SONG IN A FOREIGN LAND: A POSTCOLONIAL READING OF PSALM 137 IN THE CONTEXT OF PE
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Mazmur 137 memelihara memori trauma kolektif umat Yehuda setelah pembuangan ke Babel. Artikel ini menganalisis Mazmur 137 melalui pendekatan hermeneutika pascakolonial untuk menyingkap dinamika hegemoni imperial, resistensi budaya, dan pemeliharaan identitas komunal dalam kondisi dominasi. Dengan menggunakan metode kualitatif berbasis studi kepustakaan, penelitian ini mengusulkan bahwa tuntutan Babel agar para buangan Yehuda menyanyikan “nyanyian-nyanyian Sion” tidak dapat dipahami sebagai permintaan hiburan yang netral, melainkan sebagai praktik dominasi budaya yang berupaya mengapropriasi dan mengendalikan identitas komunitas yang terjajah. Sebaliknya, penolakan untuk bernyanyi, ikrar untuk tetap mengingat Yerusalem, serta ratapan yang diungkapkan dalam mazmur tersebut ditafsirkan sebagai bentuk-bentuk resistensi simbolik terhadap kekuasaan imperial. Artikel ini kemudian mendialogkan pembacaan tersebut dengan perjuangan masyarakat adat Batak Toba di Sumatra Utara dalam mempertahankan tanah adat mereka. Karena penelitian ini berbasis studi kepustakaan, pembahasan kontekstualnya bertumpu pada literatur ilmiah, laporan advokasi seperti AMAN dan KSPPM, serta kasus-kasus hukum yang telah terdokumentasi, bukan pada penelitian lapangan etnografis. Dalam perspektif komparatif ini, Mazmur 137 menyingkap pola-pola yang sebanding dalam perjuangan mempertahankan tanah leluhur, memori kolektif, dan identitas budaya di tengah berbagai bentuk marginalisasi kontemporer. Oleh karena itu, artikel ini berargumentasi bahwa Mazmur 137 bukan sekadar catatan historis tentang penderitaan, melainkan sebuah teks resistensi yang tetap memiliki relevansi teologis dan etis bagi komunitas-komunitas yang menghadapi dominasi, perampasan hak atas tanah, dan ketidakadilan pada masa kini.
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