Since the very beginning, the Church has always impacted society. But towards the end of the 19th century, the evangelical Church lost interest in social, political and economic issues. This disengagement with society culminated, by 1920s, in what is now called "The Great Reversal." This has adversely affected both evangelism and discipleship but in recent times, scattered evangelical groups and individuals have begun working towards a reversal of "The Great Reversal."

This consultation, organised by the official representative of the evangelical Church, thus marks a milestone in the history of Christianity.

The event was also historic, at least for the Malaysian Church, when Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad gave the keynote speech at the opening ceremony on January 31 night. This was the first time he spoke at an international Christian meeting.

The local media gave the impression that only 100 people were in the audience. The figure was only referring to participants of the consultation. Besides the 25 Malaysian participants, there were also more than 700 other Malaysian Christians at the opening ceremony.

The impact of the consultation should be greatest on the Malaysian Church. Since some of the challenges of Malaysia’s Vision 2020 are already explicitly spiritual and moral in nature, the Malaysian Church is uniquely placed to play a key role in reversing "The Great Reversal."

Participants came from Europe, North America, the Caribbean, Africa, Central and South-East Asia and the South Pacific. They included members of parliament and ministers, judges and lawyers, media personnel and social scientists, theologians and corporate, church and para-church leaders.

Issues discussed went beyond the socio-economic impact of globalisation to related matters such as Christians and politics, and the role of the media. Ultimately, the consultation sought to think through the Christian response to globalisation.

NECF Malaysia presented the paper Engagement or Isolation? A Malaysian Christian Perspective on Globalisation. As highlighted in the New Straits Times report (February 2, 2001), the paper stressed the value of human beings ("Economy exists for the people, not vice-versa"). It gives a Christian perspective by grounding it in Scriptures. It gives a uniquely Malaysian perspective by focusing on Malaysia’s experience of globalisation and its implications for religious freedom and the New Economic Policy.

The Christian response to globalisation, based on what was presented in the consultation, is outlined in the Kuala Lumpur 2001 Declaration (see page 9). It was read out at the closing ceremony in the presence of Minister for Transport Dato’ Seri Dr Ling Liong Sik. That was probably the first international Christian declaration of the new millennium. Dr Ling in his closing speech, in line with the Declaration, challenged the Church to play its role as salt of the earth and light of the world—a challenge to reverse "The Great Reversal."