Abraham, Juneman
2018
This present study aims at exploring the meaning of the building of Santa Maria de Fatima Catholic Church (abbreviated as: SMFCC) or Toasebio Parish located in District Glodok, Jakarta, Indonesia. The author exposes in advance the meaning of the physical elements of the building SMFCC as understood by history writers and building experts. These meanings are not inseparable from the elements of human activities in the building. Through qualitative methods and literature review, the author describes in the Results section, how those meanings can be further interpreted through the existing studies and expressions of the SMFCC Parish Head. It is found that these meanings are contested − from the direction of religious faith and of culture − but complete our understandings of the church which is well-known as an Indonesian cultural heritage and dominated by Chinese and pastors from Europe.
oai:philarchive.org/rec/ABRTAN
en
Philosophy
‘There are No Such Great Philosophies’: Contested Meanings of Toasebio Parish in Jakarta
info:eu-repo/semantics/article
'THERE ARE NO SUCH GREAT PHILOSOPHIES' CONTESTED MEANINGS OF TOASEBIO PARISH IN JAKARTA Juneman Abraham1 1 Bina Nusantara University, Psychology Department, Jakarta, Indonesia,  ABSTRACT This present study aims at exploring the meaning of the building of Santa Maria de Fatima Catholic Church (abbreviated as: SMFCC) or Toasebio Parish located in District Glodok, Jakarta, Indonesia. The author exposes in advance the meaning of the physical elements of the building SMFCC as understood by history writers and building experts. These meanings are not inseparable from the elements of human activities in the building. Through qualitative methods and literature review, the author describes in the Results section, how those meanings can be further interpreted through the existing studies and expressions of the SMFCC Parish Head. It is found that these meanings are contested − from the direction of religious faith and of culture − but complete our understandings of the church which is well-known as an Indonesian cultural heritage and dominated by Chinese and pastors from Europe. Keywords: meaning, church, cultural heritage, Jakarta INTRODUCTION A church building that becomes a melting pot of various cultures must have great potential as a place of meaning contestation. This is because culture and religion contain systems of meaning and even mutually pervasive; in other words: culture is religious, and religion is cultural [1]. Morgan elaborated further, as follows: "Whereas culture and religion are convergent expressions of meaning, anthropology and theology must be understood to be disciplines addressed to the systematics of meaning, and, ..., the analysis of meaning will inevitably involve an analysis of the symbol as meaning bearer" [1, p. 371]. The present study has the same spirit as Morgan's proposition, and aims to illustrate the meanings contained in the Santa Maria de Fatima Catholic Church (SMFCC), located in Jakarta, Indonesia capital city. In the handbook of Church History of Saint Maria de Fatima, the origins of SMFCC are presented [Toasebio, Sejarah singkat Gereja Saint Maria de Fatima, (n.d.)]. We mention [erratum: It is mentioned] that the original building SMFCC already existed since the early 19th century in the form of a house with Chinese architecture. Attributes that characterize this house were: First, luxury and grandeur, nobility, characterized by male and female lion statues on the right and left in front of the building. That said, originally in its vast yard there was also a sapodilla tree and a high-floor joglo pavilion and the land was surrounded by a high walled wall [2]. Second, on the roof, peaks look sticking out. Third, on the edge of the roof, there is a combination of red yellow-gold and green-leaves with flower ornaments and fruits (symbols of peace and prosperity) and writing in Chinese characters. Fourth, on the edge of the roof of the main building there were four Chinese writings, namely 'Hok Shau Kang Ning' (front side) which means 'house or place of peace', 'Hok Chia Phin An' (back side) meaning 'one family would be safe and wealthy', 'Nan An Shien' (the left side) which is thought to be one of the areas in China from the homeowner's family, as well as 'Chuan Chau Fu' (right-hand side) hypothesized as the surname of the owner. The building element that makes it function as a church is a large cross on the roof of the main building, an 'Gereja Katolik Santa Maria de Fatima' inscription mounted above the main door of the church, the bell tower standing on the right side of the front of the church, and the Maria de Fatima Hill on the left front of the church. The altar of this church comes from the place of family prayer. In 1972 the Church of Santa Maria de Fatima was officially recognized and protected by the Law as National Cultural Heritage, and on 29 March 1993, it was officially declared as a Jakarta Provincial Heritage Building with the Decree of the Governor of Jakarta