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The adopted unreached people group for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Arkansas is the Minangkabau. There are some very good informational resources available to you as close as your CBF of Arkansas office. We have videos for you to use about unreached people groups. There is also a display of the Minangkabau people. Go to our resource page to view what is available. Minangkabau The fourth largest ethnic group in Indonesia, the Minangkabau are an influential and widely distributed indigenous minority. Although they  make up over 90 percent of the population in west Sumatra, many have also migrated to other Indonesian islands.
These highly literate and well- educated people hold many key religious leadership positions and play a major role in Indonesian political, economic and religious life. They are known throughout Indonesia for their success in business, their hot spicy food and their cultural pride. Some consider the Minang the keystone group for the unreached groups in the Austronesian language family. Property and family name are passed down through the women in the Minang culture. They are not matriarchal—often the brother of the mother is the head of household. The tradition of merantau, a voluntary temporary migration to build character, stems from this matrilineal structure. Men go off to seek their fortune while the women keep the property at home, which often includes farming. Traditionally, a man's family role was primarily directed towards his mother, sisters and his sisters' children. His roles as husband and father were marginal. Becoming an uncle is considered a more significant transition than when a man becomes a father. The more common model of a household consisting of husband, wife and children is becoming more popular in both rural and urban areas. The Minang are some of the staunchest Muslims in Indonesia. Many Minang faithfully practice the five pillars of Islam. In the 1800s, the Dutch took advantage of a conflict between the Minangkabau cultural guardians and Muslim leaders and intervened. The result was the annihilation of the Minangkabau royal line and colonization by the Dutch. Islam was used as a rallying point in the struggle against the Dutch and resulted in Islam being incorporated into Minangkabau traditions. There are only a handful of Minang believers scattered throughout Indonesia's major cities. There are no known Christians in the rural areas of west Sumatra, where 80 percent of the population lives.
Pencak silat (the Minang form of martial arts) is feared and admired all over Indonesia. The Randai dance is patterned after it, and involves a combination of literature, sport, song and drama. Some of the fighting styles are potentially violent and dangerous, and the dances have to be periodically interrupted just before they become deadly to the participants. |
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