Current President Joko Widodo’s second and final term is coming to an end. The election for his successor will take place in February 2024, and presidential candidates’ campaigns and rallies are well underway.

That is not all on Indonesia’s political calendar next year. Bruce Allen with FMI says, “They’re also moving their national government from Jakarta on the island of Java to the island of Kalimantan (or what we call Borneo) and building a whole new city to house millions of people who will have voices in government. So 2024 is going to be a big year for Indonesian government in general.

“Our leadership team is saying this is a decisive moment because now during the campaign season, the rhetoric is showing that some politicians think the country should retain that constitutional principle of diversity operating in harmony. But others more radical [and] more vocal are calling for an entire Islamic State.”

Bible distribution in Indonesia, July 2019. (Photo courtesy of FMI)

Whoever becomes Indonesia’s next president will have the opportunity to make Christian missions easier or harder in this majority Muslim nation. Roughly 70% of the population is totally unreached with the Gospel, and Christians are a minority.

Amidst a contentious election season, pastors and church planters are still focused on the Great Commission. FMI supports Christian leaders in Indonesia with a heart for their neighbors who don’t know Jesus.

The ministry is soon hosting a conference on the island of Sumatra for Indonesian pastors and their spouses.

Allen says, “Our plan is to present some powerful new ways and provide some tools that they can use to engage their neighbors in spiritual conversations and Gospel presentations.

“Pray that these pastors will be encouraged as they come together. Sometimes, it can just feel like you’re so alone, especially as you’re serving in remote, rural villages…. Pray that the conference is an encouraging time for them but that they’d also be fortified in their faith.”

You can support an FMI partner in Indonesia here!

Header photo courtesy of Mufid Majnun/Unsplash.

Tens of thousands have protested across Indonesia against the new code. But lawmakers pushed it through unanimously, at the bidding of President Joko Widodo.

Bruce Allen with FMI says, “The revised code includes provisions against insulting the president and state institutions. They do make the differentiation between insulting and simply criticizing or lodging protests. So that softens that language a little bit.”

“But still, civil rights groups are airing concerns about possible misinterpretations of those provisions.”

Notably, sex outside of marriage could be punishable by six months to a year in prison if family members complain. Human rights experts worry this law could be used to persecute members of the LGBT community in particular.

Local customs

Many parts of the new code are difficult to interpret, leaving room for abuse.

Most worrying, Allen says the code upholds unwritten local rules and customs. “For example, there is no national law regarding a woman’s need to wear a hijab, the Muslim head covering, in Indonesia. But in many places, it is an unwritten custom for women to wear one. Thus, the new penal code says a woman could be legally prosecuted for not wearing one.”

Indonesian Christians will need to live carefully and in harmony with their neighbors. Ask God to give them wisdom and strength.

You can support church-planting projects through FMI. Learn more at forgottenmissionaries.org. Allen says, “I’d be glad to provide people with a profile of a specific church planter, information about his culture and the community where he serves, and regular ministry updates.”

The header photo shows Indonesian President Joko Widodo. (Photo courtesy of Ministry of State Secretariat of the Republic of Indonesia [Kementerian Sekretariat Negara Republik Indonesia], Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

Vincent Michael of FMI says, “The current president of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, has been a consistent advocate for minorities and especially minority religious groups, even though he himself is a committed Muslim. He has been a real friend of Christians. So this appointment of Listyo Sigit Prabowo is not surprising considering Joko Widodo’s track record. This is an encouraging development for the Christians in Indonesia because Prabowo has a track record of cracking down on corruption, and especially on discrimination against religious minorities.”

Reaction to the decision

The decision met approval from most corners, including many Muslims. Only certain Muslim groups objected to the placement. Michael says, “Most Muslims in Indonesia are supportive of tolerance, supportive of the religious minorities., but there is an increasingly growing vocal minority of Muslims that is much more fundamental in their stance, and intolerant of having Christians in any positions of power.”

