Juliette Jeyanthi Arulrajah, who hailed from the Malaysian town of Seremban but spent most of her life pioneering and leading key institutions of Singapore’s missions movement, died on Sunday (Feb 12) afternoon. She was 61.

Her sister, Annette Arulrajah, told Salt&Light that Juliette had been unwell since Christmas last year.

Doctors had discovered blood clots in her lungs that led to fluid retention and breathing difficulties.    

Juliette (front left) at a last outing together with her family. After her mother and brother died, Juliette tried to fill the void for her nephews by taking them on short outings during Christmas.

Juliette was best known for her passion for missions work. 

From 1992, she was in the Trinity Annual Conference (TRAC) Board of Missions for 16 years. She led it as its Chairperson for eight years up till 2008.

Simultaneously, she also served in the Methodist Missions Society (MMS) in various capacities over a period of 11 years from 1997, in roles such as area director for Laos and Cambodia as well as country coordinator for Vietnam.

She was on the Exco of the Singapore Centre for Evangelism & Missions from 2000 to 2004 and was the Organising Chairman of the very first GoForth National Missions Conference in 2002.

With her heart for missions, she would go on to be part of the organising committee for the GoForth National Missions Conference for many subsequent years.

From 2009 to 2011, she was also the National Director for the Singapore Centre for Global Missions (SCGM), and she organised the third National Missions Survey in 2009.   

Making a mark in a foreign land

How did a sweet woman from Seremban land up in Singapore to become one of its early pioneers and leaders in missions work, among many other causes?

Juliette came from a family heritage comprising generations of Christians.

She received her call to full-time ministry during a National Institute of Education orientation camp in July 1985, where she was training to become a teacher after graduating from the National University of Singapore.

She then taught Physics and Chemistry in a secondary school for nine years.

She had loved teaching and loved her students, especially the naughty ones, Annette told Salt&Light.

She eventually answered the call to ministry work by first enrolling in Trinity Theological College and graduating with a Masters in Divinity in 1996.

She then served as a TRAC Pastor in various Methodist churches, including Wesley, Barker Road, Faith and Christ Methodist Churches, over a span of 12 years where she preached, taught, counselled, prayed, visited homes and hospitals as well as conducted funerals and solemnised marriages.

Juliette (extreme right in red top) with youth from Wesley Methodist Church on a mission trip to Melaka in 1992.

Her special areas of focus were in discipleship, training, cell group ministry, outreach ministries, prayer and praise, as well as youth and school ministries.

Juliette may have excelled in many things, but her passion was in training pastors and mission board members in missional strategies to get them involved in the global missions movement, said Neo Ban Hui, Chairman of SCGM.  

“Beneath her cheerful pastoral disposition is a lady with great compassion and zeal for the Gospel. She inspired perseverance and hard work during her time with SCGM,” he said.

It was a characteristic of hers to “go the extra mile in duty and devotion”, added Gregory Vijayendran, former Honorary Secretary for the Singapore Centre for Global Missions and Disputes Partner at Rajah & Tann LLP.  

“Juliette’s service was borne out of love for the Lover of her soul. Extra time in service was at sacrificial cost to herself and her life was poured out like a drink offering (2 Timothy 4:6). Thankful, tactically ready and thorough to pray at all times, Juliette lived out the exhortations in 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.”

Ng Zhi-Wen, Pastor at Zion Bishan Bible-Presbyterian Church, said he saw her passion for the Church when he served alongside her to organise the GoForth 2018 National Missions Conference.  

“She was the programme Chair, and she threw herself to the task with untiring zeal. Outside of the formal meetings and activities, we would meet up over breakfast to discuss conference matters and about missions matters in general,” said Zhi-Wen.

Juliette giving a programme briefing at the GoForth 2018 National Missions Conference.

Those who have worked with her for the GoForth conferences, including Special Assistant at LoveSingapore, Lai-Kheng Pousson, also remember her as one who laboured harder than most, and without complaint.

“She knew what she wanted and she was meticulous to a fault in all that she did. Her food was to do the will of the Father and to finish His work,” Lai-Kheng told Salt&Light.

