began to search for more information about the origins of the Christian faith.

Transcription

1 Volume 3, Number 1 Fr. Athanasius Ordained, Becomes First Orthodox Clergy from Papua The island province of Papua, the largest Indonesian province in land area, is quite different in almost every way from the rest of Indonesia, a country known for its diversity of cultures and languages. Papua was a Dutch colony, like Indonesia, but it is the only province whose native population is of African (as opposed to Asian) ancestry. As such, its population is much more tribal than the rest of Indonesia, and its government is a unique council of tribal leaders. It is also physically separated from the capital and most important provinces of Indonesia by a long distance almost six hours by air, or about as far as New York is from Los Angeles. An even larger difference between Papua and the rest of Indonesia is that fact that the majority of Papuans are Christians. This is phenomenal when you consider that Indonesia, the world s largest Moslem country, is no more than 10% Christian by most estimates. Joseph Muzendi grew up in Papua, and was raised as a Baptist Christian. He had a successful career as a civil servant in the immigration office, something that is nearly impossible to attain in other provinces because of the societal discrimination against Christians. But over the years he began to feel a desire to minister in the name of Christ full time. He left his government position, graduated from a Protestant seminary, and was ordained a Baptist minister. He was assigned to work under an American mission organization on the island of Batam, the northern-most main island in Indonesia, directly south of Singapore. But his connection to Papua drew him back. In the Letter from the Chairman V. Rev. Fr. Gordon Walker This year will mark the twentieth anniversary of the ordination to the priesthood of my dear friend and brother priest, Fr. Daniel Byantoro. Some of you have known Fr. Daniel as I have, from that day when Bishop (now Metropolitan) MAXIMOS laid his hands on Fr. Daniel s head, and commissioned him to spend the rest of his life in service to the Holy Orthodox Church. But even if you 1970 s, the government began an aggressive campaign to Islamicize Papua. Over 1,000 Muslim missionaries were sent to Papua, and many entire Muslim families were relocated to Papua. These efforts were particularly directed at the primitive tribes of animists who lived in the more remote parts of Papua, but also at the Christians. Pastor Joseph felt that God was calling him to help strengthen the Christians on Papua against the increasing pressure they were facing to he began to search for more information about the origins of the Christian faith. Papua, the largest Indonesian province in land area convert to Islam, so he returned and took on the responsibilities of being a pastor in a small Baptist church. As he worked to help build up the faith of his flock, he began to discover what he felt were the limitations of the Baptist faith. He felt that he could not find enough that was spiritually nourishing to help keep his people strong in the faith, and he began to search for more information about the origins of the Christian faith. Then, in 1997 he found a copy of a book written by Fr. Daniel Byantoro, on the subject of the New Testament Church. As a convert Continued Fr. Athanasius Pg. 3 have only just recently met him, I am certain of one thing: you know about his passion for bringing the people of Indonesia to the Orthodox Faith. He is so consumed with this task that one can hardly be in his presence for more than a few minutes without hearing him talk about this endeavor which is his life s work. As a faithful friend, you have provided financial support for the small and desperately needy Orthodox Church of Indonesia, and I thank you for your gifts from the Continued Chairman Pg. 2

