Diocese of Sabah

Last updated
Diocese of Sabah
Anglican Diocese of Sabah Seal edit.png
Arms of the Diocese of Sabah
Location
Ecclesiastical province Province of South East Asia
Archdeaconries West Coast and Labuan Archdeaconry
Central Archdeaconry
East Coast Archdeaconry
Information
CathedralAll Saints' Cathedral, Kota Kinabalu
Current leadership
BishopRt Revd Datuk Melter Jiki Tais
Website
anglicansabah.org

The Diocese of Sabah is an Anglican diocese which covers Sabah and Labuan in Malaysia. Founded in 1962, the see was originally part of the much larger Diocese of Labuan and its Dependencies which was established in 1855. Following the carving out of the Diocese of Singapore in 1909 from this last ecclesiastical territory, the area of the present-day Diocese fell under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Labuan & Sarawak, which was reorganised as the Diocese of Borneo in 1949. In 1962, the latter diocese was divided into two, forming the Diocese of Kuching and the Diocese of Jesselton, which was renamed the Diocese of Sabah when the capital city was given the new name of Kota Kinabalu in 1967.

Contents

The territorial jurisdiction of the diocese covers the entire 73,904 km2 of Sabah and the 92 km2 of Labuan. Besides this, the Diocese also has a few mission churches in other parts of the Province of South East Asia, including in Indonesia and Thailand.

The current Bishop of Sabah is the Right Reverend Datuk Melter Jiki bin Tais, the first Bumiputera (indigenous) person to hold the office and a senior clergyman of ethnic Kadazan-Dusun descent.

History

19th century

Beginning of mission work

The history of the Diocese of Sabah begins with the mission work which was carried out in the crown colony of Labuan and British North Borneo. In 1846, the island of Labuan was ceded to Great Britain by the Sultanate of Brunei as the result of the Treaty of Labuan. As there was no resident Anglican priest in Labuan, the Bishop of London granted the Lieutenant Governor, John Scott, the authority to perform weddings and funerals using the 1662 Book of Common Prayer. [1]

Among the first Anglican missionaries sent to Borneo in 1846 was the Revd Dr Francis Thomas McDougall, a priest, medical doctor and surgeon. Although his base was in Kuching, Sarawak, technicalities in canon law led to him being consecrated as the Bishop of Labuan and its Dependencies in 1855. [2] The Church of Our Holy Saviour, Labuan which was the first Anglican church in the present-day Diocese of Sabah, was consecrated by Bishop McDougall in 1866, although there is evidence of a congregation on the island since 1850. [3]

In 1878, Baron von Overbeck, the Austrian Consul in Hong Kong, and Alfred Dent, a British entrepreneur, obtained territorial possession of what became British North Borneo. The North Borneo Chartered Company was set up to administer this region. The Englishman William Burgess Pryer was appointed "Resident" of the East Coast. He founded the town of Sandakan in 1879. A committed Anglican, Pryer requested ministerial assistance from the then-Bishop of Labuan, George Frederick Hose. Bishop Hose was unable to visit Sandakan until 1884 but in 1883 sent a Chinese catechist, Ah Leng, to minister to the Chinese-speaking Christians in Kudat as well as Sandakan. [4]

First two churches in North Borneo

The first priest sent to North Borneo was the Revd William Henry Elton, a missionary of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts (SPG). Arriving in Sandakan in 1888, he found a suitable piece of land to build the first Anglican church in present-day Sabah, St. Michael's and All Angels Church, Sandakan. [5] He also set up St Michael's Boys' School and St Monica's Girls' School. [6]

The first capital of British North Borneo was Kudat. Groups of Hakka Christians were brought over from China to farm the surrounding area. Although they had been evangelised by disparate denominations back in China, Elton managed to convince them to form a single congregation. [7] Thus, St James' Anglican Church, Kudat was born. The first Asian priest in North Borneo, the Revd Fong Hau Kong, was ordained deacon in 1898 and priest in 1910 having served as a catechist in Kudat. [8]

20th century

Expansion on the coasts

The port town of Jesselton was founded in 1899. Elton swiftly secured land for a church, and the SPG sent a missionary priest, the Revd George Clarke, to the area in 1902. [9] By 1914 the mission included a boys' school, known later as All Saints' School, St Agnes' Girls School and All Saints' Parish Church. [10]

In the southeastern town of Tawau, the church of St Patrick's was finally established in 1917, 18 years after Revd Elton's first visit to the town in 1899. The first resident priest, Revd Vun Nen Vun, was a graduate of the short-lived but notable College of the Holy Way in Kudat, an experiment in educating local clergy. [11]

World War II and aftermath

Mission work in the region was severely affected by the Second World War. The Japanese army's assault on North Borneo began on 27 December 1941, and by the end of February they had taken over the territory. Foreign clergy and other missionaries were interned, including Sisters Irene and Alison from the Community of the Companions of Jesus the Good Shepherd, who were serving as teachers in Sandakan. [12] Into the vacuum created by the imprisonment of the missionaries stepped the few local clergy, including the five graduates of the College of the Holy Way, namely the Revd Chin Phu Yin, the Revd Chong En Siong, the Revd Lai Chun Sang, the Revd Lim Siong Teck and the Revd Vun Nen Vun. [13] Christians suffered persecution during the Japanese occupation as they were adherents of a faith considered to be "Western." Nevertheless, most held on to their faith during this difficult time.

