Joseph Kam (September 1769 – July 18, 1833) was a Dutch missionary in Indonesia.
His father, Joost Kam, was a leather merchant in
's-Hertogenbosch
s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a city and municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 157,486. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant and its fourth largest by population. The city is south of th ...
,
Netherlands
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, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
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, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
. The family were members of the
Reformed Church
Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Cal ...
, influenced by the spirit of
Herrnhut
Herrnhut ( Sorbian: ''Ochranow''; cs, Ochranov) is an Upper Lusatian town in the Görlitz district in Saxony, Germany, known for the community of the Moravian Church established by Nicolas Ludwig, Count von Zinzendorf in 1722.
Geography
It is ...
pietism
Pietism (), also known as Pietistic Lutheranism, is a movement within Lutheranism that combines its emphasis on biblical doctrine with an emphasis on individual piety and living a holy Christian life, including a social concern for the needy and ...
, and had links with Herrnhut groups in
Zeist
Zeist () is the capital and largest town of the municipality of Zeist. The town is located in the Utrecht province of the Netherlands, east of the city of Utrecht.
History
The town of "Seist" was first mentioned in a charter in the year 83 ...
. Kam helped his father in the leather trade, but was eager to preach the
gospel
Gospel originally meant the Christian message ("the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words an ...
to the nations which did not yet not know
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
. In 1802, when Kam's father and mother died, he left the leather business and worked at the
National Court. He married in 1804, but his wife died two months after giving birth.
Kam then joined ''
Nederlandse Zendeling-Genootschap'' and moved to
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...
to receive the preparation of
Zendeling candidate there. In Rotterdam he received the education of Zendeling candidate, together with
Gottlob Bruckner and
Johann Ch. Supper from
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. In 1811, his preparatory education for was finished, but he was not yet able to be dispatched to the mission field because of the war between
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
.
NZG then tried to post Kam to the mission field by smuggling him into
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
. In October 1812, Kam and his colleagues arrived in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
and saw the
London Missionary Society
The London Missionary Society was an interdenominational evangelical missionary society formed in England in 1795 at the instigation of Welsh Congregationalist minister Edward Williams. It was largely Reformed in outlook, with Congregational miss ...
administrators. They were then sent to
Gosport
Gosport ( ) is a town and non-metropolitan borough on the south coast of Hampshire, South East England. At the 2011 Census, its population was 82,662. Gosport is situated on a peninsula on the western side of Portsmouth Harbour, opposite t ...
to receive further educational preparation, while serving churches there. In 1813, he was ordained a
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...
in London.
In 1814, he arrived in
Batavia
Batavia may refer to:
Historical places
* Batavia (region), a land inhabited by the Batavian people during the Roman Empire, today part of the Netherlands
* Batavia, Dutch East Indies, present-day Jakarta, the former capital of the Dutch East In ...
with his two colleagues, Bruckner and Supper. At that time, Kam and his colleagues became ''
Indische Kerk'' employees. Since the ''Indische Kerk'' prioritizes maintenance of the congregations that already exist. Therefore, Supper remained in Batavia to serve the congregation there, Bruckner was stationed in
Semarang
Semarang ( jv, ꦏꦸꦛꦯꦼꦩꦫꦁ , Pegon: سماراڠ) is the capital and largest city of Central Java province in Indonesia. It was a major port during the Dutch colonial era, and is still an important regional center and port today. ...
, and Kam himself stationed on
Ambon
Ambon may refer to:
Places
* Ambon Island, an island in Indonesia
** Ambon, Maluku, a city on Ambon Island, the capital of Maluku province
** Governorate of Ambon, a colony of the Dutch East India Company from 1605 to 1796
* Ambon, Morbihan, a c ...
.
Mid-1814, Kam traveled to Ambon but ended up stopping in
Surabaya
Surabaya ( jv, ꦱꦸꦫꦧꦪ or jv, ꦯꦹꦫꦨꦪ; ; ) is the capital city of the Provinces of Indonesia, Indonesian province of East Java and the List of Indonesian cities by population, second-largest city in Indonesia, after Jakarta. L ...
because no ships were sailing to Ambon. While in Surabaya, he worked in Indische Kerk's congregation there. In March 1815, he arrived in Ambon,
and immediately started working with congregations in the
Maluku Islands
The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located eas ...
which had long been abandoned by the Dutch. In the Maluku Islands, Kam perform all the duties of a
pastor
A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...
, such as
preaching
A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. El ...
, visiting the congregations, arbitrate disputes and quarrels, and served
sacraments
A sacrament is a Christian rite that is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol of the real ...
. He is also active in developing Christian readings, like the
Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
,
Psalms
The Book of Psalms ( or ; he, תְּהִלִּים, , lit. "praises"), also known as the Psalms, or the Psalter, is the first book of the ("Writings"), the third section of the Tanakh, and a book of the Old Testament. The title is derived ...
,
Catechism
A catechism (; from grc, κατηχέω, "to teach orally") is a summary or exposition of doctrine and serves as a learning introduction to the Sacraments traditionally used in catechesis, or Christian religious teaching of children and adult c ...
, and
sermons
A sermon is a religious discourse or oration by a preacher, usually a member of clergy. Sermons address a scriptural, theological, or moral topic, usually expounding on a type of belief, law, or behavior within both past and present contexts. El ...
for congregations without ministers or teachers. Shortly after Kam arrived in Ambon, he married a woman of Indo-Dutch extraction,
Sara Maria Timmerman, who remained at his side until the end of his life.
Kam is considered by the
Protest Church in the Moluccas to be one of the significant shapers of their history.
In his trip to
Southeast Maluku, he became seriously ill, and was forced to return to Ambon. After 20 years service in the Maluku Islands, he died on July 18, 1833, and was buried in Ambon.
Sources
* I. H. Enklaar. 1980. ''Joseph Kam: Rasul Maluku''. Jakarta: BPK Gunung Mulia.
* F.D. Wellem.'' cet. ke-2 2000. Riwayat Hidup Singkat Tokoh-tokoh dalam Sejarah Gereja''. Jakarta: BPK Gunung Mulia. hlm. 155-7.
* Th. van den End. cet. ke-4 1988. ''Ragi Carita 1: Sejarah Gereja di Indonesia 1500-1860.'' Jakarta: BPK Gunung Mulia. hlm. 162-4.
* Jan S. Aritonang & Karel Steenbrink (eds.). 2008.'' A History of Christianity in Indonesia.'' Leiden: Koninklijke Brill NV. hlm. 386-9.
Books
*Enklaar, I.H.: Joseph Kam - Apostel der Molukken. Boekencentrum 1963
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kam, Joseph
1769 births
1833 deaths
Protestant missionaries in Indonesia
Dutch Protestant missionaries
People from 's-Hertogenbosch
People from the Dutch East Indies
Dutch Reformed Church missionaries