I refer to the letter, Something rotten in every single one of us .

I find Dr Lee's comments ‘However, I must add that on the Christian side of things, I find pangs of sanctimony and indeed there is hint of an intent to proselytise. Would it make any difference to use ‘Tuhan’ instead of ‘Allah’? The Christian camp knows very well that their use of the word will not rest well with the government, so why was the hornet's nest stirred?’ inaccurate and misguided.

Firstly, it makes no difference for most Christians, especially non-Malay speaking Christians to use the word ‘Tuhan’ for God instead of ‘Allah’. But it matters to a lot of Malay-speaking Christians who have been accustomed to using the word ‘Allah’ for a long time before Malaysia embarked on Islamisation and a banning spree. And it is Christians like them who are affected by the confiscation of their books that has resulted in the legal suits.

It is unfairly judgmental of Lee to suggest Christians are ‘sanctimonious’ in defending their rights in a peaceful and democratic fashion. If standing up for one's rights is sanctimonious, then I rest my case. Lee obviously lives in a different world.

It is not Christians ‘stirring the hornet's nest’ as Lee accuses but the authorities who have departed from the traditional acceptance of the usage of the word ‘Allah’ by Christians in the country and taken the offensive. It is not that suddenly, Christians decided to insist on using the word overnight.

Lee’s allusion to Christians wanting to use the word for proselytisation is equally misplaced. If he has any evidence of Christians doing that, he should present them otherwise he is as guilty as those who like to spread false rumours.

It is true, however, that some Christians will spread the Gospel whether others like it or not but to suggest that as justification for a ban on the word ‘Allah’ is an absurd and an unfair presumption.

Many things don't rest well with the government so do we just placate them? If Lee knows how much Christians have already given in to the government, he would be less quick to wrongly judge the Christian responses to the government's high-handed conduct.

The crux of the matter is whether the government can unilaterally and without any proper jurisdiction ban Christians from carrying out activities within their constitutional rights. It is a serious thing to ban someone else's use of an important religious terminology.

Lee further wrote: ‘If we as citizens do not and cannot see Malaysia as an ideal and a nation that we must protect and sacrifice for, a nation to be put above race, religion and self, then there is something really rotten at the core of every single one of us. I, for one, am utterly ashamed that such a conclusion can be made at all’.

What is he suggesting? That the state is above all our interests, even our faith in God? That there is no legitimate place for dignity and defence in religion or race? Is he suggesting that we surrender our religious, racial and other heritage for the sake of the country? To whom?

This simplistic notion is the idealism of totalitarian regime. In China, there are already more true Christians than card-carrying communists and that is the best thing that has happened. It will be the moderating influence of Christianity that will save the country from a path of inordinate greed and materialism.

Sadly countries like Malaysia are turning the clock back and making rules and regulations that do not benefit anyone. Dressing girls like nuns have no real value in enhancing one's true spirituality. Modesty is a state of the heart and not merely outward adornment that conforms to someone's idea of appropriate dress. Creeping Islamisation is a worry as Helen Ang ably articulates .

It is not good enough to indulge in self-accusations but to do practical things to help the nation remain true to its original vision of nationhood. There is no place for idealism because the nation that Lee imagines is a mere figment of his imagination, an unattainable dream. It would be enough if Malaysians honoured the rights of others and not try to impose their values on others. We need down-to-earth fairness and freedoms, not Utopia.