Minister of Religious Affairs Delivers Tarawih Sermon at Istiqlal: Emphasise Gentleness and Nurturing

Minister of Religious Affairs and Grand Imam of Istiqlal Mosque, Nasaruddin Umar, delivered the sermon during the first tarawih prayers of Ramadan 2026 at Istiqlal Mosque in Central Jakarta. In his address, he chose the theme “Green Ramadan, Ramadan Together.”

Nasaruddin explained that green symbolises coolness, and is often interpreted as representing gentleness and nurturing.

“Green is a symbol of nurturing. Nurturing means gentleness, coolness, tranquillity, surrender, longing — white, clean, beautiful, elegant — that is what is called ‘al-khadara’. That is green. But struggling is red. Red means bold, masculine,” Nasaruddin said during his sermon at Istiqlal Mosque on Wednesday (18 February 2026).

He explained that Islam, as aspired to by all religions, calls upon its followers to become “green.” He said green is distinguished by ‘jamaliyah’ (divine beauty), and that God possesses a dimension known as ‘Rububiyah’, or the quality of sustaining and nurturing.

“But God also possesses the dimension of ‘rububiyah’, ‘rabbun’. Rabbun means to sustain, to nurture — it shares the same root as the word tarbiyah. Tarbiyah means to educate, to nurture, to shelter, to soothe, and so forth. Thus, God’s rububiyah is the most prominent attribute in the Quran,” he added.

He explained that God’s attributes are more frequently described as being Most Gentle, and therefore urged people to bring forth the symbol of green within themselves.

“The conduct and character of God as depicted in the Quran emphasises His nature as green rather than red,” he said.

“It emphasises Him as a figure who is Most Gentle, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful. It does not showcase or emphasise Him as Most Vengeful, Al-Muntaqim. It does not emphasise Him as Most Arrogant, Al-Mutakabbir,” he added.