conversion by affiliation: the history of the Karo Batak Protestant Church

Abstract

Theories of conversion have often stressed either psychological or sociological factors, but viewing conversion as the public declaration of a new identity and incorporating the element of time afford a way to synthesize these approaches. Although conversions to Christianity in the Karo Protestant Church, legacy of a Dutch Reformed mission, were often prompted by political or pragmatic considerations and reinforced an ethnic identity in contrast to a Muslim majority, religious life for many Karo has been transformed over the long run.

Continuity Thinking and the Problem of Christian Culture

“…However, suddenness is not necessary for changes to be profound (although sudden ones do capture our attention). As was suggested some time ago by Rita Kipp (1995), the sociological (and religious) impact of changes can be significant even when they are grounded in nondramatic, nonemotional events.…”

Christianity, Islam, and ‘The Religion of Pouring’: Non-linear Conversion in a Gambia/Casamance Borderland

“…Among recent anthropological and historical studies of religious conversion, we have for the most part examinations of linear histories of conversion trajectories: traditional practice to Christianity (Gabbert 2001;Hamer 2002;Kipp 1995;Pritchett 2007), traditional practice to Islam (Searing 2003(Searing , 2006McIntosh 2009), Christianity to Islam (McDougall 2009), Islam to Christianity (Hefner 1993b;Shankar 2006), conversion to reform movements within Islam ( Janson 2005;Leichtman 2009), from one Christian denomination to another (Engelke 2004;Meyer 1998), the revival of traditional practices among Islamicized groups (Aguilar 1995), and the rise of a neotraditionalist movement with Christian roots (Falge 2008). More extended studies have examined such linear conversion processes as composed of multiple phases or steps that may include elements of 'reconversion' and more complex dialogue ('long conversations', in the Comaroffs' terms) between two religious traditions (Baum 1990;Comaroff 1985;Comaroff andComaroff 1991, 1997;Hodgson 1999;Landau 1995;McKittrick 2002;Smythe 2006;Masquelier 2001).…”

Changing Faith: The Social Costs of Protestant Conversion in Rural Oaxaca

“…Nevertheless, totally neglecting the pragmatic incentives of conversion would be misguided, and striking a dynamic balance between utilitarian and intellectualist explanations is far more expounding. Kipp (1995) takes this path in her study of the Karo Batak Protestants on Sumatra, demonstrating how converts for political and pragmatic reasons, like quest for literacy and education, eventually become Christians of conviction. Robbins's (2004) two-stage model of conversion, outlined in his study of the Urapmin of Papua New Guinea, is another attempt at such a compromise.…”