Studying the Qurʾan in the Context of Indonesian Islamic Higher Education

Author(s):  
Lien Iffah Nafʾatu Fina

Abstract This essay reconsiders some of Majid Daneshgar’s arguments in his Studying the Qurʾan in the Muslim Academy. The first part of the essay discusses what counts as the Muslim academy and how it is represented in this book. I examine his arguments that the Muslim academy does not do Islamic studies but rather an apologetic, descriptive, and normative study of Islam, and that the Muslim academy’s reception of Western Qurʾanic scholarship is dismissive, hostile, poor, selective, and apologetic. Its second part examines his argument that the Muslim academy does not engage in a “critical study” of the Qurʾan and Islam. Through a juxtaposition with my experience teaching at UIN Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta and the development of Islamic higher education in Indonesia, I argue that Daneshgar’s thesis is an over-generalization of what he regards as the Muslim academy, obscuring its plural nature worldwide. I also question whether it is appropriate to talk about the Muslim academy in universal terms. I further argue that to analyze academic study of Islam and the Qurʾan in the Muslim world, one needs to consider the latter’s context and history and its dynamic in relation to secular epistemologies developed in the West.

2007 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 24-45 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcia Hermansen

This article provides an overview of the history and current situation of the academic study of Sufism (Islamic mysticism) at American universities. It examines Sufism’s place within the broader curriculum of Islamic studies as well as some of the main themes and approaches employed by American scholars. In addition, it explains both the academic context in which Sufi studies are located and the role of contemporary positions in Islamic and western thought in shaping its academic study.1 Topics and issues of particular interest to a Muslim audience, as well as strictly academic observations, will be raised. In comparison to its role at academic institutions in the traditional Muslim world,2 Sufi studies has played a larger role within the western academic study of Islam during the twentieth century, especially the later decades. I will discuss the numerous reasons for this in the sections on the institutional, intellectual, and pedagogical contexts.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 105
Author(s):  
Abdul Zebar ◽  
Muhammad Irsan Barus ◽  
Candra Wijaya

This paper describes the background of sending lecturers of Islamic Religious Education Perguruan Tinggi Keagamaan Islam (PTKI) to the Islamic West and their contribution to the development of ICM in Indonesia. Historically the background of sending Perguruan Tinggi Keagamaan Islam (PTKI) lecturers to the West was to change Islamic studies in Indonesia to become more comprehensive with more universal scientific methodologies and traditions. The shipping project was opposed by some Islamic leaders because it was considered to give birth to religious liberalism. On the other hand, the sending of lecturers was supported by a number of Islamic leaders to eliminate the tendency of sect sect of schools in Indonesia and efforts to integrate science in Islam. The contributions of alumni of Western Perguruan Tinggi Keagamaan Islam (PTKI) lecturers include (1) encouraging the entry of science courses in Perguruan Tinggi Keagamaan Islam (PTKI); (2) rationalizing the organizational structure of the campus, (3) updating the curriculum with more intensive Islamic studies with a variety of rich methodologies Renewing the curriculum; (4) publishing scientific journals; (5) open post graduate programs; and (6) changing studies at Islamic Higher Education from the pattern of schools to the non-Mazhabi approach.


Asian Studies ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 179-181
Author(s):  
Nevad KATHERAN

Review by Nevad KahteranThe Teaching and Study of Islam in Western Universities as Routledge publication should be applauded in this cacophony in the post-9/11 world with the rise of interest in Islam and Islamic matters across the globe, necessitating an explanation of the authentic teaching of this religion anew in light of the challenges of the present-day situation not only in New Zealand, Australia and Pacific region, including the Canadian context there as well, but world-wide. Among many other efforts taken in the meantime, something similar was done in the European context as earlier Brill's edition of Muslims in the Enlarged Europe: Religion and Society, ed. By Brigitte Maréchal, Stefano Allievi, Felice Dassetto and Jørgen Nielsen (Brill, Leiden-Boston, 2003) with its speacial stress on After September 11: Islam in General and European Muslims. Also, we could add intersting report on Islam on Campus: teaching Islamic Studies at Higher Education Institutions in the UK (Report of a conference held at the University of Edinburgh, 4 December 2006 in: Journal of Beliefs & Values, Volume 28, Issue 3, 2007, pages 309-329), The Islam in the West Program (currently housed at the Prince Alwaleed Islamic Studies Program), among many other undertakings in this regard as good examples of similar efforts.


