Written by Jekonia Tarigan

Death and the funeral process can be a rich source of inspiration for human efforts to find meaning in suffering, eternity in finitude. Religion, culture, social structures, and the vitality of these rudimentary elements of communal life depends upon ritually putting the corpse in its place, managing the relations between the living and the dead, and providing explanations for the existence of death. Throughout human history the problem of bodily decay has had to be solved in a meaningful way—the social body cannot function without agreed upon principles to respond to the universal presence of dead bodies. [[i]] This also happens in the context of Indonesian society with every religious and ethnic group having its own rich funeral traditions, formed as part of the culture and way of life of each ethnic group. At the Kamisan Daring Forum event on June 2, 2022, which was organized by the Indonesian Consortium for Religious Studies (ICRS), the Center for Religious and Cross-cultural Studies (CRCS), Center for Religious and Democratic Studies (PUSAD) Paramadina, Satunama Foundation, Institute of Sciences Indonesia (LIPI) and several other organizations, raised a discussion entitled ‘Towards an Eternal Light: The Meaning of Death Ceremonies in Mentawai and Cilacap’. On this occasion, two speakers were present: Yosep Sagari from the Mentawai Indigenous Peoples Forum Community and Muslam Guno Waseso from the Association of Pangudi Mysticism Intisarining Rasa (Paguyuban Pikir) Cilacap, Central Java. read more

Written by Athanasia Safitri

Following the familiarization of the draft bill revision of the Indonesian criminal code (RKUHP) to the public in February-June 2021, the government through the Ministry of Law and Human Rights (Kemenkumham) highlighted 12 points, one of which touched on the issue of blasphemy. Two months ago, on 7 April 2022, Asean Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR), represented by Eva K. Sundari, initiated a public discussion in collaboration with the Indonesian Commision of Human Rights (Komnas HAM) and the Indonesian Consortium for Religious Studies (ICRS). Sundari opened the discussion, held via Zoom, by stating that the purpose of the meeting was to seek solutions for the many problems related to freedom of religion. From the government level, the final draft is targeted for June this year and there is a need to follow up with other organizations and institutions which share the same purpose. The idea is not only to get people ready for the legalization of the draft bill, but also to give space for the public so that the issue can be addressed urgently and to avoid the abuse of policy by the government in favor of certain religious groups. read more

Written by Maurisa Zinira

Political space has always been an arena of never-ending contestation due to competing political interests. Not surprisingly, in every general election period, political rhetoric amplifies and becomes divisive. Divisions constantly occur and often lead to acts of violence and criminality. The case of the 2019 presidential election is a real example of how political mobilization hardens identity politics. In this period, intolerance in its various forms was accepted as a matter of course and perpetuated through political practices that threatened social solidarity. read more

Written by Jekonia Tarigan

Religious dialogue, both intra-religious and inter-religious, takes place over a historical period and is colored by various dynamics, as well as ups and downs, which by studying them can be found wisdom in building religious dialogue in the future. [i]  This was conveyed by Fr. Dr. Martinus Joko Lelono, at the sixth installment of the Dialogues of Diversity forums organized by the Indonesian Consortium for Religious Studies (ICRS). Lelono is an ICRS batch 2016 and currently serves as Chairman of the Commission on Inter-Religious and Trust Relations, East Yogyakarta Vicary. In this forum he delivered a presentation entitled “The Dynamics of Religious Dialogue in the Catholic Church”. The second speaker for the forum was Dr. Laila Kholid Alfirdaus, S. IP, MPP, a 2011 ICRS alumna who is now working as the Head of the Political Science Master’s Program at Diponegoro University. Alfirdaus delivered a presentation entitled “COVID-19, Diversity and Access to Public Service: Assessing Support and Challenges”. read more