North Borneo was liberated by the Allied Forces in October 1945. Much had to be done to rebuild the church both in a physical as well as a spiritual sense. The Rt Revd Nigel Cornwall, the newly-appointed Bishop of Borneo, managed to secure assistance in the form of missionary nurses, priests and teachers from the Australian Board of Missions and the Australian branch of the Church Mission Society. [14]

The Sabah Anglican Interior Mission (SAIM)

Throughout the first seventy years of Anglican mission work in North Borneo, the focus had been on the coastal areas which were generally urban or semi-urban. An attempt to evangelise the peoples of the interior was started in Keningau in 1896, but this work among the Murut people had to be abandoned in 1902 due to the ill-health and transfer to Singapore of pioneer missionary the Revd Fred Perry. [15]

Work in the interior resumed in earnest in 1958 with the founding of the Sabah Anglican Interior Mission (SAIM). The initial impetus behind the SAIM came from Bruce Sandilands, a district surveyor who was moved by the poverty he encountered during his trips along rivers which reached deep into the interior, such as the Kinabatangan. He convinced the Rector of St Michael's Sandakan, the Revd Canon Frank Lomax, to accompany him upriver. Lomax was similarly moved by the difficulties faced by the rural villagers, and thus the SAIM was conceived and born to uplift the spiritual and material well-being of the peoples in the interior. [16]

Archdeaconries

Bishops

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kudat</span> Town and district capital in Sabah, Malaysia

Kudat is the capital of the Kudat District in the Kudat Division of Sabah, Malaysia. Its population was estimated to be around 29,025 in 2010. It is located on the Kudat Peninsula, about 190 kilometres (120 mi) north of Kota Kinabalu, the state capital, and is near the northernmost point of Borneo. It is the largest town in the heartland of the Rungus people which is a sub-ethnic group of the majority Kadazan-Dusun race and is therefore a major centre of Rungus culture. It is also notable for being one of the first parts of Sabah to be settled by Chinese Malaysians, particularly from the Hakka dialect group. It is the Northernmost Malaysian city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">West Coast Division</span> Administrative division in Sabah, Malaysia

West Coast Division is an administrative division of Sabah, Malaysia. It occupies the northwest portion of Sabah. With an area of 7,588 square kilometres, it occupies 10.3% of Sabah's territory. It also has approximately 30% of Sabah's total population, with the main indigenous inhabitants comprising the Bajau, Bisaya, Bruneian Malay, Dusun, Illanun, Kadazan and Kedayan, as well with a significant numbers of Chinese. The division is divided into the districts of Ranau, Kota Belud, Tuaran, Penampang, Papar, and the state capital Kota Kinabalu. The main towns are as in the names of the districts, plus other towns including Putatan, Inanam, Telipok, Tamparuli, Tenghilan and Kinarut.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catholic Church in Malaysia</span>

The Catholic Church in Malaysia is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, under the spiritual leadership of the pope in Rome. The apostolic nuncio to Malaysia is currently Archbishop Wojciech Załuski, who was appointed on 22 September 2020; The resident ambassador of Malaysia to the Holy See is Westmoreland Anak Edward Palon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of the Province of South East Asia</span> Ecclesiastical province within the Anglican Communion

The Church of the Province of South East Asia is an autonomous member of the Anglican Communion, created in 1996 with the four dioceses of Kuching, Sabah, Singapore and West Malaysia.

Divisions are the primary subdivisions of Sabah and Sarawak, the states in East Malaysia. Each division is subdivided into districts — this is different in Peninsular Malaysia whereby districts are generally the primary subdivisions of a state. Each division is headed by a resident.

The Diocese of Kuching is a diocese of the Anglican Church of the Province of South East Asia that covers Sarawak and Brunei. Founded in 1962, the see was originally established as the Bishopric of Sarawak linked to the Diocese of Labuan in 1855. The current bishop is the Most Rev'd Danald Jute, 14th Lord Bishop of the Diocese of Kuching and Brunei, who was consecrated on 13 August 2017. His seat is at St. Thomas' Cathedral, Kuching.

