Dynamics of a Christian Minority within a Muslim-Majority Context: A Socio-Historical Study of Congko Village, Soppeng 1940–2024
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22373/bp7vqr88Keywords:
Christian Minority, Bugis Culture, Majority Minority Relations, Interreligious Harmony, Socio Historical DynamicsAbstract
This study examines the socio-historical dynamics of the Christian community in Batu Pute hamlet, Congko Village, Soppeng Regency, South Sulawesi, within a predominantly Muslim Bugis society from 1940 to 2024. The research focuses on the processes of emergence, survival, and transformation of Christian minority identity within a Muslim-majority social structure. The main research questions address: (1) the socio-cultural and spiritual factors influencing religious conversion in Batu Pute; (2) forms of adaptation, resistance, and survival strategies developed by the Christian community in response to political and ideological pressures during the colonial period, the Japanese occupation, and the DI/TII rebellion; and (3) the reconstruction of social relations and collective identity in the post-conflict period through the New Order and Reformasi era. This study employs a qualitative socio-historical approach, utilizing in-depth interviews, archival research, and literature analysis. The findings reveal that Christianity in Batu Pute did not emerge as a result of colonial religious intervention, but rather developed through local initiatives shaped by spiritual experiences and the integration of Bugis cultural values, particularly the concept of Dewata SeuwaE as a monotheistic theological framework. During periods of political turmoil, the community experienced marginalization and structural pressures, yet demonstrated remarkable social and spiritual resilience. In the post-conflict era, interreligious reconciliation was fostered through the internalization of local ethical principles such as sipakatau (humanizing others), sipakalebbi (mutual respect), and sipakainge (mutual moral reminding), which functioned as social capital for rebuilding intercommunal harmony. This study argues that the integration of minority religious identity with local cultural values constitutes a powerful social foundation for peacebuilding, social cohesion, and community resilience in plural societies
References
Alian, A. (2012). Metodologi Sejarah dan Implementasi dalam Penelitian. Jurnal Pendidikan Dan Kajian Sejarah (Criksetra), 2(2), 1–14.
Alwi, A. (2025). Habitus dan Strategi Bertahan Hidup Mahasiswa Marginal : Kajian Sosiologis Terhadap Penghuni Asrama Sulawesi Tenggara di Kota Makassar. Jurnal Perspektif: Jurnal Kajian Sosiologi Dan Pendidikan, 8(3), 383–393.
Andri, A. (2024). Sejarah Masuknya Kekristenan di Soppeng dan Relevansinya terhadap Pertumbuhan Iman di Gereja Kristen Sulawesi Selatan Jemaat Imanuel Soppeng. Institut Agama Kristen Negeri (IAKN) Toraja.
Arafah, S. (2017). Islam dan Kristen di Tanah Bugis Soppeng (Sejarah dan Perkembangannya). Pusaka, 5(2), 151–164. https://doi.org/10.31969/pusaka.v5i2.177
Ardhana, I. K., & Puspitasari, N. W. R. N. (2024). Metodologi dan Historiografi Indonesia: Tantangan Indonesiasentrisme dalam Era Global. Jurnal Sejarah Indonesia, 7(1), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.62924/jsi.v7i1.33013
Bahtiar, B. (2019). Hubungan Politik Antarkerajaan : Gowa dengan Bone, Soppeng, Wajo (Tellumpocco). Walasuji, 10(2), 251–267.
Darmawan, D. (2024). Pierre Bourdieu’s Theory of Social Practice: Understanding Habitus, Capital, and the Arena in Social Life. Journal La Sociale, 05(06), 2175–2187. https://doi.org/10.37899/journal-la-sociale.v5i6.2131
de Jong, C. G. F. (1990). Overgang Als Daad Van Protest. Enkele Kanttekeningen Bij De Geschiedenis Van De Zending Van De Protestantse Kerk Onder Buginezen In Soppeng, In Zuid-Sulawesi (Celebes), In Indonesie, 1939-1966. Nederlands Archief Voor Kerkgeschiedenis / Dutch Review of Church History, 70(2), 192–209. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24009317
de Jong, C. G. F. (1996). Ilalang Arenna... : Sejarah Zending Belanda di Antara Umat Bugis dan Makassar Sulawesi Selatan. PT BPK GUNUNG MULIA.
Dewi, Y. T. N., Sunarimahingsih, Y. T., & Nurhayati, B. R. (2017). Designing Public Space to Promote Understanding on Diversity in Religious Conflict Prone Areas in Ambon and Poso. International Journal of Social Science and Humanity, 7(9), 624–627. https://doi.org/10.18178/ijssh.2017.7.9.896
Dixon, K., Genner, K., & Wright, M. (2025). Fighting to Survive : the Precarity of Grassroots Boxing as a Leisure Practice – a Bourdieusian Perspective. Leisure Studies, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/02614367.2025.2580017
Fatmawati, N. I., & Sholikin, A. (2020). Pierre Bourdieu dan Konsep Dasar Kekerasan Simbolik. Jurnal Politik Dan Sosial Kemasyarakatan, 12(1), 41–60. https://doi.org/10.52166/madani.v12i1.1899
Fikriansyah, D., Makkelo, I. D., & Nur, N. (2022). DI/TII di Poleang: Awal Masuk, Pengaruh, dan Berakhirnya Gerakakan, 1953-1965. Gema Wiralodra, 13(2), 839–857.
