Contextual Ecclesiology through Cultural Images: Spiritual and Devotional Models of the Church in Java
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15575/jcrt.1408Keywords:
Catholic devotion, cultural image, ecclesiology of the local Church, Javanese culture, model of the Church, tradition and ritualAbstract
Purpose: This study explores the construction of contextual models of the Catholic Church in Java by correlating cultural, biblical, and theological images. It addresses a gap in ecclesiological studies where local cultural symbols—such as pamong, ziarah, and padepokan—have not been systematically incorporated into Church models, despite their strong presence in the lived faith experiences of Javanese Catholics. Methodology: The research employs a qualitative approach using a reflective-hermeneutic method. It is based on secondary sources, including theological literature, cultural studies, and pastoral reflections. Thematic and narrative analysis is used to develop ecclesiological models grounded in symbolic and imaginative representations of the Church within the Javanese cultural context. Findings: The study formulates three contextual models of the Church: (1) the cultural model, emphasizing community participation and cultural rootedness; (2) the spiritual model, reflecting a contemplative and wisdom-oriented ecclesiology; and (3) the devotional model, centered on sacramental and prayerful expressions of faith. These models reveal that Javanese Catholics experience and shape their ecclesial identity through local symbols and religious imagination rather than abstract doctrines. Implications: The findings offer a practical theological framework for enhancing catechesis, pastoral leadership, and ecclesial policy through inculturated practices. The models also serve as references for other culturally diverse Church communities, particularly in Asia and Africa, seeking to integrate faith with local spiritual traditions. Originality and Value: This study introduces the imagerial method, an original theological approach that prioritizes imagination and symbolic experience in ecclesial construction. It contributes a systematic, bottom-up ecclesiology rooted in lived cultural expressions, offering an innovative response to the limitations of dogmatic and top-down Church models.
References
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Doyle, D. M. (2000). Communion Ecclesiology: Vision and Versions. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books.
Dulles, A. (1987). Models of the Church (Expanded). New York/Toronto: Image/Double Day.
Eilers, F.-J. (Ed.). (1997). For All the Peoples of Asia Vol. 2 Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences Documents from 1992 to 1996. Quezon City: Claretian Publications.
Ellens, J. H. (2019). Devotions in the ancient way of offices: Medieval domestic devotion in the seventeenth century. Religions, 10(10). https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10100546
Elwin, B. D. (2016). Gereja Katolik Jawa mengintegrasikan tradisi lokal dalam Misa Satu Suro.
Geertz, C. (1960). The Religion of Java. London: The University of Chicago Press.
Guerriero, S., & Hida, R. T. B. (2025). New Airs for Spiritism: from Xavierian Moralism to New Age Individualism. International Journal of Latin American Religions, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41603-025-00285-w
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Laksana, A. B., Hariandja, W. C., & Taruna, R. B. (2023). Pilgrimage in a Complex and Plural World: The Role of Shrines and the Practice of Catholic Pilgrimage in the Church’s Evangelizing Mission. Indonesian Journal of Theology, 11(1), 165–196. https://doi.org/10.46567/ijt.v11i1.366
Manalu, R. (2022). Inculturation of Catholic Religion in Javanese Culture: A Study of Pilgrimage Tourism Experience in the Ganjuran Church, Bantul, Special Region of Yogyakarta. Gadjah Mada Journal of Tourism Studies, 4(1), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.22146/gamajts.v4i1.82945
Martin, S. W. (2011). Sacramental Imagination and Ecclesial Transformation: A Proposal for Rethinking Public Theology’s “Public” in South Africa. Journal of Theology for Southern Africa, 139, 42–57.
McClure, J. M. (2013). Sources of social support: Examining congregational involvement, private devotional activities, and congregational context. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. https://doi.org/10.1111/jssr.12076
Merrigan, T. (1991). Clear Heads and Holy Hearts: The Religious and Theological Ideal of John Henry Newman. Louvain: Peeters Press.
Nagoya, R., & Santosa, M. (2024). An Analysis of the Perception of Exclusivism in Post-Modern Protestant Congregations in Indonesia. Pharos Journal of Theology, 105(5).
Nasruddin, N. (2011). Kebudayaan dan Agama Jawa dalam Perspektif Clifford Geertz. Religió: Jurnal Studi Agama-Agama, 1(1), 33–46.
Newman, J. H. (1870). An Essay in Aid of a Grammar of Assent. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oseo/instance.00121356
Phan, P. C. (2003a). Christianity with an Asian Face: Asian American Theology in the Making. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books.
Phan, P. C. (2003b). In Our Own Tongues: Perspectives from Asia on Mission and Inculturation. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books.
