Islam navigates 2 currents in RI<\/p>\n
By Muhammad A.S. Hikam<\/p>\n
This article is based on a paper presented at a conference on
\nIndonesia in New Orleans, United States on March 13, 1995.<\/p>\n
NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana, U.S.: The present and future
\ndevelopment of Islam in Indonesia has been shaped by three
\ninterrelated elements. First is the global trends of Islamic
\nmovements. Second is the particularity of historical background
\nof Islam in Indonesia. And third, the one which I think most
\ncrucial, is the approaches through which the Moslem community in
\ngeneral, and its leaders in particular, respond to the problems
\nbrought about by challenges in Indonesian society. The failure to
\ntake into account these elements in our analysis will result in,
\nat the least, one-sided views of Islam in Indonesia and be
\nincapable of coming to grips with its complexities.<\/p>\n
The global trend of Islamic movements affects directly and
\nindirectly the Indonesian ummah (the community of believers). In
\nrecent years, thanks primarily to modern communication
\ntechnologies, in the forms of mass-media exposure, global
\ninformation networking and modern transportation systems, the
\nevents of Islamic resurgence in other parts of the Islamic world
\ncan be followed almost instantaneously. Yet, while it is true
\nthat Indonesian Moslems share with their fellow Moslems' feelings
\naround the world, it would be misleading to picture the
\ndevelopment of Islam in Indonesia solely in light of the current
\nglobal trend.<\/p>\n
The distinct historical background of the Islamization
\nprocesses and the characteristics of Indonesian society make any
\nsweeping generalization untenable. The distinct patterns and
\nvarious sources of Islamization in the archipelago, since the
\n14th century, have been responsible for the accommodative and
\nreceptive character of Islam in Indonesia. Also, the
\nheterogeneous nature of Indonesian people necessitates various
\ninterpretations in the doctrines and practices.<\/p>\n
Finally, Indonesians are also the recipients of many
\ntraditions and influences originating from different
\ncivilizations prior to, and during, the process of Islamization.
\nSuch cultural traditions as indigenous traditions, Hinduism,
\nBuddhism, Confucianism and later Christianity have coexisted with
\nthe Islamic tradition. As a consequence, even though Islam is the
\nreligion of a majority of the Indonesian population, it has
\nsociological and historical characteristics which in many ways
\ndiffer from those of Middle Eastern, African and other Asian
\ncountries.<\/p>\n
It is no surprise that many strands of Islam emerge as a
\nresult of doctrinal reflections responding to the existing
\nsocial, economic and political changes. Religious reform
\nmovements in the early 20th century, for example, have resulted
\nin the emergence of the spirit of puritan Islam as a critique of
\nthe traditionalist practices. Anti-colonialism and the struggle
\nfor independence made Islam as one of the major forces in
\nsociety, which shape ideological and political developments in
\nIndonesia.<\/p>\n
The current phenomenon of Islamic resurgence in Indonesia can
\nbe seen as a dynamic response to the challenge of modernization.
\nAs a process which rapidly transforms the existing order of
\nthings, it has resulted in mixed feelings and insecurity among
\nthe Islamic leaders. On the one hand, modernization has brought
\nabout unprecedented outcomes, which make it possible for the
\nummah to escape from backwardness and enables Moslems to better
\nperform religious obligations. On the other hand, the threat of
\nsecularism, as one of the by-products of modernity, is seen by
\nmany leaders as a threat to religious values and traditions.<\/p>\n
Different approaches have been taken by Islamic leaders to
\nrespond to such a challenge. Three major trends can be found in
\nthis respect: legalistic, cultural, and social transformative
\nones. The legalistic approach aims at revamping the existing
\norder in society, under the blue-print of Islamic legal, ritual
\nand formalistic precepts. Islamic doctrines and laws become the
\nsole arbiter and the standard of references in all practices and
\naffairs in society. Neo-orthodox Moslems have opted for such an
\napproach with varying intensity, ranging from gradualist,
\npersuasive to radical ones.<\/p>\n
The cultural approach is aimed at distilling methods from
\nIslamic teachings, which are capable of integrating the non-
\nreligious sphere (secularistic part) into a new totality, of
\nIslamic framework, of development. This is similar to what Gilles
\nKepel (The Revenge of God, 1994) calls the idea of Islamization
\nof modernity. The efforts to develop such parallel institutions
\nunder Islamic teachings (banking, scientific enterprises, etc.)
