History Of The Huria Kristen Indonesia (HKI) :

A Short History of the HKI
Forward
The Batak people are one of the largest in Indonesia. According to legend, the Batak people spread out beginning from Samosir Island (in the middle of Lake Toba in North Sumatra). The Batak ethnic group consists of 5 sub-groups: the Toba Batak, the Simalungun, the Karo, the Pakpak-Dairi, and the Angkola-Mandailing. For many centuries, the Batak people lived in the darkness before the coming of the Christian Gospel. By the grace of God in Jesus Christ, at a certain time, God sent his servants to make known the Gospel of Life into the midst of the Batak people who sat in darkness.
The American Baptist Church was the first (in 1824) to send missionaries, Richard Burton and Nathaniel Ward, to the Batak lands. However, these two missionaries were not able to succeed in spreading the Gospel in the Batak lands. Ten years later, in 1834, the Boston-based “American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions” sent two people as Evangelizers to the Bataks, Henry Lyman and Samuel Munson. However, these two missionaries were rejected and killed by the residents of a place called Si Sangkak Lobu Pining (about ten kilometres from Tarutung and Sibolga) on 28 June 1834.
Later on, the mission board “Nederlands Zendings Genootschap” sent a missionary named Van Asselt. On 7 October 1861, the mission board “Rheinishe Missions Geselleschaft” delegated the missionaries Heiny and Klammer to the Batak lands. They worked in Sipirok, the region of the Angkola-Mandailing.
ON 14 May 1862, the RMG mission-board sent I.L. Nommensen to spread the gospel in the Batak lands. He at last was able to succeed and thus we give him the name, “The Apostle to the Bataks.”

The Birth of the “Hoeria Christen Batak” (H.Ch.B.)
Which Became the “Huria Kristen Indonesia” (HKI)
The Movement for Church Independence
In order to raise living standards, many Batak Christians migrated to the east coast of the island of Sumatra. Most of those who moved were simple farmers, only Allah few of them working in the colonial plantation industry. We do not know for certain when this migration began. We can note that since 1907 these migrants were establishing churches themselves in the cities in the eastern parts of North Sumatra. The churches resulting from this migration were unceasing in their expectation of the independence of the church from the RMG.

H.Ch.B. (Which Became the HKI) Was the First Independent Church (1 May 1927)
Since 1907 there had been a congregation founded by the RMG in Pematangsiantar. This church became the center for RMG missionaries in the eastern region of north Sumatra. The members of this church were spread out around the edge of the city of Pematangsiantar, for example in the village of Pantoan.
Considering the difficulties in reaching the church by foot, Frederik Sutan Malu Panggabean (who had graduated from the RMG Seminary in Sipoholan in 1909) urged that there be a new congregation founded in Pantoan. Pastor Panggabean’s suggestion was rejected by the RMG missionary in Pematangsiantar, R. Schneider.
This moment in history was also marked by the birth of Indonesian nationalism (still under the colonial rule of the Netherlands). The date of 20 May 1908 is remembered as the Day of National Resurgance in connection with the establishment of the nationalist movement Budi Otomo. With this historical context in mind, the RMG missionary Schneider’s rejection of the establishment of a church in Pantoan became one reason for the establishment of a new church in Pantoan which was to be named, “Hoeria Christen Batak” which was to become the HKI. According to Pastor Panggabean, the reason for setting up this new church was on account of God’s Word found in the Epistle of James 1:22: “But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.”

Beginning Developments
The response of the people around Pematangsiantar to the development of the H. Ch.B. was extraordinary. In the time frame of only three years, that is, between 1927-1930, there were 5 more congregations founded with 220 new families added. In the year 1933, there were 47 congregations; in 1935, 170 congregations! From Pantoan in Pematangsiantar, the HKI spread out to the other regions of Deli Serdang, Tapanuli (Humbang, Sipahutar, Pangaribuan, Silindung, Patane Porsea, Toba Hasundutan) and Medan. Church buildings were built, even though they were simple, to function as elementary schools as well.

The Permission and Right to Serve the Sacraments
People who did not like the H.Ch.B. used to accuse the H.Ch.B. of being a political party subverting the Dutch colonial rule. The people of the H.Ch.B. suffered much as a result of this. The H.Ch.B. was not recognized as a Church by the Dutch government and was not authorized to serve the sacraments (Baptism and the Lord’s Supper).
The request for recognition as a Church and the authorization to serve the Christian sacraments was many times conveyed to the Dutch government but never accepted. With limited facilities, Pastor F. Sutan Malu Panggabean went to face the Dutch Governor General in Buitenzorg (today Bogor) on the island of Java. On 27 May 1938, the permission for the H.Ch.B. was granted. Since then, the H.Ch.B. was allowed to celebrate the Christian sacraments.

