creed
  The Apostles' Creed , sometimes titled Symbol of the Apostles, is an early statement of Christian belief, a creed or "symbol"...
  
   and Nicene Creed
  Nicene Creed
  The Nicene Creed is the creed or profession of faith that is most widely used in Christian liturgy. It is called Nicene because, in its original form, it was adopted in the city of Nicaea by the first ecumenical council, which met there in the year 325.The Nicene Creed has been normative to the...
  
  s
• on the acceptance of the principal that the Church is in the Christian enterprise that the local congregation is basic to its life and witness, and that evangelism
  Evangelism
  Evangelism refers to the practice of relaying information about a particular set of beliefs to others who do not hold those beliefs. The term is often used in reference to Christianity....
  
   is its primary task
• as an association of Churches, and other Christian organizations, each believing that it is Christ's will that His Body, the Church should again be visibly one and each desiring to work towards this end
• as an association of cooperating members, each of which determines its own policy and action

Objectives

The objectives of the Council are

• to offer itself as an instrument or agency to the Churches in Malaysia whereby they can more and more do together everything except what irreconcilable differences of sincere conviction compel them to do separately
• to show forth among its members that Christian unity which is God's gift to His people in Jesus Christ, and by common prayer, study, consultation and action, promote the Church's mission in Malaysia and the World
• through common consultation and action to form Christian public opinion and bring it to bear on the moral, social, national and international problems of the day, particularly those affecting the life and welfare of the peoples of Malaysia
• to promote discussion and action among Churches in Malaysia towards Church union
• to provide an agency through which governments in Malaysia both federal and state, may consult with member-churches and organisations on matters of common concern to all member bodies of the Council
• to maintain fellowship with other Christian Councils or Council of Churches of other countries and with such ecumenical bodies as the Council may decide, and in particular to fulfil its obligations as an affiliated member of the World Council of Churches and the Christian Conference of Asia

Member Churches

Member Church	Head of Church
Anglican Diocese of Kuching	Bishop: Rt Rev Bolly Lapok
Anglican Diocese of Sabah Diocese of Sabah Diocese of Sabah is an Anglican diocese which covers Sabah and Labuan in Malaysia. Founded in 1962, the see was originally established as the Diocese of Labuan and Sarawak in 1855...	Bishop: Rt Rev Albert Vun Cheong Fui
Anglican Diocese of West Malaysia Diocese of West Malaysia Diocese of West Malaysia is an Anglican diocese which covers the entire West Malaysia. The Diocese of West Malaysia was founded in 8 April 1970, as DWM together with Diocese of Singapore split from Diocese of Singapore and Malaya...	Bishop: Rt Rev Ng Moon Hing Ng Moon Hing Ng Moon Hing is the 4th Anglican Bishop of West Malaysia, since 5 May 2007, succeeding Lim Cheng Ean.He obtained a Bachelor Degree in Civil Engineering from Monash University, Australia in 1978 and became a civil engineer...
Basel Christian Church of Malaysia Basel Christian Church of Malaysia The Basel Christian Church of Malaysia or BCCM is one of the four Lutheran bodies in Malaysia. It currently has 112 congregations nationwide and 59,500 baptized members.The current bishop of the Basel Christian Church in Malaysia is the Rev. Dr...	Bishop Dr.Thomas Tsen
Evangelical Lutheran Church in Malaysia Evangelical Lutheran Church in Malaysia The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Malaysia or ELCM is one of the four Lutheran bodies in Malaysia. It currently has 21 congregations nationwide with a total of 3,650 members .The current bishop of the ELCM is the Rt Rev Solomon Rajah.-Early history:...	Bishop Dr. Solomon Rajah
Lutheran Church in Malaysia and Singapore Lutheran Church in Malaysia and Singapore The Lutheran Church in Malaysia and Singapore or LCMS is one of four Lutheran bodies in Malaysia. It currently has 52 congregations nationwide with a total of 8,453 baptized members and is the largest entirely Lutheran body in the country....	Bishop Philip Lok Oi Peng
Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Malaysia Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Malaysia The Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Malaysia is the Malaysian zone of the Diocese of Malaysia, Singapore & Australia in the Malankara Mar Thoma Syrian Church. It currently consists of a total of 16 parishes with 2,500 members nationwide ....	Dr Thomas Philips
Methodist Church in Malaysia Methodist Church in Malaysia The Methodist Church in Malaysia is a body within the Methodist tradition in Malaysia. With approximately 180,000 members in more than 560 congregations, it is the largest Protestant denomination in the country... Chinese Annual Conference Sabah Provisional Annual Conference Sarawak Chinese Annual Conference Sarawak Iban Annual Conference Tamil Annual Conference Trinity Annual Conference	Bishop: Rev Hwa Yung Rev Boh Che Suan Ling Heu Uh Dr Su Chi Ann James Puang P Tevaraji Ong Hwai Teik
Orthodox Syrian Church in Malaysia Orthodox Syrian Church in Malaysia The Orthodox Syrian Church in Malaysia is an Oriental Orthodox Christian church in Malaysia. It comes under the episcopal jurisdiction of the Indian Orthodox Church's Diocese of Chennai....	Cor Episcopa Philip Thomas Philip Thomas Philip Francis Thomas was an American lawyer and politician.Born in Easton, Maryland, he graduated from Dickinson College in Pennsylvania in 1830. He studied law and became a lawyer in Easton. He was a delegate to the Maryland's constitutional convention in 1836 and a member of the Maryland House...
Presbyterian Church in Malaysia Presbyterian Church in Malaysia The Presbyterian Church in Malaysia or GPM is a Christian church in Malaysia. Established as an independent synod in 1974, it currently has approximately 7,000 members in 100 congregations nationwide .The current Moderator of the GPM is the Rev...	Wong Fong Yang
Protestant Church in Sabah Protestant Church in Sabah The Protestant Church in Sabah or PCS is one of the four Lutheran World Federation member churches in Malaysia. It currently has 322 congregations nationwide in 21 parishes with a total of 32,000 baptized members, making the PCS the second largest of the four Lutheran body in the country...	Sopirid Masandu
Salvation Army in Malaysia	Lt Colonel David Bringans Major Lim Teck Fung

