Ulil Abshar Abdalla
Encyclopedia
Jaringan Islam Liberal
Jaringan Islam Liberal ' or the Liberal Islam Network is a loose forum for discussing and disseminating the concept of Islamic liberalism in Indonesia. One reason for its establishment is to counter the growing influence and activism of militant and radical Islam in Indonesia...
(Liberal Islam Network). He comes from a family of Nahdlatul Ulama background: His father Abdullah Rifa'i is from pesantren
Pesantren
Pesantren or Pondok Pesantren are Islamic boarding schools in Indonesia. According to one popular tradition, the pesantren education system originated from traditional Javanese pondokan; dormitories; ashram for Hindu or viharas for Buddhists to learn religious philosophies, martial arts and...
Mansajul Ulum (Mansajul Ulum Islamic school) in Pati, Central Java, and he is married to the daughter of Mustofa Bisri
Mustofa Bisri
Ahmad Mustofa Bisri is an Islamic leader from Indonesia affiliated to Nahdlatul Ulama. He is the head of Pondok Pesantren Raudlatuth Thalibin, Rembang, Central Java Indonesia...
, an Islamic cleric from Pesantren Raudlatut Talibin, Rembang, Central Java.
Background
Ulil completed his secondary education in Madrasah Mathali'ul Falah, Kajen, Pati, Central Java. This school is led by Ahmad Sahal Mahfudz which sits in the Nahdlatul Ulama leadership board during the period of 1994‑1999). Ulil also studied in Pesantren Mansajul 'Ulum, Cebolek, Kajen, Pati, and Pondok Pesantren Al-Anwar, Sarang, Rembang, all in Central Java.He graduated with Bachelor degree in Sharia
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
faculty in LIPIA (Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Islam dan Arab - Islamic and Arabic Knowledge Institute) in Jakarta
Jakarta
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
. He was also educated in Sekolah Tinggi Filsafat Driyarkara (Driyarkara School of Philosophy). He once held a position as chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama's Lakpesdam (Lembaga Kajian dan Pengembangan Sumber Daya Manusia - Human Resources Research and Development Centre), as a researcher in ISAI (Institut Studi Arus Informasi), Jakarta, and as Program Director in Indonesian Conference on Religion and Peace (ICRP).
He is also well-known for his activism in as a coordinator in Jaringan Islam Liberal
Jaringan Islam Liberal
Jaringan Islam Liberal ' or the Liberal Islam Network is a loose forum for discussing and disseminating the concept of Islamic liberalism in Indonesia. One reason for its establishment is to counter the growing influence and activism of militant and radical Islam in Indonesia...
, a group which voices out a liberal interpretation of Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
. Due to his activism in this group, he gained praises, sometimes deemed as another reformer after Nurcholish Madjid
Nurcholish Madjid
Dr. Nurcholish Madjid , in his homeland affectionately known as Cak Nur, was a prominent Indonesian Muslim intellectual. Early in his academic career, Nurcholish was a leader in various student organizations. He soon became well known as a proponent for modernization within Islam...
, as well as controversies.
After completing his master's degree in religion in Boston University
Boston University
Boston University is a private research university located in Boston, Massachusetts. With more than 4,000 faculty members and more than 31,000 students, Boston University is one of the largest private universities in the United States and one of Boston's largest employers...
he went on and continued his PhD studies in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
.
Controversy
In 2003, a group of Indonesian Islamic cleric from Forum Ulama Umat Islam issued a death fatwaFatwa
A fatwā in the Islamic faith is a juristic ruling concerning Islamic law issued by an Islamic scholar. In Sunni Islam any fatwā is non-binding, whereas in Shia Islam it could be considered by an individual as binding, depending on his or her relation to the scholar. The person who issues a fatwā...
against Ulil for an article that Ulil wrote in Kompas
Kompas
Kompas is the most widely read newspaper in Indonesia. Published by Kompas-Gramedia Group Publishing since June 28, 1965, it has a reputation in Indonesia for high-quality writing and investigative journalism...
in 2002, "Menyegarkan Kembali Pemahaman Islam" (Rejuvenating the Islamic Understanding) that is considered heretical by the clerics. In March 2011, a letter bomb addressed to Ulil at Komunitas Utan Kayu exploded, injuring a police officer.
Ulil also defended the right of the Ahmadi people, which is an uncommon stance within conservative Islam. He also opposes many of fatwas by Majelis Ulama Indonesia, such as the one forbidding to give Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
greetings to Christians.