25/12/2025

THURSDAY | DEC 25, 2025

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Blend of culture at Kelantan Christmas

o Festive celebration quiet, heartfelt affair focused around churches and family home, while embracing traditional favourites

KOTA Kelantan, Christmas is not just about carols and twinkling decorations. It is also a feast for the senses, with local favourites like ayam percik , nasi dagang , budu and nasi kerabu Golok taking centre stage, showing how the Christian community has embraced and blended with the state’s culinary traditions. Christmas in the state is a quiet, heartfelt affair as celebrations are focused around churches and family homes, a reflection of a Christian community that has long woven itself into the fabric of local culture and everyday life. Reverend Lim Khet Keang, 59, of the Kelantan Presbyterian Church, said Christians in Kota Bharu are a small minority, with modest-sized churches. “In terms of food, ayam percik , nasi dagang , budu and nasi kerabu Golok remain favourites, while Western dishes like spaghetti appeal to younger people. “In Kelantan, Christmas is marked in much the same way across the state. Some hold dinners on Dec 24 or even earlier, while others go carolling and visit fellow church BHARU: In

members before coming together for a shared meal,” he told Bernama recently. Lim said Christmas services are held in the morning, followed by small gatherings at which lunch is enjoyed with family or close friends. He said local culture is evident in Kelantan’s Christmas celebrations, with some elderly individuals wearing sarong to services and speaking in the local dialect, particularly at the Wakaf Bharu Presbyterian Church, a sight rarely seen in other states. He said the Kelantan Presbyterian Church in Kota Bharu, founded in 1938 as the state’s first, now has about 150 active members. He added that apart from Kota Bharu’s main churches, five small ones serve Rantau Panjang, Tanah Merah, Kuala Krai, Gua Musang and Wakaf Bharu in Tumpat. Meanwhile, 62-year-old tutor Lee Lai Ting said Christmas at home or in churches features modestly decorated trees. “I decorated the Christmas tree myself to brighten the home for the season. “In Christian belief, the tree holds

Lim decorating a Christmas tree at the Kelantan Presbyterian Church in Kota Bharu. – BERNAMAPIC

greatest gift and the unity of over 40 Chinese, Indian and Orang Asli Christians in the town. He said preparations for the celebrations were carried out collectively, involving everyone from 12-year-olds to 90-year-old elders. “The Christmas spirit can be felt through the decorations inside and outside this church, that was built in 1948. “The local community also shows excitement at the displays we have put up,” he said.

quiet yet vivid sign that the local Christian community is looking forward to the festive celebrations. Although Christians are a minority in Kelantan, the symbol of the “greatest gift” is reflected in simple yet meaningful decorations, capturing the gratitude and togetherness of a small community that marks Christmas with quiet devotion. Gua Musang Presbyterian Church chairman Len Ooi Kim said the giant gift box represents Christmas as the

many symbols – green for life and growth, lights for a bright life and the star atop as a guide in life. “Christmas in Kelantan is not commercial or lavish, but focuses on tradition, worship and family togetherness among the Christian minority,” Lee said, adding that Christmas gifts are modest, symbolising sharing and blessings, especially for children at church. In Gua Musang, a giant gift box, studded with hundreds of LED lights, illuminates the church compound, a

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