The “Wisdom Writer”, Michael Amaladoss and His Thought

This paper offers a synthetic introduction to Michael Amaladoss and his thought. Amaladoss is a member of the Society of Jesus and one of the finest Indian theologians; in the course of decades of engagement with themes such as interfaith dialogue, Indian theology, social justice, and secularism, he has greatly contributed to putting Asian theology on the map. In this study, I focus on Amaladoss, his theological style, his main intellectual concern, and his theological context. In a nutshell, Amaladoss’s main contribution to Indian theology is the very possibility of a true Indian Indian theology.

Māturīdite Kalam among Southeast Asian Ash`Arite: A Synthesis of Māturīdite Influences on Dayah’s Theology

As the earliest Muslims and first known who introduced Islam in Southeast Asia, Dayah community has continuingly played a great role in retaining and spreading the Ash`arite school of theology in the region. Ash`arite theology is a major area of interest within the field of Islamic studies in Southeast Asia. The teachings of Māturīdite kalam have, however, received little attention, in particular its impact on local theology from many scholars. Furthering the legacy of Nasafi’s construction of Southeast Asian theology, this paper is an attempt to unearth Māturīdi’s significance among Southeast Asian Muslims by analyzing the content of dayah’s curriculum, explaining the intellectual network of Māturīdite ulema, and explicating the role of Ahlu al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah consensus along with interviewing several key informants on the issues of Islamic theology. I craft this paper by arguing that Māturīdite kalam has considerable impacts on local theology, e.g., upholding rationality on God’s attributes, and relying on ilm mantiq method in justifying human freedom. This paper has great contributions in advancing the study of Southeast Asian Muslim theology and its relation to the concept of Islamisation of indigenous culture; like the concepts of cosmopolitanism and syncretism, and the finding of Māturīdi’s kalam in Southeast Asia.[Dayah di Aceh, institusi yang paling awal mengenalkan Islam di Asia Tenggara, hingga saat ini masih merupakan aktor yang berperan penting dalam mempertahankan dan menyebarkan mazhab Ash’ariyah di kawasan ini. Mazhab ini juga dominan dalam kajian Islam di Asia Tenggara. Pengajaran ilmu kalam Māturīdiah, meski mendapat porsi sedikit, pada khususnya berpengaruh pada teologi para ulama setempat. Artikel ini bertujuan untuk menggali signifikasi Māturīdiah dikalangan muslim Asia Tenggara melalui analisis materi kurikulum pengajaran di dayah, pemetaan jaringan ulama Māturīdiah dan mengurai peran konsensus para Aswaja. Dengan wawancara beberapa tokoh kunci dayah di Aceh, tulisan ini menunjukkan bahwa ilmu kalam Māturīdiah berpengaruh pada teologi lokal seperti; dukungan rasionalitas dalam mengenal Tuhan dan mempertimbangkan metode ilmu mantiq dalam pembenaran kebebasan manusia. Artikel ini mempunyai kontribusi penting dalam kajian teologi Islam di Asia Tenggara dan hubungan antar konsep dalam islamisasi budaya lokal seperti kosmopolitanisme, sinkretisme, dan teologi Māturīdi.]

Dialog Sebagai Cara Hidup Menggereja di Kultur Indonesia

Dialogue is not a mere empty term or theory; it is evident in religious life and even becomes a necessity in the attitude of participation as a knot of kenosis thought (A. Pieris) and Asian theology (C.S. Song). The ideal dialogue model has been narrated in the story of Emmaus' journey which also became a model of the Lord's Supper. Thus, the ideal of dialogue is the story of the Eucharist. Indonesia as part of Asia has its own diversity context. The method in this article is qualitative, using the method of analyzing literature from various figures' thoughts about the dialogue that can be applied in the Indonesian context. As a result, there are four forms of dialogue that can be applied in the context of Indonesia's diversity, by specializing in a dialogue of work and dialogue of life. Abstrak: Dialog bukanlah istilah kosong atau teori belaka; kata ini nyata dalam kehidupan beragama dan, bahkan, menjadi keharusan dalam sikap partisipasi sebagai simpul pemikiran kenosis (A. Pieris) dan teologi Asia (C.S. Song). Model dialog ideal telah dinarasikan dalam kisah perjalanan Emaus yang juga menjadi model perjamuan kudus. Dengan demikian, idealitas dialog adalah kisah perjamuan kudus. Indonesia sebagai bagian dari Asia memiliki konteks keberagamannya sendiri. Metode dalam artikel ini adalah kualitatif, dengan menggunakan metode analisis literatur dari berbagai pemikiran tokoh tentang dialog yang dapat diterapkan dalam konteks Indonesia. Hasilnya, ada empat bentuk dialog yang bisa diterapkan dalam konteks keberagaman Indonesia, dengan mengkhususkan dialog karya dan dialog kehidupan.

Transfersal Transformation: From Personal Analysis to Social Analysis According to Calvin and Ricoeur

Two figures who live in different ages, Calvin and Ricoeur, have built their thinking by way of an experience of repentance or self-renewal. It is this experience what so-called as personal analysis. Calvin, with his experience of "sudden conversion (subita conversio)", was moved to undertake a better world transformation as the stage of God's glory. Ricoeur, with his concept of “self-consciousness", emancipated the open subject aimed at social emancipation. Their experiences are individual in character, but it isn’t closed, conversely opened and forwarded out to others through relationships with others in the context of living together. Its goal is a social analysis through the transformation of a good and just life. The shifting process from personal analysis to social analysis, I name it as a transfersal transformation, namely, a change in the private realm that is forwarded to the public sphere with a call to live a good and fair life together. In Asia, the shift from personal analysis to social analysis (transfersal transformation) is important for Asian theology to be contextual and design a good and just society.