Do you think inculturation detractors would find this puppetry objectionable? The Jacob story from Genesis is a pretty dramatic offering.
About 250 Catholics gathered in the compound of Pangudi Luhur Elementary School in Surakarta to watch the show.
“The Word of God is like seeds. If the seeds can adapt to the soil where they are sown, they will grow. If they cannot, they will die,” Father (Fransiscus Xaverius) Wiyono told UCA News after the show.
Any readers experience this performance genre, either in Christian or traditional Indonesian form?
4 February 2010 at 9:36 pm
I don’t think people dectract from inculturation per se as much as they dectract from inculturation in the liturgy. This, rather, appears to be an example of popular piety outside the liturgy. Many of the people who would detract from inculturation in the liturgy would find a devotion like this praiseworthy, just as they would lament the passing of a lot of traditional devotions.
I, for one, would love not only to see a return (and even reenrichment) of traditional devotions, but also a further flowering of newer devotions. I suppose that there are some people who will reject any devotion pre-1962 (or 1955, or whatever). The fact is, we have always added new devotions like this one to supplement the worship in the liturgy. Putting puppets in the Mass during the Liturgy of the Word is a bad idea. So is saying a Rosary during the Eucharistic Prayer. They detract from the active participation in the liturgy. However, if done before or after, they could certainly enhance one’s participation.