PRE-PRINT VERSION 2 no. 457/1993 (Komsos Paroki Toasebio, as cited in [Berto, Paroki Toasebio, gereja inkulturasi, 2017, ]). In 1950, three Jesuit priests (two from Austria and one from Netherlands) who came from mainland China, followed by Pastor Wilhelmus Krause Van Eiden SJ (1953), a state law expert, bought a plot of land in Toosebiostraat area (now: Jalan Kemenangan III) to establish churches, dormitories and schools for Overseas Chinese. The land was purchased from a Kapitan (a name for a Chinese descendant of the Dutch colonial period) surnamed Tjioe [2, p. 8]. In 1954, when Father Matthias Leitenbauer SJ arrived in Jakarta, the land and buildings on it officially belonged to the church. Land payments were collected from pastors' funds by providing oneyear foreign language courses in Toasebio and the Catholic community in Austria. Because many of the people spoke only Mandarin, the Chinese Pastor, Father Joannes Tcheng Chao Min SJ, was assigend in. On September 14, 1955, Toasebio Station was promoted to become a Parish, the Saint Maria de Fatima. Starting from the request of the Xaverian Missionary Society (SX) to the Archbishop of Jakarta, Mgr. Adrianus Djajasepoetra SJ, in order to work in the Archdiocese of Jakarta, the Bishop offered the Toasebio Parish to the Xaverian Society. On November 1, 1970, the Toasebio Parish was handed over to Father Pietro Grappoli SX, which was subsequently replaced by Father Otello Pancani SX [2, p. 10]. During the activity of Father Otello, there were: the extensive renovation of the Church building, the replacement of floors and ceilings and the arrangement of the site for the Maria de Fatima statue − from Ortisei (Northern Italy) − and the Sacred Heart of Jesus statue. On the idea of Father Otello, a wood was carved depicting Jesus on a cross flanked by two criminals. The carving was sent from Italy and installed in the days of Pastor Liliano SX. The carving was mounted over the front of the altar. On March 10, 1989, Father Josep Bagnara SX was appointed Archbishop of Jakarta, Mgr. Leo Soekoto SJ, as the Head of Parish of Toasebio SMFCC. Since Father Josep's work, it is held six times per week the Holy Mass (i.e. once on Saturday afternoon, and 5 times on Sunday). Among the mass schedules, there is also a sacred Mass in Chinese, which is held every Sunday at 4:00 pm. In the Toasebio Parish 50 Year Book [2, p. 3-4], Father Josep Bagnara pointed out that SMFCC (a.k.a. Toasebio) at Glodok sub-district, Tambora, is the most crowded area in Jakarta. In that year, 2015, Toasebio Catholics numbered approximately 4500 people. In the same book, Archbishop Malcolm Ranjith as Apostolic Nuncio, the Vatican's Ambassador to Indonesia delivered the message, "I wish Santa Maria parish could produce a few saints even for public veneration one day. That would be the challenge.... We ought to remember that it is really the Lord who has made this Our Lady of Fatima parish grow that way. For, 'unless the Lord builds the house, in vain do its builders toil,' says the psalmist [Ps. 127:1]". Thamrin and Arifianto, experts on buildings, wrote their analyses on SMFCC as follow: "The process of building this church utilizes existing buildings without changing the existing structure so it still looks authentic .... The application of Chinese cultural diversity in the interior design of this church looks at aspects of shape, use of materials, and colors in buildings, layout space, space-forming elements, transition elements, space fill elements, and aesthetic elements .... The shape of this church building which was originally a symmetry-looking residence is preserved to this day and is one of the distinctive Chinese cultural characteristics that lead to a life which is balanced .... This church has a roof in the shape of ren zi xuan shan which is generally used in residential buildings. At the end of the roof of the building has a swallow's tail which is commonly used in palace buildings, pagoda, and noble house .... The right and left of the church building is escorted by a pair of cion sai (rock lion). The male is on the left with his right claw on the ball symbolizing the unity of the whole country, and the female on the right with her left paw stroking the lion who symbolizes the source of happiness .... At the front wall of the church, there are ornamental motifs, i.e. the peony flower motif symbolizes honor, and meanders symbolize longevity, as well as geometric patterns or diaper patterns. The existing geometric pattern in the form of a circle is the symbol of heaven, and a box is the symbol of the earth, so it is placed at the top of the wall. The combination of these decorations shows the position of homeowners who expect happiness in a balanced life .... The use of red in this area 3 shows the degree of sanctity, as the center of church activity in proclaiming the good news.... Sedilia of the priests is an extension of the scholar's seat during the Ming dynasty." [4] Parish of SMFCC (Toasebio) from 1955 to 1970 (for 15 years) was served and led by