Murphy Pakiam | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop Emeritus of Kuala Lumpur | |
 Motto: Mercy and Peace[1] | |
| See | Archdiocese of Kuala Lumpur Latin:Archidioecesis Kuala Lumpurensis |
| Installed | 29 May 2003 |
| Term ended | 13 December 2013 |
| Predecessor | Anthony Soter Fernandez |
| Successor | Julian Leow Beng Kim |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 10 May 1964 |
| Consecration | 4 October 1995 by Anthony Soter Fernandez |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1938-12-06)6 December 1938 (age 86) |
| Nationality | Malaysian |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Residence | Rumah Uskup Agung (Archbishop's House), Bukit Nanas, Kuala Lumpur[2] |
| Alma mater | Lateran University |
| Coat of arms | .svg) |
Archbishop EmeritusTan SriMurphy Nicholas Xavier Pakiam (born 6 December 1938) was the thirdmetropolitan archbishop of theRoman CatholicArchdiocese of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from 2003 to 2013. He is styled His GraceThe Most Reverend ArchbishopTan SriDatuk.
Pakiam was born inTapah, Perak and was ordained into the priesthood on 10 May 1964. He was appointed metropolitan archbishop ofKuala Lumpur on 24 May 2003, and was installed five days later. Pakiam is the former president of theCatholic Bishops' Conference of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei; and the publisher of the Catholic weekly newspaper,The Herald.
In 2007, Pakiam filed for ajudicial review afterThe Herald was ordered to stop using theArabic word "Allah" in its publication by the Malaysian government. In 2009, the High Court overturned the government's ban of the word. In 2010, he accepted the public apology ofAl-Islam magazine, which had sent two reporters to a Catholic church the year before, where theydesecrated theEucharist.
Pakiam was born inTapah, Perak, on thefeast day ofSaint Nicholas.[3] Educated at the Sultan Yusuf School inBatu Gajah, he entered theminor seminary in 1955 and started his priestly formation at theCollege General in Penang three years later. Pakiam was ordained a priest on 10 May 1964, and served as assistant priest at the Church of St. Louis,Taiping. The following year, he was posted to the Church of St. Francis Xavier in Penang and became theparish priest of the Church of Our Lady of Lourdes, Silibin,Ipoh from 1970 to 1972.[4]
Pakiam completed his studies for amaster's degree in moral theology (ethics) at theLateran University in Rome in 1974, and upon his return to Malaysia became a lecturer at Penang's College General. In 1978, he was appointedRector of the College General and served two terms. In 1989, he received his Masters in Guidance and Counselling from theDe La Salle University,Manila, Philippines. He then served as parish priest of the Church of the Nativity inButterworth from 1989 to 95.[4]
He was appointed as theauxiliary bishop ofKuala Lumpur andtitular bishop of Chunavia on 1 April 1995, and ordained titular bishop of Chunavia,Epirus Nova[4] on 4 October 1995 at the College General in Penang.[5]
On 24 May 2003, Pakiam succeededAnthony Soter Fernandez, who resigned due to poor health, as metropolitan archbishop of Kuala Lumpur.[3] His installation took place five days later, on 29 May 2003. His principalconsecrator was Archbishop Anthony Fernandez and principal co-consecrators were Bishops James Chan Soon Cheong and Anthony Selvanayagam.[5] He was the president of theCatholic Bishops' Conference of Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei.
On 13 December 2013,[6] the Pope accepted the resignation of Archbishop Pakiam upon his 75th birthday, without delaying until the appointment of his successor (ArchbishopJulian Leow Beng Kim was appointed on 3 July 2014).[citation needed]
Hat & Tassels: Symbols of an archbishop of the Roman Catholic Church.
Cross on yellow background: Symbol of Jesus, the Light of the world.
Blue wavy lines: Symbol of theHoly Spirit, the river of Living Waters.
Chalice & Host: The Sacraments of the Church.
Bible: The Word of God.
The letter 'M': Mary, Mother of the Church, representing all the saints.
Keys: Symbol of the Apostolic authority in the Church.
Green background: Symbolises the new life obtained through the Mercy and Peace of God.[7]
By virtue of his position as archbishop of Kuala Lumpur, Pakiam is the publisher ofThe Herald, a weekly Catholic newspaper.[8] In 2007The Herald, and Pakiam, as its publisher,[8] filed for a judicial review after it was ordered to stop using the Arabic word "Allah" in its publication[9] by the MalaysianMinistry of Home Affairs.[10] Malaysia's home minister has the power to impose prohibition as a condition under the Printing Presses and Publication Act of 1984. In the case ofThe Herald, Home Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar prohibited the usage of the word "Allah" on the grounds of national security and to avoid misunderstanding and confusion among Muslims.[11]
On 31 December 2009, the High Court overturned the government ban on the use of the word "Allah" byThe Herald.[12] Justice Lau Bee Lan quashed the Home Minister's prohibition againstThe Herald to use the word "Allah", declaring the order as "illegal, null and void". She declared that under Article 3(1) of the Federal Constitution, applicant Archbishop Tan Sri Pakiam had the constitutional right to use "Allah" inThe Herald in the exercise of his right that religions other than Islam might be practised in peace and harmony in the country.[10]
| Styles of Murphy Pakiam | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Reference style | The Most Reverend[13] |
| Spoken style | Your Grace[14] |
| Religious style | Archbishop |
| Posthumous style | not applicable |
In 2009, two Muslim reporters fromAl-Islam, a small Malaysian magazine, participated in aCatholic Mass and receivedHoly Communion, which they then spat out and photographed. The resulting photo was then published in their May 2009 edition.[15] The magazine, which is owned by Utusan Karya, part of theUtusan Malaysia Group, sent its reporters including one Muhd Ridwan Abdul Jalil, to two churches in theKlang Valley, as part of a special investigative report.[15] The act of desecration occurred at St Anthony's Church in Jalan Robertson, Kuala Lumpur.[16]
Pakiam, the Catholic Lawyers Society, and numerous editorials in the media,[15] criticised the Attorney-General for the failure to take any action on thedesecration.[17][18][19]
Nine months later, in March 2010, Al-Islam published an apology to the Roman Catholic Church and Christians for the article. The public apology was posted on the website of its publisher.[20] Pakiam accepted the apology and said that no further legal action would be taken against the magazine or its publishers.[21]
In 2005, the King of Malaysia, theYang di-Pertuan AgongTuanku Syed Sirajuddin, made Pakiam a Member of the Order for Important Services or "Panglima Jasa Negara" (PJN), which carries the title "Datuk".[22] In 2008, the Yang di-Pertuan AgongTuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin made him Commander of theOrder of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia, or Panglima Setia Mahkota (PSM), which allows the recipients to use the titleTan Sri.[23]
Malaysia
Commander of theOrder of Meritorious Service (P.J.N.) -Datuk (2005)[24]
Commander of theOrder of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia (P.S.M.) -Tan Sri (2008)[25]
| Catholic Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | 3rdCatholic Archbishop of Kuala Lumpur 2003–2013 | Succeeded by |