Yan Kalampung

My academic background is rooted in the decolonisation of biblical hermeneutics, actively working to bridge the epistemic gap between Western and Indonesian scholarship. I recently completed my PhD at the School of Philosophy, Religion and History of Science at the University of Leeds, passing in October 2025. My PhD research developed the 'Inter-Indonesian Postcolonial Trauma Reading', which addresses the hegemonic dominance of Western-centric historical-critical paradigms. By adapting Michael Rothberg’s Multidirectional Memory theory, I orchestrated a rigorous dialogue between the Book of Ecclesiastes and Indonesian novels, such as the Buru Quartet. This established a new critical category of 'Inter-Indonesian literature', reframing the biblical figure Qohelet as a 'traumatized organic intellectual'.

More broadly, my research interests involve translating academic work into societal benefit by democratising access to critical scholarship. As a lecturer in Eastern Indonesia (Institut Agama Kristen Negeri Manado), I integrate postcolonial trauma theory into my pedagogy to empower underprivileged students. I also explore 'spiritual-scholarly' interpretative schemes, having recently published a synthesis of Meister Eckhart, Gadamer, and Ricoeur in Old Testament Essays.

Publications

Journal articles

“Locating Meister Eckhart’s Interpretation in Indonesia”: A Dialogue between Modern Biblical Interpretation and Spiritual Interpretation of Ecclesiastes 10: 5-7. Old Testament Essays 37 (2), 1-33, 2024.

The Theory of Postcolonial Trauma and its Impact on the Religious Studies. Potret Pemikiran 25 (2), 207-218, 2021.

Kisah Taman Eden sebagai gambaran ideal relasi ekologis antar ciptaan (The Story of the Garden of Eden as an ideal illustration of ecological relations between creations). Da'at: Jurnal Teologi Kristen 1 (1), 23-31, 2020.

“Aku Lepas Aku Bebas” Kajian Konsep “Melepaskan” dalam Teologi, Spiritualitas dan Seni ("I am Released, I am Free": A Study of the Concept of "Letting Go" in Theology, Spirituality, and Art). Tumou Tou, 75-82, 2019.

“Ketika Memori Penderitaan Diperjumpakan” Sebuah Kajian Dialogis Kitab Daniel dan Sejarah Penjajahan Jepang di Indonesia dalam Perspektif Poskolonial ("When Memories of Suffering Meet": A Dialogic Study of the Book of Daniel and the History of Japanese Occupation in Indonesia from a Postcolonial Perspective). KENOSIS: Jurnal Kajian Teologi 4 (2), 170-185, 2018.

Cinta Menyembuhkan Penyakit Hati: Sebuah Analisa Cinta menurut Ibnu Taymiyya dan Implikasinya bagi Dialog Islam-Kristen (Love Heals Diseases of the Heart: An Analysis of Love according to Ibn Taymiyyah and its Implications for Islam-Christian Dialogue). Potret Pemikiran, 2016.

Mempertimbangkan Spiritualitas Ekonomi Berdasarkan Intuisi Kosmotheandrik Raimundo Panikkar (Considering Economic Spirituality Based on Raimundo Panikkar’s Cosmotheandric Intuition). GEMA TEOLOGIKA: Jurnal Teologi Kontekstual, 1 (2), 167-180, 2016.

Ekumenisme Berdasarkan Meister Eckhart dan Ibn Al'-Arabi yang dikembangkan dari When Mystic Masters Meet (Ecumenism Based on Meister Eckhart and Ibn Al-Arabi developed from When Mystic Masters Meet). Jurnal Orientasi Baru 24 (2), 2015.

Monograph

Melompat Pagar: Sketsa-sketsa upaya Berteologi Lintas Teks (Jumping the Fence: Sketches of Efforts in Cross-Textual Theology). Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Komojoyo Press: 2017.

Conferences and Presentations

• “’Indonesian Biblical Studies’: An effort to forge an Indonesian way of reading the Bible” presented in European Association of Biblical Studies Annual Conference 2024, at Sophia University, Bulgaria.
• “‘Who is the Majority?’: The location of Minority Biblical Criticism in Indonesian context.” presented in European Association of Biblical Studies Annual Conference 2023 at Istituto Superiore di Scienze Religiose San Metodio, Italy
• “A Post-Covid Student’s Trauma Theology” presented in International Conference of Theology and Philosophy 2023 at Sekolah Tinggi Filsafat Teologi Widya Sasana Malang, Indonesia.
• “A Postcolonial Trauma Informed Theology” presented in Society for the Study of Theology Annual Meeting 2023 at University of Warwick, UK
• “The Inter-Indonesian Christian Resilience Strategies in the Un-Christendom Context” presented in POLIS PGR Conference 2021 at University of Leeds, UK.

Teaching

Research Methods in Theology and Biblical Studies; Interpretation Methods of Old Testament; Introduction to Biblical Studies; Academic Writing

Qualifications

• Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Theology and Religious Studies University of Leeds, United Kingdom
• Master of Theology (Magister Sains Teologi) Universitas Kristen Duta Wacana, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
• Bachelor of Theology (Sarjana Teologi) Universitas Kristen Indonesia (UKI) Tomohon, Indonesia