Getting down to it

As many of you know, my project is designed to survey young Muslim women to determine the factors that undergird women’s involvement in peacebuilding and interfaith dialogue. It sounds broad, and it is broad. I came expecting to narrow and hone my research questions as I began life on the ground.

On Thursday I visited with my friend, Ibah, who I met at the East West Center in Hawaii a few years ago, as well as my assigned counterpart at the State Islamic University (UIN) here in Jakarta. I walked away with a list of more contacts for my research and an opportunity to attend an upcoming regional conference “Advancing Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in Muslim Societies” this Wednesday. I rode with Ibah to her house in East Jakarta and enjoyed further discussion on Indonesia’s world of faith-based activism.

Months ago, Ibah initiated a bi-weekly gathering of lecturers who meet to present on various topics in English with the aim of developing English skills. While they speak English with relative ease, they are interested in gaining even stronger competency in comprehension, writing, and presentation as these skills are particularly valuable for their academic pursuits. If they can publish in English, they are able to share their research with a wider audience. I had agreed to participate in these discussions when she told me about them back in the fall.

On Saturday I had a chance to present my project proposal to this group and they in turn gave input, answered my questions, and confirmed or corrected my assumptions. Ibah invited people on faculty in various schools at UIN who have background in theology, peacebuilding, conflict resolution, and gender studies, and all of whom are associated with Nadhaltul Ulama, one of the two major Muslim organizations in Indonesia (the second is Muhammadiyah). I picked up a bunch of definitions, distinctions, and suggested reading. We also laughed a lot. I think my contribution for the night was the word “ascends” to describe what happens when the Prophet Muhammad or Jesus returns to the sky. That should tell you something--truly, I was on the receiving end for the majority of the discussion.

I had some knowledge of feminist or pro-gender readings of the Quran in Indonesia and the organizations advancing these hermaneutical stances, but because I don't know Indonesian, I have been missing out on a world of scholarship. I feel like I am walking into a room where hundreds of people have been conversing for the evening. I’m weighing which conversation to join and what kind of contribution will be realistic. Fortunately, they are making a spot in the circle for me.

We meet again tomorrow and I am looking forward to it.