PP UII and PKU Unida Gontor Discuss the History of Islamic Thought and Civilization

In response to the phenomenon of diversity in Islamic thought present in society, Islamic Boarding School of Universitas Islam Indonesia held a Workshop Seminar on Islamic Thought and Civilization on Monday (30/10). In collaboration with the Ulama Cadre Program (PKU) of the Seventeenth Generation from Universitas Darussalam (Unida) Gontor, this collaborative agenda featured five speakers from UII’s Islamic Boarding School students and participants from PKU Unida Gontor.

Apart from the Men’s Islamic Boarding School of UII Hall in Condongcatur, the seminar was also held simultaneously at the Women’s Islamic Boarding School of UII in the Integrated Campus, Kaliurang.

In his speech, Ustaz Dr. Suyanto, S.Ag., M.S.I., M.Ag., as supervisor of the Men’s Islamic Boarding School of UII, welcomed the delegation from PKU Unida Gontor to the UII Islamic Boarding School. Ustaz Suyanto also conveyed the message of the Prophet Muhammad regarding the assembly of knowledge, which is compared to the gardens of heaven. Even though the discussion themes are quite diverse, all the discourses presented show the interrelated movements of Islamic thought and civilization.

“What we are doing tonight is continuing the legacy of the Prophet by studying it because, in essence, what we are studying is actually the Quran,” he said.

Ustaz Suyanto hopes that the collaboration between UII and Unida Gontor can continue to be synergistic. According to him, scholarly forums like this provide an opportunity to revive the tradition of knowledge. The status of a scholar (‘alim) itself, according to the hadith, is higher than a servant (‘abid).

“We sharpen our scholarly abilities. The defining life is that of a thinker. The pace of life is what drives thinkers, academics, philosophers, and others to follow the movements of academics,” he stated.

The seminar agenda itself is a dissemination project as an accountability process for the education of PKU participants. Assistant Lecturer at PKU Unida Gontor, Ustaz Dr. Moh. Isom Mudin, M.Ud., expressed his hope that this activity would be an opportunity to increase knowledge.

“There is intellectual exchange. There’s a term for replacement, exchange of discourses that complement each other. That’s what we hope for,” he said.

After the PKU participants participate in in-depth religious learning activities (tafaqquh fi al-din), the initiation of future community service begins with a dissemination event.

A number of interesting themes discussed by Islamic Boarding School students of UII include “Causality Analysis of LDII Endogamous Marriage: A Critical Study of the Concept of Kafaah” by Faisal Ahmad Ferdian Syah (Ahwal Syakhsiyah IP ‘2022) and “Comparative Study of Madness as a Spiritual Experience: Eastern and Western Perspectives” by Ali Muthahari (Islamic Religious Education ‘2022).

In addition, the topics raised by PKU Unida Gontor participants included “The Problem of Abdullah Saeed’s Socio-Historical Method in Interpreting the Al-Qur’an: A Critical Study,” as well as “The Problem of Scientific Authority in Indonesian Higher Education: A Case Study of Scientific Jockeying.”

The discussion discourse at the Women’s Islamic Boarding School of UII included the themes “Critical Study of the Orientalist Framework in Islamic Historiography”, “Intervention and Olweus Programs in Overcoming the Bullying Phenomenon: A Critical Analysis,” as well as “The Problem of Human Concepts in Neo-Darwinism: A Critique of Richard Dawkins’ Thoughts.” (JRM/ANW)