Experiencing the Gospel: An Examination of Muslim Conversion to Christianity in Cambodia

Research Focus

Religious conversion is both complicated and fascinating. It often introduces marked changes into one’s life, relationships, and perspectives. It is thus not surprising that scholars such as psychologist William James or anthropologist Joel Robbins have devoted attention to this topic. Missiologists have also expressed interest in religious conversion, partially because a better understanding of it can lead to the clearer communication of the gospel message to others.

Context can significantly impact both the openness of individuals or groups to convert to another religion and also the frequency of conversions. Followers of Islam have historically been among the least likely to convert to Christianity. Various social factors doubtless help account for the pattern, including both the inconceivability that one would leave the fold of Islam and the strong social sanctions that often follow when one does, ranging from criticism to outright persecution. And yet in recent decades, in a wide variety of regions of the world, there have been dramatically increasing numbers of those from Muslim backgrounds who have become followers of Christ.¹ While some quality studies have been completed on the subject of people from a Muslim background converting to Christ,² more research is needed on this topic. Previous studies have often focused on general factors that attracted individuals to Jesus or influenced their conversion. One’s interaction with the message itself has not been studied as deeply, including how the gospel message was experienced as personally meaningful. This more narrow focus is one of the objectives of this Cambodian study. Most research conducted by others has occurred in locations where Islam is the majority religion and/or among majority ethnic groups in those locations (for example, studies in North Africa and the Middle East). While those studies are valuable, few have been conducted on Muslims in areas where they are the minority religion or are a minority ethnic group. The Cambodian context provides an opportunity to study religious conversion among individuals whose ethnic group and background religion are both a minority in that country. Cambodia is also located in Southeast Asia, where few studies have been completed about Muslim conversion to Christianity, but where significant populations of Muslims exist. Some previous studies have utilized primarily a quantitative approach with the use of surveys.³ Information gained from this method is helpful, but the qualitative approach used in this Cambodian study offers the opportunity to gather rich data about the manner in which Muslim-background individuals have interacted with the gospel message.

Research Concern

Cambodia is one context where conversion is occurring among those who have traditionally followed Islam. The majority of Muslims in Cambodia identify with the Cham ethnic group. Cambodian Muslims (Cham and otherwise) are a minority among the majority Buddhist-background inhabitants, and they have deep historical roots in Islam. However, in recent years there have been a small but growing number of Cambodian Muslims who self-identify as followers of Isa (Jesus) or as Christians. The conversion of Muslim background people to Christianity in Cambodia has previously not been studied.

Significance of the Research

On the social scientific level, this study is significant in that it increases understanding about religious conversion, specifically about conversion from Islam to Christianity. More narrowly, this research seeks to understand one of the most fundamental aspects of religious conversion, the impact of the religious message itself in the lives of humans. One’s conscience, will, intellect, and emotions may all be involved in this complex process, as well as external actors such as other humans. Interaction with a religious message and conversion is often powerful and life-changing. It needs to be more fully understood.⁴ A focus of this study is thus that of messaging. First, how is the religious message communicated? Second, how is the message understood by individuals and how do they perceive it as personally meaningful and compelling—in short, how is the message experienced by those who receive it?

The above insights have missiological implications. Clarity on these issues impacts both how people present a religious message and how people understand and assist individuals or groups who have converted. It also informs the process of contextualization; specifically the communication of a message in a manner which is naturally understandable and resonates with one’s lived experience. These findings can benefit both those working in a Muslim context and those working in areas where other belief systems are prevalent. This research also reveals additional insights about Muslim conversion to Christianity in general, including which factors or experiences are influential in the process of deciding to follow Jesus. The findings in this study add to the body of knowledge about reasons for Muslim conversion to Christianity as discovered by other scholars.

Definitions

I will define three phrases: Christian conversion, Christian message, and Believer in Christ from a Muslim background (BMB). In addition, I will delineate between the terms Cham and Muslim.

