M. Rizal Abdi

How come something that wasn’t written in the Bible became the core of Christianity teaching?

The doctrine of the Trinity is foundational to the Christian faith and the most prominent distinctive aspect of Christianity. Interestingly, the word “Trinity” is never found in the Bible. Yet, the absence of the term doesn’t necessarily mean the doctrine is unbiblical. The essence and the logic of its doctrine are biblical. Moreover, under the light of the doctrine of the Trinity, Christians perform their daily basis in understanding and manifesting the Word of God. This article tries to examine how the doctrine of the Trinity reflects what the bible said and, more importantly, how different kinds of Christians understood the doctrine in diverse ways. The discussion would help us to identify the advantages as well as the disadvantages of the doctrine of the Trinity for Christians. read more

Athanasia Safitri

Aliyuna Pratisti, a lecturer and independent writer, completed her doctoral degree earlier this year with research focusing on the religious dimension in coastal adaptation processes. She presented her findings on the Wednesday Forum on 8 May where she narrated two Muslim communities’ responses to the coastal abrasion on the northern coast of Java. She claimed that her research aims to explore the interaction of religion and adaptation from Muslims’ perspectives since these two Muslims experienced coastal abrasion and included religious dimensions in their adaptive strategies. read more

Hongsok Lee

The topic of the Wednesday Forum on May 15, 2024, was the long-standing role of religion in environmental stewardship. June Cahyaningtyas, a lecturer at the Department of International Relations at Pembangunan Nasional “Veteran” University in Yogyakarta,  argues that religion is sometimes seen as contributing to environmental exploitation through its teaching of the primacy of humans over nature, but on the other hand, religion is also seen as providing a framework that leads humans to become environmental protectors. She focuses on the gender aspect in particular, arguing that women have always done most of the environmental work without being recognized for it. She attempts to present the experiences of urban women in Java who have been actively involved in environmental activities in their daily lives. read more

Hendrikus Paulus Kaunang

The Baduy community, with its unique cultural values and practices, remains relatively isolated from the outside world. It divides into two main groups, Baduy Dalam and Baduy Luar; they share the same ethnic and cultural background but differ significantly in lifestyle, customs, and interactions with the outside world. This distinctiveness underscores the importance of digital literacy in preserving their traditions and connecting them with the global community.

For complete story, please visit: https://www.pasca.ugm.ac.id/v3.0/en/release.sub-5483 read more

Hendrikus Paulus Kaunang

The doctoral program of Inter-Religious Studies (S3 IRS), in collaboration with the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), is embarking on a pivotal two-year (2024-2025) research project. This project, focusing on Digital Inclusion and its Dynamics among Indigenous Religious Communities in Indonesia, is led by Dr. Leonard Chrysostomos Epafras. The research team, including Hendrikus Paulus Kaunang, M.A., Ida Fitri Astuti, M.A., David Akbar Hasyemi Rafsanjani, S.S., and Yeni Yulianti, M.A. (BRIN), has been actively conducting field research since March 2024. These field visits to various indigenous religious communities in Lampung, Riau, Medan, Bangka Belitung, East Nusa Tenggara, and Maluku have provided invaluable insights into the dynamics of digital inclusion among them. read more

Angie Wuysang 

Hazara refugees in Indonesia experience discrimination and pressure in terms of expressing their distinctive religiosity. This was one of the main points presented by Dr. Realisa Masardi at the ICRS-CRCS Wednesday Forum at the UGM Graduate School on April 24, 2024.

Dr. Masardi, a lecturer at the Universitas Gadjah Mada Department of Anthropology, conducted multisite ethnographic research on Afghan refugees in four cities for 14 months, and specifically focused on the various ways refugee youths contemplate their religious identity and navigate Indonesia’s complex religious sphere. read more

Dicky Sofjan

Indonesian Consortium for Religious Studies (ICRS) & Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM)

What would religion and religious life be like in the age of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI)? What would the Internet of Things (IoTs), ChatGPT, Blockchains, A/V Reality, and all these futuristic technologies such as Machine Learning Systems (LMS) and Robotics Engineering have to do with the humankind’s “ultimate concern,” borrowing Scott Appleby’s (2000) notion?

These questions were constantly badgering me immediately when I received a startling invitation by the Digital Communications Network (DCN) early this year to become one of the keynote speakers in its Web3 Fusion: AI and Beyond forum in Bangkok, Thailand. The event, held on April 14-16, was described as “a hybrid forum on technologies impacting the information space.” The forum was intended as a platform to learn, share insights, and build networks among young or youthful tech engineers, developers, digital platform company representatives, academics, non-governmental organizations, and youth from around the world. Other invited keynote speakers included those from the United States, Brazil, Greece, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Japan, Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines. read more