He became the vital link in the reunification of the two New Apostolic sister churches in Indonesia: Apostle Martasudarma, who passed away fifty years ago.
He story begins with Frederik Lodewijk Anthing, a successful missionary of European descent. At first, he worked alongside missionary societies of the Reformed confession. However, in 1879, he converted to the apostolic faith.
Shortly thereafter he was ordained as an Apostle. His activity was of short duration. Anthing died in an accident in 1883. Many of his followers returned to their Reformed congregations. Those who remained—primarily people of Chinese or European origin living in larger cities—formed one branch of what would later become the New Apostolic Church in Indonesia.
Missionary with unorthodox methods
Meanwhile, an even more successful missionary was at loggerheads with the missionary societies because of his unconventional methods. Deeply sensitive to the predominantly Islamic culture of the local population, Sadrach Soeropranoto even had churches built in the architectural style of mosques. In 1899, he and many of his followers embraced the apostolic faith.
He served as an Apostle until the age of 96. After his death, his denomination broke up into several camps; some apostolic, others turned to the Reformed faith. Even the main group—consisting of rural indigenous believers—eventually decided to become independent. This is how the other branch came into being. This had a lot to do with world history.
The upheavals of war
World War Two was raging. The Japanese Army conquered the Dutch East Indies. And in 1943 Indonesia broke free from 350 years of colonial rule. The Apostle responsible for the region, Gradus Faassen, was sent to internment camps because he was a Dutch national. He was ultimately forced to return to the Netherlands.
The Apostle entrusted his congregation to a District Elder who would later become a District Apostle: Hendra Tansahsami, whose original name was Tan Bian Sing. And Faassen asked him to re-establish contact with the Sadrach branch, to which all contact had been lost.
Striking out on his own
These were led by Bishop Raden Markam Martasudarma. Born in July 1900 to impoverished parents, he was raised by his grandparents and later lived in the household of Apostle Sadrach. In 1934, he was appointed as a District Elder, his first spiritual ministry, and in 1940 he became a Bishop—both appointments carried out by Apostle Faassen.
During the upheavals of World War Two and the Indonesian War of Independence, Martasudarma was cut off from both the sister church in Indonesia and the mother church in Europe. While some of his companions considered abandoning their apostolic heritage, he remained determined to preserve and strengthen it. He founded the “Association of Apostolic Christians in the Tribe of Zebulun”, was elected Apostle, and later proclaimed Chief Apostle.
Path to reunification
Eventually, Martasudarma succeeded in re-establishing contact with Europe—specifically with the Apostolisch Genootschap, which had separated from the New Apostolic Church in 1947. The tribe of Zebulun wanted to speak about a possible merger. District Elder Tansahsami learned of the planned meeting, attended it himself, and was able to prevent the merger at the last moment. However, his intervention did not yet lead to a reunification of the Indonesian sister churches.
In 1951, the Chinese-born Tansahsami was appointed a District Apostle. This decision was met with resistance among the Zebulun members, many of whom would have preferred a local leader for the role. In 1952, Chief Apostle Bischoff ordained Kasam Redjapawira—one of their former members—as an Apostle. In 1956, the Zebulun branch joined the New Apostolic Church.
In the same year, Martasudarma, who was initially confirmed as a Bishop, was ordained an Apostle. He retired in 1965. Apostle Raden Markam Martasudarma passed away on 14 February 1976.
In the picture (from left): Apostle Sadrach, Apostle Martasudarma, and District Apostle Tansahsami (montage: Andreas Rother)