Associate Members

Organisation	Head of Organisation
Bible Society of Malaysia United Bible Societies The United Bible Societies is a worldwide association of Bible societies. In 1946 delegates from 13 countries formed the UBS, as an effort to coordinate the activities of the bible societies. The first headquarters were London and in Geneva...	Kong Yeng Phooi, President
Boys' Brigade in Malaysia Boys' Brigade in Malaysia The Boys' Brigade in Malaysia is part of the global Boys' Brigade movement.In Malaysia, the movement is recognised by the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Ministry of Education as an approved Extra Curricular Activity...	Michael Moorthy, Brigade President
Girls' Brigade in Malaysia Girls' Brigade The Girls' Brigade is an international and interdenominational Christian youth organization. It was founded in 1893 in Dublin, Ireland. The modern organization was formed as the result of the amalgamation of three like-minded and similarly structured organizations in 1964...	Tnay Yong Hua, President
Malaysian Christian Association for Relief Malaysian CARE Malaysian Christian Association of Relief was founded in 1979, whose stated mission is to "To display Christ's love, compassion, and justice, and proclaim the Kingdom of God through the whole gospel to the whole person in the whole nation...	Wong Young Soon, Executive Director
National Council of YMCAs YMCA The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...	Geh Thing Lok, Executive Director
Young Women's Christian Association of Malaysia YWCA The YWCA USA is the United States branch of a women's membership movement that strives to create opportunities for women's growth, leadership and power in order to attain a common vision—to eliminate racism and empower women. The YWCA is a non-profit organization, the first of which was founded in...	Loius Bong, President
Seminari Theoloji Malaysia	Dr Ezra Kok, Principal
Sabah Theological Seminary Sabah Theological Seminary Sabah Theological Seminary is an interdenominational Protestant seminary located in the town of Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia. Established in 1988, STS is accredited by the Association for Theological Education in South East Asia and a participating school of the South East Asia Graduate School...	Dr Thu En Yu, Principal
Mobilisation Fellowship Malaysia Operation Mobilisation Operation Mobilisation is an Evangelical Christian organization founded by George Verwer to mobilise young people to live and share the Gospel of Jesus...	Choong Wye Choon, National Director
Interserve Malaysia	Philip Chang, Chairman
Prison Fellowship Malaysia Prison Fellowship International Prison Fellowship International is an international non-governmental organisation of national Prison Fellowship organisations from 117 countries.-Primary Mission:...	Mark Matthew, Chairman

Affiliate Members

Organisation	Head of Organisation
Coptic Orthodox Church in Malaysia Coptic Orthodox Church in Malaysia The Coptic Orthodox Church in Malaysia is an Oriental Orthodox Christian church in Malaysia. It comes under the episcopal jurisdiction of the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Sydney and its Affiliated Regions, a diocese of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria.The Coptic Orthodox Church in Malaysia...	Fr Joseph Sim, Representative

Presidents

Period	Name	Denomination
2003 -	Dr Thomas Philips	Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Malaysia
2001 - 2003	Julius D. Paul	Evangelical Lutheran Church in Malaysia
1995 - 2000	Yong Ping Chung	Anglican Diocese of West Malaysia
1989 - 1994	Dr Denis C. Dutton	Methodist Church in Malaysia
1987 - 1988	E.B. Muthusami	Evangelical Lutheran Church in Malaysia
1983 - 1986	George Vergis	Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Malaysia
1979 - 1982	John Gurubatham Savarimuthu	Anglican Diocese of West Malaysia
1977 - 1978	E.B. Muthusami	Evangelical Lutheran Church in Malaysia
1975 - 1976	C.N. Fang	Methodist Church in Malaysia
1972 - 1974	Basil Temenggong	Anglican Diocese of Kuching
1970 - 1971	V.E. Thomas	Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Malaysia
1968 - 1969	Roland Koh Peck Chiang	Anglican Diocese of Sabah
1966 - 1967	Robert F. Lundy	Methodist Church in Singapore and Malaysia
1964 - 1965	R.M. Greer	?
1963	Dr Ho Seng Ong	Methodist Church in Singapore and Malaysia
1962	Roland Koh Peck Chiang	Anglican Diocese of Jesselton (Sabah)
1958 - 1961	J.R. Fleming	?
1947 - 1957	RLeonard Wilson John Leonard Wilson John Leonard Wilson KCMG was an Anglican bishop. He was Bishop of Singapore from 1941 to 1949 during the time of Japanese occupation and subsequently Dean of Manchester and Bishop of Birmingham.-Education:...	Anglican Diocese of Singapore

General Secretaries

Period	Name
1998 -	Dr Hermen Shastri
1995 - 1997	Dr Hermen Shastri (Honorary)
1989 - 1994	Varghese George (Honorary)
1975 - 1988	Dr Denis C. Dutton (Honorary)
1973 - 1974	V.D.P. Pillai
1972	R. Chelladurai
1967 - 1971	Wong Hoon Hee
1958 - 1966	Chung Chi-an
1952 - 1957	J.R. Fleming
1947 - 1951	Hobart B. Amstutz (Honorary)

External links

• Council of Churches of Malaysia
• Profile of CCM at the World Council of Churches website