SPIRITUAL COLONIALISM IN PAPUA

Every year on August 17, Indonesia celebrates Merdeka Day. This is the day the nation of Indonesia gained its freedom from the colonial power of Holland.  This was an end to colonialism in Indonesia, or so the Indonesian government claimed.

For Papuans, we know that this is not true.  Shortly after the nation of Indonesia gained its own independence, they then claimed Netherlands New Guinea as a part of Indonesian even though the people are not even the same race.  Indonesia was free from being colonized themselves and they despised colonialism, and yet they immediately became hypocrites by beginning to colonize others almost as soon as they themselves received their own freedom.  How ironic.  Though the name of the region has changed many times, from Dutch New Guinea to Papua Barat to Irian Jaya to newer names even now, colonialism is still alive in Papua.    Colonialism never ended.   The Dutch colonized Indonesia.  Then Indonesia colonized Papua.  Colonialism has never died in Papua.

But do you know what is even worse?   Spiritual colonialism. 

Spiritual colonialism is when western churches become the kings over Papun churches because of their donations.  Once again the Papuans are made to become spectators in their very own land, and leadership does not go to the Papuans but to outside forces who possess more money than the poor indigenous peoples of Papua. 

Let me tell you one story of spiritual colonialism in Papua:  The story of Danowage

But first, let me introduce myself.

My name is Trevor Johnson. I was an American missionary who was a former Army officer and medically trained. I moved to Papua to help the indigenous Melanesian people.   When the Lord Jesus walked this earth he did not focus upon the rich and powerful, but he, instead, protected the poor and needy.  And so when God opened my heart while I was an army officer, I decided to move to the most remote and poor and neglected region of the world I could find.  And so I moved to the interior jungle swamps of Papua among the Northern Korowai tribe.

In 2004 I came to Papua for the first time to partner with the GIDI church to help the Korowai people. At the time there was no road, no airport, no electricity, no schools, no medical clinic, and no government presence.   

In 2007 I built a house there in this remote location.  I did not enter in an unwelcome manner.  The Korowai tribe welcomed me in and invited me to stay. They made me an offer to give me a portion of land in the new village of Danowage in exchange for me to help them.   And so I did, I fulfilled my portion of the deal.   I built a school and a health clinic and a dormitory for children.  I paid for teachers with my own monies and bought medicines with my own money and we saved many lives.   We stopped tribal warfare, we decreased child marriage, we halved infant mortality, and we improved the lives of the Korowai people.   This was based on the desire of the Korowai themselves, they asked me to do all of these things and so I did.   

I also always worked in partnership with the Gereja Injili di Indonesia, the GIDI church.   This is a church that consists of Papuans and is led by Papuans.  I actually became a member eventually of the GIDI church and I placed myself underneath their leadership, a white westerner submitting to GIDI church authority as a guest in their land.

The Papuans helped me, and I helped them.  They told me where to walk, what to eat, and how to be safe on the river with canoes.  I showed them how to give medicine for malaria patients and even how to start infusions or clean wounds for those who were terluka. 

I want to tell you something very crucial to our story: Every step forward was not a lone decision on my part.  Every plan we made was a group decision between me and the GIDI church.  I was a guest in their house, so a guest must be polite.  The Papuan churches are headed by Papuan pastors.  And there is Papuan leadership at the very top. GIDI is an independent church body.  Though it was given birth by the work of Western missionaries, it now stands on its own and is a maturing church.  Western missionaries may come as advisors and work together with GIDI, yes.  But the leadership belongs to Papuans and not Westerners.

And so every plan I made was set as part of a consultation with GIDI and Pastor Yohanes Erelak and Pendeta Bimber Gurik, as well as the GIDI Missions office.   It was a team effort and an equal partnership between Western missionaries and Papuan evangelists.  I decided no ministry endeavor alone, or merely as a westerner.

The Korowai tribe in Danowage gave a large portion of land to the GIDI church under Pastor Yohanes Erelak.   So the Korowai gave the land to GIDI and GIDI gave some of that same land to me.   As part of my deal with Pastor Yohanes Erelak that we made official through handshake and prayer, GIDI would give me a portion of land.   I would agree to build a house and a medical clinic and a school and asrama for children on that land.  If I ever left Danowage, all of my land and assets would return to GIDI or to GIDI members.

I served in Danowage from 2007 until 2018 when I got very sick and I almost died.   During that time, I built my house.  I built a school.  A medical clinic. An asrama for children.  Then I invited an American co-worker Paul Snider to come and I gave him a small portion of land to build his house.  I also invited in the church group Heartcry Missionary Society to help aid the GIDI church in this remote area, because we needed more help and the Korowai often died from starvation and malaria and tuberculosis. 

We were able to save many lives in Danowage.  But in 2018, I almost died from malaria and I had to leave Danowage.   From 2018 until now I have been seriously sick and some days cannot even get out of bed.  I almost died, but I never regret helping any Papuan.

I do regret, however, my partnership with Paul Snider and Heartcry Missionary Society.   At first, I worked with the Glass Brother Matthew and Marc Glass, with Heartcry Missionary Society, who are very good and respectful people.  But then after awhile Paul Snider and Jamie Tucker took over the responsibilities in Papua.

Regarding western missionaries to Papua, we can classify 2 types: 1. Those who desire to become partners and 2. Those who desire to be kings.

I came as a partner to GIDI and we made decisions as a group.  But today I want you to hear about how many missionaries behave. To put it simply, they come to Papua as kings and they use church money to control the church. 

