Despite its long and ancient history, Indonesia is young nation having gained independence in 1948 from centuries of colonialisation. Recent economic development has brought profound changes to Indonesian society.

As one of the 3rd largest peoples in Indonesia, the 13 million Madurese are key to seeing God’s kingdom established in Southeast Asia. The majority of the Madurese have migrated from their home on Madura Island to eastern Java in search of a more prosperous lifestyle.

Around 1,000BC, there was a large wave of immigrants from South China: these immigrants were the forefathers of the Javanese, Madurese and Sundanese peoples. The first Sundanese kingdom (called “Taruma Negara”) was established about AD600. The Sundanese language, one of the more complex in Indonesia, has three levels.