- Ulil Abshar Abdalla
Ulil Abshar-Abdalla (b.
11 January ,1967 ) is an Islamic scholar from Indonesia affiliated toJaringan Islam Liberal (Liberal Islam Network). He comes from a family ofNahdlatul Ulama background: His father Abdullah Rifa'i is frompesantren Mansajul Ulum (Mansajul Ulum Islamic school) in Pati, Central Java, and he is married to the daughter ofMustofa Bisri , 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 theNahdlatul Ulama leadership board during the period of1994 ‑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 faculty in LIPIA (Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Islam dan Arab - Islamic and Arabic Knowledge Institute) inJakarta . He was also educated in Sekolah Tinggi Filsafat Driyarkara (Driyarkara School of Philosophy). He once held a position as chairman ofNahdlatul 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 inIndonesian Conference on Religion and Peace (ICRP).He is also well-known for his activism in as a coordinator in
Jaringan Islam Liberal , a group which voices out a liberal interpretation ofIslam . Due to his activism in this group, he gained praises, sometimes deemed as another reformer afterNurcholish Madjid , as well as controversies.After completing his master's degree in religion in
Boston University he went on and continued his PhD studies in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations,Harvard University .Controversy
In 2003, a group of Indonesian Islamic cleric from Forum Ulama Umat Islam issued a death
fatwa against Ulil [ [http://edition.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapcf/southeast/01/22/indo.fatwa/ CNN] ] for an article that Ulil wrote inKompas in 2002, "Menyegarkan Kembali Pemahaman Islam" (Rejuvenating the Islamic Understanding) [ [http://www.kompas.com/kompas-cetak/0211/18/opini/meng04.htm Kompas] ] [ [http://islamlib.com/id/index.php?page=article&id=1 Article in JIL website] ] that is considered heretical by the clerics.Ulil also defended the right of the
Ahmadi people, which is an uncommon stance within conservative Islam. He also opposes many of fatwas byMajelis Ulama Indonesia , such as the one forbidding to givechristmas greetings tochristians .References
External links
*id [http://www.ulil.net Personal Website of Ulil Abshar-Abdalla]
*id [http://islamlib.com/id/index.php?page=archives&mode=author&id=1 Biodata Ulil Abshar-Abdalla di Situs JIL]
*id [http://www.islamlib.com/id Situs Jaringan Islam Liberal]
*id [http://infokito.net/menangkal-bahaya-jil-dan-fla/ Menangkal Bahaya JIL dan FLA]
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