Jessie's House of Needles

by John Algate

  Have you ever attended five weddings in one day? Yesterday we went down to Karubaga church and with joy witnessed the joining together of five young Christian couples. Can you imagine us, sitting on the ground in the dim light of the big square church building with its grass roof, while they solemnly repeated their vows and the elders, equally solemnly, taking the service and praying for each individual one in turn. Shining black faces with wide smiles made it obvious this was a special day for them…. Quite an experience! These young folk have great potential, and now they are marrying Christian wives. What an example they are to others. (May 1967)

  The people of the lowlands are very different in attitude, dress and culture. There are just a few who have turned to the Lord amidst much opposition from their families and villages….these new believers are often persecuted, beaten, threatened, and some turned out of their villages for their beliefs. (August 1967)

  How would you like to sleep with a skull as a pillow and wake up in the morning with a row of grinning skulls dangling from the ceiling looking at you? This is the case in many of these South Coast villages where the Lord Jesus is unknown or unwanted. Skulls of war victims or revenge parties are carefully polished up and are used in drawing the evil spirits to worship and to help in time of war for these folk. (August 1967)

  Other writers of West Papua at this time comment on an abnormally high suicide rate among women. Jessie was no exception.

  Just today a woman committed suicide by jumping in the river after a family disagreement. The hopelessness of their lives is appalling.

  We tend to see suicide as a malady of modern life with its strains and stresses, so it comes as something of a surprise to see the frequent references to suicide, particularly among young women and girls, in Jessie’s letters. Nor do the suicides appear to be the result of the collapse of traditional society under outside pressures, but rather the strains traditional society itself imposes on girls and young women.

  A few days ago a stretcher (rice bag) rushed by my door with 20 people in tow. As they passed by they called out, ‘Come quickly to the clinic.’ A 14-year-old girl had jumped over a waterfall to try to commit suicide because her father was trying to force her into a marriage she didn’t want. After checking her thoroughly, she, amazingly, only had a fractured pelvis and multiple bruising. She was shocked and wet through when she fell into the pool at the base of the waterfall.

  Trying to get her warm we had to take off layers of wet grass skirts. I asked for something to wrap around her. Two ladies promptly wrapped one of their many skirts for her. Instant dress. We then wrapped her in a blanket. The elders have been counselling with her and her father. Pray for the elders that they might have wisdom from the Lord and that the father will be willing to listen. (January 1995)

  One Saturday evening I heard a loud shouting and calling up and down the mountains. It transpired that a lady had jumped off a cliff after having an argument about a pig. They said, ‘Of course she died,’ when asked. Two days later they came to tell me she was alive. Could I please come and look at her because she couldn’t walk. I trekked around the mountain to her village, and after examination decided she had a fractured pelvis, and not a fractured spine which is what I had feared. We sat and chatted and prayed for her. The people told me that in the past that particular cliff had been well used by many girls who were ill-treated or unhappy, as a suicide jump. Praise the Lord since the Gospel has come, it is now a rare occurrence. (Christmas 1999)

  The local practice of infanticide of the second twin also caused her much anguish.

  Today, a call on the radio from a station in the Eastern Highlands. A missionary calling the doctor to ask what to do when a mother had had one baby and the other twin hadn’t come. Impossible for a plane to get in to get the patient out, so instructions were given to the missionary whilst the doctor ‘stood by’ on the radio to give further help if necessary. Several hours later a relieved voice came back over the radio to say the baby had been born and all was well. But now what? The people in this area are still very much under the influence of evil spirits and if any twins are born, one must be killed. Shocking, yes, but to those people to whom life means, stealing, lying, killing, fear and cannibalism, what is the life of one small baby? Why do missionaries stay in such a dangerous place with no thanks for their help? They have seen the tremendous change in others who have turned from their evil ways to the love of God. A life which suddenly has meaning and a lack of fear of the future is a great and wonderful thing to see. (Circa 1975-76)

  There were still tensions between the teachings of the new religion which many Indigenous people welcomed, and the traditional family ties, rituals, responsibilities and expectations.

  To realise what a deep understanding these people have of spiritual truths when such a few short years ago they were killing and being killed, in absolute fear of antagonising the evil spirits and fear of the afterlife in case they upset the spirits. Now, the joy and peace on their faces since they have put their trust in the Lord Jesus is something to see. (Easter 1977)

  Many of you have been praying about the war that broke out here some months ago involving four villages. Incidentally it caused a lot of extra work for me in patching up the participants. This war was a big disappointment to us because some of our believers were involved and war has been the cause of much heart searching amongst the church people.

  Many have come to rededicate their lives, others have come to ask how they can become real Christians and not just as church goers, others to forget old grudges and put them behind them. As God has forgiven their sin, they are now learning to forgive one another. For some this is particularly hard for them to do, especially for those whose loved ones had been killed by certain people (whom they know) not to take revenge into their own hands. This is just an infant church and their old ways and witchcraft are very close around them. (October 1980)

  Jessie often drew comparisons between the Christian story and the everyday lives of the Kimyal, Dani and other Indigenous people.