The Bishop of Sabah is an Anglican prelate who oversees the Diocese of Sabah in the Church of the Province of South East Asia. Following the death of Albert Vun Cheong Fui on 14 July 2014, Melter Tais was installed as the sixth bishop on 14 May 2015. His seat is All Saints' Cathedral, Kota Kinabalu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu</span> Roman Catholic archdiocese in Malaysia

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu is a metropolitan archdiocese of the Latin Church of the Roman Catholic Church in Sabah, Malaysia. The archdiocese is the oldest ecclesiastical territory in Malaysia, with a long history slowly rising along with the Catholic population from a prefecture to an archdiocese. Its cathedral archepiscopal see is Sacred Heart Cathedral, Kota Kinabalu. The patron saint of the archdiocese is St. Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basel Christian Church of Malaysia</span>

The Basel Christian Church of Malaysia or BCCM, formerly known as Borneo Basel Self Established Church, is one of the four Lutheran bodies in Malaysia. In 2009 BCCM had 112 congregations nationwide and 63,000 baptised members. In 2023, BCCM had 64,500 members.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Wong Soo Kau</span> Malaysian Archbishop (born 1968)

John Wong Soo Kau is a Malaysian prelate of the Catholic Church. He was named the second metropolitan Archbishop of Kota Kinabalu on 24 January 2013, the Feast of St Francis de Sales, by Pope Francis. He is fully styled as His Grace Most Reverend Datuk John Wong, Archbishop of Kota Kinabalu. Sacred Heart Cathedral in the metropolitan of Kota Kinabalu is the seat of Archbishop Wong, and the cathedral church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Michael's and All Angels Church, Sandakan</span> Church in Sandakan, Sabah.

St. Michael's and All Angels Church or for short St. Michael is an Anglican church in the city of Sandakan in the Malaysian state of Sabah in northern Borneo. St. Michael is the oldest stone church in Sabah. The impetus for the construction of the church dates back to the clergyman William Henry Elton, who is also known as the founder of St. Michael's Secondary School, located next to the church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Mary's Cathedral, Sandakan</span> Church in Sandakan, Malaysia

St. Mary's Cathedral, or Sandakan Cathedral, is the cathedral and mother church of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sandakan in Sandakan, Sabah, Malaysia.5.840196°N 118.111502°E Founded in 1883, it is the oldest church in Sandakan.

Maktab Nasional is a private Catholic mission secondary school located in Likas, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah under the jurisdiction of the Archdiocese of Kota Kinabalu.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sandakan District</span> District in Sabah, Malaysia

The Sandakan District is an administrative district in the Malaysian state of Sabah, part of the Sandakan Division which includes the districts of Beluran, Kinabatangan, Sandakan, Telupid, and Tongod. The capital of the district is in Sandakan City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Penampang District</span> District of Malaysia in Sabah

The Penampang District is an administrative district in the Malaysian state of Sabah, part of the West Coast Division which includes the districts of Kota Belud, Kota Kinabalu, Papar, Penampang, Putatan, Ranau and Tuaran. The capital of the district is in Penampang Town.

Datuk Simon Michael Fung Kui Heong was a Malaysian prelate of the Catholic Church. He was named as the third Vicar Apostolic of the Vicariate of Kota Kinabalu and Titular Bishop of Catabum Castra in 1975, and then was elevated as the first Bishop of the Diocese of Kota Kinabalu in 1977, with both positions given by Pope Paul VI. He was the first Sabahan to ever become a Bishop in Malaysia. He died on 16 November 1985, two days after his 10th episcopal ordination anniversary.

Datuk Julius Dusin Gitom is a Malaysian prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who has been serving as the first bishop of the Diocese of Sandakan since 2007.

References

Notes

  1. ↑ Boughton 2012, pp. 18.
  2. ↑ Bunyon 1889, pp. 97–98.
  3. ↑ Boughton 2012, pp. 19.
  4. ↑ Taylor 1976, pp. 1.
  5. ↑ Taylor 1976, pp. 4–5.
  6. ↑ St Michael's Sandakan 1963, pp. 12–13, 17.
  7. ↑ St James' Anglican Church Kudat 2010, pp. 11.
  8. ↑ St James' Anglican Church Kudat 2010, pp. 12–13.
  9. ↑ Boughton 2012, pp. 35.
  10. ↑ Boughton 2012, pp. 35–37.
  11. ↑ Boughton 2012, pp. 29, 33.
  12. ↑ Boughton 2012, pp. 44–45.
  13. ↑ Boughton 2012, pp. 46–49.
  14. ↑ Boughton 2012, pp. 59–61.
  15. ↑ Taylor 1976, pp. 18–19, 24.
  16. ↑ Diocese of Sabah 1979, pp. 3–4.
  17. ↑ "Anglican Diocese of Sabah: Our Bishops" . Retrieved 20 March 2021.

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.