Protestantism in East Timor

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In the Calvinist Church of Berau ( Atauro )

About 2.0% of the population in East Timor belong to religious communities that are counted as Protestantism .

Overview

Protestant center in Berau

The Protestants in East Timor include the Baptists , the Reformed or Presbyterian churches , the Methodist churches , the Seventh-day Adventists , the Assemblies of God and other churches of the Pentecostal movement , the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Christian Vision Church . There are also some non-denominational congregations. In 2015, 23,100 East Timorese Protestants were registered in the census. The largest church is the Reformed Protestant Church in East Timor (Igreja Prostestante iha Timor Lorosa'e IPTL) with 17,000 members.

In general, the relationship between Protestants and the Catholic majority in the country is good. In rural areas, however, there have already been threats from Protestant communities. Stones are regularly thrown at the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Lospalos . In 2000, Catholic rioters burned three Protestant churches in Aileu . The Catholic Church apologized for the crime and helped rebuild. In 2015, part of a Protestant facility under construction was destroyed in the municipality of Ermera , whereupon a hearing was held in the municipal court in February. A Catholic priest is said to have been the instigator.

The Partido Democrata Cristão (PDC) is considered to be the representative of the Protestants in the East Timorese party landscape . Such was Arlindo Francisco Marcal , pastor and former leader of today IPTL, formerly secretary general of the PDC.

history

Flat church of the Igreja Evangélica Presbiteriana in Caicoli (Dili)

There is a long-established majority of Protestants (2007: 60%) on Atauro , who live mainly in the north of the East Timorese island. They were evangelized from Alor by Dutch Calvinists at the beginning of the 20th century. The Dutch also left a Protestant population in Maubara when the area was ceded to Portugal in 1851 . Her religious freedom was guaranteed by the Lisbon Treaty of 1859 .

In the mid-1940s, some families in Baucau received Bibles from foreigners. Shortly thereafter, they began meeting for Bible studies and prayer together. Others joined them, creating a Protestant denomination. One of the founders was the pastor Maria de Fátima Wadhoomall Gomes , who in 1978 together with her husband José Agusto Seabra Gomes renewed Protestantism in Atauro.

In 1979, during the Indonesian occupation, these Protestants founded the Christian Church of East Timor ( Indonesian Gerja Kristen Timor Timur GKTT), which was officially recognized in 1988. During the occupation, many of the GKTT members were Indonesian administrators, civil servants and soldiers. In general, the East Timorese people saw the Church as pro-Indonesian and anti-independence, while the majority of Protestant leaders tried to stay out of politics. In the early 1990s, Arlindo Francisco Marçal became the moderator of the GKTT and the church was now more distant from Indonesia. Marçal positioned himself as a supporter of East Timor’s independence, who sought support from Christians abroad. During the crisis in East Timor in 1999 in the context of the successful independence referendum on August 30 , all 60 GKTT buildings were destroyed by militias . After the Indonesians left, GKTT was renamed IPTL. Since independence, other Protestant churches also expanded in East Timor, such as the Assemblies of God, Bethel Church, and the Pentecostal Movement.

Like Catholics and Muslims , Protestants had a representative on the National Council in Maria de Fátima Wadhoomall Gomes .

Leaders

Religious leaders
church photo Surname Term of office
Igreja Prostestante iha Timor Lorosa'e IPTL Lourenço dos Santos (2020) Moderator Lourenço dos Santos since 2017
Igreja Evangelica Assembleias De Deus Em Timor Leste Francisco dos Reis (2020) President Francisco dos Reis

literature

  • Durand, Frédéric: Catholicisme et Protestantisme dans l'Ile de Timor 1556–2003: Construction d'une Identité Chrétienne et Engagement Politique Contemporain , Editions Arkuiris; Bangkok: IRASEC Toulouse 2004.

Web links

Commons : Protestantism in East Timor  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b c U. S. Department of State: International Religious Freedom Report for 2016 , Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor , accessed August 18, 2017.
  2. ↑ Direcção-Geral de Estatística : Results of the 2015 census , accessed on November 23, 2016.
  3. ↑ a b Protestant Church in Timor Lorosa'e on the website of the World Council of Churches .
  4. ↑ a b c PCUSA News to Presbynews: Church on the rocks , July 16, 2004 , accessed July 19, 2018.
  5. ↑ Michaela Müller and Monika Schlicher: Political Parties and Groups in East Timor , Indonesia Information No. 1 2002 (East Timor)
  6. ↑ UCAN: Foreign Missioner Uses Traditional Medicine To Treat The Sick , December 13, 2007 , accessed August 18, 2017.
  7. ↑ a b President of East Timor: PRESIDÊNCIA DA REPÚBLICA PRESTA ÚLTIMA HOMENAGEM À FUNDADORA DA IGREJA PROTESTANTE EM TIMOR-LESTE , January 7, 2020 , accessed on January 19, 2020.
  8. ↑ Lydia M. Beuman: Political Institutions in East Timor: semi-presidentialism and Democratization (2016).
  9. ↑ United Nations: East Timor UNTAET - Background , accessed May 18, 2016.
  10. ↑ President of East Timor: https://presidenciarepublica.tl/2017/11/mensajen-prezidente-da-republika-francisco-guterres-lu-olo-ba-komemorasaun-aniversariu-ba-dala-500-reforma-nian/ , 16 November 2017 , accessed April 20, 2020.
  11. ↑ Tatoli: Lideransa Protestante Preokupa Situasaun Polítika , October 20, 2017 , accessed on April 20, 2020.