2 Chairman, from pg. 1 bottom of my heart. Now I would like to ask you to make one more contribution. Will you please help us get the message about this ministry to others in your community, your parish, your diocese? Having just returned from a lengthy stay in Indonesia, Fr. Daniel is currently available as a speaker, and will be available for most of this year. He is actively accepting speaking engagements at parishes, conferences, retreats, and youth activities. I am certain that your interest in helping in the past is directly related to having heard and experienced a presentation by Fr. Daniel. We trust that the more of God s people we can reach with this message, the more support will continue to grow. Can you help us tell many more concerned Christians how God is working in Indonesia, transforming lives through Christ in the largest Muslim country in the world? Fr. Daniel is an exceptionally gifted speaker and evangelist, and capable of adapting his messages to the needs of the group he is addressing. Some of the topics he has spoken on, which have proved very popular with American audiences include his personal testimony about his conversion to Christ; his experiences ministering among Muslims as a former Muslim; how we should understand the Great Commission in light of the doctrine of the Holy Trinity; and the difficulties of living a disciplined Orthodox life in a hostile environment. Along with serving as a priest under the Moscow Patriarchate, Fr. Daniel has taught at the college level, and is very well prepared to engage personally with students, as well as lecturing and participating in other forms of dialog with other religious leaders and speakers. If you would be willing to host Fr. Daniel during this coming year, or if you just want to discuss the possibility of hosting him, I would be delighted to talk with you directly, and to answer any questions you might have, as well as discuss dates, locations, etc. Simply contact us from our website: Thank you for your past support, your continued prayers, and for considering how you can help us get the word out about the continuing miracle of the Indonesian Orthodox Church. Chairman of the Board 2 Moscow & Australian Delegations Visit Orthodox Church of Indonesia Ever since the time in 2005 when Orthodox Church of Indonesia came under the care of Archbishop Hilarion of Sydney, Australia and New Zealand, the reunification of the ROCOR Church (Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia) with the mother Russian Church, the Moscow Patriarchate, had been very much in mind. Relations between Arbp Hillarion and Moscow were very warm and cordial, and they discussed every aspect of what they anticipated would be a coordinated outreach into Indonesia. Since that time, Fr. Daniel, the Dean of the Indonesian Church, has maintained a regular correspondence with Dmitri Petrovsky, Secretary for Inter- Orthodox relations of the Belgorod and Starooskol skaya diocese. There were some periods of silence, but the subject of the reunification of these two factions of the Russian Church that were split apart by the atheistic Soviet regime almost 80 years ago understandably occupied most of their attention. Since the reunification which took place on the Feast of the Ascension on May 17, 2007, communication between Arbp Hillarion, Fr. Daniel and the Moscow Patriarch increased, and plans began to be formed for the visit to Indonesia from Moscow. Providentially, in early October of 2007, Russia s President Putin made a state visit to Indonesia, and leader of the largest Orthodox Christian country in the world was very cordially received by the leader of the largest Muslim country in the world. During this visit, Russian television producers interviewed Fr. Daniel Byantoro, and toured and filmed Orthodox services being held in Holy Trinity Church in Solo. Russian viewers were no doubt very surprised to learn that Orthodox Christianity was being practiced in far-away Indonesia. This political event helped insure a good atmosphere for the Moscow Patriarchate delegation who came to Indonesia two months later, in December. The delegation was comprised of the following clergy from Australia: His Grace, Archbishop Continued Moscow Visit Pg. 4

3 Fr. Athanasius, from pg. 1 to from a Protestant background himself, Fr. Daniel explained that the Orthodox Church was the exact Fr. Daniel with the newly baptized Athanasius and Parasheva in Papua, the only Orthodox Christians in Papua, early same organization founded by Christ, led by the apostles during the New Testament period, and still very much alive and vibrant today. The book explained the Orthodox understanding of the Holy Trinity, the Divinity of Christ, and also some of the practical disciplines of the Apostolic and Orthodox faith: the practice of the prayers of the hours, Divine services, fasting, etc. These themes are almost always of interest to Indonesians everywhere, as they are constantly faced with some very different teachings of Islam on the same subjects. Having read the book, around the year 2001 Pastor Joseph contacted Fr. Alexios, the Orthodox Priest at Holy Trinity Church in Solo, and asked about how he could meet Fr. Daniel. Fr. Alexios sent him a number of other books written by Fr. Daniel, further explaining the teachings of the Orthodox Church in Indonesia. Finally, in early 2007, Fr. Daniel was able to go to Papua for the first time ever. He spent two weeks there, in and around the capital city of Jayapura, with its population of around 200,000 people. Fr. Daniel led Bible studies, lectured and taught daily, and visited with numerous groups of Protestant Christians. For two hours every night, he taught on the Orthodox view of eschatology, particularly on the topic of the soul after death. While Protestants focus on dramatic theories about the end times, they have very little understanding about what happens to the individual after his or her own death. He also baptized and chrismated Pastor Joseph and his wife, Dolly, giving them the chrismation names of Athanasius and Parascheva. At that time they were, and still remain, the only known Orthodox Christians in Papua. For the next 10 months, the former Pastor Joseph continued to lead his Baptist congregation of approximately 150 people, and continued to receive a salary from the Baptist church, and to live in the house supplied by the church. However, as an Orthodox Christian, he could not administer baptism and communion, so other Baptist pastors would visit occasionally for that purpose. Needless to say, this whole situation felt extremely awkward, and Pastor Joseph (Athanasius) was more than ready to take the next step, which occurred in December During the visit of Archbishop Hilarion, Bishop Mark, and the rest of the Moscow Patriarchate delegation, Pastor Joseph came to Holy Trinity Church in Solo to meet the with the Bishops, and to receive ordination to the Diaconate. In anticipation of this event, he had come to Solo one month earlier, and stayed with Fr. Alexios to be taught how to conduct Orthodox services, and after his ordination, he stayed an additional two weeks for further instruction. Also during that trip, Archbishop Hilarion informed him that he had been able to find some funding to allow Fr. Deacon Athanasius to rent a house in Papua, as a place to live, and a place to hold Orthodox services. Already, some of his former Baptist parishioners are now catechumens, and Fr. Dcn. Athansius is now able to more fully share the richness of the Orthodox faith with them, unhindered by any continuing connection with the Baptist church. Current plans are for Fr. Alexios to spend some time in Papua in the near future, and Archbishop Hilarion has promised to visit at the time of his next trip to Indonesia. Please pray earnestly for the faithful servants of God, Dcn. Athansius and his wife Parascheva, and that God would richly bless this brand new outpost of the Holy Orthodox Church on the remote island of Papua. - FOI The newly ordained Deacon Athanasius, with Bishops Mark and Hilarion at Holy Trinity Church in Solo. 3

