When Da'wah and Politics Meet

Presentation of a research project as part of the "Jeudis de la Maison Suger", a residents' research seminar.

This seminar welcomes Yanwar Pribadi, for a discussion of the recent transformations of Persatuan Islam (Persis), one of Indonesia’s leading Islamic modernist movements. Drawing on an analysis of its evolution since the political reforms of 1998, he will explore the intersections between religious outreach and political engagement in contemporary Indonesia.

"This presentation will focus on an ongoing research project examining the sociopolitical transformations of Persatuan Islam (Persis), an Indonesian Islamic modernist organization, in the post-New Order (1998 – present day). The project shows that after the 1998 political reformation, Persis (established in 1923) has had dynamic socio-political manoeuvres in which its political activity is carefully constructed and is also often related to the mainstream of Indonesian political life, contrary to the condition during the New Order. At the same time, Persis has been able to maintain some aspects of puritanism promoted in its formative years through their da’wah activites. This project would assume that currently Persis has been able to play its role as an Islamic mass organization that can uphold its normative influence among its followers; construct steady relationships with the government; and take more active parts in Indonesian political life."

• Yanwar Pribadi is professor of Anthropology of Religion at Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia (UIII). Holding both an MA and a PhD in Islamic Studies and Humanities from Leiden University respectively, and a BA in History from Universitas Padjadjaran Indonesia, he has research interest in contemporary issues of Islam and Muslim societies. He is the author of “Islam, State and Society in Indonesia: Local Politics in Madura” (Routledge, 2018).
• Discussant: Stéphane Lacroix is an associate professor of political science at Sciences Po, a senior researcher at Sciences Po’s Centre de Recherches Internationales (CERI) and the co-director of Sciences Po's Chair for the study of religion.