The diversity of contemporary Christianity in Southeast Asia (original) (raw)
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Christianity from the Margins in Southeast Asia
Kritika Kultura, 2015
The relationship between nationalism and religion is very complicated. In the context of colonialism, Christianity has surely been perceived as a foreign religion that poses a menace to native nationalism. This essay presents a different picture, taking the case of colonial Java (the Netherlands East Indies) to illustrate the complex historical relationship between Catholicism and Indonesian nationalism. Perhaps it is rather ironic that it was chiefly through their connection with the Dutch Church and their mission enterprise that the Javanese Catholic intelligentsia were made deeply aware of their own dignity as a particular people and the limitations of European colonialism. In this case, Catholic Christianity as a world religion with supranational connection and identity has been able to help the birth of an intense nationalism that was prevented from being too narrow, chauvinistic, or simply "racialist, " precisely because it is connected with its larger ecumenism or network. More specifically, this ecumenism is also founded on the idea of "catholicity, " that is, universalism, that lies at the heart of Catholic Christianity. In the post-colonial Indonesia, however, this Catholic view needs to be translated into common platforms with the views and concerns of Indonesian Muslims, who face the same new challenges as they play their role in the formation of an authentic Indonesian nationalism.
Introduction: Politics of Faith in Asia: Local and Global Perspectives of Christianity in Asia
Culture and Religion: An Interdisciplinary Journal 14 (2):180–184, 2013
This collection of papers is the result of research presented at the 2010 meeting of the American Academy of Religion in Atlanta, Georgia, sponsored by the Comparative Studies of Religion section. The set of papers resulting from the panel, Politics of Faith in Asia: Local and Global Perspectives of Christianity in Asia, presents findings from a diverse array of cultural areas and historical contexts across the Asian continent. All of these are connected by a focus on the intersection of Christianity and the political organisation in Asian societies. Although each paper focuses primarily on the continued encounter of Protestant, Evangelical Christianity and local religions, the definition and scope of the political milieu differ considerably. Moving from local communities in a small Indian town, through the growing global connections of religious groups in the Philippines, to the global and national politics of South Korea, the set addresses a multitude of political levels, be they governmental or the processes of everyday interactions.
The Philippines (Edinburgh Companion to Global Christianity: East and Southeast Asia)
Edinburgh Companion to Global Christianity: East and Southeast Asia, 2020
This chapter offers new ways of critically assessing the vibrancy of Christianity in the Philippines. The premise is that it is diverse. While it is important to discuss the fortunes of Catholicism, the dominant religion, it is also crucial for new analyses to factor in the emergence of new religious groups. In other words, the analytical way forward is to frame the discussion in terms of Christianities in the Philippines. To spell out their salient attributes is the aim of this chapter. In the latter part consideration will be given to how Roman Catholicism fares in relation to this diversity. The first point is that Christianity in the Philippines is militant. In the literature, Militant Christianity refers to fundamentalism and its triumphalist disposition toward different spheres of society. These facets have some local resonances. Although many new groups and denominations have emerged over the years, their general theological character is fundamentalist, which spills over into their political choices. In this sense, the religious economy, while competitive, also has a predictable and dominant trait. The second characteristic is that it is global. The global expansion of many groups has been made possible by the movement of Filipinos to work around the world. But explaining it only in this manner is no longer adequate. I will argue that the global character of Filipino Christianity is a result too of a postcolonial assertion. Many religious leaders are convinced that Filipinos have a calling to evangelize the world. The chapter ends by situating Roman Catholicism in relation to these developments. While other Christian groups are asserting themselves in militant and global ways, there are indications that Roman Catholicism’s influence in the public sphere is waning.
Bautista, J. (2009a). “About Face: Asian Christianity in the Context of Southern Expansion” in Bautista, J. and Lim, F.K.G., (eds.), Christianity and the State in Asia: Complicity and Conflict. Oxford and New York: Routledge, pp. 201-214