Christianity, Islam and Nationalism in Indonesia

As the largest Muslim country in the world, Indonesia is marked by an extraordinary diversity in language, ancestry, culture, religion and ways of life. Christianity, Islam and Nationalism in Indonesia focuses on the Christian Dani of West Papua, providing a social and ethnographic history of the most important indigenous population in the troubled province. It presents a fascinating overview of the Dani's conversion to Christianity, examining the social, religious and political uses to which they have put their new religion. While its indigenous population is Papuan and its dominant religions are Christianity and animism, West Papua contains a growing number of Papuan Muslims. Farhadian provides the first study of this highland Papuan group in an urban context which helps distinguish it from the typical highland Papuan ethnography. Incorporating cultural and structural approaches, the book affords a fascinating insight into the complex relationship between Christianity, Islam, and nationalism.

Charles E. Farhadian is Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at Westmont College, Santa Barbara, California