PERANAN PROTESTANT CHURCH IN SABAH (PCS) DALAM PERKEMBANGAN SOSIAL MASYARAKAT RUNGUS 1952-1993 DI KUDAT, SABAH

Abstract

Gereja Basel di Sabah berada di bawah naungan Pusat Misi Basel di Switzerland. Namun, disebabkan masalah kewangan Pusat Misi Basel, gereja Basel di Sabah ditadbir sendiri tanpa melibatkan bantuan kewangan daripada luar. Nama Gereja Basel Borneo kemudiannya ditukar menjadi Christian Church of Basel Malaysia (BCCM) pada tahun 1963. BCCM berperanan dalam mengembangkan agama Basel dalam kalangan masyarakat setempat, terutama etnik Rungus yang membawa kepada penubuhan Protestant Church in Sabah (PCS). Objektif makalah ini adalah untuk menganalisis peranan PCS sebagai institusiagama dalam pembangunan sosial masyarakat Rungus di Kudat dari tahun 1953 hingga 1993. Kajian ini dibuat berdasarkan sumber utama seperti dokumen, laporan tahunan dan surat khabar yang diperoleh dari Arkib Negeri Sabah. Catatan peribadi dan sumber lisan mubaligh juga digunakan untuk menganalisis pengaruh perubahan dalam perkembangan sosial yang dilakukan oleh PCS terhadap masyarakat Rungus. Kajian ini mendapati bahawa mubaligh PCS sangat signifikan dalam penyebaran agama Kristian kepada etnik Rungus di Kudat yang sebelumnya dilakukan oleh mubaligh Jerman dan Switzerland. Untuk memudahkan penyebaran agama Kristian, para mubaligh PCS bersama-sama dengan Misi Basel membawa pelbagai perubahan dalam bidang pendidikan dan kesihatan dalam kalangan etnik Rungus di Kudat. The Basel Church in Sabah is under the auspices of the Basel Mission Center in Switzerland. However, due to the financial problems of the Basel Mission Center, the Basel church in Sabah is self-governing without the involvement of external financial assistance. The name of the Church of Basel Borneo was later changed to the Christian Church of Basel Malaysia (BCCM) in 1963. BCCM played a role in developing the religion of Basel among the local community, especially Rungus which led to the establishment of the Protestant Church in Sabah (PCS). The objective of this paper is to analyze the role of the Protestant Church in Sabah (PCS) as a religious institution in the social development of the Rungus community in Kudat from 1953 to 1993. This study was made based on key sources such as documents, annual reports and newspapers obtained from the Sabah State Archives. The personal notes and oral sources of missionaries are also used to analyze the influence of changes in social development made by PCS on the Rungus community. This study found that PCS missionaries were very significant in the spread of Christianity to the Rungus ethnic group in Kudat which was previously carried out by German and Swiss missionaries. To facilitate the spread of Christianity, the PCS missionaries together with the Basel Mission brought various changes in the field of education and health among the Rungus ethnic group in Kudat.