Most importantly, despite the past hurts, we have to ask what is our role as God's people? Pastors lament that worldliness has crept into the church and pray for revivals. Perhaps, churches have become a sort of cushy middle-class country club where people just come for some Christian escapism, to get a spiritual "high", before plunging back into the shopping mall and the rat race (which will get worse when the cost of health care and education skyrocket after more robber-baron privatisations).

Do Christians find the church unreal? A place where the focus of debate is about peripheral issues such as whether youths should or should not dance in discos? How have previous revivals occurred? As John Stott's book "Issues Facing Christians Today" notes, John Wesley's preaching in 18th century Britain inspired people to take up social causes in the name of Christ. Wesley's influence has been attributed by historians as one main factor why Britain was spared the horror of the bloody French Revolution.

The Evangelical Revival of 19th century England saw leaders such as William Wilberforce campaign against slavery and inhuman factory conditions. Non-Christians looking at the church want to see real compassion and concern. Not just sanctimonious singing, pious preaching and "kong yeh sow" talk (the derogatory Cantonese term meaning "Jesus babble"). Talk is cheap. Action is not.

Ultimately, it's a question of whether we want this country to be known as one with the world's highest Twin Towers or as one with the highest level of social well-being, justice and democracy.

Think about it. If the person shot dead by police recently was not a respected doctor but a lowly labourer, would the media have played up the story? Can we deny that exploitation and injustice have increased after 42 years of Merdeka? If we do not act now, the "business as usual" of corruption and abuse looks set to grow unchecked in the next 20 to 30 years.

God willing, this is the time to make the first move to reach out and transcend the great divide between Christians and Muslims. Maybe then we can concretely demonstrate that God's love is great enough to forgive past hurts so that we can work together for a kinder, fairer country.