Biblical Interpretation and TYCM Tribal Postcolonial Concerns Reading Genesis 2:4B~25 with TYCM Ordinary Tribal Readers
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A Convocation House (Prrngawan) Biblical Interpretation and TYCM Tribal Postcolonial Concerns Reading Genesis 2:4b~25 with TYCM Ordinary Tribal Readers By Walis C. Chang A Dissertation Submitted in Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Biblical Studies) School of Religion, Philosophy, and Classics University of KwaZulu-Natal Supervisor Prof Gerald West Pietermaritzburg 2012 Abstract The thesis is concerned about the postcolonial context of the minority tribal people, the Taiwan Yuen-Chu-Min (台灣原住民, TYCM), in Taiwan. The argument of this thesis includes two parts: Part one provides the background to develop the foundation for the contextualization of the TYCM tribal people’s colonized experience and postcolonial discourse in light of their contextual concerns－tribal mother tongue, tribal texts, and ordinary tribal people; Part two draws connections between these TYCM tribal people’s postcolonial concerns and biblical interpretation, which is called “TYCM Tribal Biblical Interpretation”, and practices reading Gen 2:4b-25 with the subaltern people, TYCM ordinary tribal people, through the Five Step Reading Process in a group collaborative effort with 14 tribal reading groups. The project of TYCM Tribal Biblical Interpretation, as practiced through the Five Step Reading Process, is committed to create decolonization strategies to connect with the colonized experience of tribal people to help them play their traditional role of the Prrngawan to facilitate ordinary tribal people to become the “real” and “flesh-and-blood” readers of their tribal texts and biblical texts through their mother-tongue to freely participate in constructing and in continuing to restore their tribal spirituality, worldviews, and appropriation readings to highlight de-colonized biblical readings in their struggles of their postcolonial context in present day Taiwan. i Declaration I hereby declare that this whole Doctoral dissertation is my own work and it has not been submitted in any form for another degree or diploma at any university or other institution of tertiary education. I have not plagiarized from any source that I have not quoted or referenced. I have fully referenced my research using the Harvard system. ____Walis C. Chang________ ___8 November 2012___ Name of Student Date As supervisor, I agree to the submission of the dissertation. ____Prof Gerald West________ __7 November 2012___ Name of Supervisor Date ii COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES DECLARATION - PLAGIARISM I, ……………………Walis Chiou-hsioung Chang .………………………., declare that 1. The research reported in this thesis, except where otherwise indicated, is my original research. 2. This thesis has not been submitted for any degree or examination at any other university. 3. This thesis does not contain other persons’ data, pictures, graphs or other information, unless specifically acknowledged as being sourced from other persons. 4. This thesis does not contain other persons' writing, unless specifically acknowledged as being sourced from other researchers. Where other written sources have been quoted, then: a. Their words have been re-written but the general information attributed to them has been referenced b. Where their exact words have been used, then their writing has been placed in italics and inside quotation marks, and referenced. 5. This thesis does not contain text, graphics or tables copied and pasted from the Internet, unless specifically acknowledged, and the source being detailed in the thesis and in the References sections. Signed ………… ………………8 November 2012………………… iii Acknowledgement I would like to express my debt of gratitude to several communities and individuals who have assisted me in accomplishing this work. First, I would like to thank Dr. Gerald O. West, who supervised me and provided such stimulating criticism and encouraging enthusiasm for my draft upon which this dissertation is based as well as for the aid, advice and friendship he gave me at every stage. Second, to the faculty and staff of the school of Religion and Theology of the University of Kwazulu-Natal, who deserve my appreciation for the valuable sharing of their research and their helpful criticism of various aspects of my thesis. A special thanks to Dr. Kwame Bediako, the late rector of the Akrofi-Christaller Institute for Theology, Mission, and Culture, who supported me to understand the rich heritage of the African indigenous cultures and religions and that these similar understandings should be pursued in my own indigenous context of Christian worship, discipleship, and mission. I would also like to express my gratitude to all my colleagues at Yu-Shan Theological College & Seminary for their constant