Micronesia

views updated

Micronesia

POPULATION 135,869
CHRISTIAN 98.5 percent
OTHER 1.5 percent

Country Overview

INTRODUCTION

The Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), a sovereign, self-governing nation, consists of 607 islands in the central Pacific Ocean. Its four "states" are associated with four major island groups: Yap, Chuuk (called Truk until 1990), Pohnpei (called Ponape until 1984), and Kosrae (called Kusaie until the early 1980s). Once called the Carolines, the islands began to be known as part of the larger Micronesian chain of islands in the 1830s.

The population of more than 135,000, consisting of various Micronesian and Polynesian ethnolinguistic groups, is overwhelmingly Christian. Almost all Kosrae residents are United Church of Christ, and on Chuuk and Pohnpei about half are Protestant and half are Catholic. Historically there have been many more Catholics than Protestants on Yap, but the Protestant contingent is growing. Although English is the official and common language on the islands, church services are generally conducted in the local ethnic dialects.

Starting in the late 1800s the islands have been ruled by a succession of foreign powers—Spain, Germany, Japan, and the United States. Germany emphasized commerce, and a German evangelical church, the Liebenzell Mission, gained a small but significant foothold in Yap and Chuuk. Since the FSM and the United States formed the Compact of Free Association (which took effect in 1986), the islands have also proved to be fertile missionary soil for American evangelical Christian churches, including the United Church of Christ, the Assemblies of God, independent Baptists, and the United Pentecostal Church. The Nukuno Protestant Church in Chuuk is representative of a few emerging evangelical churches that have broken ties with historic mainline churches. Most immigrants are Filipino Catholics. The Iglesia Ni Christo churches are present on every FSM island having a sizable Filipino population.

A tiny remnant of Asian religious influences can be traced in part to the Japanese buildup of military bases in Chuuk, Yap, and Pohnpei leading up to World War II. Small groups of Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and Seventh-day Adventists practice in the FSM, especially in Pohnpei and Chuuk. Also found in the FSM are followers of the Bahai faith, Buddhists, Shintoists, and Confucianists.

RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE

The FSM constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the bill of rights forbids establishment of a state religion. The government generally promotes a climate of religious tolerance, and foreign missionaries operate without hindrance on all four islands. The essentially amicable relationship among religions in the FSM contributes to religious freedom.

Major Religion

CHRISTIANITY

DATE OF ORIGIN 1852 c.e.
NUMBER OF FOLLOWERS 133,800

HISTORY

Some Micronesian islands were apparently sighted by European explorers in the 1500s, although the islands were peopled by immigrants from East Asia at least as early as 200 c.e. Medieval Pohnpei was ruled by the Saudeleurs (c. 1100–1600?), a tyrannical royal dynasty that reigned over Nan Madol, an elaborate city of stone fortresses. By 1400 Kosrae, the most stratified society in Micronesia, was unified under one toskosra (paramount chief).

No serious efforts were made to evangelize Micronesians until the nineteenth century, although Spanish Jesuits temporarily set up a colony in Yap in 1731. Benjamin Snow and Albert Sturges (Congregationalist missionaries from the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions [ABCFM])—accompanied by Hawaiian "assistants"—established churches in Kosrae and Pohnpei in 1852. Beginning in the 1870s islander missionaries from Pohnpei working under the ABCFM built churches and schools in Chuuk. Capuchin missionaries, buttressed by Spanish military force, founded Catholic missions in Pohnpei and Yap in the 1880s. In Pohnpei they met resistance from the American missionaries and in collusion with the Spanish government ejected the latter, although local leaders kept the Protestant mission alive.

After Spain sold what would become known as the FSM to Germany in 1899, German Capuchins replaced their Spanish predecessors. In 1906 the German Protestant Liebenzell missionaries began work in Pohnpei and Chuuk. After taking control of the islands following World War I, Japan expelled all German missionaries (although the Liebenzellers later returned) but initially supported Congregational Christians from Japan and Jesuits and Mercedarian Sisters from Spain with government grants.

After World War II the ABCFM came back with renewed commitment, the German mission became more American, and the Vatican transferred Spanish Jesuit responsibilities to the American Jesuits. Assisted by Maryknoll Sisters, Jesuits developed impressive programs in education, welfare, and social advocacy, opening the first four-year high school in Micronesia and establishing a research institute, the Micronesian Seminar, in Chuuk.