2007 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 24-45
Author(s):  
Marcia Hermansen

This article provides an overview of the history and current situation of the academic study of Sufism (Islamic mysticism) at American universities. It examines Sufism’s place within the broader curriculum of Islamic studies as well as some of the main themes and approaches employed by American scholars. In addition, it explains both the academic context in which Sufi studies are located and the role of contemporary positions in Islamic and western thought in shaping its academic study.1 Topics and issues of particular interest to a Muslim audience, as well as strictly academic observations, will be raised. In comparison to its role at academic institutions in the traditional Muslim world,2 Sufi studies has played a larger role within the western academic study of Islam during the twentieth century, especially the later decades. I will discuss the numerous reasons for this in the sections on the institutional, intellectual, and pedagogical contexts.


1989 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 196-199
Author(s):  
Tayyib Zain al-Abedin

The Workshop on Islarnization of Knowledge was held Shaban 20-22,1409/March 27-29, 1989 at Usmanu Danfodiyo University in Sokoto, Nigeria.It was jointly sponsored by the University's Center for Islamic Studies, theIslamic Education Trust of Nigeria, the Muslim World League, and theInternational Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT). The Center for Islamic Studiesis headed by Dr. Omar Bellu, a specialist in Arab Islamic Studies who servesas the University's Vice-President, and as Secretary of the Nigerian Councilof Scholars. The Islamic Education Trust is headed by Al-Hajj Ahmad Lemu,the Supreme Judge in Niger State and a prorrtlnent leader of the IslamicMovement in Nigeria who has established a number of Arabic Islamic Schoolsconsidered among the best for teaching Islamic and secular sciences.Objectives:The objective of the Workshop was to determine the means through whichUsmanu Danfodiyo University, in cooperation with the Islamic EducationTrust and other Islamic organizations could devise a program of action forthe Islamization of general and higher education in Nigeria. It also aimedat revising curricula for various academic disciplines to accommodate Islamicperspectives and to meet Islamic norms; developing and producing teachingand reading materials for various disciplines; and developing staff to servicethe revised curricula along Islamic lines.The Workshop's attendance was restricted to the professors and teachingstaff at Othman Dan Fodio University, and a number of youths from outsidethe university. On average, about eighty persons, including three or fourwomen, attended each session. The participants paid special tribute to themartyr Isma'il al-Faruqi for his pioneering role in the Islarnization ofKnowledge.The Seminar's Discussions:The first working session, chaired by Professor 'Abdul-Karirm Hussain, ...


ALQALAM ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 30
Author(s):  
Nur Hidayah

There has been a concern over a high unemployment rate among graduates of Islamic higher education and a low proportion of entrepreneurs in Indonesia. In fact, a high proportion of entrepreneurs is one of indicators of a country’s welfare. This has generated a question: to what extent do Islamic values cultivate entrepreneurial culture among its adherents? How to cultivate entrepreneurial culture in Islamic higher education? This paper will investigate this matter using a case study of Faculty of Islamic Law and Economics at Banten State Institute for Islamic Studies.  The paper argues that the curriculum at the faculty of Islamic Law and Economics has not been oriented towards building entrepreneurial culture. The curriculum consists of subjects to enhance the students’ competence and skills to prepare them as bachelors of syari`ah economics for the professions such as manager, lecturer, researcher, syari`ah auditor, etc, instead of preparing them for entrepreneurs who are capable to build his or her own business from the scratch.    To propose Islamic entrepreneurship study program at the FSEI of IAIN SMHB, it is important to have a strong political will not only from the internal IAIN but also higher authoritative body such as the Ministry of Religious Affairs to facilitate this from not only the accreditation process but also financial support. A further feasibility study needs to be undertaken to build its infrastructure such as qualified lecturers, appropriate curriculum structure, and recruitment student system. Since this field has a strong link with a ‘real sector’, there has been an urgent need to build cooperations with business sector to enable the students to undertake their apprentice and build their networks to facilitate their ability to develop their own business.     Keywords: Islam, entrepreneurship, entrepreneurial education.


