Sarawakian Christianity

This chapter traces the origins of state-level political traditions and how they have contributed to the Sarawak United People’s Party’s dominance through the lens of religious institutions. In doing so, it discusses the historical development of the formerly pro-establishment Sarawak Chinese Methodist Church. Christians constitute the majority of Sibu’s population, and since the Brooke era, the church has positioned itself as a supportive and compliant partner of the ruling government. This alignment with political tradition continued after independence, thus reinforcing the dominance of parties in government and their local representatives. It was also encouraged by then-Chief Minister Taib Mahmud’s liberal attitude toward addressing the needs of Sarawak’s non-Muslim community, whose influence is discussed in detail. However, deepening “state-led Islamization” and the entrenchment of money politics have led to political resistance among church members against the long-ruling authorities. Although the leaders of mainstream churches remain inclined to maintain a pro-government stance, individual members and independent churches instead struggled to expand the public domain of the church through civic articulations and activism. These shifts steadily pressured churches to broaden their traditional scope beyond focusing on Christian morality, as they eventually did in the Malaysian 2018 general election campaign.