My Body,My Mine: Sumba Women’s Authority Over Their Bodies and Sexuality

Abstract

Women’s bodies are often politicized and fought over by culture, economics, politics, and religion. Women’s bodies are often manipulated and utilized for the benefit of various parties, especially by men. Patriarchal cultures cause men to control women’s bodies, sexuality, and lives so that and women have no authority over their bodies. One example is in the practice of kidnapping marriage in Sumba, which is the practice of marriage by “kidnapping” a woman to become a wife. The question is how does theology view women’s bodies? And what should women do to reclaim authority over their bodies. These questions will be analyzed from the perspective of feminist theology using the theory of body theology and body authority. This article aims to criticize the politics of the body in the kidnapping marriage culture in Sumba and seek women’s awareness to reclaim authority over their bodies.