\nare contemplated by the advocates of such an approach.<\/p>\n
The transformative approach aims to seek solutions to the
\nproblems of modernity by avoiding exclusive attitudes both toward
\nneo-orthodoxy and non-Islamic aspiration. It advocates
\naccommodationist attitudes and introduces disturbing questions
\naddressed to the central doctrines of orthodoxy. Therefore, the
\nadvocates of this strategy reject legal formalistic and
\ninterpretations of the doctrines, including literal adherence to
\nQuranic prescriptions and Prophetic traditions, without
\nreformulating the fundamentals of religious beliefs, so as to
\nguarantee that those beliefs take into account the empirical
\ndimensions of life.<\/p>\n
It is the third approach which needs our attention. Such
\nleading Moslem intellectuals as Abdurrahman Wahid, Djohan
\nEffendi, Moeslim Abdurrahman, Masdar F. Mas'udi and others have
\npursued this strategy, advocating non-confrontational
\nunderstanding of Islam and modernity, seeking for open dialogs
\nwith other groups, aimed at reaching mutual understanding of
\nproblems faced by society in general, and encouraging the ummah
\nto work together with others in resolving such pressing questions
\nas massive poverty, abuses of human rights, the stagnation of
\ndemocratization and others.<\/p>\n
Thus, amid the current trend of Islamic resurgence in the
\nIslamic world, which commonly takes radical, legal formalistic
\nforms, the development of Islam in Indonesia shows a different
\nexperiment. It attempts to navigate through the two streams,
\nmodernity and traditionalist and neo-orthodoxy, offering more
\nadequate approaches that are more beneficial for Indonesian
\nsociety in general. Some of the manifestations may be found in
\nthe attempts to establish forums for dialogs, such as Interfaith
\nDialogs, Religious Forum for Human Rights and activities from
\nyoung intellectuals, to question the traditionally regarded
\nsensitive issues such as whether or not secularization is a
\ndetriment for religious life.<\/p>\n
Obviously the experiment is bound to face resistance, coming
\nfrom both inside and outside the Moslem communities. The
\nrepercussions of such a transformative approach are tremendous at
\ntheoretical and practical levels. It questions the viability of
\nthe use of religion as a political ideology and the conventional
\nclaim that Islamic values can only be fully implemented through
\npower and formal legislations. The idea of putting Islamic values
\nas a complementary and not as the single source in the making of
\nmodern Indonesian nation will face a tremendous opposition from
\nthe neo-orthodox proponents.<\/p>\n
At the political realm, the experiment will also run counter
\nto ongoing efforts by some members of the Indonesian ruling elite
\nto mobilize Islamic force to back-up their struggles for power.
\nBoth co-optation and repression can be expected to happen among
\nthose proponents of this transformative approach.<\/p>\n
Yet there are some reasons to be optimistic that the
\nexperiment can be carried out in the long run. There is
\norganizational and mass-based support for such an endeavor. The
\nNahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah, for instance, are the two
\nlargest Islamic organizations, whose rural and urban bases can
\nbecome a fertile ground for the implementation of the
\ntransformative strategy. In addition, there are figures such as
\nAbdurrahman Wahid who represent the kind of religious leader and
\nintellectual, whose ideas transcend the boundaries of
\nparticularism and therefore capture the imagination of all layers
\nof society. And last but not least, the transformative approach
\nhas its social and historical foundations in Indonesian society,
\nwhich rejects any radicalism and support accommodative attitudes
\nand gradualism.<\/p>\n
The writer is a research staff at the Indonesian Institute of
\nSciences.<\/p>",
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