Global Ministries

Oase Intim: Institute for Eastern Indonesia Ministry Empowerment and Contextual Theology Studies 

Nature, Vision, Mission, Values

Oase Intim is a Christian institute for development of contextual theology and empowerment of local ministry in Eastern Indonesia. Oase Intim was founded on 7 February 2005 by some lecturers of a theological seminary in Makassar to develop contextual theology and empower church ministry at the grass roots. Oase Intim is an independent institution; ecumenical in character and seek to develop networks among churches and communities with common concern to develop contextual theology and empower Christian ministry.

Esclavitud

Abre tu boca, juzga con justicia, y defiende la causa del pobre y del menesteroso.
Proverbios 31:9

Lectionary Selection: John 14:8-17

Prayers for Indonesia:  

Spirit of Truth, in Jesus Christ we see you. We see your unbounded love for this world—for all its creatures and all its peoples. Today we pray for Indonesia, a country enriched but also divided by the diversity of your creation: a country where palm oil plantations obliterate the native forests; where young people are bought and sold, their bodies a sacrifice to the gods of modernity; where the capital city is sinking into the sea from the weight of concrete and steel; a country where people call to you by many names, in hundreds of languages, where churches and mosques are overflowing with people who are still aware of their need for You. Spirit of Truth, recent elections have strengthened Indonesia's democracy, but at the same time have left Indonesia's religious communities increasingly divided from one another. Spirit of Jesus Christ, open their eyes, open our eyes, that we may see one another for who we really are: beloved children of God, sisters, and brothers. Though we call You by many names, You are still One God. Amen.

The Evangelical Christian Church in Timor (GMIT) is the second largest Protestant church in Indonesia with approximately 1.5 million members. GMIT has about 2,000 congregations in 46 presbyteries, with around 1,500 pastors to serve the growing community. The majority of GMIT’s members are subsistence farmers who live in villages that have been suffering from poor access to educational and health services, as well as undeveloped transportation, communication, and energy systems. GMIT rejoices in its unique ability to participate in God’s mission on behalf of peace, justice, and integrity.

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Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy. Proverbs 31:9

“They aren’t dying because they are sick. They are dying because they’re being mistreated.” Yohana spoke these words to a gathering of religious leaders, rights activists, and journalists at a memorial service and press conference at the office of the Evangelical Christian Church of Timor in Indonesia. Yohana didn’t say much - she speaks a Timorese language, not Indonesian - but her tears spoke volumes. A year earlier, Yohana’s 21-year-old daughter, Adelina, died in Malaysia. Adelina had been a domestic worker whose employers made her sleep on a veranda with their vicious dog. Neighbors eventually reported the case. Finding Adelina’s arms and legs covered by infected wounds, the police rushed her to a hospital where she died within a few days.

Lectionary Selection:  Luke 4:1-13

Prayers for Indonesia:  

God of Wisdom and Mercy, shed your light on hidden negotiations in Indonesian villages and cities that seduce the poor into lives of debt bondage. We pray for legislators to create and enforce laws to prevent human trafficking and illegal migration and better protect its victims, for judges brave enough to investigate in not just “small fry” but also the devil kingpins of trafficking networks, and for government officials to provide quality education and safe, local employment opportunities for villagers as deterrents to trafficking. We pray for those who, tempted by promises that would turn a future of stone into a loaf of wealth, overnight become slaves who suffer years of abuse and terror. Strengthen those victims tempted to surrender to hopelessness; grant them endurance and cunning; guide them home. Comfort those who would comfort — pastors, activists, Catholic sisters, young theologians — who, week after week, receive yet another victim returning home in a coffin. Loving God, these are your servants, tireless in their dedication, but weary in their bodies and souls. Renew their spirits; lighten their burden. Comfort also families on the islands of Sumba, Flores, and West Timor who mourn the loss of their children. Help us to respond so this reality may cease to endure.

Global Ministries partner, the Evangelical Protestant Church of Timor, known by its Indonesian acronym, GMIT, is still wrestling with the problem of human trafficking that has caused many deaths. In 2018, bodies of 104 migrant workers were returned to East Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia. Already in 2019, the body of a victim who died due to sudden cardiac arrest has been returned to this province.

Indonesia

Christian Church of Sumba (GKS) as a church has the largest number of members in Sumba, and they have developed various forms of ministry for their members and society as a whole. The Synod of GKS has been developing and implementing agricultural projects as part of their holistic ministry for many years. Sumba is a unique district in Indonesia because it is a dry region with minimal levels of rainfall. These circumstances have led to rising food insecurity. In 2015, GKS built an agricultural training center in the city of Lewa. The center has been training families on conservation and climate-resilient techniques.

An Interpretive Account of the Conversations among Global Ministries’ Partners engaged in Anti-human trafficking work in Asia

Kupang, Indonesia, April 5-9, 2018