Batui

Batui oral tradition goes back to the sixteenth century. According to the people's memory and local accounts, a marriage tied to the kingdom of Banggai gave rise to the custom of sending the first maleo eggs, gathered on Batui lands, to the kingdom. From that promise grew a bond that has lasted for centuries.

In the twentieth century, the Bakiriang forest came under state administration and was declared a wildlife reserve. Plantations, infrastructure works and energy projects took over the surroundings of the traditional lands, and leaders of the people speak of community rights that have been worn away. Today, finding maleo eggs in the forest itself has become harder.

Traditionally, the Batui live from farming, forest resources and fishing. Social life is guided by the council of custom (adat), made up of elders and leaders who watch over the rules about land, forest and rituals.

Today modernization and changes in the economy lead many families to look for work outside farming and to speak Indonesian more and more at home.

The best-known custom is the molabot tumpe, the annual delivery of maleo eggs to the former kingdom of Banggai, followed by the monsawe, a celebration of gratitude for the first eggs. It is a festival that gathers generations and reminds the people, every year, who they are and where they came from.

The great majority of the Batui are Muslim, and Islam is part of everyday life: from prayers to festivals and rites of passage. Being Batui and being Muslim go together in the community’s perception, and religion is also a bond of family and social belonging.

Alongside Islam, an ancient religiosity often remains, tied to nature, sacred places and the memory of ancestors, as seen in the esteem for the forest and for the maleo ritual. Following another path of faith can bring tension with family and neighbors, and there are practically no known Batui followers of Jesus.

Only portions of the Bible exist in the Batui language, with neither the New Testament nor the complete Bible yet in that tongue. Nor is there, as far as is known, any audio or film about the life of Jesus in the language. As the language loses ground among the young, many Batui end up hearing the Word only in Indonesian, which does not always touch the heart the way the language of home does. Audio materials and oral formats are promising paths for a community that values the spoken tradition.

Muslim faith is interwoven with Batui identity and with family ties, so that changing religion is seen as turning away from one’s own people. Added to this are the presence of traditional beliefs mixed into religious life, the absence of Christians of Batui origin to serve as a witness, and the scarcity of Scripture in the mother tongue. A small and little-known people, the Batui rarely receive visits from those who would like to hear their story and share the message of Christ with respect.

The Batui need access to the gospel in their own language, Scriptures and audio that speak to the heart, and patient discipleship that respects the culture and walks beside each family. They need mature workers, willing to learn the language and live among the people.

They also have concrete needs: protection of the territory and the forest that sustain their life, appreciation of the language among the young, and opportunities for study and work that do not force them to give up their roots.