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Wednesday Forum News

Illness as Interreligious Encounter: A Study from Religiously-Affiliated Hospitals

Berita Wednesday ForumUncategorizedWednesday Forum News Tuesday, 11 April 2023

Illness as Interreligious Encounter: A Study from Religiously-Affiliated Hospitals

Wednesday Forum – 12 April 2023

Everyone, regardless of ethnicity, race, religion, and social status, is vulnerable to illness. Illness is a part of universal and inevitable of human fragility. One of main need of people who are ill, is a healthcare service which is generally provided by the hospital. Hence, illness is not only a complex medical and biological analyses that require objective evidence of malfunction at the microscopic level, but illness is also a social event. However, within hospital patients not only get healthcare service patients but that moment also potentially exposes them to greater diversity. Human encounter within hospital can be more challenging and interesting when the hospital is religiously affiliated hospital, because the religious conviction of the patient and the hospital are the basis for interreligious encounter. What kind of dynamics can occur in interreligious encounters within religiously affiliated hospitals? Can illness as human fragility and encounters within religiously affiliated hospitals strengthen interreligious relations?

Queering Interfaith Dialogue in Indonesia; Reimagining Inclusive Theology toward Diverse Faiths, Genders and Sexualities

Berita Wednesday ForumWednesday Forum News Friday, 31 March 2023

Queering Interfaith Dialogue in Indonesia; Reimagining Inclusive Theology toward Diverse Faiths, Genders and Sexualities

Wednesday Forum – 29 March 2023

Religions and queer identities are often purportedly seen as antithetical to each other, impossible to reconcile, and harshly incompatible to be openly and mutually ‘holding hands’ with each other. The misconceptions that religions and faiths cannot accept and support queer identities are pervasive that it systematically victimizes and marginalizes the life of many queer people. Yet in Indonesia, despite mainstream conservative attitude toward queer identities, queer-inclusive voices coming from faith leaders and queer activists are resisting and challenging the status quo. “Queering Interfaith Dialogue in Indonesia” is a master’s thesis of Amar Alfikar, a trans man Muslim activist who has been working in the last 7 years to advocate queer-of-faith activism in Muslim contexts.

Enduring the Gimmicks and Polemics: Digital Performance of Religious Minorities During the Pandemic

Berita Wednesday ForumWednesday Forum News Monday, 27 February 2023

Enduring the Gimmicks and Polemics: Digital Performance of Religious Minorities During the Pandemic

Wednesday Forum – 01 March 2023

Despite the constitutional safeguard of Indonesia’s constitution, they were enshrined in Art. 28E, 28I, and 29, the freedom of religious expression is complicated. Many religious minority communities and irreligious individuals were suffering discrimination. The burden is manifold for those beyond the fringe of six government-sponsored religions, such as Baha’ism, Sikhism, Taoism, Judaism, ancestral faiths, and many spiritual movements (Penghayat).
The COVID-19 pandemic surprisingly encouraged social solidarity, often to the point of interfaith engagement. Despite numerous reports of women, diffables (disabilities), and other marginal groups encountering challenges, they, including religious minorities, immediately tuned in and found a decent place within the solidarity. Pandemics forced religion to immerse into the digital realm much deeper, along with its painful consequences. For sure, it cast a long shadow on digital engagements, while marginal communities could and probably would embrace it in the coming days of post-pandemic.
The reality on the ground is complicated. The digital platform, which includes numerous digital services, including social media (socmed), once offered hope for a more democratic social space and a place for minority groups to express their religiosity much freer. On the other hand, it is growing to embrace the democratic nemesis, such as becoming hate-speech and other digital illnesses enablers.
Against the above complicated and contradictory situation, between promise and unpropitious situation, there is an urgency to gauge the digital performance of religious minority communities during the pandemic. The present paper focuses on religious minority communities’ experiences in digital engagement, ranging from Confucians to Penghayat.

Dragon Nests below the Wind: the history and diversity of Chinatowns in the Archipelago

Berita Wednesday ForumWednesday Forum News Friday, 24 February 2023

Dragon Nests below the Wind: the History and Diversity of Chinatowns in the Archipelago

Wednesday Forum – 22 February 2023

This talk is based on the thoughts and findings gathered during the research conducted in Chinatowns on five islands: Riau, Bangka Belitung, Java, Madura and Timor. By observing its cultural background and practices, this research aims to learn the history of the formation and development of Indonesia’s Chinatown. In the context of history, social change, and urban development, its uniqueness draws an illustration of how the communities exist and grow influenced by the cultural heritage and the dynamic complexity of Chinatown life as well. Subsequently, this mixture facts contribute as the forming elements to Indonesian culture.

British Religious Plurality in the Age of Charles III

Berita Wednesday ForumWednesday Forum News Wednesday, 15 February 2023

British Religious Plurality in the Age of Charles III

Wednesday Forum – 15 February 2023

On 6th May King Charles III will be crowned in Westminster Abbey, a religious ceremony confirming his role, not just as Head of State, but as Supreme Governor of England’s Established Church. But he leads a kingdom that has seen both significant secularisation and growth in non-Christian minorities over the last twenty years. This lecture will explore the impact of these trends on British identity and the way in which the understanding of constitutional monarchy and state religion have evolved to accommodate a complexly secular and religiously plural modern nation. It examines an English pluralist school of political thought that King Charles sees as characterising the British understanding of nationhood.

Kauman as Current Little Mecca in Indonesia

Berita Wednesday ForumWednesday Forum News Thursday, 19 January 2023

Kauman as Current Little Mecca in Indonesia

Wednesday Forum – 7 December 2022

Kauman is one representation of Little Mecca that still existing in several cities in Java Island, Indonesia. It has been a center of Islamic teachings since the sultanates period until now. Kauman itself historically was a small kampong that next to the grand mosque. It was the home for ulama and his families to live and take care the mosques. After returning home from hajj pilgrimage, some ulama established their own boarding schools in Kauman. They would like to transfer knowledges from Middle East to their students. This makes Kauman emerged an Islamic enclave in urban areas. One prominent Kauman kampong is Kauman of Yogyakarta. It was well known for ulama’s residential area during Mataram Kingdom and early Yogyakarta Sultanate period in the late 18 century. But now it has been changed to be large kampong that inspired the birth of Muhammadiyah, the second mass Islamic organization in Indonesia. This kampong transformation historically show how the inter-linkage connection with Middle East especially pan-Islamism movement and reformist Islam spirit. These two values basically were inspired from the same movement in Arabian Peninsula. Some building itself still has an Islamic architecture that influenced by Middle East. This architecture basically showed the cultural connection with the middle eastern civilization, particularly mosques and boarding schools. More importantly, Kauman is entirely pedestrianized that ensure the quietness condition for students studying Islam inside the surau or langgar. This shows how Arab identity is important to preach Islam in Indonesia especially urban areas. This study would like to reveal the continuing connection between middle eastern influence and Islamic teachings in Kauman.