The NECF Malaysia Chinese Commission is kicking off the year with a survey to identify churches in rural areas (defined as places without town councils) and to find out their needs and how they can be helped. For some time now, the commission has been concerned about the mass emigration of youths from villages, said Ngeh Hoong Eng. This has affected the churches, many of which face a shortage of youths.
“We are concerned about the state of churches in the villages and though we may have the resources to help them, we do not know where they are and how to contact them. So, this fact-finding survey will be a helpful start for us,” said the commission’s executive secretary. The survey is the start of the commission’s long-term plan to empower village churches with training and practical help.
“Sometimes, we have town churches asking us where they can send their mission teams to. By locating the village churches, we can provide the link between the two,” explained Hoong Eng. “Furthermore, we can also better distribute any financial donation we receive to the needy village churches,” she added.
The survey will cover the nation including Sabah and Sarawak but for this year, the commission will focus their efforts on empowering village churches in the peninsula’s east coast – Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu.
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