A postcolonial biography of Sadrach: The tragic story of an indigenous missionary

Abstract

Nowadays, many Indonesian Christians are fully aware that evangelic mission in Indonesian context is to be involved in the dialogue of life with one's neighbor and share their struggles. Sadrach, an indigenous missionary who lived in 19th century, can be seen as a pioneer in this mission method. However, this method was not accepted by the foreign missionaries at that time. They accused Sadrach's method as a form of syncretism. This work is an attempt to analyze Sadrach's biography in the framework of postcolonial theory which argues that Indonesian Christians have to learn about their colonial past and strive to maintain equal relationships with non-Indonesian Christians. It is hoped that his achievements can be appreciated by the present generation, and they will not repeat the mistakes of the past. It is also good to be aware that resistance to Sadrach's mission nowadays will come from some contemporary international mission-bodies which continue the old way of propagating Christian faith without regard to the context of Indonesia.