Jour Fixe: Mirjam Lücking "Not only on Christmas: Souvenirs from Bethlehem in Indonesians’ Cosmopolitan Religious Identities" and Christmas get-together

The Zukunftskolleg invited everyone to the jour fixe led by Mirjam Lücking followed by a virtual Christmas get-together.

Mirjam Lücking (Research Visit Fellow / Social Anthropology; Martin Buber Society of Fellows, Israel) reported on: "Not only on Christmas: Souvenirs from Bethlehem in Indonesians’ Cosmopolitan Religious Identities".

Abstract:

Considering that Israel and Indonesia share no diplomatic relations, it is remarkable that thousands of Indonesians visit Israel and the West Bank (Occupied Palestinian Territories) each year in guided religious package tours.
Since the 1980s, members of Indonesia’s Christian minority travel in so-called Holy Land pilgrimages to Egypt, Israel, Palestine and Jordan. Today, Jerusalem is also a best-seller on the Muslim market, in addition to the hajj and umrah to Mecca. Beyond tendencies to adopt narratives about the Israel-Palestine conflict as a surrogate conflict in inter- and intra-religious relations, Muslim and Christian Indonesian pilgrims share similar preferences when it comes to mundane matters during the religious journeys, for instance regarding eating preferences, photos and social media, or shopping.
When it comes to purchases of souvenirs and gifts Christian as well as Muslim Indonesian pilgrims share a similar taste. Moreover, their ideas of engaging with Palestinians and Israelis through shopping and charity continue even during the pandemic when no travel is possible. Bethlehem is a particularly interesting connection point in this context as it is considered one of the most important Palestinian cities among Indonesian Muslims while Indonesian Christians value it as the birthplace of Jesus.
Based on ethnographic research in Israel, Palestine and Indonesia as well as online-research, I show how people, gifts, souvenirs and stories travel between Indonesia and Bethlehem. The transnational trade with souvenirs and the narratives that accompany them, manifest continuities in Indonesian religious identities and customs but they also mark new trends of cosmopolitan religious identities and may inspire a more nuanced understanding of conflict and cooperation in the Middle East.

Please find attached two recently published articles by Mirjam, as well as a link to the Buber-Podcast, in which Mirjam talked about her research.

Research Bites Podcast - Indonesian Tourism to Jerusalem

https://buberfellows.podbean.com/e/indonesian-tourism-to-jerusalem/