The Netherlands Missionary Society (Dutch: ''Nederlandsch Zendelinggenootschap'') was a Dutch
Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
missionary society founded in 1797 in
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte (river), Rotte'') is the second largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the Prov ...
that was involved in sending workers to countries such as
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...
during the Dutch occupation and
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...
during the
Qing dynasty
The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...
.
Indonesia
It sent out
Joseph Kam in 1814 to
Ambon and he served 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 ...
until his death in 1833. Other notable missions were to
Maluku,
Sumatra
Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...
and to
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mo ...
.
China
This society was the first to follow the example set by 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 m ...
in seeking to enter China. It sent out Rev.
Karl Gützlaff
Karl Friedrich August Gützlaff (8 July 1803 – 9 August 1851), anglicised as Charles Gutzlaff, was a German Lutheran missionary to the Far East, notable as one of the first Protestant missionaries in Bangkok, Thailand (1828) and in Korea (1 ...
in 1826, with some duties as chaplain under the Dutch government. He reached
Java
Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's mo ...
in 1827, but in 1829 he left the service, and gave himself largely to preaching, writing and distributing Christian books, visiting the ships in the seaports of
Siam
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
,
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
,
Macau
Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...
, and other places. On the death of Hon.
John Robert Morrison
John Robert Morrison (; 17 April 1814 – 29 August 1843) was a British interpreter and colonial official in China. Born in Macau, his father was Robert Morrison, the first Protestant missionary in China. After his father's death in 1834, Morri ...
, he succeeded him as Chinese Secretary in the government of
Hong Kong
Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a List of cities in China, city and Special administrative regions of China, special ...
, which post he held till his death. He became a very expert Chinese scholar, and prepared a translation of the Bible. He also issued many historical and religious books. He was followed by Rev.
Herman Rottger
Herman may refer to:
People
* Herman (name), list of people with this name
* Saint Herman (disambiguation)
* Peter Noone (born 1947), known by the mononym Herman
Places in the United States
* Herman, Arkansas
* Herman, Michigan
* Herman, M ...
in 1832, who labored in Macau and Hong Kong until 1846, when he retired, and the Netherlands Mission ceased to exist. Dr. Gützlaff died in 1851.
Reports
The society published regular yearly reports in the 19th century that were used to inform donors of the proceedings. In 1897 a memorial book was published by the chairman
Jacobus Craandijk
Jacobus Craandijk (7 September 1834, in Amsterdam – 3 June 1912, in Haarlem) was a Dutch Mennonite teacher and minister who enjoyed using his spare time for walks while taking notes and drawing.
He was trained at the Amsterdam Mennonite s ...
.
[''Gedenkboek uitgegeven ter gelegenheid van het honderdjarig bestaan van het Nederlandsch Zendelinggenootschap'', Rotterdam: M. Wyt en Zonen, 1897 (197 pages)]
See also
*
References
External links
websiteHistorici.nl
{{Authority control
Christian missionary societies
Christian missions in China
Religious organizations established in 1797
Christian organizations established in the 18th century
History of Rotterdam