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group of 13 people sat on green plastic chairs and hummed Gospel songs in the backyard of St. Servatius church on Jl. Raya Kampung Sawah in Jatimurni subdistrict, Bekasi, West Java.

One of them, a middle-aged man, wore a black peci (traditional cap), while another man wore a T-shirt reading oase rohani nuansa Betawi (spiritual retreat in the Betawi manner).

Around 200 meters from the church, the Al-Jauhar Yasfi mosque echoed the adzan dzuhur (call to afternoon prayer), followed by people stopping by to complete their shalat prayers.

At the mosque’s gate, people passing by could see a huge banner for Lebaran Betawi, a Betawi (Jakarta’s native people) cultural event held there earlier in the month.

The church and the mosque are located right at the heart of Kampung Sawah village, which, like most Betawi villages in Greater Jakarta, still maintains the cultural legacy inherited from its forebears.

However, one thing differentiates the village from other neighborhoods in the city.

While most Betawi areas are primarily Islamic in their religious orientation, Kampung Sawah stands on a ground of pluralism. The village consists of people living out a concord of different belief systems, from Islam, Protestant, Catholicism, Buddhism to Hinduism.

On Aug. 1, Bekasi Mayor Rahmat Effendi declared Kampung Sawah to be “Pancasila Village” for its religious and ethnic diversity and tolerance, a place that fittingly resembles the country’s official philosophical foundation, Pancasila.

“The village is a good example of how different cultures can harmoniously unite. The municipality will build supporting infrastructure here,” he said as quoted by kompas.com.

Rahmat said Kampung Sawah, located 40 kilometers east of Jakarta, was a “Little Indonesia”, as it consisted of various religions and ethnicities.

During The Jakarta Post’s visit to Kampung Sawah on Sunday, St. Servatius’ secretary, Yustus Saleh Samat, 50, said the harmonious relationship between the different groups had been a custom among the village’s people from generation to generation.

“This situation has been going on ever since the church was built in 1896,” said Yustus, who is a Betawi native, adding that there had never been a religious conflict in the village.

For the church’s part, religious tolerance is seen from a yearly event organized by its members called Sedekah Bumi (Alms for the Earth).

At the event, which has been held every May 13 for 20 years, the church stages various Betawi cultural activities such as stirring dodol (fudge made from glutinous rice, palm sugar and coconut milk) and presenting gambang kromong (Betawi music ensembles).

The event also has Ngeriung Bareng, a discussion and music program dedicated to Kampung Sawah’s spirit of pluralism, where Muslims from Kampung Sawah flock to the church’s backyard and chat with church members.

“Ngeriung Bareng displays the church’s appreciation for a plural culture,” said Raymondus Herman Sani, 52, a Betawi Catholic living in the village and a member of the church.

Meanwhile, Al-Jauhar Yasfi, the village’s central mosque, is much the same as St. Servatius in its dedication to pluralism.

An ustad (Muslim teacher) from the mosque, Rahmadin Afif, said the church members helped organize the last Lebaran Betawi, which was held in the mosque’s front yard.

“We have a good relationship with other religions in our history,” Rahmadin said. (adt)