June 2004: This page is being reconstructed with new information.
The information on this page may no longer be accurate.
BUOL OF INDONESIA
LOCATION : northeastern peninsula of Sulawesi
POPULATION : 75,000
LANGUAGE : Buol
PEOPLE CLUSTER : Kaili / Tomini
RELIGION : Muslim (Sunni) 99.9%
% OF CHRISTIANITY : 0%
SCRIPTURE : None
RADIO BROADCAST : None
JESUS FILM : None
GOSPEL AUDIO RECORDING : None
CHURCH PLANTING TEAM / MISSION AGENCY WORKING AMONG THEM : 1
The Buol are considered to be a sub-group of the Gorontalo people. Although formerly mountain dwellers, they now live in scattered villages along the northeastern peninsula of Sulawesi. The Buol region has a history of the rising and falling of insignificant kingdoms. These kingdoms would occasionally ban together in times of war to form a larger and more powerful army. Their brief unity would help secure a victory over their enemies.
To the east of the Buol are the neighboring Minahasans of Minado Island who have been strongly influenced by Dutch colonization and Christian education that resulted to have been converted to Christianity. Unfortunately, however, the Buol have remained devout Muslims and are largely unevangelized. There seem to be many barriers of prejudice between the two groups. There are no native Buol churches, and local Christians are frightened to reach out to the Muslim Buols for fear of persecution.
Rice, maize, and the fruit of sago palms are important food sources to the Buols. Yams and grain are secondary crops, and coconut is grown commercially. Nets, traps, and harpoons are used for fishing in the lakes. Rattan (a type of palm) and damar (trees grown for timber) are gathered for sale. Cattle are commonly used for pulling heavy loads and horses for riding. Buol marriages follow the Muslim pattern and are arranged by a middleman who has the responsibility of negotiating the bride price for the groom, an amount which is determined by the girl?s social status. Once married, a couple usually lives with the bride?s mother until the first child is born. Then the couple leaves to establish their own independent household. Each spouse owns property separately, and only the land obtained after marriage becomes mutual property.
Virtually all the Buol are Sunni Muslims, although many of their ritual ceremonies and practices are actually a mixture of several religions.
There is only a handful of known believers among the Buol. Presently, there are no Christian films or broadcasts in the Buol language. Although there is one mission agency targeting the Buol, there are only 16 reported church members in this region. Sadly, there are no Scriptures written in their native language. The Buol have the freedom to choose to follow Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, or Christianity. However, the large Muslim population has strong political influence. They use their power to limit Christian expansion and reduce Christian influence in public life.
PRAYER POINTS
- Pray that God will encourage,equip, protect and strengthen the handful Buol believers and pray that God will use them mightily to reach their own people to know Christ as their Lord and Savior.
- Ask the Lord to call laborers who are willing to go to the island of Sulawesi and cross the barrier and boldly share Christ with the Buol.
- Pray that God will raise up qualified linguists to translate the Bible into the Buol language.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to soften the hearts of the Buol Muslims towards Christians so that they will be receptive to the Gospel.
- Pray that God will supply Christian resources such as radio, television, and literature to help evangelize the Buol.
- Ask the Lord to raise up a strong local church among the Buol.
links to related information: www.joshuaproject.net , http://www.bethanynorth.com/profiles/profile1.html