4 Moscow Visit, from pg. 2 Hilarion, ruling bishop of Sydney, Australia and New Zealand; and Reader Alexander Paramonov. Also, from Russia were: His Grace, Bishop Mark of Egoriev, vicar of the Moscow Diocese, Deputy Chairman of the the Department of External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate; Hieromonk Sofrony (Kitaev), Economos of the Belgorod Theological Seminary; and Dmitry Ivanovich Petrovsky, Secretary for Inter-Orthodox relations of the Belgorod and Starooskol skaya diocese. This group met in Jakarta for three days, in Solo for three days, and then continued to Bali for three final days in Indonesia. Jakarta is, of course, the capital and most prominent city in Jakarta. Solo represents the starting point of Orthodoxy in Indonesia, the oldest, most mature and largest parish in the country. Bali is the most prominent resort city in the country, and the place most visited by the rest of the world. Several Indonesian and Russian clergy concelebrating the Divine Liturgy In Jakarta, two deacons and two readers were ordained. While the delegation was gathered in Solo, all the Indonesian Clergy came for several days of meetings and services. During this time, one sub-deacon was ordained, two deacons were ordained (including Fr. Athanasius from Papua), and Deacon Barnabas from Timor was ordained to the priesthood. Both bishops presided jointly at all ordinations. The clergy got the opportunity to meet with both Hierarchs, and to fully explain their ministries, their working conditions, and their needs. Financial needs were openly and freely discussed, including the fact that all clergy are required to hold secular employment, and that given their status as very visible Christians, and the de facto anti-christian bias on the part of both government and industry in Indonesia, they are unable to hold high-paying positions for which they would otherwise be qualified. -FOI 4 A Message from Fr. Daniel Dear friend, Greetings to you in this new year of our Lord, and best wishes for your health, happiness, and salvation during I have just returned to the US from Indonesia, and have a lot to share with you. I want to tell you about the ordination of a very special servant of God, the Deacon Athanasius, who is leading the Orthodox mission in the island/province of Papua. Also, I want to share with you some of what occurred recently when our Indonesian Orthodox Church was visited by a delegation from the Moscow Patriarchate. But I would also like to speak more directly to you about what it is like for an Orthodox Christian to practice the Orthodox disciplines of prayer and fasting, worship, reverence and obedience, under circumstances much different than you have probably ever experienced. These disciplines are what define us as Orthodox Christians, but their meaning and significance for the Indonesian Orthodox is somewhat different in the context of an overwhelmingly Islamic society. Orthodox Piety in an Islamic Society Indonesian society shares with Muslim societies everywhere the presence of multiple, often contradictory, sects, parties, and traditions with Continued Fr. Daniel Pg. 5