Most Protestant denominations, as well as Roman Catholic fellowships, are present on the four major islands. The historic mainline churches—those churches founded by the major missionary movements of the established denominations in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, and North America—represent the majority of Protestant adherents in the FSM. Most Kosrae residents are United Church of Christ, and on Chuuk and Pohnpei about half are Protestant and half are Catholic. Historically there have been many more Catholics than Protestants on Yap, although the Protestant contingent is growing. Among Protestants in the FSM, the second largest group is the Assemblies of God. Most immigrants are Filipino Catholics, who join local Catholic churches. The Iglesia Ni Christo churches are present on every FSM island having a sizable Filipino population. Small groups of Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and Seventh-day Adventists practice in the FSM, especially in Pohnpei and Chuuk.

EARLY AND MODERN LEADERS

While Albert Sturges and Benjamin Snow were the early twin pillars of American Protestant work in Pohnpei and Kosrae, Elizabeth and Jane Baldwin—Presbyterians from the United States—were two of the most celebrated missionaries in the history of Christianity in Oceania. They were active during the late nineteenth century. For 40 years the multilingual Baldwin sisters lived simply, developed the training schools in Kosrae and Chuuk, and gently democratized Kosrae's hierarchical social system by stressing the priesthood of all believers. Elizabeth Baldwin was assisted in translating the entire Bible into Kosraean by an indigenous islander known by the name of Kefwas. Moses Teikoroi, a Sturges protégé, was a pioneer missionary in the Chuuk lagoon.

Henry Nanpei (1860–1928), a Pohnpeian, became Protestantism's leader during the rapid changes under the successive colonial regimes of Spain, Germany, and Japan. Although most Catholic priests have been expatriates, in 1940 Father Paulino Cantero from Pohnpei became the first indigenous Micronesian priest to be ordained.

MAJOR THEOLOGIANS AND AUTHORS

Indigenous theologians and authors of religious practice have not yet emerged from the tiny, remote, and largely oral cultural contexts of the FSM. Following Vatican II the first meeting of the Vicariate Pastoral Planning Council in Micronesia (1971) focused on promoting the self-realization of islanders. Francis Hezel, Jesuit director of the Micronesian Seminar, has spearheaded liberating theological reflection on enculturation and indigenization in the region, including leadership training, financial responsibility, and the incorporation of cultural symbols in worship.

HOUSES OF WORSHIP AND HOLY PLACES

FSM churches, the focus for kinship groups and social life, are invariably the largest buildings and are located near the center of each village or group of villages. Whereas in the nineteenth century churches had been constructed out of indigenous materials and according to indigenous styles, during the last century islanders substituted stone and concrete for thatch and matting. FSM islanders still retain architectural styles introduced by the early foreign missionaries, such as small windows and boxlike construction, even though such styles are ill suited for a tropical climate. Traditional ceremonial buildings, called nahs in Pohnpei and pebai in Yap, still function as community meetinghouses where transcendent power is evoked in prayers and oral traditions.

WHAT IS SACRED?

The anthropologist William Lessa described Micronesian religion as "a mélange of many elements." Although basic aspects of missionary Christianity were accepted in the FSM, islander Christians still revere ancestors and the spirits of ancestors. In Chuuk, prior to the last half of the twentieth century, offerings to ancestor spirits were placed in model canoes suspended from the roof in men's houses. The spirits of certain animals—such as sharks, eels, and lizards—were sacred to the clan of which they were the totem. Heavenly spirits such as the Yapese Yalafath (a trickster god) and nature spirits associated with certain trees and plants were also sacred. Tapuanu masks were worn for ceremonial purposes. Only traces of these cultural forms remain.

Part of the Nan Madol ruins, Madol Powe, was an ancient religious center; many Pohnpeians believe it is still a tabu (forbidden) area. Today some Catholic liturgies include such traditional sacred symbols as the bestowal of the mwaramwar (head garland) at baptismal rites.

HOLIDAYS AND FESTIVALS

Christians in Micronesia celebrate Good Friday, Easter, and Christmas in addition to Cultural Day, Constitution Day, United Nations Day, FSM Independence Day, and separate state holidays, such as Kosrae Liberation Day, commemorating the American defeat of the Japanese. These holidays feature singing, dancing, feasting, and sports competitions, such as canoe racing. Festivals are also held to raise money for churches. The completion of a major village project, such as a community house, is also a time for ritual festivity in Yap.