The Expansion of the Name H.Ch.B. to Become HKI
With the realization of the expansion of the mission of the church and with the understanding that the church was not only for Bataks, the Synod (the governing assembly) of the H.Ch.B. on 16-17 November 1946 broadened the name, making it the “Huria Kristen Indonesia.” This same assembly chose Pastor T. J. Sitorus as the “Voorsitter.”
Regrettably, several congregations disagreed with this name change and remained the “H.Ch.B.” Later changing their name to “Gereja Kristen Batak,” on 26 August 1976, the Synod assembly of the GKB, having lost many church members to other churches, declared themselves reconciled with the HKI.

Ecumenical Activities

Isolated for 40 years
As mentioned above, the RMG did not recognize the H.Ch.B as a church. This attitude did not change when the H.Ch.B. became the HKI. The same attitude was present in the “Huria Kristen Batak Protestan” (the HKBP) until 1967. On the basis of this, the HKI was prevented from joining the ecumenical bodies in Indonesia and internallionally for 40 years. The H.Ch.B. and later the HKI suffered greatly from this isolation. All higher theological education was closed to students from the H.Ch.B/HKI. For these 40 years, H.Ch.B/HKI stood alone in all financial and staffing matters.
For these 40 years, the H.Ch.B/HKI has noted 4 important critical stages in its internal development: 1934-1942, 1946, 1959-1964 and 1986. But by the grace of our Lord the King, the H.Ch.B/HKI has worked itself through all its internal conflicts.

Received into the Ecumenical Movement
After wrestling in prayer and through tireless approaches, the Indonesian Council of Churches (the “Persekutan Gereja-Gereja,” or PGI) finally accepted the HKI into membership on 29 October 1967 at their meeting in the city of Ujung Pandang (Makassar).
Since the reception of the HKI into membership of the PGI, the door was opened for the HKI enter into the world ecumenical community. Today, the HKI is a member of the CCA, the LWF, the WCC, UEM and maintains good relations with other churches in Indonesia and many other countries such as the Lutheran Church of Australia, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the churches of Rheinland, Westphalia and especially with K.K. Hamm.

The Contemporary Situation
The HKI today has spread to many provinces, regions, cities and islands in Indonesia, especially the islands of Sumatra, Batam and Java.
In this year of 2005, the members of the HKI number about 350,000, spread out between 718 parishes, 118 districts, and 8 provinces. The HKI is served by an Ephorus, a Secretary General and 8 district heads, 150 pastors (both men and women), 718 teacher-preachers (82 full-time and 636 part-time), 8 “Bibelvrouwen,” 4 evangelists, 5,020 elders, 27 staff members in the central office and at the Panti Asuhan Zarfat orphanage, among other places.

The Partnership Experience with Kirchenkreis Hamm
From this brief history of the HKI, our brothers and sisters in the K.K. Hamm can understand that the desire for partnership between the HKI and K.K. Hamm is a development that is warmly welcomed and happily received. At the same time, this is an important opportunity for the HKI to fulfill its call as the church in Indonesia.
Ever since July 1978, K.K. Hamm and the HKI have been official partners even while a relation existed before then, including the assistance in building up the Panti Asuhan Zarfat orphanage in the village of Bahsampuran in Pematangsiantar. Since the partnership between the K.K. Hamm and the HKI was begun, the HKI truly feels a sense of brotherhood and sisterhood which prayerfully assists the HKI in the fulfillment in its call as the church. The prayers and assistance from K.K. Hamm (both the continuing support and the incidentals) have helped and equipped the HKI to carry out its mission. We can mention several here, among others:

1. Adding to the insight of the leadership, the church members, the women and the youth of the HKI as well as firming this community through exchange visitations.
2. Helping to equip and take care of the buildings, automobiles, providing clean water, school money, clothes, food and medicines for the children of the Panti Asuhan Zarfat orphanage.
3. Helping the efforts of the evangelization and service of the HKI through the donation of automobiles, motocycles, parsonages and offices of the district leadership.
4. Helping the development of the HKI thorugh the donations of funds for the upgrading of pastors, teacher-preachers, treasurers, elders, women, youth, sunday schools and for the printing of liturgy books, hymnals, study book for sunday schools, catechism and women.
5. Helping to raise up the human resources of the HKI through scholarships.
6. Helping the HKI finances through the planting of 100 hectacres of palm oil trees.
7. Helping to raise up the social-economy of HKI church members through farming, fisheries and co-ops.

There is still many fruits of love which are result of the K.K. Hamm/HKI partnership which can not be mentioned one by one. As was mentioned above, the prayers and assistance not only help the HKI financially, but more than that, it gives spiritual encouragement.
We pray that God may always strengthen and bless the KK Hamm and the HKI especially in the protection and building up of the present relationship. We also pray that K.K. Hamm is strengthened by the Lord and the HKI matures through this partnership so that this partnership is not only about financial assistance.