Christianity in Indonesia : an overview

Indonesia is a multicultural and multireligious nation whose heterogeneity is codified in the state doctrine, the Pancasila. Yet the relations between the various social, ethnic, and religious groups have been problematic down to the present day, and national unity has remained fragile. In several respects, Christians have a precarious role in the struggle for shaping the nation. They are a small minority (about 9% of the population) in a country predominantly inhabited by Muslims; in the past they were interconnected in manifold ways with the Dutch colonial government; they exert great influence in economy and the military, and constitute the majority of the population in some parts of the so-called Outer Islands (such as Flores, Sumba, and Timor), which are characterized by an attitude fraught with ambivalence towards the state apparatus perceived as ‘Javanese’ and ‘Muslim’. In the aftermath of the former president Suharto’s resignation and in the course of the ensuing political changes – in particular the independence of East Timor – Christians were repeatedly discredited for allegedly posing a threat to Indonesian unity, and have been involved both as victims and perpetrators in violent regional clashes with Muslims that claimed thousands of lives. Since the beginning of the new millennium the violent conflicts have lessened, yet the pressure exerted on Christians by Islamic fundamentalists still continues undiminished in the Muslim-majority regions. The future of the Christians in Indonesia remains uncertain, and pluralist society is still on trial. For this reason the situation of Christians in Indonesia is an important issue that goes far beyond research on a minority, touching on general issues relating to the formation of the nation-state

Apprenticeship: The Prospects for Survival

Volume 3 - Paper #43_43ApprenticeshipTheProspectsfor.pdf: 240 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

International Order, Political Community, and the Search for a Eurpoean Public Philosophy

The shaping of international order, and the place of concepts such as law and community within that order, has emerged as one of the most pressing issues in contemporary legal and political thought. This Essay examines three recent theses, each of which attempts to locate a public philosophy appropriate to the emerging new world order. Part I of this Essay takes a look at these theses: the orthodox Kantian theory of international relations, as recently articulated by Fernando Teson in A Philosophy of International Law, the liberal communitarian theory, which has been eloquently restated by Martha Nussbaum in Cultivating Humanity: A Classical Defense of Reform in Liberal Education, and the institutional rationalism of Jurgen Habermas, as described in Between Facts and Norms: Contributions to a Discourse Theory of Law and Democracy.\u27 Part II of this Essay suggests that the disparity between these alternative theses can be situated within the post-Kantian attempt to determine the moral self within modern political communities. There are, in effect, two Kants: one, which we can term the formalist, and which has enjoyed dominion in Kantian theories of international law, and another, the communitarian, which has gained increasing currency in radical liberal political theory. The final part of this Essay then takes these theses and situates them within the specific context of the new European order

Competing for Refugees: A Market-Based Solution to a Humanitarian Crisis

The current refugee crisis demands novel legal solutions, and new ways of summoning the political will to implement them. As a matter of national incentives, the goal must be to design mechanisms that discourage countries of origin from creating refugees, and encourage host countries to welcome them. One way to achieve this would be to recognize that persecuted refugee groups have a financial claim against their countries of origin, and that this claim can be traded to host nations in exchange for acceptance. Modifications to the international apparatus would be necessary, but the basic legal elements of this proposal already exist. In short, international law can and should give refugees a legal asset, give host nations incentives to accept them, and give oppressive countries of origin the bill

Family, Food, Nation, and Economy: Attachment to China and the Return (or Not) of Chinese Graduate Students in the Sciences and Engineering

For our project we sought to identify the meanings that male graduate students in the sciences and engineering mobilize when making plans for after they graduate. We conducted eight interviews and found that these students considered aspects such as family, food, nation, and economy when formulating their future plans. In particular, it appears that, now that China's economy is more similar to that of the United States, these students are allowed to reconsider values they have long held but were unable to make their priority. Furthermore, it also appears that there may be two groups among male graduate students in the sciences and engineering, if not graduate students in general -- those who return to China because they are attached to it and those who stay in the United States because they are not.unpublishe

Building an All-In Nation: A View from the American Public

As shown throughout this report, Americans are much more open to diversity and more supportive of steps to reduce racial inequalities than is commonly portrayed in politics and the media. Furthermore, Americans are more likely to see opportunities from rising diversity than they are to see challenges. They understand the problems associated with inequality in society and strongly support new steps and investments to reduce these inequalities and expand economic opportunities. Although differences remain between rising communities of color and whites in terms of openness to diversity and support for new policies to close remaining social gaps, many of these distinctions are more ideological in nature and less about race and ethnicity

Moralidad y Estado en la filosofía política de Fichte

The philosophy of history of 1804 and 1805 enables Fichte to place his natural right, developed previously at Jena, against a diachronic background. This means that Fichte does not reason merely synchronically from a timeless conception of society and state. From a synchronic viewpoint, Fichte cannot solve the problem of the control of political power because he has to draw on the assumption of a virtuous ephorate. This assumption is not consistent with the Fichtean ideal of a philosophy of right completely independent from moral considerations. Thus, the control of government is possible only if at least a group of citizens can go beyond the mere rational egoism. This new temporal conception of the state leads Fichte to think that the problems of consistency of his theory of Jena are unavoidable, given that a society integrated by egoist individuals cannot be sustained. However, his later philosophy of history enables Fichte to state the inexorable annihilation of this type of community and gives place to an ensuing epoch, when citizens are not self-interested anymore.La filosofía de la historia de 1804 y 1805 permite a Fichte ubicar a su derecho natural, desarrollado previamente en Jena, en el marco de un trasfondo diacrónico. Esto significa que Fichte no razona meramente de modo sincrónico, es decir a partir de una concepción atemporal de la sociedad y el Estado. Desde un punto de vista sincrónico, Fichte no puede resolver el problema del control del poder político, porque debe recurrir al supuesto de un eforato virtuoso. Este supuesto no es consistente con el ideal fichteano de una filosofía del derecho completamente independiente de consideraciones morales. Por lo tanto, el control del gobierno es posible solamente si por lo menos un grupo de ciudadanos puede ir más allá del mero egoísmo racional. Esta concepción temporal nueva del Estado lleva a Fichte a pensar que los problemas de consistencia de esta teoría son inevitables, dado que una sociedad integrada por individuos egoístas no es sostenible. Sin embargo, esta filosofía tardía de la historia permite a Fichte afirmar la aniquilación inexorable de este tipo de comunidad y da lugar a la época siguiente, en la que los ciudadanos ya no son auto-interesados

A Kantian Argument for Sovereignty Rights of Indigenous Peoples

Kant’s non-voluntarist conception of political obligation has led some philosophers to argue that he would reject self-government rights for indigenous peoples. Some recent scholarship suggests, however, that Kant’s critique of colonialism provides an argument in favor of granting self-government rights. Here I argue for a stronger conclusion: Kantian political theory not only can but must include sovereignty for indigenous peoples. Normally these rights are considered redress for historic injustice. On a Kantian view, however, I argue that they are not remedial. Sovereignty rights are a necessary part of establishing perpetual peace. By failing to acknowledge the sovereignty of native groups, states once guilty of imperialism leave open the in principle possibility for future violence, even though no current conflict exists. Only in recognizing self-government rights can states truly commit to the cosmopolitan ideal