Cak Nur 'last of great thinkers'

Cak Nur 'last of great thinkers'

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

With noted Muslim scholar Nurcholish Madjid being hospitalized
for months after undergoing a lever transplant last year in
China, scholars and political analysts fear Indonesia might not
see another intellectual of his stature emerge in the short term.

"After Cak Nur, there will be no more major thought, no more
extraordinary thinkers, because every basis of epistemologycal
and theological thought on Islam has been put in place by Cak
Nur. The 'Big Bang' of Islamic thought is finished," said Ulil
Abshar-Abdalla of the Liberal Muslim Network, speaking at a
three-day symposium at Paramadina Mulya University that ended on
Saturday (not Friday as reported earlier by The Jakarta Post).

Ulil, who delivered a paper titled What Next after Nurcholish
Madjid? on Friday, said the challenge of the next generation of
Muslim scholars in the country would be to kindle debate on
specific issues that would lead to the creation of more
specialists.

He referred to the matter of the recent controversy of a new
compilation of Islamic law as an example of discourse on gender
and interfaith relations.

"It was Cak Nur's idea that opened the possibility of
interfaith marriages. He built the theological foundation for
things that previously were very difficult to discuss publicly,"
he wrote in his paper.

Budhy Munawar-Rachman, director of the Center for Spirituality
and Leadership, said all present and future issues relating to
Islam had already been discussed in Cak Nur's books and speeches.

"Almost every topic on Islam and modernization being discussed
today are just footnotes to Cak Nur's thoughts," he said.

Bachtiar Effendy, a political analyst, disagreed with both
Ulil and Budhy's view that Islamic discourse was finished. He
said more and more problems were coming to the surface in modern
Muslim society.

"Muslim scholars today are being required to speak on so many
issues, such as Islam and human rights, Islam and terrorism,
Islam and technology, and many other issues. That is because
currently Islam is more than just a local issue but has become an
international issue," Bachtiar told The Jakarta Post after the
symposium.

He said the fact that several Muslim groups were still
demanding the implementation of Islamic law and the formation of
Islamic parties was proof that major issues involving Islam and
political affairs remained unsettled.

"If Cak Nur's ideas on the state and plurality were already
complete, we would be holding more discussions about people's
welfare instead. But look at what is happening now. We are still
trying to convince people about the compatibility of Islam and
democracy," Bachtiar said.

He said he had not seen any young intellectuals who could
achieve the same popularity as Nurcholish, adding that rapidly
changing political regimes might minimize the chances of young
scholars achieving the same honors as Cak Nur.

"This era is different. How can you expect someone to stand
out as a prominent figure during the democratic era, which allows
intellectuals to speak their minds so freely? You must remember
that Cak Nur's ideas were born under an authoritarian regime,
when he was one of the few who had the intellectual capital and
courage to speak out and write," Bachtiar said.

The three-day symposium highlights Nurcholish's contributions
to the discourse on modern Islam, Islamic politics and plurality.
The event was held to commemorate the 66th birthday of Nurcholish
and the seventh anniversary of Paramadina University.

Nurcholish is currently being treated at Pondok Indah Hospital
after having undergone a liver transplant in Guangzhou, China,
late last year. (006)