Pray Indonesian Christians would boldly proclaim the lordship of Christ. Michael points out they still face resistance to their faith: “Oftentimes, especially in islands like Sumatra, Western Indonesia, and Western Java, the persecution is still severe. And it’s not going to necessarily get better right away. It could almost get worse, because of this appointment, because of the reactionary factor.”

The header photo shows an Indonesian police car. (AWG97, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons)

While it was good news for Widodo and his allies, not everyone agreed with the results. Rival Prabowo Subianto refused to concede, declared himself the rightful winner of the April 17 poll, and promised to contest the results through the courts.

A narrow view on riots in Indonesia

As a result, political tension spilled into deadly clashes several nights in Java and Jakarta, with police using tear gas to disperse the mobs. At stake: the validity of the presidential poll, amid accusations of widespread fraud.

Parts of Jakarta were in lockdown, with streets cordoned off and 30,000 police and military troops on standby. The president addressed the nation Wednesday night and reassured people that the violence was under control. As of Thursday, nearly 60,000 security personnel patrolled the streets.

(Photo courtesy of Bruce Smith)

Bruce Smith, president and CEO of Wycliffe Associates confirms the situation even as they kick off a number of Bible translation projects in Borneo.

“To me, what this reflects is how incendiary the whole situation is. You have the largest Muslim nation in the world [and] you’ve got a pretty large Christian minority. There’s also a mixture of lots of other religious groups there as well. So, religion actually plays a very important role in the whole election process.”

Many of the protests take place on a local level, says Smith. “There are crowds in certain places, but basically, our translation teams know how to navigate the situations. They know how to stay out of harm’s way and keep the work going — so it hasn’t disrupted us.”

To put the situation into context, Smith observes, “A lot of times the violence is about as big as the camera lens. What it appears is that the whole nation is in violence, and that’s just not the case.”

Growing pains

Smith describes the unrest as the convulsion of a nation in transition. “It’s a reflection of how challenging the environment is from a security position. The flip side of it that we’re seeing day-to-day is that more and more languages are asking for God’s Word in their own language.”

It’s important to note, “We’re actually seeing an open door in some places where Christians have been elected into government positions. They’re actually making progress toward supporting Bible translation using government funding. So again, we see this as a ripe opportunity for Bible translation to keep moving forward.”

Clamor for hope

Wycliffe Associates intends to launch 100 new Bible translations this year among the most populous people on the island of Borneo. More than three million Dayak people on Borneo — representing 287 languages — are without the Scriptures.

(Photo courtesy of Bruce Smith)

Decades ago, missionaries shared the Gospel with the Dayak, predominantly in the Indonesian language. Word of mouth saw the Gospel spread from the cities to smaller towns and villages.

Only a handful of the local languages had Bible translations. In some of the most remote Dayak villages, only a few of the residents speak Indonesian.

Through an innovative translation method known as MAST, or Mobilized Assistance Supporting Translation, Wycliffe Associates provides training to mother-tongue translators in a workshop setting, staffed by local believers.

“These are all minority languages in which the Gospel has been proclaimed. There is a church that exists. You have church structures that are connected denominationally. You have elders and deacons and pastors — you know, all of the normal things that we associate with a developed church — and you have believers within that church that are multilingual, that are ready to do the translation work under their church’s leadership.”

Smith adds that the translators and church leadership participate in a review process throughout the translation project to help ensure the translation is accurate. Twenty-first century neurological and education theories guided the development of the MAST strategy, which consists of four drafting steps and four accuracy checking steps.

“One hundred language groups are already recruiting mother-tongue Bible translators to start translating,” says Smith.

Wycliffe Associates helps to connect these believers to the technology and tools: computer tablets, Bible translation resources, and training.

“We are mobilizing a team of Indonesian Christian facilitators who can train the local people using our MAST methodology and can encourage them and walk alongside them through this process. So, truly, hundreds of facilitators are already in place that are able to respond to these other languages that are ready to get started.”

