The Malaysian Consultative Council on Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism and Taoism president Reverend Thomas Philips has welcomed today's court verdict on the firebombing of Metro Tabernacle Church in Kuala Lumpur.

NONE Philips ( right ), who is also a member of a government interfaith committee of religious leaders, said that it was time for the nation to put the ugly episode behind it.

"We urge all Malaysians to respect one another's place of worship," he told AFP .

"So let's move on now that a sentence has been passed and close this chapter."

Representatives of the Metro Tabernacle church, which is part of the Assemblies of God movement, had no immediate comment but have said previously that they forgave those responsible.

Two brothers were today sentenced to five years in prison for firebombing a church, the first of a spate of attacks on places of worship that shocked the nation this year.

The Jan 7 torching of a church in suburban Kuala Lumpur, which sent tensions soaring in the multi-ethnic country, was "appalling and despicable", said Sessions Court judge SM Komathy Suppiah.

NONE "You both by your shameful and dastardly acts, you have shamed the country," she told Raja Mohamad Faizal Raja Ibrahim, 24, and Raja Mohamad Idzham Raja Ibrahim, 22.

"The message from this court must be loud and clear: Don't play with fire," she told the sombre-looking pair.

The attack, which gutted part of the three-storey church, was followed by a series that saw a dozen mosques, churches and prayer halls across the Muslim-majority nation torched and vandalised.

In an unprecedented onslaught, the places of worship were pelted with Molotov cocktails, splashed with black paint and had windows smashed with stones.

Allah row still unresolved 

The violence was triggered by a ruling that overturned a ban on non-Muslims using 'Allah' as a translation for 'God' in Bahasa Malaysia.

azlan The government argued that the use of the word 'Allah' by Christians, who make up nine percent of the population, could cause confusion and encourage religious conversion, which is illegal for Muslims.

Malaysia's Christians, many from indigenous groups in the Borneo states of Sabah and Sarawak who speak Bahasa Malaysia, say they have used the word without incident for centuries.

The still-unresolved 'Allah' row is one of a string of religious disputes that have erupted in recent years, straining relations between majority Malays and minorities who fear the country is being "Islamised".

Counsel for the convicted pair, who are both motorcycle dispatch riders, said they would appeal the conviction and sentence but refused to make any further comment.

The brothers were to be released on bail pending the results of the appeal.