Between a Cathedral and a Club

Haven't got much inspiration to write these few days, am feeling lethargic, maybe the crazy weather is getting into my bones. This article below caught my eye, a minor disagreement between a Cathedral and a dance club in KL, Malaysia. In land-locked, it won't be surprising if we had a similar problem. Fair enough, St John's Cathedral did raise some valid on how the club would disrupt the activities of church-goers, but this could also be an opportunity for the church to involve their church members and recruit more members. If this happened in Singapore, I hope we can solve it amicably and capitalise on the situation.


Club too close for church's comfort

They fear that the new club will disrupt their activities and also the serenity of the church. -NST

Wed, Oct 14, 2009
New Straits Times

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia - Parishioners of St John's Cathedral in the city are not pleased that a new entertainment club is set to open in front of their cathedral.

They fear that the new club, which is located in Jalan Gereja, will disrupt their activities and also the serenity of the church.

The parishioners are also afraid that there will be a repeat of what happened several years ago when another club was operating at the same place.

The new club is located at the same lot where the popular 11 LA and Boom Boom Room used to operate in the 1990s.

The parishioners claimed that previously, some of the patrons were rowdy and they drank and urinated in public. Fights also broke out between patrons.

A member of the St John's Cathedral parish pastoral council, Leonard Teoh, 68, said the cathedral and its parishioners were against the idea of having a club in their vicinity.

"What we were told was that there was an application put in for a restaurant. We had no idea that there was going to be a club. This is our place of worship and there should not be a club here," he said.

"The location of the club is too close to the church. We have prayer meetings on weekdays and we are afraid that the din from the club will disrupt our activities."

Teoh said club patrons had also inconvenienced churchgoers when they parked their vehicles in front of the cathedral's entrance.

"There is also a grotto of Our Lady near the entrance of the cathedral where parishioners come to light candles and pray. We don't want people parking their vehicles there," he said.

Parishioner S. A. Fernandez said that activities at the cathedral would be disrupted if the club was allowed to operate.

"The main road leading into Bukit Nanas is very narrow. An entertainment club in Lorong Gereja will add to the massive congestion in Bukit Nanas."

One of the club owners, Brian Suresh, 34, said he and his partners were willing to sit down and work things out with the cathedral's committee members.

Suresh, who is a Catholic, said he understood the plight of the parishioners.

"We understand that previously some of the patrons were unruly but we can reassure the parishioners that they have nothing to worry about. We will adjust the volume of the music when there are church activities, especially during the midnight mass on Christmas and New Year's eve. We will also deploy our security guards outside the church to ensure our patrons don't park in front of the cathedral," he said.

Suresh said that the club's operating hours would be between 9pm to 3am.

"We will not exceed the stipulated time that was given by the local authority," he said.

Suresh said that he had sought a meeting with the cathedral members but they had refused to meet him.

"We have contacted the cathedral office to ask for an appointment, but they refused to entertain us. We just want to explain to them that our operations will not interfere with their programmes," he said.

In a statement to Streets, City Hall said that the club had been given a licence for its premises but it had not been issued an entertainment licence.

NEW STRAITS TIMES