Pembicara untuk Forum Rabu CRCS&ICRS yang akan datang adalah Sita Hidayah, M.A. Sita Hidayah merupakan mahasiswa CRCS. Sita mendapatkan gelar M.A. dari Florida International University pada tahun 2007. Thesisnya berjudul Religion in the Proper Sense of the Word: The Discourse of Agama in Indonesia. Adapun topi yang akan dipresentasikan Sita pada diskusi Rabu CRCS&ICRS adalah Long Live Victoria!. Diskusi akan dilaksanakan pada hari Rabu, 16 April 2008, di Gedung Sekolah Pascasarjana UGM, Lantai 3, Ruang 306, Jam 13:00 sampai 15.00.
Dibawah ini merupakan abstrak dari topik yang akan dipresentasikan.
Abstract
” Long Live Victoria!”
This paper is a preface, or perhaps better put as a retrospective, of my thesis Religion in the Proper Sense of the Word: The Discourse of Agama in Indonesia.
This problem of understanding agama in Indonesia has been persistently contained within the religio-political framework. A cultural study of the appropriation of the term agama suggests that the problem of endowing the term agama with a precise definition has the affinity to including political dimensions as well as socio-cultural competition for authority and domination.
This thesis uses the notion of citizenship to critically assessing religious discourse in Indonesia. The discourse of agama here is situated within the triadic discursive sphere of agama, adat and kepercayaan. How agama, adat and kepercayaan are seen in relation to each other is studied using Foucauldian genealogy and archeology framework supplemented by Habermasian scheme of discursive citizenship.
It is only by questioning the familiar, unconscious, unchallenged points of view concerning agama and by elaborating alternatives view of the term that we can unravel the complex historical, political, and sociological appropriation of the term agama and thus begin to carry out the conditions of possibility of emancipator citizenry in Indonesia.
Hurgronje talked about scholars who felt obliged to give justification of their undertakings in studying Islam, Foucault mention about how 19th scholars thought that it advisable to excuse themselves for asking their readers to dwell on matters so trivial and base, sexuality. Between humility and trifling moods, where is agama situated?
Definitely, the term agama has developed beyond its titular definition. It is now more to religion than to manual codes. And more importantly, it is more prescriptive than descriptive term. The discussion of the definition of agama has been associated with the moral and the rational.
We use concept to describe and at the same time, create reality. Is it? Can we easily instill meaning to a heavy-loaded term such as agama? As a religious studies student in Indonesia, what are actually were talking about?
