Religious leaders advocate prudence in spreading Good News in Thailand

Bangkok, Thailand – Reacting sharply to a mass media campaign for a book promoting Christianity, the religious leaders in Thailand have advised prudence, saying that though everyone is free to practice and propagate religion, yet, it should not offend or divide people.

A recent campaign of nationally broadcast television spots and posters on mass transit bus and train systems in Bangkok has been advertising "Palang haeng Chiwit," or "Power for Living." The book publisher, U.S.–based Arthur S. DeMoss Foundation, reportedly spent 400 million baht (US$10 million) on the campaign that uses local Christian celebrities to describe how God helps them overcome difficulties.

The Thai Christians include actors, models, a billiards champion, singers, musicians and business executives, who advertise the book and encourage viewers to call for a free copy. The sponsor claims 400,000 copies of the book have already been distributed.

"Power for Living" was written by the late Jamie Buckingham, a Christian pastor. It is evangelical in nature and contains testimonies of those who have encountered Christ in their lives.

Local media reported some people as questioning the propriety of the campaign to attract Thais, more than 90 percent of whom are Buddhists, to Christianity. Less than 1 percent of the country's 63 million people are Christians. Some who oppose the campaign have called it "aggressive" and have urged the government to impose tighter regulations on this type of evangelism.

However, Thai Buddhist, Catholic and Protestant religious leaders alike have all affirmed a person's right to propagate religion.

Venerable Mahacho Thussaniyo, director of Dhamma Communication Division of Maha Chulalongkorn Ratchavidhayalaya, a university for monks, stressed that the Thai Constitution guarantees religious freedom. However, the Buddhist monk and scholar also said propagation of religion should respect local culture and not cause disunity. In his view, religions should build harmonious relations in the country.

At the level of "appearance," he observed, the advertisement suggests the foundation intends to "snatch" Buddhists for Christianity. "This is not a good thing," he continued, pointing out that the campaign comes at a time when Thailand is experiencing conflict in its southernmost provinces that the government blames on Islamic separatists. Thai Muslims, about 5 percent of the population, are concentrated in those provinces.

Bishop Louis Chamnien Santisukniran of Nakhon Sawan, chairman of the Thai Catholic Bishops' Commission for Missionary Works, and Reverend Boonratna Boayen, moderator of the Church of Christ in Thailand, affirm that every Christian has the duty to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ.

Reverend Boonratna, whose Church body has 600 member churches nationwide, said he is not in a position to say if the advertising campaign is "right or wrong." But the DeMoss Foundation should "consider if its actions might offend the sentiments of people of other religions," he added.

The foundation must also consider whether its actions make it difficult for other Churches to work in the country, said the head of the Church body that unites the Presbyterian Church, American Baptist Church and Christian Church of Disciples.

He recalled how people were offended a few years ago when a Japanese group put signboards with Christian teachings on trees nationwide. That way of proselytizing caused problems for Churches, he said, adding that the people involved eventually were deported.

Bishop Chamnien commented that after viewing the TV advertisement, he developed "respect for the courage" the foundation showed in coming out with the campaign and did not think that the campaign is aggressive.

The Catholic Church needs to "imitate" the way the foundation uses mass media to draw people to the Good News, he said.

"We need to use mass media as a tool to evangelize, using email, websites, books, television and radio as a way to attract people to the Good News," he said. He also suggested the Church should set up shops in shopping malls for young people to walk in and read about Catholicism.

"We must have courage to show that we are Catholics," he stated. "It is the duty of every baptized Catholic to proclaim the Good News," and such duty is an "honor, as it is Jesus who asked us to be his mouthpiece," the bishop said.

The Catholic and Protestant Church leaders both observed that their Churches traditionally evangelize through educational, health–care and other social–service institutions, besides witnessing through local parishes and churches.

Bishop Chamnien lamented, however, that "many Catholic schools fall short" of the duty to evangelize. According to the bishop, students have the right to learn about other religions, and teaching who God is according to Catholicism is a duty.

He made it clear however, that it does not matter if students become Catholics or not, because conversion is God's work. He cited former Bangkok governor Samak Sunthoravet, an alumnus of a Catholic school, who used to say that the Catholic school he attended never forced him to convert but taught him moral values.