Christian Conversion

Although there are many good definitions of religious conversion in general, for this study a more specific description of Christian conversion is helpful. John Stott clarifies that in the Bible the term conversion usually describes turning, either a change in direction or a return to a former place. The essence and primary components of conversion are thus seen in his following quote: Since the turn from idols and sin is usually called ‘repentance,’ and the turn to God and Christ ‘faith,’ we reach the interesting biblical equation that ‘repentance + faith = conversion’. Furthermore, Stott clearly delineates between conversion, which features the human response, and regeneration, which is wholly God’s act of providing a new birth from above.⁵ As a human response, conversion can be studied empirically, whereas God’s work of regeneration cannot. Stott’s discussion and equation above provides a framework for this study.

Christian Message

For this research, the Christian message (or gospel message) is defined as follows: The Christian message is the good news about who Christ is and what he has done for sinful humanity, including the historical facts, the personal demands, and the implications for life. This message contains truth about the human condition and also about God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, and their combined work. It invites a response and potentially impacts one’s life. There are multiple facets to the Christian message, and Cambodians in this study focused on various aspects of the message at various times. The terms Christian message, gospel, and gospel message will be used interchangeably in this document.

A Believer in Christ from a Muslim Background (BMB)

Across the globe, there are individuals originating from Muslim contexts who have decided to follow Christ. They are genuine believers, living under Christ’s authority and for his glory. These people have been commonly referred to as Muslim background believers (MBBs). Miller and Johnstone prefer the use of the term BMBs (believers in Christ from a Muslim background), as this emphasizes the current beliefs of the individual rather than their previous affiliation.⁶ I agree and am choosing to use this term as well, instead of the more common MBB. Some BMBs (BMB when singular) in the world continue to identify as Muslims, and may be referred to as Muslim followers of Christ (MFCs), which is explained by Higgins, Jameson and Talman as These followers of Christ from Muslim backgrounds consider themselves and are seen by their friends, family, and communities as Muslims.⁷ Others, however, choose not to identify themselves as Muslim. In Cambodia, I am unaware of any followers of Christ from a Muslim background who continue to identify as Muslim. I thus choose to use the singular term BMB in this study, instead of MFC as well.

Cham vs. Muslim

The use of Cham vs. Muslim should be delineated for this project. The Muslim population in Cambodia as of 2016 is 371,000.⁸ The majority of these identify with the Cham ethnic group who descended from the ancient Champa kingdom. Collins distinguishes three major groups of Cham in Cambodia, the traditional Jahed or Imam San, the large group of Chang Wang, and the Chvea, who speak the Khmer language but not the Cham language, and who do not necessarily identify as Cham.⁹ This study includes respondents from all three of the above groups. Each of the groups clearly identifies as Muslim, but only two strongly view themselves as Cham. Thus for this document, the broader term Muslim will be used instead of Cham.

Research Context

It is important to understand the context for this study. Muslims in Cambodia are a minority in this Buddhist-majority nation. Their population of 371,000 is approximately 2.5 percent of the Cambodian population, which totaled 14,676,591 in 2013.¹⁰ The vast majority of Cambodians are members of the Khmer ethnic group, which is traditionally Buddhist.¹¹ Most Muslims in Cambodia claim ancestry from the ancient Champa Kingdom in Vietnam. Collins describes four separate migrations from Vietnam to present-day Cambodia between the years of 1471 and 1835 as a result of conflict with the Vietnamese and other peoples.¹² Further details about the major groups of Cham in Cambodia are described as follows. The first group, the traditional Jahed, cling to their ancient religious practices and identify themselves as those who worship only one time per week. This group is also referred to as the Imam San, and constitutes ten percent or less of all Cambodian Muslims.¹³ They are fluent in the Cham language, value the ancient Cham script, and are skilled in reading it, unlike the other two groups.¹⁴ The second group is the Chvea, who practice Islam regularly but do not speak the Cham language. Rather, they speak only Khmer.¹⁵ The term Chvea is the Khmer word used for Java, which points to the likely ancestry from Muslims who came from the Malay-Indonesia area. Thus they are not likely direct descendants of the Champa kingdom, though they do strongly adhere to Islam. In Cambodia, they sometimes refer to themselves as Khmer Islam, pointing to their identity as Cambodians but with a separate religion of Islam.¹⁶ The third group is the Cham or Chang Wang. They comprise the majority of Cham people, generally practice Islam in a more orthodox way, and value their close ties with Malaysia.¹⁷ The final two groups pray five times per day as Muslims around the world are accustomed to. The first group of the Jahed, by contrast, prays only once per week, mid-day on Fridays, according to instructions given by a previous influential religious teacher, Imam San. Thus one clear demarcation between Cham groups identified by themselves is that some formally pray five times per day and others only one time per week.¹⁸ Another demarcation lies between the two groups who are descendants from the Champa kingdom (the Jahed and the Cham/Chang Wang) versus the Chvea whose ancestors originated in the Malay-Indonesia area. The majority of those interviewed in this study identified as Cham,¹⁹ and three individuals identified themselves as Khmer Islam. Khmer Islam interviewees, who are fluent in Khmer but not Cham, were interviewed in the Khmer language. The majority of other interviews were conducted in the Cham language.