Header photo courtesy of Gunawan Kartapranata/Wikimedia/CC.

(Graphic courtesy of Forgotten Missionaries Int’l)

Indonesia (MNN) — Indonesia is fighting an ISIS incursion. In last week’s annual meeting of police and military leaders, Indonesia’s new President Joko Widodo commanded the forces to uphold national security.

“Intelligence must be strengthened, and on-field data must be made available,” Widodo remarked, as recorded by ANTARA News.

“We should not wait for an incident to occur to act.”

Bruce Allen of Forgotten Missionaries International (FMI) works closely with Indonesian pastors and church planters. FMI comes alongside indigenous believers to foster Gospel growth within Muslim-majority nations.

“There is an uptick of activity, in terms of ISIS trying to recruit people from this area, but as far as the culture as a whole and the government of Indonesia go, they are staunchly anti-Islamic State,” he notes.

“They could be heading for some conflict, between Islamic State and the government, but the government is fairly well-established and would probably come out on top.”

ISIS vs. God’s Word

(Image Wikipedia)

According to AsiaOne.com, 22 terror groups throughout Southeast Asia have pledged allegiance to ISIS. They’re actively disseminating pro-Islamic State propaganda in local dialects.

Indonesia’s Chief Security Minister also revealed last week that ISIS-sympathizers are using Middle East tour programs to join up with jihadists in Iraq and Syria.

“ISIS is doing a really good job using a digital platform in connecting with a new generation; ‘fresh recruits,’ we’ll call them,” Allen observes.

“[National] Christians have long been dealing with issues of persecution, so we just need to be continually praying for their wisdom and discernment, as well as their courage to continue in ministry.”

FMI and the pastors they support are using a dual-purpose tool to combat ISIS expansion in Indonesia: God’s Word.

“Having a Bible in the hands of these congregations–each member, or each family, at least–is really crucial,” says Allen.

Despite the risk of being burned alive by or severely beaten by the families, Muslim-background believers are courageously sharing their faith in Indonesia. But, Allen says, they need some help growing in their faith and enduring persecution.

“The pastor may have his Bible, but a lot of the members of the congregations themselves do not have access to Bibles,” he shares. As such, believers can’t feed themselves daily on God’s Word or find the assurance so desperately needed when facing trials and hardships.

As minorities in a Muslim-dominant society, many Christian congregations in Indonesia have long encountered discrimination and persecution. but, these issues may intensify in coming months as the threat
of ISIS grows across southeast Asia.
(Photo, caption courtesy of FMI)

By clicking here and selecting “Tangible Resources,” you can help FMI send more Bibles to their contacts in Indonesia.

You can also help by sponsoring a national pastor.

“It takes a long time for a church to support its own pastor,” Allen shares. “If we can come alongside these pastors to empower them, keep them in ministry…that’s a big help for our brothers and sisters in these countries.”

Basuki Cahaya Purnama, formerly the Deputy Governor of Jakarta and now Governor.
(Photo credit Wikipedia Commons)

Indonesia (MNN) — The recently-inaugurated Chinese Christian governor of Indonesia’s capital city, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, is finding new allies in Jakarta’s influential Muslim leaders.

Mr. Purnama, who goes by “Ahok,” reflects an “acceptance of diversity” agenda being put forth by the newly-elected President and former gubernatorial running mate, Joko Widodo.

“He’s referred to as a double-minority because he’s ethnic Chinese, which is a minority in Indonesia, and he’s also Christian,” notes a ministry friend with work in Indonesia (who has asked not to be named).

“Given the fact that Indonesia has a very large Muslim population, there are some leaders that have been very vocal [about], ‘This is not the kind of leader that we need for Jakarta.'”

Ahok met a great deal of opposition from Islamic hard-liners when he was announced as the city’s leader last month. Earlier this month, a spokesman for one fundamentalist group claimed, “We reject Ahok’s leadership. He does not represent Jakarta’s residents.

“We will elect a new governor who cares about Islam and its citizens, not Ahok.”