Jesuit (Society of Jesus) priests. The ministry's work was continued by the Xaverian Missionary Society (SX) and assisted by CDD speakers to serve Chinese-speaking people. Until 2018, the SX Society has been instrumental in developing the Toasebio Parish for 48 years (1970-2018). Today the Toasebio Parish is led by Father Fernando Abis SX (since 2015). It is interesting to know his perspective on the SMFCC building; whether there is any compatibility, contradiction, or 'revision' to what has been suggested by the history writers and the building experts as mentioned above. When compared to Coomans' investigations, the interesting thing found throughout this study is that almost no SMFCC priests are "actively involved in the debate about sacred art and architecture" [5, p. 91], at least in terms of documentation that SMFCC owns. This also prompted the author to conduct an interview with the Head of the SMFCC Parish. MATERIALS AND METHODS This present study uses qualitative method and literature review. Data was collected from the present Head of the SMFCC Toasebio Parish, Father Fernando Abis SX, by conducting an indepth interview on Wednesday, April 4, 2018 (Fig. 1). Interview data was then compared with findings from both from internal documents of SMFCC. and from scientific journals. RESULTS The 1950s' atmosphere of building and rebuilding (renovation) SMFCC in Chinatown of Jakarta may not be much different from building a Christian church in China at the beginning of the 20th century. Among the challenges is that in addition the church building must be recognizable as a church, should also be practical, beautiful, and suitable for worship [5]. In relation to the practicality dimension of SMFCC (Fig. 2-4), Father Fernando Abis said that, in a church, there is indeed no virtue of any culture, including Chinese culture, above others. The uniqueness of the SMFCC, which is the maintenance of the Mandarin background of the majority of Chinese descendants, should be seen as 'the winning of the needs of the people'. The Catholic Church wants all cultures to get 'their own home' in the church, where people feel accepted as they are, so they are driven to accept others as they are as well. The context of the need for the establishment of the SMFCC Parish (originally: Toasebio Statio Station) was as a special treatment place for Chinese descents so they could be protected from a less conducive atmosphere in those days, where "Chinese ethnicity is separated from the host community" [6, p. 2] and culminated in the New Order Era where the three pillars of Chinese culture, namely the Chinese-language press, Chinese high schools, and Chinese ethnic organizations were eliminated from Indonesia [6]. The use of Chinese language was not supported since 1966. In the early days of SMFCC, the longtime Father in China came to SMFCC and used Chinese language and culture to serve and develop the 'alienated' and 'solidarity-needy' Chinese people in Jakarta. SMFCC formed a group of Mandarin that existed until now. People who can not speak Indonesian can comfortably pray according to their conscience and comprehension in Mandarin. Not surprisingly, on the basis of this practical dimension, Father Fernando Abis stated, 'There are no such great philosophies, indeed. In fact, there is no intention of the form of the church and its parts to carry a particular message. The synthesis of elements of the church is dominated by practical actions, the contribution of some aspirant people, who follow the spiritual appetite of the majority of Chinese Catholics.' [Father F. Abis 2018, pers.comm., 4 Apr] The form of the church is an expression of the taste of the local community in a given time and arranged in such a way that supports the sense of security, majesty, beauty, and prayerfulness. 4 In the aspect of beauty, a French Jesuit handbook (as cited in [5, p. 104]) conveyed, "Inscriptions of happiness and longevity... and all other familiar things to a Chinese would create a sympathetic atmosphere and attract him to a church" although this is criticized for not conforming to the "comforting theory of pain, which Christ came to teach". In this connection, Father Fernando Abis emphasized the phrase 'ens bonum, verum et pulchrum convertuntur' which according to him means: goodness, truth, and beauty are mutually supportive, substituting, and convertible. The beautiful has no faults. The beautiful is a gift from God. The truth must be beautiful. The beautiful must be good. For example, the pulpit in the SMFCC contains elements of carvings that are the encounter between Chinese art and Balinese art. The overall aesthetic of SMFCC is a bonum, because the beautiful, harmonious impression of this church makes SMFCC a reasonable, comfortable place of prayer, which gives an atmosphere of prayer for people, making people feel 'at home'. It was stressed by Father Fernando Abis, that carvings, sculptures, etc., are symbols that show the true faith (verum) in depth. In the context of SMFCC, one should not misunderstand an