Setudeh-Nejad clearly states that the Cham people, although a minority group, exhibit a strong cultural identity.²⁰ Other scholars, however, note that this identity is not simply one entity but is fluid and contested.²¹ In his dissertation, Eng identifies two core and three peripheral identities of contemporary Cham. The core identities are being Muslim and descendants from Champa whose indigenous language is Cham. The secondary identities are sectarian, economic, and political.²² In his writings, Collins concludes that two key challenges for the Cham are, how to preserve their distinct identity as a minority, and how to secure their livelihood in a changing economy.²³ This is not surprising, especially with the attention that Muslims in Cambodia have recently received, particularly from the Islamic world. Pereiro writes,

Since . . .

1993

, the Cambodian Muslim community has undergone a rapid transformation from being an Islamic minority on the periphery of the Muslim world to being the object of intense proselytization by foreign Islamic organizations, charities and development organizations. This has led to a period of religious as well as political ferment in which Cambodian Muslims are reassessing their relationships to other Muslim communities in the country, fellow Muslims outside of the country, and an officially Buddhist state.²⁴

Although they are a minority population and often live in rural areas, Cambodian Muslims are not religiously isolated. They are being influenced in many ways, including by various Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) or conservative Islamic movements such as the Tablīghī Jamāʿat (known in Cambodia as Daʿwah Tabligh).²⁵ Christian NGOs have also worked among Muslims in Cambodia, and some Muslims have chosen to embrace Christianity. Though few in number, there are remarkably more BMBs in Cambodia now than in the year 2000, when it was estimated there were less than ten Christian believers.²⁶

The Cambodian Ministry of Cults and Religion provides the following statistical information regarding Muslims in Cambodia:²⁷

Table

1

. Statistical Information about Muslims in Cambodia

Over 90 percent of Muslims in Cambodia follow the Sunni branch of Islam. Of the four main divisions existing within Sunni Islam, nearly all Cambodian Muslims are associated with the Shafi’i branch.²⁸ Geographically, Muslims in Cambodia can be found in nearly all provinces, but they are concentrated in central Cambodia, often along the major rivers, as traditionally many are involved in the fishing industry. Figure 1 provides visual information about the location of Cham Muslims in Cambodia.²⁹

Figure

1

. Primary Locations of Western Cham in Cambodia

Assumptions

This research is based on three assumptions. First, the Christian message is meaningful to many people. It may challenge, assist, or convict them, but it is important to them. Second, people are able to communicate about their interaction with the message and how it is meaningful to them. Although they may be talking about previous events, they are able to reflect on them and on their importance in their lives. Third, the manner in which the message is communicated can influence both how well it is comprehended and how it is perceived by those hearing it, including its personal relevance and desirability.

Research Focus

This study examined and analyzed the conversions of forty Cambodian Muslims to Christianity, with particular focus on (1) examining the role of contextual adjustments made to make the Christian message more understandable and compelling, (2) identifying core themes or factors that converts report as central in their own conversions, and (3) exploring and analyzing the ways in which the message itself was experienced as personally meaningful and appealing.