  The children were huddled together to keep out of the wind, but their eyes were glued to the picture book as the teacher explained the story. So many of the Bible stories they can relate to, as they too have seen people possessed of evil spirits. They have seen them become so strong that no one can hold them back. They know fear, if the spirit’s anger is directed at them. (May 1981)

  One of the main things that impressed the people about the Christmas story is the humble place of Jesus’ birth. They say they can identify with him in this as their women often gave birth beside the pig pens in their homes. They have to clean out their pig pens each day, and they often wonder if Joseph had to clean out the stable before they had a clean place to stay. They say: ‘He understands us and the way we live because He too began in a lowly stable just like our little houses.’ (January 1982)

  As usual in places where Christianity spread its messages, many local traditions were adopted and incorporated into Christian rituals.

  A couple of weeks ago we had two weddings in the new church. Their weddings are a little different to ours. They call a wedding ‘being prayed over’. All the girl’s clan sit together and the boy’s family likewise. Usually they sit separately, men on one side and women on the other. At the appropriate time all the bride’s clan have to put up their hands to say that they agree with the marriage and the marriage payments have been made. Then similarly the groom’s clan put up their hands to say that they are in agreement with the marriage. (August 1991)

  The coming of Christianity dramatically altered the social balance of communities. It is interesting reading through Jessie’s accounts how often church elders took on the role of conciliation in tribal and family disputes, trying to find a solution that met the needs of traditional lore and retribution for wrongs, but in a Christian context – not an easy task.

  That week one of the clinic workers came to tell me that premature twin boys had been born in his village and the mother wanted to keep
both. I was thrilled because they usually throw one in the river or bash its head in. One baby was one kilo and the other one and a quarter kilos. Each day they would bring them down the mountain for me to tube feed them. I was encouraged when after a month they had both reached two kilos and went home full time for the mother to care for them. The sister told me there was only one placenta so they felt they were a gift from God. (February 1996)

  I was pleased when the twins I had been feeding came to see me. The littler one is still smaller but they are growing and are now five months old. I am still giving the mother extra peanuts to supplement her diet and produce milk for them both.

  18. The Tokuni

  We are excited at what the Lord is doing amongst the Tokuni people in the lowlands south west of Korupun.

  The advance and embrace of Christianity by Papuan tribes’ people was complex. On first contact evangelists often met resistance, were threatened, attacked and actively discouraged. In general National evangelists from the same or similar cultures had greater success than the expatriate missionaries. Unravelling the thoughts, motivations and agendas of individuals and groups within a clan was always difficult. Sometimes evangelists found whole communities ready for them and eager to learn more about the new ways. Shortly before her retirement Jessie was in Taiyeve in the Lakes Plain to teach a health workers course. While there, Moses, one of their Bible School students, returned home for a vacation.

  He has a real desire to reach out to the lost. He had heard about a tribe further east towards the mountains who were unreached. When he and his friends came to the last village before the foothills they stopped and slept there. As they moved on next morning the villagers ran after them and refused to let them go any further. They explained that maybe the people he was searching for were unfriendly, why not just sit in their village and teach them about this new way. They forced them to stay. (September 2000)

  Nor was it unusual for tribes who originally reacted strongly and violently against the coming of Christian evangelists to later welcome them into their homes and villages. Such was the case with the tribe known generally as the Tokuni people, though the tribe call themselves the Dajup Kaga (bamboo people) or also Kop Kaga (lowland people). Their conversion to Christianity makes an interesting case study on the hit and miss nature of missionary work, the personal risks faced by evangelists and the benefits of perseverance.

  Les Henson (a missionary colleague) had tried on several occasions to reach this tribe and had been rebuffed. When he finally made contact, they were threatened with bows and arrows when they neared the village and had returned home disappointed.

  Les Henson believes the Tokuni originally rejected his overtures because they knew he lived and worked among the Momina people, their traditional enemies.

  ‘Both groups frequently raided each other and stole women and children, while killing the men,’ Les said. ‘I first made contact with the Tokuni when I carried out a helicopter survey in 1978, about a year before I moved into Sumo to live among the Momina.’

  Also on board the helicopter were Les’ colleagues Bruce Maclean and Jim Yost. The helicopter landed on the river bank about 150 metres from a longhouse where people lived. Les recalls the events:

  ‘We walked through the water and then took a short path towards the longhouse. We were greeted by a group of agitated women and children who vigorously indicated that we should leave. Erring on the side of caution we made our way back to the riverbank. On the other side of the river was a group of about 15 hostile men waving their bows and arrows in a threatening manner. Recognising that the threat was real we decided it was wiser to make a quick exit. My time over the next 10 years was largely spent reaching out to the various Momina villages. In the late 1980s I made another attempt to survey the Tokuni area by helicopter, but despite landing at what I believed were Tokuni villages, no people were present. It was not until 1994 that we began to have some friendly contact with the Tokuni through our farthest Momina village to the east.’

