Thesis:
Islamic
teaching contains many valuable and powerful messages which motivate all people
to involve proactively as a peacebuilding agent.
Mainly after
9/11-2001 terrorist attacked on World Trade Center and Pentagon headquarter, followed
by declaration of war against terrorism by George W. Bush, the president of USA
at the time, immediately the face of Islam changed into horrible one. Framing
by Western media which constructed stereotype about Islam and widely it was
consumed by almost entire global community, most people consciously or
unconsciously look at Islam as the “dangerous religion” and must be suspected
in its all aspects. No good side in Islam at all.
The stereotype which strongly perpetuated by
Western media had been extending the gap between Islamic world and Western world.
We are seeing as if there is no hope to promote peacebuilding between these two
imagined worlds. It becomes worse when religion misuses as one of triggering
issue to keep the tensions. The Western media invented the myth of Islam
intolerance and mostly people all over the world internalized the myth.
Mohammed Abu-Nimer’s book entitles Nonviolence and Peace Building in Islam:
Theory and Practice, I think, is trying to demythologize such stereotype.
This is one profoundly book by which he digs Islamic values concerning to
peacebuilding issue. It is very fascinating that Abu-Nimer describes in detail
seventeen values and principles found in Qur’an and Hadith that clearly
demonstrate an affinity between Islam and peacebuilding. I would not mention
them entirely but only take “peace making” value in associate to peacebuilding
issue.
However, it is
important prior to look at the basic foundation of Islamic perspective on
peacebuilding. Abu-Nimer states that a major call of Islamic religion is to
establish a just social reality. The true concept of justice is derives from
divine justice as the only source of Islamic values and principles. The Islamic
tradition calls for resistance to injustice through activism, third-party
intervention, and divine intervention. The interconnection and interdependence
of peacebuilding and justice are thus never far from the surface in Islam.
Peace is the product of order and justice, Abu-Nimer notes.
In terms of
peacebuilding, Abu-Nimer says, Islam encourages such active intervention,
particularly among Muslims themselves: “If
two parties among the believers fall into quarrel, make ye peace between them:
but if one of them transgresses beyond bounds against the other, then fight ye
(all) against the one that transgresses until it complies with the command of
Allah; but if it complies then make peace between them with justice, and be
fair: for Allah loves those who are fair (and just). The believers are but a
single Brotherhood: so make peace and reconciliation between your two (contending)
brothers; and fear Allah, that ye may receive Mercy” (49:9-10). Despite
these are always cited by scholars as a legitimate basis for using violence in
Islam but the passage clearly supports the concept of mediation and fair and
just third-party intervention.
What most
important thing I found in Abu-Nimer’s book is an invitation to understand
Islam through the so-called emic perspective (from the heart of Islamic core teaching
and values), not merely by visible performance. By doing so we can get a comprehensive
wise understanding that Islam has many powerful messages for peacebuilding of
humankind. [steve gaspersz - ICRS]
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