A 200-year Heritage
First as a base for the London Missionary Society's mission to China, then as a colonial chaplaincy and for the last fifty years as an international church, All Saints has both witnessed and participated in Indonesia's colourful and turbulent history.
A Short History
Raffles Era
1811-1816 Thomas Raffles of the British East India Company Lt Gov of Java
1811 British invasion of Java Lt Col Campbell died of wounds at the Battle of Cornelis, (reburied at All Saints in 1913)
1816 British handover of Java to Dutch. Small British community remains
Batavia Mission Station Era
1819-21 John Slater UK of the London Missionary Society purchased the land with a view to evangelising the Chinese. Bamboo church built and worship services in English commenced. 1822 resigned for health reasons
1822-43 Rev Walter Medhurst UK of the London Missionary Society. Medhurst established a printing works, schools and an orphanage. Missionaries from USA, Britain and Germany worked in Batavia and worshipped at the church…some for months, some for years…preparing to enter China.
1831 present church building opened. Services were conducted on an openly interdenominational basis. Church constitution early milestone in the history of ecumenical unity
1842 'Treaty of Nanking' ends China's isolation
1843 Mission Station closed when Medhurst and the other missionaries moved to China. British Protestant Community of Batavia (B.P.C.) purchased the land and building
Batavia Chaplaincy Era
1851-53 Rev. Henry du Puy UK First Church of England Clergyman.
1853-59 Rev. G. M. Drummond UK Building improvements: Venetian Sunblinds, Vestry, Entrance porch were added to the building. Drummond used the smaller house in the compound as a Schoolhouse, probably for Malay and Chinese children
1859-1875 Consular Chaplains assisted by British Foreign Office subsidy
1859-60 Rev John Scott Moncrieff UK. conducted a school for local children. Died of fever.
1862-65 Rev F. Smith UK
1866-71 Rev Dr. Arnold Ger/UK missionary in Ethiopia and India, and later in
South Africa.1872-73 Rev P.H. Francis UK . Died on sick leave in Australia
1876-79 Rev Charles Kingsmill UK taught at Salemba "Gymnasium"
1875-1905 British Foreign Office subsidy ceased. Difficulty recruiting chaplains
1905-07 Rev J. R. Denyes US Methodist. Reopened church after being closed for 20 years. Commuted by train every Sunday from Bogor
1907-10 A.T. Keen, Meth layman. Took services every Sunday
Java Chaplaincy Era
1910 Java Chaplaincy founded by Bishop of Singapore. The chaplain now had a 1,000 kilometre long parish, ministering to the English speaking people on tea and rubber plantations and cities. Over 30 different places where services were taken. "Committee of the Java Chaplaincy Fund" financed the chaplain, while the "B.P.C." continued to look after the church property.
1910-16 Rev Philip Hunter Aust. Then served as military chaplain, died 1917
1913 British community begins to find and preserve neglected British gravestones which are relocated to the church.
1916-19 Rev W. Coleman UK
1920-21 Rev Crompton Sowerbutts Can. The first married Java chaplain
1921-24 Rev Hubert Sillitoe UK. First church car purchased
1925-32 Rev C.T. Cribb UK. Improvements to chancel. Christchurch, Surabaya established.
1932-41 Rev Reginald Moore UK
Military Occupations Era
Period of Indonesian Independence Struggle
1942-45 Japanese Occupation - Batak congregation used the church building
1945-46 British Military occupation - British Military Chaplains used the church until Nov '46
1947-49 Dutch Re-occupation
1947-48 Rev J.W. Key Neth. Minister of the "Old Catholic Church"
1948-49 Rev R.B. Randolph June 1949 Dutch forces withdraw from Jakarta
All Saints Anglican Church
1950-51 Rev O.B. McCarthy (Aus) Java Chaplaincy replaced by "All Saints' Anglican Church Council". Growing number of nationalities
1951 Rev L.L. Nash (Aus) lecturer at the Theological College in Jakarta
1952-54 Rev. W. Lack (UK). Served in five continents.
1954 Rev. Boyce Horsley (Aus) lecturer at Theological College in Jakarta
1954 American Ambassador Hugh S. Cummings received a Lay Reader's licence, and conducted services when there was no chaplain. The Burmese Ambassador was also a Lay Reader
1954-56 Rev. Harold Butler (Aus)
1957-63 Rev. Beverley Coleman (UK), previously Vicar of Malacca.
1963-68 Rev. Derick Catley (India). "Konfrontasi" era. Sept 1963 British Embassy burned. British & Australian families evacuated
1970-74 Rev. John Brooke (Aus)
1974 Rev. Eric Constable (locum tenens, Aus). killed at All Saints
1974-80 Rev. Kenneth Yapp (Aus)
1980-88 Rev. Gregory Olliffe (Aus)
1988-96 Rev. Philip Sinden (Aus) and Alan Quee as Associate minister
1995 South Jakarta Congregation founded at Don Bosco School
1996-2004 Rev. Andrew Lake (Aus) and George Thomas as Associate minister.
1998 Indonesian economic and political crisis affected church in a number of ways (e.g. substantial decline in numbers of foreigners living in Jakarta; poverty relief efforts)
2004 - Rev. Dale Appleby (Aus) and David O'Mara as Associate minister
2007 - Rev. Dale Appleby (Aus) and Ian Hadfield (Aus) as Associate minister
Changes & Chances
Rev. Andrew Lake served as Vicar of All Saints from 1996 to 2004, and has written a wonderful book which serves as a personal history of All Saints Jakarta.