MODE OF DRESS

While most Christians dress in Western clothes in Kosrae, many men and boys in the outer islands of Yap and Chuuk wear a brightly colored loincloth called a thu. Although the thu is not common in formal worship services, it is acceptable at informal religious gatherings. Similarly the traditional lavalava, or grass skirt, worn by Yapese women is not usually worn to Sunday services but will be featured at special religious occasions.

In Kosrae women wear white dresses and hats to worship. In Chuuk a few women can still be seen wearing a nikautang (a dress with puffed sleeves) to religious functions. Dancers at secular festivals will wear beaded necklaces and colorful ceremonial clothing that may evoke ancient religious meanings for participants.

DIETARY PRACTICES

Local geography rather than distinct religious conventions dictates Micronesian Christian dietary practice, although feasting is an important part of any major religious celebration. At weddings and funerals relatives will contribute large amounts of local foodstuffs, especially rice and fish. Remnants of traditional agricultural festivals are still present in the offerings of first fruits in harvest worship services. Micronesian Christians are not vegetarians, but they are partial to breadfruit and yams. The Yapese eat taro for the most part.

RITUALS

Before the missionaries arrived Micronesians performed a great variety of rituals, including breadfruit harvests in Chuuk, where trees were sanctified by herbs; rites of benediction in Yap, which preceded the felling of trees; and numerous sakau ceremonies prior to fishing journeys, warfare, or threats of typhoons. Sakau rituals were governed by strict rules, and the highest chief was served first. Women in Yap were secluded in huts during menstruation and childbirth. The Yapese mitmit was an all-out traditional feast accompanied by gift giving, singing, and dancing. One village would give a mitmit to another to reciprocate for one given to it in a previous year.

Church members arrive early for Sunday morning worship, and most of the day on Sunday is still devoted to services in Kosrae, Yap, and outer FSM islands. Men and women sit in different sections, and the choir is front and center. Occasionally island food and drink are substituted for the bread and wine in a Communion service. Nineteenth-century Western music (especially gospel hymns from America) makes up the bulk of congregational singing. Virtually all Protestant and Catholic pastors are local and preach in the indigenous language of their congregation. Typical services also include prayers, psalm readings, additional Scripture readings, announcements, and greetings to visitors. Weekday morning and evening prayers are still observed in many homes.

RITES OF PASSAGE

Like Micronesians in general, islander Christians mark transitions between five stages in a person's life span: babyhood, childhood, young adulthood, middle age, and old age. Traditionally many taboos were associated with these and other rites of passage. For example, in the early 1900s, the family of a deceased person in Yap was separated from the community and prohibited from eating certain kinds of food. High priests in Pohnpei and Kosrae officiated at rites that entailed petitioning deceased family members for protection from spirits, especially during times of transition. Today in Yap, funeral services are still highly ritualized. When someone dies relatives and friends set up a formalized wail, singing songs of lamentation. The corpse is washed, decorated with flower garlands, and presented with gifts for the journey to Lang (the other world). Dirges are sung at the grave for three days, and on the fourth day a tomb is erected over the grave. Then the whole village observes a 10-day period of respect; those who washed the corpse observe a longer period. When close relatives have ended a five-month period of mourning, a rite called pay stone is held, in which those who assisted in the funeral are rewarded.

The practice of four-day funerals (as observed in certain parts of Micronesia, including Pohnpei) stems from the traditional belief that the soul of the dead did not depart the body for the heavens until the fourth day. Until that point it was necessary to appease the soul so it would not bring any misfortune to the family. Once the soul departed for the heavens, it served as the family's protector spirit.

MEMBERSHIP

In Kosrae, until recently, to be a Kosraean was synonymous with being a Congregationalist. In the 1980s Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, and Seventh-day Adventists stepped up evangelization campaigns especially in Yap and Chuuk. Since each of the four state governments controls a radio station broadcasting primarily in the local language and only one religious group operates a private radio station, there is scant room for recruitment by radio. Television and the Internet also have not yet become a major factor in recruitment of church members. On Pohnpei clan divisions still affect religious conversion, with more Protestants living on the western side of the island, while more Catholics live on the eastern side.

