‘Becoming Stronger’: Christianity, Indigenous Politics of Self‐Determination, and Endogenous Transformation in West Papua

ABSTRACT In Indonesian‐occupied West Papua, Christianity has been adopted, adapted, and transformed by the indigenous people of various ethnic groups to become part of their social and cultural landscape. Christianity has also prominently figured in their continuing struggle for political self‐determination. Based on an ethnographic and historical study of the Kingmi Church of West Papua, this article analyses the emergence of an indigenous church in a post‐mission era and interrogates how indigenous congregations transform and harness Christianity for their cultural, social, and political projects. Building upon recent developments in the Anthropology of Christianity – from the study of the impact of mission and colonial encounters to the study of indigenous churches – and using indigenous politics as an analytical lens, this article proposes a decolonial approach to the study of vernacular Christianity in West Papua. The case of Kingmi church highlights not only that Christianity shapes Papuan politics, but also that indigenous politics have shaped Christian belief, resulting in the development of an indigenous church that works on a model of endogenous transformation that is oriented towards indigenous self‐determination.