LGBT in Indonesia: how first church to welcome queer members is a lifeline for some, target for others
- The church in Jakarta expressed support for LGBT members after finding out many had stopped attending the institution, regarding it as homophobic
- It has become an inspiration for many of its congregation, but has also been threatened by hardliners amid rising conservatism in the country
Every Friday night at a house in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, a church group meets to discuss issues surrounding gender and sexuality. There are usually 12 to 15 people, but only a handful attend regularly.
One of them is Calpin Yeremia, who has been dropping by every week since last year. Yeremia is currently studying to become a pastor at a theological school in the city. But there is one problem – he is transgender and there are no such pastors in the Muslim-majority nation.
Born a woman, the 22-year-old now identifies as a man in his personal life. He has not yet told his theological school this. When fellow students ask “why is your hair so short?” or “why do you always dress up like a boy?”, Yeremia just shrugs it off.
“I’m quite small in stature. People would look at me and think I’m just a tomboyish girl who always wears baggy clothes,” he explains.
Yeremia attends the weekly group discussions not only because the topic is relevant to him, but also because it is organised by the Gereja Komunitas Anugerah (GKA), the first Christian church in Indonesia to openly welcome members of the LGBT community.
“Their interpretation [of religion] is not conservative or traditional. It’s more progressive,” he tells the Post.