Salib Kasih, the Cross of Love

The Salib Kasih marks the spot where, in 1862, Ludwig Nommenson stood and looked over the valley populated by the Batak people of Sumatra. There he confirmed his call to bring these people to the knowledge of their Saviour.
Now, on this spot stands not only an enormous white cross with lights, but also an outdoor worship amphitheater (made of white tile, like the pulpit and cross) where there are weekly worship services. To get to this special place you must climb a fairly steep and lengthy trail. And there's no assurance that it won't rain -- after all, this is the tropics. Still, we got the impression that the worship services are well-attended.

Clearly the site is valued among the Batak people: there is a new visitor's center with a larger parking area under construction at the base of the trail, and all along the trail are small monuments to the churches and individuals who have visited or contributed to the site.

By some accounts, Ludwig Nommenson was one of the greatest missionaries of all time. The HKBP (the Protestant church of the Batak people) is the largest Lutheran church in Asia, and Nommenson University is the largest Lutheran university in Asia.

If you would like to learn more about Ludwig Nommenson, visit http://chi.gospelcom.net/DAILYF/2003/05/daily-05-23-2003.shtml
If you are REALLY interested, you can chase down one of the two old and rather obscure books about him mentioned at http://www.elca.org/archives/dgm/indonesia.html.

(Seems to me someone ought to write a contemporary, readable book about him. Kind of an answer to Kingsolver's Poisonwood Bible. Any takers?)

MBF