Le dialogue islamo-chrétien selon Bambang Noorsena (Fondateur de l’Institut de Recherches sur le Christianisme Syriaque)

Abstract

The Islamic-Christian Dialogue According to Bambang Noorsena (Founder of the Institute for Syriac Christian Studies) Indonesian Christians have often been considered by their Muslim compatriots as followers of a Western religion and their situation in the country has worsened since the end of the 20th century. They are not only victims of religious violence but are also threatened by claims to impose Sharia. To break the deadlock in Christian-Muslim dialogue, Bambang Noorsena, a protestant scholar from the East Java province, suggests to refer to the Pancasila political framework created by Sukarno, as well as the Javanese and Semitic cultures, in which some local Churches take root, free from Western influences. In fact, the Institute for Syriac Christian Studies (ISCS) he founded in 1997, aims at linking Indonesian Christianity with its original Oriental and Semitic context, especially by stressing the prestige of the common Arabic language used by both Muslims and Christians communities in the Middle East, in order to smooth the relations between Christians and Muslims in Indonesia.