Hatmono, P. D. (2021). Historiografi Buku Teks Sejarah Lokal pada Pembelajaran Sejarah. Sabbhata Yatra: Jurnal Pariwisata Dan Budaya, 2(1), 60–74. https://doi.org/10.53565/sabbhatayatra.v2i1.279
Herdiani, E. (2016). Metode Sejarah dalam Penelitian Tari. Jurnal Ilmiah Seni Makalangan, 3(2), 33–45. https://jurnal.isbi.ac.id/index.php/makalangan/article/view/889/576
Ilmi, A. F. U. (2021). Pekabaran Injil di Afdeeling Makassar, 1930–1950-an. Lembaran Sejarah, 17(2), 159–170. https://doi.org/10.22146/lembaran-sejarah.72539
Iqbal, A. (2023). Pluralitas Agama dan Budaya dalam Dinamika Masyarakat Perkotaan: Studi Kasus Sungai Nibung Kota Kuala Tungkal Jambi. Focus, 4(2), 93–106. https://doi.org/10.26593/focus.v4i2.7209
Khaeruddin, K. (2024). Pendidikan Era Orde Baru ; Implementasi dan Realitas Pelaksanaan ( 1967-1990 ). Keraton: Journal of History Education and Culture, 6(2), 97–106. http://journal.univetbantara.ac.id/index.php/keraton
Mu’ti, A., & Amirrachman, A. (2025). Local Wisdom-Based Multicultural Education: Muhammadiyah Experience. Intellectual Discourse, 33(1), 183–200.
Musyarif, M. (2018). Toleransi Islam dan Kristen di Kabupaten Soppeng Tahun 1950-2007. Zawiyah: Jurnal Pemikiran Islam, 4(1), 136–154.
Naufal, D. A. (2024). Supersemar dan Stabilitas Politik : Analisis Transformasi Kekuasaan dari Soekarno ke Soeharto Berdasarkan Perspektif Samuel P. Huntington. Socius: Jurnal Penelitian Ilmu-Ilmu Sosial, 2(5), 15–19.
Pabbajah, M. (2012). Religiusitas dan Kepercayaan Masyarakat Bugis-Makassar. Jurnal Al-Ulum, 12(2), 397–418.
Prayogi, A. (2021). Pendekatan Kualitatif dalam Ilmu Sejarah: Sebuah Telaah Konseptual. Historia Madania: Jurnal Ilmu Sejarah, 5(2), 240–254. https://doi.org/10.15575/hm.v5i2.15050
Ratuwalangon, R., Sagala, R., Hutagalung, S., & Ferinia, R. (2022). Minahasa-Kristen Dalam Gejolak Eksistensi Antara Budaya Dan Agama. Al-Adyan: Jurnal Studi Lintas Agama, 17(1), 149–168. https://doi.org/10.24042/al-adyan.v17i1.11480
Ridhwan, R. (2018). Kepercayaan Masyarakat Bugis Pra Islam. Ekspose, 17(Januari-Juni), 481–498.
Sari, A. P., Kamila, A. N. S., Laili, C. N., Widyahana, D., Nuryah, N., & Khasanah, N. Z. (2025). DI / TII Movement 1949 – 1962 : Conflict of Islamic Ideology and Nationalism in Indonesia. Journal of Political Islam (JOPI), 1(1), 1–21.
Sayono, J. (2021). Langkah-Langkah Heuristik Dalam Metode Sejarah Di Era Digital. Sejarah Dan Budaya : Jurnal Sejarah, Budaya, Dan Pengajarannya, 15(2), 369–376. https://doi.org/10.17977/um020v15i22021p369-376
Sirait, J. R., & Istinatun, H. N. (2022). Akseptasi Teologi pada Kerukunan Umat Islam dan Kristen di Indonesia. Kamaya: Jurnal Ilmu Agama, 5(2), 79–86. https://doi.org/10.37329/kamaya.v5i2.1589
Sugiarti, S. (2020). Dinamika Komunitas Hindu Towani Tolotang di Sulawesi Selatan. Purwadita: Jurnal Agama Dan Budaya, 4(1), 23–32.
Sukmana, W. J. (2021). Metode Penelitian Sejarah. Seri Publikasi Pembelajaran, 1(2), 1–4. http://jurnal.uinbanten.ac.id/index.php/tsaqofah/article/view/3512
Syuhudi, M. I., & Nensia, N. (2021). Islam-Kristen di “Kota Kalong”: Best Practice Pembangunan Rumah Ibadat Berbasis Kearifan Lokal. HARMONI, 20(2), 173–187. https://doi.org/10.32488/harmoni.v20i2.511
Zafar, M., & Asif, M. (2024). Power Structures and Social Dynamics in Baqir’s Beyond the Fields: a Cultural Study in Bourdieu Perspective. Contemporary Journal of Social Science Review, 02(04), 1895–1906.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Muh. Akhyar Al Haris All, Bahri, Patahuddin, Najamuddin Najamuddin
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish in this Journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0) allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work. (See The Effect of Open Acces)
