Raharjo (not his real name) was a school drop-out on the Indonesian island
of Sulawesi looking for work, when he was recruited by a jihadist organization.
Like many young Muslim men, he was paid to attack Christian villages with the
aim to force the Christians out of the area. However, as a result of the
increased ‘war on terror‘ by the United States after the 9-11 attack, his group
fell apart and he lost his job. Raharjo returned to Jakarta, traumatized and
depressed. There he joined a punk group and started to use heroin.
One
night Raharjo had a dream. A person who introduced himself as Jesus (Isa) spoke
to him in “bright and strong language” and told him to “Follow me!” In the dream
Raharjo decided to follow this person. When he woke up, he found himself
healthy, sober and without any desire to use drugs.
'I want
to follow Jesus, but I’m not a Christian'Looking for
someone to explain his dream Raharjo turned to Samiton, the pastor of a large
Christian community in Jakarta, who had done a great deal for Muslims facing
social difficulties. “I want to follow Jesus, but I’m not a Christian,” Raharjo
told him. Pastor Samiton did not really know how to deal with this request, and
turned to his friend Wira (not his real name). Wira developed a relationship
with Raharjo, spent a lot of time with him and introduced him to the teachings
of Jesus.
His newfound faith struck deep roots in Raharjo and changed him
over time. He introduced all his gang members to his new Christian friends, and
one after another began to take an interest in Jesus. Wira noticed that the
young men needed a meeting place and also a decent place to live. So he bought a
house and called it ‘Father's House’. Here they met regularly and discovered
more about Jesus and his teachings.
Raharjo's gang back in the early
daysThe method they used to ‘discover Jesus’ was simple: they
followed the instructions of the Quran to read the Gospels and also parts of the
Old Testament. Questions that arose were answered cautiously. In this way the
young men were able to discover their faith by themselves, which is very
important for Muslims.
Because the small discovery groups were mixed -
men and women together - this quickly attracted new young Muslims. In contrast
to everyday life in Indonesia, in the mosques the sexes are separated. But in
the Jesus groups an obvious equal cooperation was practiced from the very
beginning.
'With micro-loans he helped people develop small
businesses'Raharjo married and started a family. He wanted
not only to pass on his faith, but also serve the poor. Together with an advisor
he developed business models - funded with micro-loans of $100 - to help the
people around him to develop small businesses. They started producing T-shirts
and also tried a large number of other business ideas.
In the years that
followed many of the young men in the community returned to their families in
the countryside and shared their faith in Jesus. They had learned: “As soon as
you begin to discover Jesus, invite your family and friends to dinner and tell
them of your faith.” Most parents were happy that their sons had not been lost
in the big city, but had found a good new life.
This way more and more
small communities started to emerge in Jakarta and throughout the country, and
these communities multiplied quite easily - always through personal contacts and
along family lines. Like in the gospels it’s common for new Jesus followers to
be baptized in the context of their family.
To date, through the life and
witness of Raharjo alone, around 1,200 Jesus groups have been started among
Muslims across the country.
Source: Withheld for security reasons,
interviewed by Reinhold Scharnowski
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