Leaders of large Muslim groups in Jakarta are now slamming the hard-liners’ efforts to stir up public unrest against the governor.

“The majority of Jakartans and Indonesians are accepting of the values of democracy,” says one Islamic leader.

“We want to continue to promote pluralism and to limit any violent actions like this. [The Islamic Defenders Front], so far, is only spreading hatred among religious followers and races.”

Christians in Jakarta are surrounding Ahok in prayer. Will you join them?

(Photo credit 8thirty8 Facebook page)

Pray for continued public support of Ahok. Ask the Lord to thwart attempts by Muslim hard-liners to remove him from a position of influence. Pray for strength and discernment for Ahok so he can continue representing Christ to unbelievers in Jakarta.

“There is a great hope that with the new president, and this new governor, there will be increased dialogue and respect for Christians,” notes the fore-mentioned believer.

(Photo cred: Wikipedia)

Indonesia (MNN) — What emotions rise to the surface when a new president takes office in your country? Perhaps hope and optimism shine brightly, or maybe the public’s reaction is more like a mix of frustration and anger.

In Muslim-dominate Indonesia, many evangelical Christian communities are reacting positively to their new President, Joko Widodo.

“Every Christian that I know in Indonesia is feeling relief and delight that this man becomes their new leader,” shares Bruce Allen of Forgotten Missionaries International (FMI).

Joko Widodo: a brief summary

Nicknamed “Jokowi”, 53-year-old Joko Widodo made history a week ago as he was sworn into office as Indonesia’s first president not to have a background in politics or military service. He grew up in the slums of Java and rose quickly from the position of mayor to president.

On Sunday, Joko Widodo made history again by choosing the country’s first female Foreign Minister.

Allen explains why you should care about Indonesia’s new president in the full interview.

The first speech of Indonesia’s 7th president Joko Widodo on October 20, 2014, during his inauguration ceremony.
(Photo, caption courtesy Wikipedia)

Widodo is not only charting new territory in the realm of politics, he’s setting a new standard in the realm of religion, too. During his first speech to Parliament last week, Joko Widodo acknowledged the Christians who were present.

“All the previous presidents, in that opening address to Parliament, have given the traditional Muslim greeting,” Allen explains. “Joko Widodo said that traditional Muslim greeting, but then he also said, ‘I want to greet my Christian countrymen, and so I also say ‘God bless you’ and ‘greetings in peace’ to the Christians.”

National Gospel workers helped by FMI hope to see more efforts like these to extend kindness and inclusion to Indonesian Christians.

Allen says, “[Widodo is] making very serious overtures to say, ‘I’m a Muslim, but I am a leader of all the people.'”

Religious freedom in Indonesia

Christians are one of the six religions protected by Indonesian law. However, Allen says, those legally-protected freedoms are often infringed upon in the world’s largest Muslim-dominate nation.

“Many things tilt in favor of the Muslims,” says Allen. “If there is opposition to Christian outreach locally, or if someone is attacking a church or a pastor, the local police department–probably led by a Muslim–[says], ‘We’ll get to that in a few hours.’

“There are still abuses toward Christians, even though they are legally protected.”

Javanese dance featuring Ramayana Ballet.
(Photo, caption courtesy Gunawan Kartapranata via Wikimedia Commons)

Indonesian believers hope Joko Widodo’s tolerance and acceptance of religious minorities will change this persistent reality.

“They’re looking for fewer restrictions; they’re looking for many changes that will show that Indonesia is much more open,” states Allen.

In light of the growing ISIS caliphate, pray that other Islamic nations will follow Indonesia’s example, as set forth by its new president.

“Right now, our news is being dominated by so much bad news about the Muslim world, especially with ISIS running rampant,” Allen says.

“Here is the world’s largest, Muslim-dominate country turning its back on ISIS, so to speak, and saying, ‘We welcome the contribution that Christians are having in this country.'”

More Muslim ministry stories from FMI here.