Research Questions

The research questions (RQs) for this project were as follows:

1.RQ Number 1: What role, if any, did the contextualization of the message play in clearly understanding it, and in the decision to follow Jesus?

2.RQ Number 2: What prominent themes or factors were instrumental in the conversion process as revealed in the narratives?

3.RQ Number 3: How did the gospel message impact the respondents in a way that was personally meaningful?

In order to answer these research questions, BMBs were interviewed and were encouraged to share their personal story about deciding to believe in and follow Jesus. This invitation to share their personal story was the initial topic in all interviews. Follow-up questions were asked based on what the interviewee shared. In addition, questions were asked about such topics as how they received the message, what interested them in it, why it was important to them, and how they communicate it to others in a way which is clearly understood. Discussion around these and other questions revealed answers to the research questions.³⁰ Chapter 4 of this document addresses RQ number one above, whereas chapters 5 and 6 focus on RQ’s number two and three respectively.

Limitations

The scope of this study is limited to believers in Christ from a Muslim background in Cambodia. Although the Chang Wang group represents the largest number of Cham, it appears that a larger proportion from the Imam San group has become followers of Christ. One limitation is that there are not many BMBs in Cambodia (approximately three to four hundred total). Second, the BMBs are living in various locations around the country, many of which are remote. Although I was able to travel to many locations, it was not possible to visit all the locations where BMBs reside. Third, some BMBs are not interested in being interviewed. Reasons for this may include their unfamiliarity with me as a foreigner, their perception that they are not knowledgeable or clever in speech, or their fear of being widely known as a follower of Christ. Muslim conversion to Christianity is understandably a sensitive topic in Cambodia. In addition, the atrocities experienced during the reign of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge (1975–1978), when at times children and others spied on individuals and provided information about them to the authorities, have led to many Cambodians not easily trusting others.³¹ Thus they are sometimes reluctant in providing personal information.

Delimitations

There are four delimitations in this study. First, only individuals eighteen years old or older were interviewed. Second, only those individuals who fit the criteria as someone who identified as a follower of Christ were interviewed. This excluded current followers of Islam, and also Muslims who were sympathetic to Christianity. In addition, the respondents all lived within the borders of Cambodia.³² The third delimitation is that only forty individuals were interviewed. Although there are many more BMBs in Cambodia, it is felt that forty people constitute an adequate sample size to allow rich information to be gathered. Fourth, this research focused on the interaction of a person with the biblical message. It is understood that many other factors may be involved in the process of conversion. Some of these were revealed in the course of this study and were investigated. Findings related to these factors are reported in chapter 5. The focus of this study, however, was primarily on the phenomenon about how one interacts with, experiences, and is personally impacted by the gospel message.

1

. Miller and Johnstone, Believers in Christ; Garrison, Wind in the House of Islam.

2

. E.g., Bultema, Muslims Coming to Christ; Gaudeul, Called from Islam to Christ; Greenham, Study of Palestinian Muslim Conversions; Greenlee, Christian Conversion from Islam; Hoskins, Conversion Narratives; Woodberry et al., Why Muslims Follow Jesus.

3

. E.g., Woodberry et al., Why Muslims Follow Jesus.

4

. Regarding the need for research, see Skreslet, who in reviewing doctoral dissertations from

1992

to

2001

revealed that only

3

out of over

900

were based on the topic categorized as Conversion, and Islam (Doctoral Dissertations,

126).

In the article reviewing the subsequent decade, Priest and DeGeorge noted that only approximately three percent of dissertations focused on World A countries, defined as those "where less than

50

% of the people have been evangelized (Doctoral Dissertations on Mission,"

200)

. Cambodia can be considered a World A country.

5

. Stott, Christian Mission,

168

-

69

.

6

. Miller and Johnstone, Believers in Christ,

13

.

7

. Higgins et al., Myths and Misunderstandings,

41

.