important thing: The element of diversity, inculturation, and cultural encounter within the SMFCC is inappropriate when positioned as a conductor to complete faith. It is not the diversity that is the basis of the development of faith. Rather, the opposite. It is faith that brings appreciation for diversity. For by faith, brotherhood and love are measured. Faith is the basis for respecting all cultures and all ways of prayer with any symbol, structure, or passion. Therefore, in the SMFCC, people are not exclusive; they can meet believers of any tribe. In the aspect of fitness for worship/liturgy, Coomans [5] had pointed to the fact that Papal Encyclical Letters of Maximum Illud and Rerum Ecclesiae provide an endorsement of the inculturation of the church with the local culture. Since the priests of SMFCC are dominated by priests from outside Indonesia (Austria, Italy, Spain, etc.) − where this condition differs from most of the Catholic churches in Jakarta nowadays − it can be assumed that a special adaptation of priests, especially Westerners, is required. Except for pastors who have worked in mainland China, at least they have to learn indigenous actuality, ranging from material conditions, climate, and Chinese culture. In relation to this, Father Fernando Abis emphasized that "Any artifact of any culture which is a symbol of spiritual relationships (the sign of faith, the grace of God), which supports the heart-directedness to God, shows prayer and unity (i.e. mutually recognizes and respects) in faith (as the tradition inherited from Christ), is lawful, in the sense that it can be used as far as it takes, as long as it is free of superstition." [Father F. Abis 2018, pers.comm., 4 Apr]. He took the example in the SMFCC context, the Tabernacle ("A cupboard or boxlike receptacle for the exclusive reservation of the Blessed Sacrament" [Catholic Dictionary. Tabernacle, 2018, ]) presumably in the past was the most valuable jewelry store of a housewife. In addition, the place for reading scriptures uses Chinese noble home materials, whether former doors or other materials, which was then accommodated and matched to the need of the church. Father Fernando Abis also compared with the term 'basilica'. According to him, in the original meaning, it is a large house king residence, the place for his relatives and general people, which could be used to gather. Basilica is a general term that then has a spiritual connotation, which is a church building. However, the principle in general terms and spiritual terms are actually the same. CONCLUSIONS This present study assumes that culture and religion are inseparable in explaining meanings. A prominent finding of this study is that the cultural encounter between priests and people as well as between church citizens and cross-cultural objects is interpreted differently − but complementary in perfecting our understanding of the parish − by history writers, building experts and parish leader. The historians the construction experts made cultural symbols of the architecture of the church building as a 'foreground', a material for the primary collective representation analysis. In contrast, the Parish Head, Father Fernando Abis SX, performed a sort of "desecularization − from above" [7] in its loosest sense, by making theological faith an 5 unwavering basis of all interpretations of the SMFCC's physical atmosphere and its community activities. Architectural philosophies and cultural interpretations are placed as the 'background' in the Father's narrative; a more or less natural thing, considering his position as a church leader. BIBLIOGRAPHY [1] J. Morgan. Religion and culture as meaning systems: a dialogue between Geertz and Tillich. The Journal of Religion, vol. 57, issue 4, October (1977), 363-375. [2] A.T. Gunarta, R. Glen, K.A. Kusumawati, A.J. Teddy. Buku kenangan 50 tahun Paroki Santamaria de Fatima 1955-2015, Paroki Santamaria de Fatima, Jakarta (2015) 1-120. [4] D. Thamrin, F. Arifianto. Keragaman budaya Tionghoa pada interior Gereja Katolik (Studi kasus: Gereja Santa Maria De Fatima di Jakarta Barat). Dimensi Interior, vol. 9, issue 1, June (2011), 1-12. [5] T. Coomans. A pragmatic approach to church construction in Northern China at the time of Christian inculturation. In: "The handbook 'Le missionnaire constructeur'", 1926. Frontiers of Architectural Research, vol. 3, issue 2, June (2014), 89-107. [6] L. Suryadinata. Kebijakan Negara Indonesia terhadap Etnik Tionghoa: dari asimilasi ke multikulturalisme?. Antropologi Indonesia, vol. XXVII, issue 71, May (2003), 1-12. [7] V. Karpov. Desecularization: a conceptual framework. Journal of Church and State, vol. 52, issue 2, July (2010), 232-270. Fig. 1 - Juneman Abraham (the author) with Father Fernando Abis SX, the Head of Toasebio/SMFCC Parish, after an interview session Fig. 2 - Toasebio Parish SMFCC (a day before Chinese New Year). Source: Fina, WhatsApp Group PASKA Ricci on 15 February 2018 Fig. 3 - Toasebio Parish [Fina, 15 Feb 2018] Fig. 4 - Toasebio Parish [Fina, 15 Feb 2018]