Asian Program

Japanese

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Former Fellows

Dissertation Abstracts

Indonesia

Name	Hamzon SITUMORANG
Position	Lecturer Faculty of Letters, North Sumatera University
Japanese Advisor	Iwayumi SUZUKI Professor,Tohoku University

  Japan is a homogeneous society country, this is different with Indonesia. Indonesia is the plural society, so if we ask what is the Indonesian Culture?, that is very difficult to answer. That is because in Indonesia there are so many tribes, and every tribe has different Culture and religion. So, in this dissertation the writer chose one of the tribes to be compared with Japan. In this research, the writer chose the Batak to be compared with Japan, because the history of Christianity in Batak and Japan is the same.
  In Meiji Era, Japan finished their seclusion , and they were open for foreigners. From that time, the European education system was adopted in Japan. The educators from Europe and America came in Japan and bring with them the Christianity. At the same time, Missionarist from Germany came to Batak, Indonesia.
  Until now, Japan and Batak are still using the traditions, they still use the traditions in every rites. But the main different one is the Japanese are still doing ancestors worship whereas the Batakese no yet.
  As we know that the ancestors worship is opposite to the Christian teching. Now, the percentage of Christian in Japan is just 1% whereas in Batak, it has reached up to 90 percents. By This research, we can see the models of separation and the merge of tradition andChristianity in Japan mortality rites as well as Batak .
  In this dissertation, the writeter gives 6 variations of the merge and separation models between tradition and Christianity , they are ;
 1) To receive the new one, but still use the old traditions.
 2) To recive the new one and to refuse the old traditions.
 3) To refuse the new one and use the old traditions.
 4) To use a half of the new one and a half of the old traditions
 5) Both new and the old one are refused.
  To examine the above hipotesis, the writer makes two resources of data, i.e the data about the mourning cremony and the data about Christian tombs.

As the result of research are as follows;

1. The merge of traditions and Christianity on the mourning rites.
   1. The Japanese Christian make the mourning ceremony under the control of the priest. So, the ceremony should be chosen between Christianity or old tradisions. So they use the type 2 or 3 above.
   2. In the batak, the mourning cremony they consists of two rites. The first time, they do on the traditional ceremony. The meaning of traditional ceremony is to show the human relation or the family relation at the ceremony. Then, they do a Christianity ceremony. The meaning of Christianity ceremony are different with the traditional ceremony. In the Christianity the chremony they do as the liturgy. So, in Batak mourning ceremony, they use the model 1(one) above.
2. The models of merge of traditions and Christianity on the Tombs.
   As a sample of the Japanese Christian tomb, I use the Kitayama Kurisuchan bochi (272 tombs) site in Sendai. And as a sample of Batak christian tomb, I use the the Gajahmada Christian tomb (317 tombs).
   The findings of research from the tombs;
   1. The percentage of traditional symbol and christian symbols on the Japanese Christian tombs ;

      Traditional symbols;
      - Using kamon (symbol of Ie family) are	134 cases = 49,26%
      - Using kouro (spot to brunt incense)	80 cases = 29,60%
      - Using Japanese stile of tomb stone	95 cases = 34,92 %
      The Christian symbols;
      - Using the cross mark	135 cases = 49,63%
      - Writing the word or the article from bible	82 cases = 30,14%
      - Writing the christian song	1 cases = 0,36%
      - Using the European style tomb stone	119 cases = 43,75%.

   2. The Batak Christian tombs,

      Traditional symbols;
      - Writing the name of son in the tomb	54 cases = 17,03%
      - Writing the name of Grand child in the tomb	127 cases = 40,06%
      - Writing the work and the school title	83 cases = 25,16%
      The Christian symbol;
      - Using the cross mark	317 cases = 100%
      - Writing the word or the article from Bible	78 cases = 24,60%
      - Writing the Christian song	29 cases = 9,14%

   As the conclusion from above data;

   1. In Batak we can look the model to choose 100% the new one, but still use the tradition. In Japan tombs there is no use models like that. But in the mourning rites, the Japan only selects one, old tradition or Cristianity. In Batak they use the tradition rites and then use Chiristian rites.
   2. In Japan, the traditions symbol are related to ancestor's worship, but in Batak the traditions are related to Hagabeon (succes) in the world.
   3. At the tomb of Christian Japan, it was just found one write Christian song, but in Batak, it could reach 29 cases. This phenomena was caused by Batakese who often expose their Christianity as their identity, but not in Japan.