2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 1006-1018
Author(s):  
Ana Alexandre Santos Rodrigues ◽  
Francisco Asis Aquino Bezerra Filho ◽  
Jáder Onofre de Morais ◽  
Lidrana De Souza Pinheiro

As práticas de campo proporcionam aos discentes uma proximidade com o cotidiano. A metodologia proposta no estudo sugere uma divulgação simplificada do conhecimento cientifico da Planície Litorânea de Almofala, propondo rotas de acesso didáticas para práticas de campo que auxiliem os professores das escolas de Itarema. Para a complementação teórica foram considerados como base os inventários da Geodiversidade cientifica do litoral oeste do estado do Ceará, realizados no âmbito do projeto PRONEX. Isso foi feito por pesquisadores de várias Instituições de Ensino Superior do Ceará, e a literatura clássica local. Enquanto resultados discutidos, considerou-se que estes roteiros de práticas de campo podem ser estabelecidos e decididos em conjunto, entre professores e alunos. Tendo como base o mapa interpretativo dos roteiros, com intuito de realizar o reconhecimento e entendimento da dinâmica costeira.Palavras-chave: Educação; Geodiversidade; Planície Litorânea. ABSTRACTField practices provide students with a closeness to daily life. The methodology proposed in the study suggests a simplified dissemination of scientific knowledge of the Almofala Coastal Plain, proposing didactic access routes for field practices that help teachers of Itarema schools. For theoretical complementation, the inventories of the scientific geodiversity of the west coast of the state of Ceará, carried out under the PRONEX project were considered. It was done by researchers from various Higher Education Institutions in Ceará, and its local classical literature. As results discussed, it was considered that these field practice roadmaps can be jointly established and decided between teachers and students. Based on the interpretative map of the roadmaps, in order to recognize and understand the coastal dynamics.Keywords: Education; Geodiversity; Coastal plain. RESUMENLas prácticas de campo ofrecen a los estudiantes una cercanía a la vida diaria. La metodología propuesta en el estudio sugiere una divulgación simplificada del conocimiento científico sobre la llanura costera de Almofala, proponiendo rutas de acceso didáctico para prácticas de campo que ayudan a los docentes de las escuelas de Itarema. Para la complementación teórica fueron considerados como información base los inventarios de la geodiversidad científica de la costa oeste del estado de Ceará, realizados en el ámbito del proyecto PRONEX. Fue realizado por investigadores de varias instituciones de educación superior en Ceará, y la literatura clásica local. En cuanto a los resultados discutidos, se consideró que estas hojas de ruta de prácticas de campo pueden ser establecidas y escogidas conjuntamente entre docentes y estudiantes, con base en el mapa interpretativo de ruta, con el fin de reconocer y comprender la dinámica costera de esta región.Palabras clave: Educación; Geodiversidad; Llanura costera.


Author(s):  
Daniel Philpott

Is Islam hospitable to religious freedom? The question is at the heart of a public controversy over Islam that has raged in the West over the past decade-and-a-half. Religious freedom is important because it promotes democracy and peace and reduces ills like civil war, terrorism, and violence. Religious freedom also is simply a matter of justice—not an exclusively Western principle but rather a universal human right rooted in human nature. The heart of the book confronts the question of Islam and religious freedom through an empirical examination of Muslim-majority countries. From a satellite view, looking at these countries in the aggregate, the book finds that the Muslim world is far less free than the rest of the world. Zooming in more closely on Muslim-majority countries, though, the picture looks more diverse. Some one-fourth of Muslim-majority countries are in fact religiously free. Among the unfree, 40% are repressive because they are governed by a hostile secularism imported from the West, and the other 60% are Islamist. The emergent picture is both honest and hopeful. Amplifying hope are two chapters that identify “seeds of freedom” in the Islamic tradition and that present the Catholic Church’s long road to religious freedom as a promising model for Islam. Another chapter looks at the Arab Uprisings of 2011, arguing that religious freedom explains much about both their broad failure and their isolated success. The book closes with lessons for expanding religious freedom in the Muslim world and the world at large.


Author(s):  
Hugh B. Urban ◽  
Greg Johnson

The Afterword includes an interview with Bruce Lincoln, in which he is asked to reflect on the current study of religion, methods of comparison, and the political implications of academic discourse. In addition to responding to specific points in these chapters, Lincoln also fleshes out what he thinks it would mean “to do better” in the critical study of religion amid the ongoing crises of higher education today. Perhaps most importantly, he reflects upon and clarifies what he means by “irreverence” in the study of religion; an irreverent approach, he concludes, entails a rejection of the sacred status that other people attribute to various things, but not of the people themselves.


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