Jemaah Tarbiyah
Jemaah Tarbiyah,
Etymology
The term tarbiyah (
History
There had been a history of da'wah based on university campuses, notably of elite secular universities such as Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) since the 1970s. However, there was a demand for more comprehensive and systematic methods of da'wah, which was still very informal and strictly monitored by the Suharto regime. Some religious gatherings based in Salman Mosque of ITB is considered one of many origins of Jemaah Tarbiyah. These religious gatherings put particular emphasis on specific attitudes toward basic Islamic teachings and interpretations, including the principle of ukhuwah (brotherhood), dress code, and the prohibition on smoking.[3][6]
Among the activists of Jemaah Tarbiyah, four Muslim students returned from the Islamic University of Madinah, Hilmi Aminuddin, Salim Segaf Aljufri, Abdullah Said Baharmus, and Acep Abdul Syukur, are considered founding fathers (collectively called muassis).[3] Facing demands of more systematic proselytization and religious education, these four students and their cohorts have articulated a comprehensive program and organized activities, improved with methodology from the Middle East which was often named as usrah system. Its religious gatherings were known as halaqah which involved mentoring and Qur'anic recitations.[7] Since early to mid-1980s, the activity had quickly spread across elite secular universities, where religious education was required to be complemented.[1]
Jemaah Tarbiyah has often been pointed out of its Muslim Brotherhood influence.
Throughout the 1980s, Jemaah Tarbiyah had managed to grow its influence underground, mostly due to its focus on religious issues and avoided political activism.[1] The movement had also established formal institutions with similar aims but without explicit reference toward its connections. Such institutions include foundations like Nurul Fikri, Al-Hikmah Boarding School, and PA-HAM.[3] In the 1990s, the movement had established influence over many intra-university student organizations and discussion forums. The movement accommodated various Islamic religious strands from traditionalist to modernists, and was fluid regarding pragmatic concerns such as political system.[1]
After the fall of Suharto and the beginning of the democratic transition, activists of the movement founded an Islamist political party Justice Party (PK) in 1998, and its successor Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) in 2002. Majority of the members of PK and PKS, including the first president of PK Nurmahmudi Ismail, were activists of Jemaah Tarbiyah. The establishment of a political party was chosen over the establishment of a formal socio-religious organization. The decision was supported by the majority of the activists. Main activities related to da'wah conducted during the Jemaah Tarbiyah era were succeeded by the political parties.[1] Today, activists of Jemaah Tarbiyah have been continuously influencing the creation of new trends in da'wah and Islamic socio-religious movements, including One Day One Juz (ODOJ).[7]
Notes
Footnotes
References
- Damanik, A.S. (2016). Fenomena Partai Keadilan. Jakarta: Noura Books.
- Furkon, A.M. (2004). Partai Keadilan Sejahtera: ideologi dan praksis politik kaum muda Muslim Indonesia kontemporer. Jakarta: Teraju.
- Machmudi, Y. (2008). Islamising Indonesia: The rise of Jemaah Tarbiyah and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS). ANU Press. Retrieved from https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt24hddh
- Nisa, E.F. (2018). Social media and the birth of an Islamic social movement: ODOJ (One Day One Juz) in contemporary Indonesia. Indonesia and the Malay World, 46(134), 24-43.
- Salman, S. (2006). The Tarbiyah movement: Why people join this contemporary Islamic movement. Studia Islamika, 13(2), 171-240.
- Van Bruinessen, M. eds. (2013). Contemporary Developments in Indonesian Islam. Singapore: ISEAS Publishing.