Islam and democracy in Indonesia: tolerance without liberalism

Abstract

Islam and democracy in Indonesia was a co-winner of the International Studies Association Religion and International Relations Best Book award in February 2017 and it is easy to see why. The book reveals how one of the world's most influential and populous Muslim countries positively incorporates ‘religious tolerance’ without embracing secularism or liberalism and in doing so provides us with a new form of religious nationalism. To those accepting the orthodox narrative of human rights as developing in conjunction with secularism and the enlightenment, this hybrid might seem oxymoronic. Yet Jeremy Menchik shows otherwise, revealing how the promise of religious freedom in Indonesia is predicated on the belief in one God, which entails that the state is involved in religious affairs rather than absent. Menchik terms this ‘Godly Nationalism’, whereby, ‘as long as citizens believe in one of the state-sanctioned pathways to God, they become full members of civil society and receive state protection and other benefits of citizenship’. This contrasts with other forms of religious nationalisms that prioritize one religion over others, such as those found in Poland (Catholic nationalism) or Myanmar (Buddhist nationalism). The author's primary claim is that local social relations and contexts are key to shaping this intriguing relationship between the state and religion. For example, the shared anti-colonial struggle between different groups in Indonesia meant that local Christians were viewed as co-creators of the new state and as citizens, not just as ‘people of the book’ (dhimmis) by prominent Indonesian nationalists. Through detailed archival and fieldwork, the author reveals this cooperation to be more than a ‘marriage of convenience’, and shows that it has had long-lasting impact on Indonesian Islamic organizations’ ideas and priorities about interfaith dynamics and on the role of religion within the state. Additionally, the case of Indonesia demonstrates that while global theologies inform ideas about religious freedom and the rights of minorities, they are constantly reworked and reformulated in the local context. It is in this new conceptual language of Godly nationalism, and in showing how the local and global of religious concerns intertwine, that Menchik's work can best contribute to the field of International Relations.