The first time I witnessed Heartcry interact with Indonesians, they acted as atasan or bosses.  At the first conference I attended held by Heartcry they bossed around our Indonesian friend Tirta from Bali who was taking photographs for the conference.  Heartcry reminded Tirta that if he wanted to be paid then he had to obey them and take photos.  He was reminded harshly that he was only a bawahan and they were the atasan because they controlled the money.  Tirta was offended but took photographs because his family needed the money and his nature is very polite.  But instead of equal partners in the ministry, the Indonesians were treated merely as paid employees and subordinates.   

But I want you to know this:  Papuans ARE NOT subordinates to Western missionaries.  We are mitra-kerja.  Sama tingkat.  Bule do not become atasan just because we give money.   But some bule love the power.

Paul Snider in Danowage has behaved very badly in this same manner. I invited him to Papua to help SERVE the Korowai, but after I got sick and had to leave Papua he began to try to RULE the Korowai. 

First, I split my portion of land with him.  There was a verbal agreement that he had permission to build a house on my land that was given to me by Pastor Yohanes Erelak, which was given to the GIDI church by the Korowai landowners of Danowage.    This land belonged to the Korowai who gave it to GIDI.  GIDI gave it to me with the agreement that I would use all of this land to help the Korowai through spiritual, educational, and healthcare help.   I fulfilled my promise. I built my house on this land as well as a school and medical clinic and asrama for the Korowai kids.   With GIDI’s permission we gave the school and medical clinic to the SLH school and to Siloam Medical Clinic and they have done a good job of education and providing high quality healthcare to the Korowai.   My house I gave to Gembala Jimmy Weyato with the GIDI church and his wife Perin Lambe to live in and to help the Korowai children.  My house became the asrama owned by Gembala Jimmy Weyato.

But when Paul arrived I loaned Paul a small portion of my own land so that he could build his own house.  His house is located on land owned by GIDI, even as he criticizes GIDI.   I helped this man to raise donations in America to serve in Papua, and many of my own donations I sent to him.   So he is clearly a guest living on borrowed land in Danowage.  And yet this did not stop him from trying to become like a king and dominate the pelayanan in this village. During Paul’s time in Danowage, the GIDI evangelists did not like him.  Paul refused to respect the established liturgy of the GIDI church.   Paul also told those evangelists that he funded that they were “no longer GIDI but Heartcry now” so I had to explain to Paul many times that even though a western church may support a Papuan evangelist, this Papuan is still a member of the GIDI church and we must respect the Papuan churches.  But Paul disagreed.  He wanted to own the evangelists that he supported financially like a master controls a pet animal. 

In fact, after I took a holiday to American in 2017 when I returned to Papua my first act was to meet with the GIDI President Dorman over a problem with Paul Snider and Heartcry.   The GIDI evangelists began to dislike Paul so much that they had held a meeting and had unanimously voted to kick Paul out of Danowage.   They cited statements by Paul when Paul stated clearly, “I am not GIDI” and “I don’t like GIDI.”   So the evangelists from GIDI all gathered and voted Paul out of the ministry in the Korowai region.   I was still Paul’s friend, so I took Paul to the President of GIDI,  Pendeta Dorman andikbo at that time, and GIDI wrote a letter for Paul stating that Paul had the right to minister in the Korowai region with permission from GIDI.

But later both GIDI and myself would come to regret defending Paul Snider, and in 2025 when GIDI kicked out Paul Snider, I fully support their decision.

Did Paul respect GIDI?  Not at all.   He slandered their evangelists.   And then he kicked Jimmy and Perin out of my house, the same house I had given to Jimmy and Perin.  Then he burned some of my stuff and belongings of Jimmy as well.  This was all without my permission or knowledge. I was very sick at the time and almost near death.

Paul was like a parasite.   A parasite will feed upon a larger animal to drink its blood and eventually kill the host and take over the corpse.  I helped Paul to enter Danowage and I helped Paul establish a ministry in Papua…and then he began to take credit for the achievements of myself and GIDI.   Even though Paul did not build the asrama, Paul nevertheless filmed the asrama and sent the video home to the USA to help gather donations as a fruit of his own ministry.   

Imagine the owner of a house inviting somebody into their home as a guest.  The guest maybe can help repair the house or work in the yard. Now imagine this guest taking over the house and kicking out the true owners.   This is what Paul did.   Paul was my guest in Danowage and I was a guest of both GIDI and the Korowai people.  It is important that a guest remains polite and respectful of the owners of the house.  But when Paul entered, he tried to kick GIDI out of their own property. He kicked

This is theft.  Surely immigration will kick out an American who steals the land of a Papuan right?   I am calling for justice and I want this case to be made just and right.   This is a great injustice occurring among the Korowai.

Furthermore, part of GIDI’s rules is that if any missionary goes home and leaves their post, then all the land reverts back to the GIDI church. Paul no longer lives in Danowage, so by GIDI’s very rules, therefore,  Paul’s own house (which he built on GIDI land) properly now belongs to GIDI.   But Paul, instead, has stolen my house and has kicked out the true owners Jimmy and Perin from living in my house and they are now very poor and sad. 

This is spiritual colonialism.   Many times the indigenous church becomes a bawahan in their own land and become servants to a western missionary because the western missionary possesses money and technology not accessible to the Papuans.  And so the westerners make the decisions.  The westerners decide who to support.  The westerner becomes the head of the church instead of the local Papuan leaders.  This should not happen in 2025.