Rejowska, A. (2022). In search of authenticity: Humanist weddings in the Polish context. Religions, 13(7), 631.
Rojas, R. R. (2022). Contextualizing faith-based leadership models: A competency approach to pastoral leadership. Practical Theology. https://doi.org/10.1080/1756073X.2022.2085234
Schreiter, R. (1990). Models of the Church Revisited. International Review of Mission, 79(314), 345–356.
Schreiter, R. J. (1985). Constructing Local Theologies. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books.
Sugiharto, B. (2008). Javanese Epistemology Revisited. Melintas: An International Journal of Philosophy and Religion, 24(3), 369–384. https://doi.org/10.26593/mel.v24i3.941.369-384
Susantina, S. (2018). Inkulturasi gamelan Jawa di Gereja-gereja Katolik Yogyakarta. Universitas Gadjah Mada.
Tedjoworo, H. (2010). Images of the Church and Christians’ Imagination in Java. Melintas: An International Journal of Philosophy and Religion, 26(1), 17–40. https://doi.org/10.26593/mel.v26i1.908.17-40
Tedjoworo, H. (2011). Being Sundanese and Javanese Cultural Persons and Church Members. Melintas: An International Journal of Philosophy and Religion, 27(3), 256–257. https://doi.org/10.26593/mel.v27i3.293.235-262
Tedjoworo, H. (2013). Keluarga Gerejani: A Catechetical Exploration of Church-Images among Catholics in Java. Maastricht: Shaker Publishing.
Tedjoworo, H. (2017). Doing Ecclesiology with Cultural Images and Local Spiritualities in Java. Proceedings of 2016 ACUCA Biennial Conference & 21st General Assembly. Bandung: Unpar Press.
Tillard, J.-M. R. (1992). The Local Church Within Catholicity. Jurist, 52, 448.
Wilkens, K. (2024). Christian devotional practice in contemporary Africa. In The Palgrave Handbook of Christianity in Africa from Apostolic Times to the Present. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-48270-0_34
Beck, H. L. (2018). Back to Sendangsono: A Marian Pilgrimage Site as a Lens on Central Javanese Cultural Values. Bijdragen Tot de Taal-, Land- En Volkenkunde, 174, 244–263. https://doi.org/10.1163/22134379-17401023
Creswell, J. (2016). Research Design: Qualitative, Quantitative, Mixed Methods Approaches. University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Darmawijaya, S. (1991). Ekklesiologi dalam Lakon Wayang: Sebuah Pengamatan. Jurnal Orientasi Baru, 5, 100–123.
De Grave, J.-M. (2016). Javanese Ritual Initiation: Invulnerability, Authority, and Spiritual Improvement. In D. Farrer (Ed.), War Magic: Religion, Sorcery, and Performance (pp. 47–66). New York: Berghahn Books. https://doi.org/10.2307/jj.6879783.6
Doyle, D. M. (2000). Communion Ecclesiology: Vision and Versions. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books.
Dulles, A. (1987). Models of the Church (Expanded). New York/Toronto: Image/Double Day.
Eilers, F.-J. (Ed.). (1997). For All the Peoples of Asia Vol. 2 Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences Documents from 1992 to 1996. Quezon City: Claretian Publications.
Ellens, J. H. (2019). Devotions in the ancient way of offices: Medieval domestic devotion in the seventeenth century. Religions, 10(10). https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10100546
Elwin, B. D. (2016). Gereja Katolik Jawa mengintegrasikan tradisi lokal dalam Misa Satu Suro.
Geertz, C. (1960). The Religion of Java. London: The University of Chicago Press.
Guerriero, S., & Hida, R. T. B. (2025). New Airs for Spiritism: from Xavierian Moralism to New Age Individualism. International Journal of Latin American Religions, 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41603-025-00285-w
Harisantoso, I., Balambeu, Y., & Simanullang, J. (2024). Eklesiologi Disabilitas dalam Perspektif Budaya Jawa. DUNAMIS: Jurnal Teologi Dan Pendidikan Kristiani. https://doi.org/10.30648/dun.v8i2.1328
Haryanto, J. (2022). Religious Moderation in Javanese Culture in the Community of Trirenggo Village, Bantul, Yogyakarta. Penamas. https://doi.org/10.31330/penamas.v35i2.567
Helle, J. (2022). Towards a Truly Catholic and a Truly Asian Church: The Asian Wayfaring Theology of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC) 1970--2020. Leiden and Boston: Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004509658
Imaniyyah, K., Prameswari, T., Zahra, T., Adibah, N., & Maulana, A. (2024). Javanese Culture and Its Actualisation within Christian Faith: Study in the Gereja Kristen Jawi Wetan. Wawasan: Jurnal Ilmiah Agama Dan Sosial Budaya. https://doi.org/10.15575/jw.v9i1.30153
Jenssen, J. I. (2018). Leadership and church identity: A discussion of how leadership in the local church can help to realize the true nature of the church. Scandinavian Journal for Leadership & Theology, 5, 1–24. https://doi.org/10.53311/sjlt.v5.33
La Grange, A., & Dreyer, Y. (2022). Spiritual preferences and the experience of worship services in the Dutch Reformed Church. Tydskrif Vir Geesteswetenskappe, 62(1). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.17159/2224-7912/2022/v62n1a7
Laksana, A. B. (2014). Muslim and Catholic Pilgrimage Practices: Explorations through Java. London and New York: Routledge.
