I refer to the National Christmas party held at Dataran Petaling Jaya on Dec 25, 2004.

Like many malaysiakini readers, I have been following the debate very closely - as well as offering my comments - about the purported ban on Jesus' name by the government at the function.

I watched everything on TV1 and discovered that in the end it turned out to be much ado over nothing.

The very first song that Malaysians heard over national TV was Hark the Herald Angels Sing with the word 'Christ' clearly heard as the procession with our King and deputy prime minister approached to their VIP seats on stage.

The first two opening songs sung by a special Christian choir were A Child is Born and Away in a Manger where again, Jesus was mentioned several times. Towards the end, we heard local star Francesca Peters belt out Silent Night with awe and a special reverence for the occasion.

Some Christians that I spoke to were initially very suspicious of the government's motives in deciding to hold the event. However, hearing our DPM Najib Tun Razak delivered his candid and transparent speech about religious understanding and tolerance from all parties must have been most humbling (and embarrassing) for the event's critics.

Witnessing the two-hour show in my living room reconfirmed my position that the event should be seen purely as a social one and not a church service of some sort.

Though I never saw any shiny crosses or candles flickering in the dark, the occasion never slighted nor undermined the real meaning of Christmas one bit for me. In fact, it showed more of the love of Muslims to Christians more than anything else!

However, I must be honest to say that I chuckled once or twice to see singers dressed up as Santa Claus sing about the nativity.

Some Christians even complained about the event being held on X'mas Day but I thought that the government could not have chosen a better day to have it than on Dec 25, which to me showed that they were giving due reverence to the holy day.

Let us not forget that if we felt inconvenienced by the choice of date because we couldn't visit our friends and family, let us also realise that it would surely have made it difficult for all the VIPs present as well as they too would not be able to visit their top friends for Christmas.

I think the gesture on the part of our government is a very positive start. It should certainly be followed up with more of such moves not only for Christians but for members of other faiths as well.

As Christians and NGOs, we should be less suspicious of such genuine motives in future.