‘All we want for Christmas is our church’, children of embattled congregation in Jambi sing



The eyes of the children in the Assemblies of God Church (GSJA) in Kenali Barat sub-district of Jambi sparked with merriment as they sang "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" during a service to welcome the holy day in the church's front yard on Saturday.
Amid the excitement, however, the children looked puzzled when they saw the door of their house of worship being sealed. Rumors have it that the church caretaker was going to sell the building.

"God, don't sell our church. We want Christmas," so the children said during the prayer, which was met by a bitter smile by Jonathan Klasier, a pastor at the GSJA.

The GSJA is among three churches recently forced to close by the Jambi city administration following rejection from residents who argued that the churches did not have building permits. The other two are Kanaan Methodist Church and the Huria Kristen Indonesia (HKI) Church.

Jonathan said he had explained to the children about the problem faced by the congregation, which forced them to hold their Christmas service in the church's front yard.

"I keep trying to spread the spirit of love and joy of Christmas to [the children]," Jonathan said.

The pastor said he had visited residents in the neighborhood to discuss the issue, but many of them claimed they had not opposed the church's existence in the first place.

Now the church must obtain at least three permits, one each from the local neighborhood unit leader, local customary agency and local mass organization Laskar Melayu, to continue its activities, he said.

"We -- Christians and Muslims -- have lived together in the community for decades and we don't fully understand why the church was closed," Jonathan said, "We hope to resolve this problem soon."

The Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI) has deplored the churches' closure in September, saying that it violated citizens' constitutional rights to practice their religions. The three churches, PGI said, had also made efforts for years to obtain permits in accordance with the prevailing regulations.

Jambi National Unity and Politics Agency head Liphan Pasaribu said the office was currently looking for solutions, including to reopen the Methodist Church, the oldest church, so that congregations could take turn to hold services.

The three embattled churches, however, had different structures and therefore the church leaders refused to do so, he said.

The option to relocate the HKI to nearby Pinang Merah housing complex was also met by resistance because another HKI already existed and the congregations refused to have a new church building in the area, Liphan said.

"Please give us a month, we will resolve this problem," he said.

Jambi Interfaith Community Forum (FKUB) secretary Fuad Rahman said the churches must complete both the administrative and the special requirements to obtain permits, citing the 2006 Joint Religious Affairs Ministry and Home Ministry Regulation (SKB) on maintaining religious peace.

According to the SKB, the establishment of a house of worship requires support from at least 60 residents and a written recommendation from the local interfaith community forum. (afr/swd)

https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2018/12/24/all-we-want-for-christmas-is-our-church-children-of-embattled-congregation-in-jambi-sing.html

Mata anak-anak di Gereja Assemblies of God (GSJA) di Kecamatan Kenali Barat, Jambi berseri-seri saat mereka menyanyikan "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing Sing" selama kebaktian untuk menyambut hari suci di halaman depan gereja di Sabtu.
Di tengah kegembiraan, bagaimanapun, anak-anak tampak bingung ketika mereka melihat pintu rumah ibadah mereka disegel. Rumor mengatakan bahwa penjaga gereja akan menjual bangunan.

"Ya Tuhan, jangan menjual gereja kami. Kami ingin Natal," jadi anak-anak berkata selama doa, yang disambut oleh senyum pahit oleh Jonathan Klasier, seorang pendeta di GSJA.

GSJA adalah salah satu dari tiga gereja yang baru-baru ini dipaksa ditutup oleh pemerintah kota Jambi menyusul penolakan dari penduduk yang berpendapat bahwa gereja-gereja tidak memiliki izin membangun. Dua lainnya adalah Gereja Metodis Kanaan dan Gereja Huria Kristen Indonesia (HKI).

Jonathan mengatakan bahwa dia telah menjelaskan kepada anak-anak tentang masalah yang dihadapi oleh jemaat, yang memaksa mereka mengadakan kebaktian Natal di halaman depan gereja.

"Saya terus berusaha menyebarkan semangat cinta dan kegembiraan Natal kepada [anak-anak]," kata Jonathan.

Pendeta mengatakan dia telah mengunjungi warga di lingkungan itu untuk membahas masalah ini, tetapi banyak dari mereka mengklaim bahwa mereka tidak menentang keberadaan gereja sejak awal.

Sekarang gereja harus mendapatkan setidaknya tiga izin, masing-masing dari kepala unit lingkungan setempat, agensi adat setempat dan organisasi massa lokal Laskar Melayu, untuk melanjutkan kegiatannya, katanya.

"Kami - orang-orang Kristen dan Muslim - telah hidup bersama dalam komunitas selama beberapa dekade dan kami tidak sepenuhnya mengerti mengapa gereja ditutup," kata Jonathan, "Kami berharap dapat menyelesaikan masalah ini segera."

Komuni Gereja Indonesia (PGI) telah menyesalkan penutupan gereja pada bulan September, mengatakan bahwa itu melanggar hak konstitusional warga negara untuk mempraktikkan agama mereka. Tiga gereja, kata PGI, juga telah melakukan upaya selama bertahun-tahun untuk mendapatkan izin sesuai dengan peraturan yang berlaku.

Kepala Badan Persatuan dan Politik Nasional Jambi Liphan Pasaribu mengatakan bahwa kantornya saat ini sedang mencari solusi, termasuk untuk membuka kembali Gereja Methodist, gereja tertua, sehingga jemaat dapat bergiliran untuk mengadakan kebaktian.

Namun ketiga gereja yang diperangi memiliki struktur yang berbeda dan oleh karena itu para pemimpin gereja menolak untuk melakukannya, katanya.

Pilihan untuk memindahkan HKI ke komplek perumahan Pinang Merah di dekatnya juga mendapat perlawanan karena HKI lain sudah ada dan jemaat menolak untuk memiliki gedung gereja baru di daerah itu, kata Liphan.

"Tolong beri kami satu bulan, kami akan menyelesaikan masalah ini," katanya.

Sekretaris Forum Antar Agama Jambi (FKUB) Fuad Rahman mengatakan bahwa gereja-gereja harus menyelesaikan persyaratan administrasi dan persyaratan khusus untuk mendapatkan izin, mengutip Peraturan Menteri Agama Bersama dan Peraturan Kementerian Dalam Negeri (SKB) tentang menjaga perdamaian agama.

Menurut SKB, pendirian rumah ibadah membutuhkan dukungan dari setidaknya 60 penduduk dan rekomendasi tertulis dari forum komunitas antaragama setempat. (afr / swd)