A Christmas Nativity Pageant: Latter-day Saints in Malaysia Gathered with Family and Friends to Light the World Christmas Season 
Persembahan Krismas Kelahiran Yesus: Orang Suci Zaman Akhir di Malaysia Berkumpul bersama Keluarga dan Rakan-rakan untuk Terangi Dunia pada Musim Krismas

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Over 300 people attended a Christmas Nativity pageant performed by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on December 6, 2025. This event was organized by the Church’s Malaysia National Communication Council in conjunction with its global Light the World Christmas campaign. Attendees comprised church members, their families and friends, and special guests from Pure Life Society charity and other faiths.

Held to spread the spirit and light of Christmas, the pageant took place at the Kuala Lumpur District Center in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. As the crowd came together to commemorate the birth of Jesus Christ, revered as the Savior of the world, the district center was permeated by an ambience of celebration yet reverence for the reason Christians worldwide celebrate and embrace this special season.

For the second year, child beneficiaries from the Pure Life Society were invited to participate in the Christmas event. They sang and performed at the start of the program and later received gifts donated by the Church.

Sumathi Sankaran, General Manager at Pure Life Society, expressed her feelings of appreciation. “I believe the true spirit of Christmas was embraced by the children through the love and kindness shown by members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.”

She added, “We would like to express our heartfelt thanks to each and every one of you for making this celebration possible for the children.”

Christopher Yeoh and Leslie Ponampalan are friends of other churches invited to the pageant. Yeoh, who is a member of the Local Church Executive Committee for Wesley Methodist Church in Teluk Intan, was glad to come with his family.

He shared, “My family really enjoyed themselves and we had a beautiful time. The Nativity drama was very good and the choirs sang beautifully all the Christmas carols…It was meaningful and touching…especially Mary and Joseph, whose performances were outstanding.”

Ponampalan who attended with his wife Teresa are both Catholic, coming from the Divine Church of Mercy in Selangor.

The couple conveyed their sentiments, stating, “We were touched by the spirit of the performance. The birth of Jesus was reenacted in a simple fashion, not missing out the fact that the Son of Man came into His humanity in total humility. This brings us to acknowledge that in His Divinity, Jesus is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords.”

For Church member Siew Ah Lian, who attended the event with her husband and loved ones, her family felt almost transported by the experience. Siew shared her feelings, stating, “Their performance was outstanding….It was as if we were there in the manger, feeling Christ’s divine love that brings peace and hope to the world.”

Council Director Lee Poh Peng expressed her gratitude for the many helping hands who made the event possible. “It was truly an uplifting experience to be able to organize a live Christmas production once again after a long pause since the global pandemic,” she said.

A dedicated and energetic team of around 100 members contributed their efforts, time and resources to produce the Christmas Nativity pageant. Some of the casts had turned down their private work in order to join the weekly rehearsals. The production was supported by the Church’s Kuala Lumpur District Presidency, who also attended the event and provided spiritual leadership for the project.

District President Kelvin Kumar mentioned, “I am grateful for the opportunity to witness…the willingness of members who united to participate and serve…from all branches throughout our district…in celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ.”

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Currently serving as full-time volunteers for the Church in West Malaysia, Mark Barrand and his wife Linda, took over as chairpersons for the pageant after the previous volunteer couple, Dan and Julie Haltinner, returned back to America.

The Barrands shared the blessing of working with a diverse community on the pageant, “One of our friends from the interfaith community asked if everyone in the cast was from our congregation. We responded, yes. He replied, he was amazed at the diversity of our Latter-day Saints congregation. There were Malaysian, Chinese, Japanese, Nigerian, Indian, Filipino, Argentine, American, Pakistani, and European [members].”

While those in attendance took home the spirit of the season and light of Jesus Christ, those working behind the scenes also benefitted from the production journey.

Argentine-born Andrea Paradiso from the Church’s Petaling Jaya branch worked on a selection of music and songs for the event. Her additional task was to work with the lighting crew and design the lighting effects. She shared her insights, stating, “Working on making the music fit the narrations from the script was not easy, but many times along the way I felt I was receiving help beyond my own capacity.”

The heartfelt contributions of many towards the Christmas Nativity pageant reflected the Light the World global campaign drive to encourage Church members to be actively engaged in sharing the light of Jesus Christ through simple acts of service in their local communities to inspire and promote the true spirit of Christmas to all.