The Balun Village Tolerance Model for Addressing Religious Intolerance In Indonesia: A Sociology of Law Perspective

Abstract

Indonesia's religious diversity requires social mechanisms capable of transforming legal guarantees of equality into everyday practices of coexistence. This study examined the tolerance model of Balun Village, Lamongan, and assessed its relevance to selected cases of religious intolerance in Garut from a sociology of law perspective. A qualitative literature-based case analysis was employed using 21 sources published between 2017 and 2025, comprising 19 journal articles, one scholarly book, and one institutional report. The sources were coded thematically and compared across patterns of social interaction, leadership, education, local norms, and the management of religious space. The findings showed that tolerance in Balun was sustained by a shared civic identity, routine interreligious cooperation, cross-religious protection of worship, community deliberation, educational transmission, and negotiated use of public and religious spaces. Compared with selected Garut cases, Balun demonstrated that formal rights were more effective when supported by trust, bridging leadership, and socially accepted local norms. The study concluded that Balun offered an adaptable socio-legal model for strengthening religious freedom and social cohesion without requiring the uniform replication of local practices.