The Many Faces of Conservatism
The Muslim community in Indonesia is moving in the direction of mass public piety and spirituality. Religious study sessions are not only being held in traditional ways, but are also conducted in offices and malls. The garment, cosmetics, tourism and culinary industries promoted as being Islamic enjoy dynamic growth across the nation. The most effective marketing efforts are carried out online. Yet this renewed interest in religious faith is paralleled by a surge of intolerance. The rejection of minority groups appears to be growing in the institutions most responsible for character building from an early age: schools. Democracy in Indonesia has encountered its steepest climb yet, as religious-based conservatism is growing in many aspects of daily life.
June 20, 2017
Playing With the Fire of Conservatism
The most recent study by the State Islamic University (UIN) in Jakarta yielded surprising -- and worrying -- results: over 80 percent of the respondents rejected the idea of a non-Muslim leader and the establishment of other houses of worship in their areas.
UIN's Islamic and Social Studies Center (PPIM) conducted the study on 500 schoolteachers of (the Muslim) religion in five provinces at the end of last
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