Folk religion among Karen in Thailand

Abstract

The Karen people are the largest ethnic minority group in Thailand. Most Karen follow their traditional rellgion, which involves appeasing and propitiating many different kinds of spirits. The Seventh-day Adventist work among the Karen in Thailand started in 1967 and has been on-going for the past 36 years without much success. This failure can be attributed to: (1) the lack of understanding concerning their beliefs and practices, and (2) the lack of contextualized strategies to evangelize this people group. This paper fills that gap in knowledge. It also provides some suggestions for evangelism among the Karen people. This paper examines the following aspects of the traditional religion: their worldview, Iegends, realm of the spirits, types and nature of spirits, taboos, divination and the role and function of ritual specialists. It also examines the various rituals performed for appeasement and propitiation throughout the year. The concluding chapter deals with some strategies for evangelism among the Karen in Thaifand.