support and encouragement. It is with a deep sense of gratitude that I thank to Rev. Lo Chun-gi, Rev. Chen Nan-jou, Rev. Aki Loking (Tai Chio-kue), Rev. Chung-che Wu, Rev. Chien Chen-shoung, Rev. Ichi Teykung, Miss. Chang Cye, Mr. Tai Phong-yi, Mr. & Mrs. Tang Chin-li, Mr. & Mrs. Wang Phu-sen, and WCC (the World Council of Churches) which have provided me with constant help and financial support over the past eight years. Without their help, I could not have successfully finished it. I am really thankful to my brothers and sisters in the fourteen tribal reading groups for their loves and prayers, for accepting me to be their partner and friend in the Lord, and for helping me do the readings with them, even I needed translation by them. My sincere gratitude goes to Dr. Kah-Jin Jeffrey Kuan for his advice, friendship, and encouragement. Thanks are also for Mrs. Marijke Fakasiieiki, Rev. Stephen Paciti, and Dr. Lee Hong-tao read and edited the final draft, so these stories could be told. I remember with gratitude my parents, Ukan Pawan and Away Basaw, and I dedicate this work to their perpetual memory. My thanks also to my sisters, Lubi Ukan, Obing Ukan, Ribix Ukan, Tapas Ukan, and Mehua Ukan, who have been very supportive and helpful to me during my studies. Finally, I want to thank my wife, Kucang Tonday, and my son, Risaw Walis and my daughter, Away Walis, for their continuous support, love, and encouragement while I was writing. iv Dedication This dissertation is dedicated to the memory of my parents, Ukan Pawan and Away Basaw, my wife, Kucang Tongday, my children, Risaw Walis, and Away Walis, my Sediq/Sedeq/Sejiq tribe, the Sediq Presbyterian Church of the Prebyterian Church in Taiwan, and the fourteen tribal reading groups v TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract …………………………………………………………………………… i Declaration ……………………………………………………………………….. ii Acknowledgement……………………………………………………………….. iii Dedication………………………………………………………………………… iv Table of Contents………………………………………………………………….. v Introduction ............................................... 1 Part I Chapter One A Survey of TYCM Tribal People’s Experiences in the Context of Taiwan 1.0. Introduction …………………………………………………………… 12 1.1. The Colonial History of Taiwan ……………………………………… 15 1.1.1. The Dutch and the Spanish Colonial Periods ……………………. 16 1.1.2. The Cheng Rule and the Ching Colonial Periods …………………. 18 1.1.3. The Japanese Colonial Period ……………………………………. 21 1.1.4. The Nationalist (KMT) Colonial Period …………………………. 23 1.1.5. Democratic Rights Movement ……………………………………. 25 1.2. TYCM Tribal People’s Identity Movement ………………………… 28 1.2.1. Inspiration for the Ethnic Rights and Consciousness …………… 30 1.2.2. Initial Stage of the Movement …………………………………… 32 1.2.3. Supreme Period of Conflict ……………………………………… 34 1.2.4. Parliament and Congress Routes …………………………………. 35 1.3. TYCM Tribal People and Christianity ……………………………… 37 1.3.1. A Colonial Religion ………………………………………………. 38 1.3.2. A Foreign Religion ………………………………………………. 42 1.3.3. The Tribal Religion ………………………………………………. 44 1.3.4. A Religion of Coordination in the Face of Colonialism ………….. 46 1.3.5. A Self-alienating Religion ………………………………………… 50 1.4. Conclusion …………………………………………………………….. 53 Chapter Two Modes of Reading the Bible by TYCM Tribal People in the Context of Taiwan 2.0. Introduction …………………………………………………………… 56 2.1. Drawing on the Sources of Reading the Bible ………………………. 56 2.2. The Biblical Text Centered Approach ……………………………….. 58 2.3. The Biblical Text-TYCM Tribal People’s Context Approach ……… 61 vi 2.4. The Cross-textual Approach ………………………………………… 64 2.4.1. Using the Biblical Text to Interpret the TYCM Tribal Text …..….. 67 2.4.2. Using the TYCM Tribal Text to Interpret the Biblical Text ……….. 67 2.4.3. Comparative Studies ……………………………………………... 68 2.5. The Multi-tribal Hermeneutic Reading Mode ………………………. 70 2.6. Conclusion …………………………………………………………….. 72 Chapter Three Postcolonial Discourse in Taiwan 3.0. Introduction …………………………………………………………… 74 3.1. The Location of Postcolonial Discourse in Taiwan …………………. 74 3.2. Opening the Period of “Postcolonial” Discourse …………………… 77 3.3. The Themes of Taiwanese Postcolonial Discourse …………………… 83 3.3.1. Historical Amnesia and Memory ………………………………… 84 3.3.2. Taiwaneseness－Constructing Subjectivity ……………………… 88 3.3.3. The Collapse of the Cultural Canon－Cultural and Language Hybridity ……………..……………………………………………… 91 3.3.4. Identity of Nation, People, and Culture …………………………… 94 3.4. Conclusion ……………………………………………………………… 98 Chapter Four The TYCM Tribal People in Postcolonial Discourse 4.0. Introduction …………………………………………………………… 100 4.1. The TYCM Tribal People in Postcolonial Discourse ……………… 101 4.2. The Postcolonial Period for the TYCM Tribal People ……………… 105 4.3. Taiwanese TYCM Tribal de-Colonization Discourse Strategy …….. 115 4.3.1 Re-tracing Tribal Traditions: TYCM Tribal Cultrural-religious