Laksana, A. B., Hariandja, W. C., & Taruna, R. B. (2023). Pilgrimage in a Complex and Plural World: The Role of Shrines and the Practice of Catholic Pilgrimage in the Church’s Evangelizing Mission. Indonesian Journal of Theology, 11(1), 165–196. https://doi.org/10.46567/ijt.v11i1.366
Manalu, R. (2022). Inculturation of Catholic Religion in Javanese Culture: A Study of Pilgrimage Tourism Experience in the Ganjuran Church, Bantul, Special Region of Yogyakarta. Gadjah Mada Journal of Tourism Studies, 4(1), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.22146/gamajts.v4i1.82945
Martin, S. W. (2011). Sacramental Imagination and Ecclesial Transformation: A Proposal for Rethinking Public Theology’s “Public” in South Africa. Journal of Theology for Southern Africa, 139, 42–57.
McClure, J. M. (2013). Sources of social support: Examining congregational involvement, private devotional activities, and congregational context. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. https://doi.org/10.1111/jssr.12076
Merrigan, T. (1991). Clear Heads and Holy Hearts: The Religious and Theological Ideal of John Henry Newman. Louvain: Peeters Press.
Nagoya, R., & Santosa, M. (2024). An Analysis of the Perception of Exclusivism in Post-Modern Protestant Congregations in Indonesia. Pharos Journal of Theology, 105(5).
Nasruddin, N. (2011). Kebudayaan dan Agama Jawa dalam Perspektif Clifford Geertz. Religió: Jurnal Studi Agama-Agama, 1(1), 33–46.
Newman, J. H. (1870). An Essay in Aid of a Grammar of Assent. Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/oseo/instance.00121356
Phan, P. C. (2003a). Christianity with an Asian Face: Asian American Theology in the Making. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books.
Phan, P. C. (2003b). In Our Own Tongues: Perspectives from Asia on Mission and Inculturation. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books.
Rejowska, A. (2022). In search of authenticity: Humanist weddings in the Polish context. Religions, 13(7), 631.
Rojas, R. R. (2022). Contextualizing faith-based leadership models: A competency approach to pastoral leadership. Practical Theology. https://doi.org/10.1080/1756073X.2022.2085234
Schreiter, R. (1990). Models of the Church Revisited. International Review of Mission, 79(314), 345–356.
Schreiter, R. J. (1985). Constructing Local Theologies. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books.
Sugiharto, B. (2008). Javanese Epistemology Revisited. Melintas: An International Journal of Philosophy and Religion, 24(3), 369–384. https://doi.org/10.26593/mel.v24i3.941.369-384
Susantina, S. (2018). Inkulturasi gamelan Jawa di Gereja-gereja Katolik Yogyakarta. Universitas Gadjah Mada.
Tedjoworo, H. (2010). Images of the Church and Christians’ Imagination in Java. Melintas: An International Journal of Philosophy and Religion, 26(1), 17–40. https://doi.org/10.26593/mel.v26i1.908.17-40
Tedjoworo, H. (2011). Being Sundanese and Javanese Cultural Persons and Church Members. Melintas: An International Journal of Philosophy and Religion, 27(3), 256–257. https://doi.org/10.26593/mel.v27i3.293.235-262
Tedjoworo, H. (2013). Keluarga Gerejani: A Catechetical Exploration of Church-Images among Catholics in Java. Maastricht: Shaker Publishing.
Tedjoworo, H. (2017). Doing Ecclesiology with Cultural Images and Local Spiritualities in Java. Proceedings of 2016 ACUCA Biennial Conference & 21st General Assembly. Bandung: Unpar Press.
Tillard, J.-M. R. (1992). The Local Church Within Catholicity. Jurist, 52, 448.
Wilkens, K. (2024). Christian devotional practice in contemporary Africa. In The Palgrave Handbook of Christianity in Africa from Apostolic Times to the Present. Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-48270-0_34
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