Treating mystic believers<\/p>\n
The People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) recently held
\ndiscussions concerning a topic uncommon in any other country:
\nold-style traditional mystic beliefs, or non-denominational
\nfaiths as they are called here.<\/p>\n
The debate was provoked by the United Development Party's
\ndemand that the country's mystical movements, which are popular
\nmainly in Central Java, not be officially given a similar status
\nas that of the five recognized religions. It was a call to
\nreverse a decree which the country's highest lawmaking body
\npassed 19 years ago.<\/p>\n
The dominant Golkar faction, supported by all other factions,
\nrejected the proposal stating that it wanted to retain the status
\nof this element of the old Javanese way of life because \"religion
\nis closely related to culture\".<\/p>\n
To the United Development Party (PPP), this statement sounded
\nhumorous because religion can be closely related to many things.
\nThe Moslem-based party maintained that there must be a clear
\nseparation between religion and local mystic beliefs, otherwise
\nit could lead to Syirk (idolatry or polytheism -- the two most
\nserious sins in Islam).<\/p>\n
The controversy reminds us of the ferocious debate in the same
\nstate body 19 years ago when Golkar passed an MPR decree in an
\neffort to give mystic believers legal protection under the state.<\/p>\n
That debate saw the PPP faction, which was fighting alone but
\nwith many supporters from Moslem organizations outside the MPR,
\nwalk out of the meeting in protest.<\/p>\n
The controversial MPR decision was soon followed by special
\ntreatment for mystic believers. A special directorate was
\nestablished at the Ministry of Education and Culture to nurture
\nmystic beliefs. A special hall was designated for mysticism along
\nthe row of houses of worship of all the recognized religions at
\nthe prestigious Taman Mini Indonesia Indah in East Jakarta. And
\nmystics were invited to run a special forum broadcasted on the
\nstate-owned TV station just like religious bodies.<\/p>\n
What has been neglected during the last 20 years is the effort
\nto persuade mystic believers to return to mainstream religions,
\njust as President Soeharto called for not long after the decree
\nwas passed.<\/p>\n
Mystic believers, who are grouped in 245 societies called
\nAliran Kepercayaan (which literally means \"streams of belief\"),
\nare quite varied in their denominations -- from Sufism to quasi-
\nreligious organizations to fortune tellers.<\/p>\n
The fact that many of them base their beliefs on the old way
\nof life has made their movements look like a reaction against the
\nmodernization of society, which many believe could crush old sets
\nof values.<\/p>\n
The pursuit of a mystical way of life does not uniquely belong
\nto the Javanese or to people in other Moslem countries. It is
\nalso a trend in the West. Many westerners have flown as far as
\nthe Himalayas to find peace through mysticism.<\/p>\n
However, the recent debate on this issue did not look so
\nclear-cut as Golkar's points were also defended by noted Moslem
\nscholars, whose recruitment has marked a drastic shift in
\ngovernment policy since the birth of the Moslem Intellectuals
\nAssociation (ICMI) in 1990. The problem has deeply concerned
\nMoslem scholars and organizations because a government survey has
\nfound that 99 percent of mystic believers are Moslem.<\/p>\n
The result was that the PPP did not fight Golkar's position at
\nall costs, especially after Golkar agreed to insert a special
\narticle into the old decree stressing that, in the treatment of
\nmystic believers, all efforts should be made to guide them toward
\none of the five official religions.<\/p>\n
Mystic believers are members of our society who deserve
\nrecognition and relevant treatment by the MPR. The revamped
\ndecree, which stipulates that they should return to one of the
\nrecognized religions, puts a great responsibility on the
\ngovernment -- a responsibility they should not neglect, as has
\nhappened over the past 20 years.<\/p>\n
After the revision is passed in March, the government should
\nsponsor a bill in the House of Representatives which addresses
\nways to call on mystic believers to return to a recognized
\nreligion. Following the passing of such a bill, a special body
\nshould be set up for its implementation, perhaps under the
\nauspices of the Ministry of Religious Affairs (instead of the
\nMinistry of Education and Culture which currently deals with the
\nissue), to make the MPR decree work.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/treating-mystic-believers-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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