5 Fr. Daniel, from pg. 4 varying degrees of toleration of other religious beliefs and practices. However, Muslims everywhere have a profound respect for practices of personal piety which demonstrate a deep spiritual understanding of life, and a love for God. Often, it is the practice of personal piety and devotion that first opens the door of curiosity for Indonesian Muslims, who may be both perplexed but also intrigued by the activities of their Christian neighbors and friends. Many Muslims truly believe that worshipping and serving God is far more important than arguing about Him. A good example of this comes from a meeting I had about eight years ago, with Abdul Rahman Wahid, the then-current President of Indonesia. Mr. Wahid, also known by his nickname Gus Dur, was both a political and religious leader, and was marked by his very great tolerance for religious diversity. Sadly, his health is failing, and he no longer has much visibility as a leader in Indonesia. In 2000, I was invited to visit with Mr. Wahid in his presidential palace in Jakarta, where he told me the following story: A Christian monk and a Moslem sufi student met one day on a road, and began to argue about Christianity and Islam. Eventually, they stopped arguing and went on their separate ways, both of them upset and harboring bad feelings towards the other. The sufi student arrived at the home of his master, and knocked at the door. No one answered. Being an obedient servant, he When [Muslims] see Christians really sincerely following the disciplines of the Christian life, they are usually impressed in some positive way. waited at the door for three days, sleeping in the doorway. Finally, his master opened the door, and told him to leave. You are not my disciple, he told him. But master! exclaimed the student. You were fighting over the robe of God, the master told him, and closed the door. The point of the story is that the essence of Islam, and religion in general, is loving and serving God, and that when you are arguing over who is right, you are fighting about the robe (the external coverings, not the essence) of God. According to Mr. Wahid, and others like him the only really important demand of religion is to know God by worship, piety, devotion, love, and submission. This is not untypical of the sufist approach to Islam, which is often not as legalistic and confrontational as some other branches of Islam. Mr. Wahid in his religious and political roles was a respected spokesman from this perspective, for tolerance, pluralism, and respect for other religions. It his hard to estimate how many Indonesians believe as he does down deep, but at least as far as support, he had millions of supporters, and his popularity enabled him to face off and defeat the more radical elements of Islam in Indonesia, at least for a time. Later in our conversation, Mr. Wahid told me that he knew that Orthodoxy embodied a deep piety and devotional mysticism akin to Sufist spirituality. He told me that he hoped that perhaps Orthodoxy could serve as a bridge between Islam and Christianity in Indonesia, because of it s Semitic origins, and its mystical approach to belief in God. Of course, the less tolerant, more violent elements in Islam are a very real threat today in Indonesia as they are in all other Islamic societies around the world. Still, Muslims everywhere are invariably impressed that Orthodox Christians practice their devotion to God in ways that they can relate to. Some of these practices include praying at regular times throughout the day; fasting for certain days of the week and seasons of the year; bowing and prostrations during prayer; giving alms to the poor; the use of prayer ropes; the invocation of the name of God; showing respect by kissing the hands of the clergy; humility before God as expressed by removal of shoes and sitting on the floor during worship; and 5 Continued Fr. Daniel pg. 6

6 Fr. Daniel, from pg. 1 modesty in dress for women, particularly the wearing of scarves or veils. Historically, Mohammed and his followers adapted most of these practices from their observations of the Orthodox Christians around them, but this fact is not common knowledge among Muslims. My approach to evangelism has always been incarnational, in that I try to present the practice of Orthodoxy in a way that would be palatable to the average Indonesian Muslim, without in any way betraying or misrepresenting the Orthodox faith. This is not an imitation of Muslim piety, but rather represents a full respect for the teachings and practices of the Orthodox Christian faith and tradition. I also routinely use verses in the Bible to demonstrate to Muslims that these practices are actually Orthodox traditions that derive from the Bible, and that predate the birth of Islam. Among Indonesian Orthodox Christians, I very much encourage the monastic practice of the Prayers of the Hours, which is not often followed even by Orthodox in the West. Of all the disciplines of the Orthodox life, this one in particular seems to me the most appropriate for the Orthodox in Indonesia, where Muslims routinely refer to praying five times each day. I point out that when we pray the full cycle of prayers (first, third, sixth, and ninth hour, vespers, compline, and midnight prayers) we are praying Muslims everywhere are invariably impressed that Orthodox Christians practice their devotion to God [such as] modesty in dress for women, particularly the wearing of scarves or veils. seven times a day, per the example of Psalm 119, and two more times than the most devout Muslim. In addition to being of great benefit to the person who spends this much time regularly coming face to face with God, it is a great witness to those Muslims who get a glimpse of this Orthodox devotion. I have even seen quite a number of Protestants who are eager to begin praying these prayers after exposure to this practice. A typical Muslim criticism of Christianity is that it is a religion of the head, not the heart. When they see Christians really sincerely following the disciplines of the Christian life, they are usually impressed in some positive way. - FOI 6 Friends Of Indonesia PO Box 9484, Baltimore, MD Friends of Indonesia exists to raise awareness and support for the Indonesian Orthodox Church. Our purpose is disseminate information about Indonesia, its history and culture, and about the Orthodox Church in Indonesia; and to encourage Orthodox believers to support the Church in Indonesia through their prayers and gifts.