SOCIAL JUSTICE

Many Micronesians suspect that human rights language masks a neocolonial agenda. For example, although traditionally women were not the equals of men, they were protected, were honored, and exercised power over land selection. Christian missionaries, however, promoted gender equality in ways that may have contributed to the breakdown of the all-important extended family unit. For instance, by insisting that women receive equal pay for equal work and sanctioning women's work outside the home, Christian teaching undercut the authority of the lineage chief. The resulting increased parent-child tensions may well have contributed to child neglect, spousal abuse, and a high suicide rate, especially in Chuuk.

The church has also led the way in creating new opportunities for women. By attacking the traditional practice of confining women to separate menstrual houses, the church enabled women to join the rest of the community for prayers and other activities. Today the church advocates educating parents to affirm children, reduce sibling rivalry, and ameliorate domestic violence.

SOCIAL ASPECTS

Traditionally social structures, such as the extended family unit, were viewed as divinely ordained. Missionary teachings, especially regarding the extended family in the Bible, were generally understood as reinforcing already existing family and kinship networks. The matrilineal system, however, had begun to break down prior to missionary contact, so that while Micronesian faith was challenged by the missionary ethic of individual rights, it already had a strong individualistic component while also paying due regard to the more traditional island emphasis on communal responsibility.

The churches recognize traditional arranged marriages, and old formalities usually supplement the church wedding. Some pastors and priests continue to honor the parent's wishes in regard to marriage and refuse to marry couples whose parents are opposed. Church leaders also recognize the social role of funerals as outlets for reinforcing the customary family circle meeting.

POLITICAL IMPACT

The missionaries, in collusion with colonial civil authorities, often furthered cultural imperialism by censoring native dances and weakening chiefly prestige. But missionaries also eliminated certain objectionable practices, such as abortion, infanticide, and the mispil, where a woman captured from a neighboring village was used as a mistress for men's houses. Under missionary influence values associated with social status, transgression, and reconciliation were redefined in the life of the community, creating a homogeneous social order.

CONTROVERSIAL ISSUES

Given a lack of economic development and an absence of an infrastructure to attract investment, Christians in Micronesia face a number of serious social issues, including food shortages, youth unemployment, black market alcohol, and pollution. In Chuuk sewage runs into the lagoon, and the streets are littered with trash. There, as well as in Kosrae and Pohnpei, the Congregational Christian Church has conducted workshops and extension education programs aimed at developing constructive responses to some of these issues, including an ecology campaign that entails picking up litter. Ongoing disputes concerning land ownership and land-use rights further complicate linguistic and ethnographic differences. As elsewhere in the region, Micronesia faces threats associated with sexual promiscuity, especially HIV and AIDS. The Catholic Church, through the Micronesian Seminar (originally in Chuuk but now in Pohnpei), has sponsored research on issues such as child abuse, economic injustice, and suicide. In general, however, Micronesia's Christian churches have been reluctant to address controversial issues.

CULTURAL IMPACT

Christianity brought a number of foreign cultural influences to Micronesia, including the introduction of literacy in indigenous languages; Western hymns, clothing, and architectural styles; European conflicts between Catholics and Protestants; democratic approaches to problem solving; and abstention from work and trading on Sundays. FSM islanders are now reassessing some of their traditions in the light of their search for cultural identity. In particular, there has been renewed interest in incorporating traditional religious songs composed by Micronesians.

Other Religions

While Christianity (including new religious movements that are essentially Christian in origin) is the overwhelmingly predominant religion in the FSM, there are traces of other faith traditions. A few Buddhists and adherents of Chinese religious traditions (including Confucianism) are concentrated in Yap and Chuuk, with small groups in Kosrae. As a result of the Japanese occupation during World War II, there are a handful of believers in Shinto, an indigenous religious practice of Japanese origin once associated with emperor worship. The Japanese did not actively proselytize in Micronesia.

A few hundred Bahai adherents live in Chuuk and Pohnpei. During the 1997 International Women's Day Observance in Chuuk, Bahai believers drew more than 300 indigenous women from surrounding lagoons to workshops designed to promote the advancement of women. Like their Christian counterparts, Bahai adherents have had an impact on social justice in the FSM. For example, the Bahai faith credits one of their followers, a U.S. government official serving in the FSM, with pioneering legislation on domestic violence, hate crimes, rape, child care, and health research.

Jack A. Hill

See Also Vol. 1: Christianity, Reformed Christianity, Roman Catholicism