  Les and his wife Wapke left West Papua in December 1995 but by then the ever-persistent evangelists were again working with the Tokuni.

  Because they have now seen what a difference it has made in the tribes in the north, east and west of them they want to know what the message is about. They invited some of the church leaders from the Wamena church plus a clinic worker to go in and teach them. They were welcomed back the second time and given gifts from the people with the request for a permanent evangelist to teach them. Pray for the right man to be chosen. Pray for those going into this area as four of the team went down with cerebral malaria after they got back to Wamena. It will not be an easy area to work in, plus the people are nomadic and are moving around. (May 1996)

  Kevin and Allyson Martin accepted the challenge of serving among the Tokuni. Kevin provides more detail on how the ‘bamboo people’ began the journey towards Christianity:

  ‘I joined a National friend and colleague, Otto Kobak (now deceased) in visiting the Tokuni area on numerous occasions beginning in 1995. I think what made it a successful engagement was that the people were ready to receive an outside influence by this time whereas with Les and his colleagues they were very fearful of the outside world, although at one point Allyson and I were confronted with hostility during a linguistic survey. At one village we tried to land in by helicopter we were shot at with arrows. This also was out of fear and ignorance of what we had to offer. Those who were accepting of us had come to see the benefit of healthcare, modern education, and our message of the Gospel. In October 1997, under Otto’s leadership, the National church sent a health worker, his family and a young evangelist by the name of Demet Pahabol. Less than a year later we began milling wood for our house but did not move to Tokuni as a family until September 1999.’

  We are praising the Lord that a Peace Ceremony is about to take place in the Southern Lowlands at Tokuni next week. This is a momentous occasion when three long standing enemy chiefs come together to make a peace agreement so they can all listen to the Gospel safely….Amazing as it may seem many of the tribes have always used blood as part of their appeasement to the spirits, cure for sickness and evoking curses onto unsuspecting people. Therefore it is not such a strange thing to them to find that Jesus shed his blood for their sins. The strange part to them is that it is free, and they do not have to work for it and pay for it, just receive it with no strings attached. Very little is a free gift in this society. There is always a hidden string attached somewhere. (March 1999)

  19. Church and state

  At the moment things are all up in the air here. John (Wilson) called last week on the radio to say my work permit had still not come through and it is not through by the end of the month I will have to leave. (July 1986)

  The island of New Guinea is divided into two roughly equal parts, the former Dutch territory, West Papua, to the west; a former Australian mandated territory of Papua New Guinea to the east. During the first half of the twentieth century far more of Papua New Guinea was explored, fossicked, settled, planted and fought over than in the western region though great tracts of highland wilderness on both sides of the border remained ignorant of the outside world as it remained ignorant of them.

  Australia’s knowledge and interest in Papua New Guinea was greatly elevated during World War Two. Thousands of Australian servicemen fought the Japanese there and many died. Wartime newsreels and war photographers showed pictures of the ‘fuzzy wuzzy angels’, native stretcher bearers helping bring badly wounded Australians down the wet, slippery and dangerous slopes of the Kokoda track where a small band of young, ill-trained Australian servicemen confronted and, after fierce fighting, halted the Japanese advance. Many of these servicemen returned home with an enduring sense of gratitude and concern for Papuan Nationals and this further fuelled a post-war zeal to modernise the country.

  By the mid-1950s the same zeal was at work in the western half of the island but there was a marked contrast in approach. In the east the separati
on of church and state was more clearly delineated than in the west. In Torn Between Two Worlds, Australian historian and former missionary Margaret Reeson reconstructed the arrival of the outside world in the Mendi Valley of Papua New Guinea in October 1950. She astutely recorded the reaction of local people to the intrusion.

  “Have you seen the other group across the river?” enquired another observer. “No? There seem to be two sorts of mbali, white ones. One clan is called Government and the other is called Mission. The Government clan appears to be very strong and they have many brown men working for them. They seem to be the lawmakers, the judges, the powerful ones. The Mission on the other hand know about ritual and magic and has contact with the spirits. Both clans seem to be very rich and possess many remarkable things. Which group ought we to follow to bring the maximum wealth and success to ourselves?”

  By contrast, no such delineation existed in West Papua. The cash strapped and poorly resourced Dutch government had outsourced much of the responsibility for servicing the western part of the island to the missions. It was a deliberate policy and it was the missions, not the government that built airstrips, organised air services, brought in supplies, erected makeshift hospitals and schools and arranged for the medical and educational needs of its people

  In God’s Invasion Robert Wick records that ‘…the Dutch officials were most enthusiastic about the work of the missionaries.’

  He attributed the following comments to the then Director of the Bureau of Native Affairs for Netherlands New Guinea, Dr deBruyn:

  ‘Before the boons of civilization can be brought to Stone Age natives, a revolution in their mental attitude has to be effected. That’s what Christian missionaries are dramatically accomplishing…. These missionaries know far more about this part of New Guinea and its people than does the government. We are glad to follow their lead.’