Finishing well 

Methodist Bishop Gordon Wong observed that even when Juliette knew her physical body was deteriorating beyond the help of human medicine, she remained steady in her efforts in serving Christ.

“Just two days before her passing, she sent me an encouraging email for a work trip I was about to take to the Methodist church in Cambodia. The missionaries in Cambodia say that she will be very sorely missed,” said Bishop Wong.

Indeed, her family shared that she had felt so convicted to complete what was entrusted to her – some outstanding work she had while working for MMS – that she delayed going to the hospital.

Apart from contributing significantly to large movements and projects, many influential laypersons and senior pastors also know her as their “Godma”.

Said Raymond Fong, Senior Pastor of Wesley Methodist Church: “She adopted some of us as her ‘godsons’ and she would often care for us through an encouraging word, a thoughtful prayer and an insightful exhortation for us to keep fearing and serving the Lord. I am deeply grateful for the way she mentored me in my journey of discernment and obedience to God’s call to pastoral ministry.”

Despite her influence, she was also readily present and available to the young people in the church, noted Timothy Anand Weerasekera, who works at Cornerstone Community Church.

“Pastor Juliette walked through life with me since I was in my early teens. She almost never missed birthdays and always texted in her usual way – sweet messages replete with emojis and blessings from the Lord,” said Timothy.

Juliette (extreme left) celebrating birthdays with her family.

“She had this uncanny knack of showing up in my life just at the right time at important crossroads. Our hours-long chats on the phone would always leave me feeling loved and cared for by the Lord,” he added.

Lai-Kheng also remembers Juliette as one who was very thoughtful and expressive.

“She often dropped me a text just to see how I was doing. To my brief reply, she would respond with a long prayer of blessing packed with Scriptures and punctuated with loud emojis and bold exclamation marks! Her prayers overflowed spontaneously from her pastoral heart, powerful and spot-on,” she said.

Her genuine concern for others, be it the least or the lost, led to her pioneering the TRAC Crisis Relief in 2001, in which she led a team to bring help, hope and healing to those affected by disasters such as the Asian Tsunami, cyclones in Bangladesh and Myanmar or earthquakes in Pakistan, Indonesia and China.

Her compassion and love also extended to the migrant workers community.

In 2008, she spearheaded the TRAC Migrant Work Taskforce and laid the foundation for the ministry.

Ministry of presence

It is no wonder, then, that even in her last few weeks, she continued to be present for others. For instance, she continued her practice of speaking to her nephews and sister every weekend for an hour each, until speaking and breathing became difficult.

Aunt Juliette celebrating the developmental milestones of her young nephew, Joshua.

Her two nephews, Joshua and Rosheen, recall how she used to return to Seremban twice a year – in June for Rosh’s birthday and December for Josh’s birthday.

From a very young age, she taught them to sing the song “Walking with Jesus” as she walked alongside them.

Juliette with her nephew, Joshua.

Such times were precious as she would share with them the faith lessons that she had learnt in her own life.

For example, she shared with them how there was one time, while studying in university, when she had no money to take the bus.

She waited at a bus stop with her wallet in hand, yet had no money for the bus fare.

As she prayed to the Lord, she unconsciously waved her wallet around.

Suddenly, she heard a sound. So, she stopped praying, opened her wallet and was stunned to find money inside!

From her adventures in her university days till her recent passing, tributes that have streamed in from family, friends and the church community describe her as a jovial and witty leader of faith who prioritised having authentic and personal relationships with the young and old alike.

Juliette often offered a listening ear to the people around her.

“Juliette strove to live out the ideals of doing the right thing by God in the right way,” said Gregory. “She had strong other-centredness. Despite what she was going through health-wise, her genuine interest in and fervent prayers for others revealed the heart of God.”

Her memory and legacy will last long after her earthly sojourn, say those whose lives she impacted.

Said Timothy: “I’m reminded to live as largely and as productively as she did … in her ministry of presence and availability to others.”

The funeral service of Juliette Jeyanthi Arulrajah takes place this evening (Feb 15) at 5pm at the Singapore Casket, Lavendar Street, Pearl Room, Level 3.

Cortege leaves Singapore Casket at 5.45pm for cremation at Mandai Crematorium Hall 2 at 6.45pm.