COLLECTIVE MEMORY AND SOLIDARITY ACTIONS IN THE TORAJA MAMASA CHURCH AFTER THE 2018 NATURAL DISASTERS
Keywords:
Collective Memory, Post-Natural Disaster, Solidarity Actions, Toraja Mamasa ChurchAbstract
The natural disasters of 28 September 2018 had a multidimensional impact on the community of Palu, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. Various responses emerged, including those of the congregation of the Toraja Mamasa Church, GTM Filadelfia Palu. Although the disaster events have passed, the experiences and testimonies preserved within the collective memory of the Filadelfia congregation remain highly significant, as they reveal the meaning of acts of solidarity in everyday life. This study aims to analyse the collective memory and acts of solidarity of the GTM Filadelfia Palu congregation following the natural disasters through the lens of the ethics of solidarity in order to examine the congregation’s values and capacity to promote humanitarian principles. This research employed a qualitative case study design using an autoethnographic approach grounded in the researcher’s personal experience, complemented by interviews with congregants who survived the Palu natural disaster. This research demonstrates that collective memory and acts of solidarity are clearly embedded within the life of the Filadelfia congregation. Shared memories of solidarity following the natural disasters continue to be sustained within the congregation’s social life, shaping enduring practices of solidarity that persist not only during times of crisis, but also in everyday social relations. Rooted in the collective memory of the disaster, practices of solidarity within the congregation are expressed through five ecclesial dimensions: affirmative relationships that strengthen communal bonds, inclusive relationships that embrace others, transformative relationships that restore social life, cohesive relationships that foster unity, and reflective relationships that cultivate prayer and spiritual resilience. This study contributes to international scholarship in disaster studies, memory studies, and religious studies by showing how collective memory within a Christian congregation gives rise to and shapes enduring practices of solidarity after natural disasters.
References
The natural disasters of 28 September 2018 had a multidimensional impact on the community of Palu, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. Various responses emerged, including those of the congregation of the Toraja Mamasa Church, GTM Filadelfia Palu. Although the disaster events have passed, the experiences and testimonies preserved within the collective memory of the Filadelfia congregation remain highly significant, as they reveal the meaning of acts of solidarity in everyday life. This study aims to analyse the collective memory and acts of solidarity of the GTM Filadelfia Palu congregation following the natural disasters through the lens of the ethics of solidarity in order to examine the congregation’s values and capacity to promote humanitarian principles. This research employed a qualitative case study design using an autoethnographic approach grounded in the researcher’s personal experience, complemented by interviews with congregants who survived the Palu natural disaster. This research demonstrates that collective memory and acts of solidarity are clearly embedded within the life of the Filadelfia congregation. Shared memories of solidarity following the natural disasters continue to be sustained within the congregation’s social life, shaping enduring practices of solidarity that persist not only during times of crisis, but also in everyday social relations. Rooted in the collective memory of the disaster, practices of solidarity within the congregation are expressed through five ecclesial dimensions: affirmative relationships that strengthen communal bonds, inclusive relationships that embrace others, transformative relationships that restore social life, cohesive relationships that foster unity, and reflective relationships that cultivate prayer and spiritual resilience. This study contributes to international scholarship in disaster studies, memory studies, and religious studies by showing how collective memory within a Christian congregation gives rise to and shapes enduring practices of solidarity after natural disasters.
