Linguistic Hospitality

Abstract

The existence of indigenous religions in Indonesia has always been overshadowed by a history of discrimination from state-recognized religions. One of the main causes is the government's use of categorization that is influenced by the world religions paradigm. As a result, the government does not recognize indigenous religion as a religion and promotes a categorization of it that tends to be negative. In the Christian discourse of theology of religions, the models of exclusivism, inclusivism, pluralism, and even particularism are trapped in a similar religious categorization. On the one hand, the models of theology of religions are open to dialogue with world religions. On the other hand, indigenous religion is not considered a dialogue partner. This article argues that linguistic hospitality can be an inspiration for interreligious dialogue, allowing Christianity to become more open to indigenous religions. Emphasizing a hermeneutic of openness allows indigenous religions to show their otherness without being limited by assumptions of Christian theology.