World Muslim Scholars' Summit Ends In Bogor

JAKARTA, May 4 (Antara) - A three-day summit of the World Muslim Scholars, which took place in the Indonesian city of Bogor, came to an end on Thursday, after Vice President Jusuf Kalla declared the High-Level Consultation close. The summit, participated by around 100 world Muslim scholars from various countries, was declared open by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) at the Presidential Palace in Bogor on Tuesday (May 1). Kalla received the summit participants at the Vice Presidential Palace in Jakarta after they turned out to receive the Bogor Message developed as a result of discussion on Wasatiyat Islam (Islam middle path) concept or moderate Islam. The Bogor Message is a form of commitment of the Muslim scholar delegates on moderate Islamic paradigm. Kalla ended the summit by inviting Muslim scholars of the Islamic countries for a luncheon at the Vice Presidential Palace in Jakarta. "Thank you for all the contributions and thoughts that have been given during the three-day Wasathiyah meeting. Of course, we hope that we can reconcile with one another, including by solving the problems in Afghanistan, as the ulemas are more audible than the government officials," he stated while delivering a speech at the palace. He hoped the summit could provide a solution to stop violence in the name of Islam in a number of Islamic countries and states with the majority of Muslim population. "Therefore, we hope the meeting could also discuss the efforts to stop the teachings that cause problems in Islamic countries. Every night, we see destruction in some Islamic states, as reported by the media, and it is very unfortunate," Kalla remarked. Earlier, Jokowi, during the opening of the summit on Tuesday, stated that the axis of Wasathiyah Islam can become the mainstream teaching if Muslim scholars unite to convey the teachings of moderate Islam to the world. "If all clerics unite based on a single stance to spread moderate Islam globally, I am optimistic that the axis of the global Wasathiyah Islam will become mainstream and give hope for the birth of a peaceful, safe, prosperous, and fair world and will also give rise to an Islamic movement to realize social justice," he pointed out at the Bogor Presidential Palace. On Thursday, the Bogor Message was delivered by the Indonesian President's Special Envoy for Inter-religious Dialogue and Civilization Cooperation, Din Syamsuddin, in Bogor. The draft of Bogor Message highlighted the global scale of uncertainty and disturbance in the midst of modern civilization. Therefore, as a religion of peace, love, justice, and civilization, Islam underscores that the Islamic Wasathiyah paradigm, as the center of Islamic teaching, has been practiced in the long history of Islamic civilization from the period of leadership of Prophet Muhammad SAW (Peace be upon Him) to the modern era. The teaching of Wasathiyah Islam is related to the efforts of the global Islamic ulemas and scholars to ensure the development of Islamic civilization for the next generation. On the occasion, Syamsuddin, who was once the general chairman of Muhammadiyah (one of major Islamic organizations in Indonesia), also stated seven main values in Wasathiyah Islam, namely "Tawassut, I`tidal, Tasamuh, Shura, Islah, Qudwah, and Muwatonah." "Out of the 12 noble values, we put these 7 principles first, because other values can be incorporated into the chosen values. It has been discussed at the first meeting," he noted. In addition, Bogor Message also invited Islamic countries and communities to take the initiative to promote the Islamic Wasathiyah paradigm in order to build a "Ummatan of Wasatan" or moderate people with a prosperous, peaceful, inclusive and harmonious environment based on Islamic principles and morality. Syamsuddin hoped that the meeting could produce the axis of Wasathiyah world as it is one of the messages conveyed by Jokowi during the opening of the meeting. Around 100 world ulemas or prominent Muslim clerics and scholars from a number of countries, including the Grand Sheikh of the Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt; Prof Ahmad Muhammad Ath-Thayyeb; and President of Muslim Community Peace Promotion Forum, Prof Abdullah bin Bayyah, who is concurrently the president of the International Muslim Scholars Union, attended the world Muslim scholars summit initiated by Indonesia. The Muslim scholar delegates also came from other countries, such as Australia, the United States, Canada, and Japan. President of the Korea Muslim Federation and the President of China Islam Association (CIA) were also present. Previously, Chairman of the Advisory Board of the Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI) Prof KH Didin Hafidhuddin remarked that "Indonesia is an embryo of a moderate (wasathiyah) nation, with its theories reinforced from the paths obtained in the Qur`an and Hadith." The Wasathiyah Islam gives importance to tolerance (Tasamuh) and plurality aspects. "I see the direction there. Wasathiyah Islam is not harsh. It is protective toward all groups of religious faiths, and this is what Indonesia calls for through MUI," the Post Graduate Director of the Bogor University of Ibnu Khaldun (UIKA) revealed. Explanation about wasathiyah Islam is given in the Al-Quran, surah Al-Baqarah verse 143, which states that Islamic followers, as the middle path, are needed to prevent conflicts caused by both radicalism, either religious radicalism or secularism, he explained, adding that religious radicalism and secular radicalism are equally dangerous as they would bring about conflicts in the world. He further added that a number of Muslim countries, including Palestine, want Indonesia to be a leader in spreading the wasathiyah Islam. According to him, tolerance, in the concept of wasathiyah Islam, is not to unite differences but to respect differences, especially in religious services.