Ministry of Religious Affairs Prepares Religious Education Guidelines for Counselors on LGBTQ Issues
The Ministry of Religious Affairs is preparing religious education materials to serve as guidelines for religious counselors in conveying understanding related to LGBTQ issues. The content will be aligned with Islamic teachings and the provisions in force in Indonesia.
Director General of Islamic Community Guidance Abu Rokhmad stated in Jakarta on Tuesday that the preparation of these materials aims to strengthen the role of religious counselors in providing religious education to the public on various developing social issues.
Abu explained that religious counselors have five main roles: providing religious education, conducting religious guidance, strengthening public religious literacy, assisting families and communities, and conveying Islamic perspectives on various social issues in a polite, persuasive, and easily understandable manner.
He noted that counselors deliver religious understanding based on Islamic teachings regarding issues developing in society. Guidance is provided through religious study sessions, family mentoring, and various other religious forums.
“Our religious counselors and preachers have a close relationship with the community. Through religious counseling and guidance activities, they can be at the forefront of delivering education in a polite, persuasive, and easily understandable way,” Abu said.
According to Abu, religious counselors are also obliged to explain Islamic views on various social issues, including LGBTQ matters, in an argumentative manner while still prioritising polite and persuasive methods.
The preparation of these educational materials is part of the implementation of the Ministry of Religious Affairs’ duties as mandated in Presidential Regulation No. 153 of 2024 concerning the Ministry of Religious Affairs, which affirms the function of fostering religious life through guidance and counseling services to the community.
“We are preparing this material so that religious counselors have a unified guideline in providing education to the public. The delivery must prioritise a wise, argumentative, and easily understandable approach so that the religious message can be well received,” he said.
The materials currently being prepared are expected to become a reference for religious counselors in explaining Islamic perspectives on LGBTQ issues using a wise, argumentative approach based on religious values and national legal provisions.
“The combination of the prepared materials and field counseling activities is expected to strengthen the public’s religious literacy in addressing various social issues,” he said.
Through the strengthening of educational materials and the optimisation of the role of religious counselors, the Ministry of Religious Affairs hopes the public will gain a comprehensive religious understanding in addressing various social issues, including LGBTQ matters.