Archive for the ‘Culture and Civilization’ Category
Mystery of life, awe, and ecstasy
by Jennie S. Bev
I live with a strong sense of awe and wonder. I love and adore mysteries. They are all around and inside me. Things unknown, things in the future, things far away, and things I keep close dearly to heart.
Mysteries keep me alive and craving for more.
In the end, they give me ecstasy.
We might have been looking for answers throughout our lifetime, yet answers are actually not what we are looking for. Read the rest of this entry »
The constrained and unconstrained views
By Jennie S. Bev
Raphael’s painting The School of Athens depicted Plato pointing to the sky and Aristotle pointing to the ground. It encapsulates the two approaches in how we perceive the world: perfection and grounded reality.
These perspectives divide the world into unconstrained and constrained views, using terms used by Harvard professor of behavioral studies Tal Ben-Shahar.
In psychology, they become perfectionism and optimalism; in politics, they become communism and capitalism; in everyday arguments, they become can-do and cannot-do. Read the rest of this entry »
Soccer and politics
FIFA 2010 in Johannesburg and Nelson Mandela
by Jennie S. Bev
In 16 years after the apartheid ended in South Africa, Johannesburg has already become the host of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. This achievement has made Africa proud as it is the first time this continent has hosted a prestigious sporting event like this.
Historically speaking, South Africa has been colonized for 300 years by the English and the Dutch with 48 years of apartheid rule. In 16 short years, South Africa already built 1.1 million houses for the poor and has a rising number of middle class, although Caucasians still dominate the publicly traded companies on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. Read the rest of this entry »
Merubah Leadership Pemimpin Indonesia?
oleh Yunani Adam
Pada awal periode reformasi tahun 1998 masyarakat Indonesia mempunyai harapan besar akan terjadinya perubahan yang postif, termasuk diharapkan akan tampilnya pemimpin yang mengutamakan kepentingang masyarkat banyak dan negara. Sebaliknya, hingga saat ini leadership atau karakter dan ketrampilan kepemimpinan banyak pemimpin yang mengendalikan roda pemerintahan dan organisasi non-pemeritahan ternyata masih jauh dari harapan rakyat banyak dan merugikan negara. Dalam kesempatan ini saya akan membahas kemungkinan merubah leadership pemimpin Indonesia dengan menerapkan sistem pendidikan yang tepat.
Secara teknis, penerapan pendidikan yang saya ajukan adalah program pendidikan berantai yang melibatkan banyak individu, baik mereka yang berada di dalam maupun di luar negeri, termasuk dari segi pendanaan. Read the rest of this entry »
Happiness, positive pychology, and liberated learning
by Jennie S. Bev
The motivation and self-help industry is worth US$64 billion worldwide. People, who are seeking for a voice of reason and enlightenment, turn to print, electronic, and audio books and videos of motivational learning.
It taps a huge market for the optimization in human achievement, which can be attained more efficiently through positive psychology and liberated learning.
It is something to ponder upon pertaining to optimization of dissemination of democratic learning opportunities throughout the Indonesian archipelago. Read the rest of this entry »
Tradisi Black Friday: Memutar Roda Bisnis Lebih Kencang
Oleh Dr. Beni Bevly
Di penghujung tahun 2009 yang lalu agaknya merupakan fenomena baru cara penjulan retailer di Indonesia. Kita masih ingat bahwa beberapa retailer, sebutlah yang berada di Mal Artha Gading, Jakarta, menggelar Midnite Sale atau Belanja Tengah Malam. Mal dan para retailer yang buka sampai tengah malam ini menawarkan berbagai kegiatan, dari diskon 70% atas produk tertentu sampai mendatangkan penyanyi terkenal untuk menarik pelanggan. Di Tanah Seberang, fenomena ini bukanlah hal yang baru. Hal serupa ini terjadi setiap akhir tahun, yaitu satu hari setelah Thanksgiving yang telah dimulai pada tahun 1960-an. Read the rest of this entry »
Learning universal `Salaam’, a start to making peace on earth
Image source: tikkun.org
by Muhamad Ali
A basic understanding of humanness and human kindness (that everyone has equal dignity as human before being Christian, Jew, Hindu, Buddhist, atheist, straight, gay, and so forth). If people believe in God, but they use different terms for God, then they share that humility before God. If some believe and others do not believe in God, they still share that human kindness. The Koran uses the term “children of Adam”.
Peace can only last when there is such basic understanding of equality of every single being. German religion scholar Hans Kung, for instance, says, “no peace among the nations without peace among the religions, no peace among the religions without dialogue between the religions, and no dialogue between the religions without investigation of the foundation of the religions.” I would add that there is no sound investigation of the religions without the understanding that every human being has inherent dignity. Read the rest of this entry »
Avatarism and cyber law
by Jennie S. Bev
We all live as avatars. The term “avatar” refers to the projection of one’s personality, particularly over the Internet. While in Hinduism, an “avatar” is a reincarnation of Vishnu, in today’s society, it is nothing more than an image of ourselves that we wish to convey to the world. “Avatarism” is probably an appropriate term to refer to the practice of using a particular persona in a particular circumstance.
Most people wish to be recognized by at least one of their strong qualities, be they artistic, intellectual, musical or inspirational qualities. However, not all of them are fully aware of “packaging” their avatar.
Media personalities, for instance, are aware of their overall position and projection. We might see Paris Hilton as a “dumb, blonde, poor little rich girl,” but is that really the case? Read the rest of this entry »
Peaceful pluralism and nonkilling policy
By Jennie S. Bev
The world of politics is based on violence, within which killing — as a form of violence — is a major component in gaining and maintaining power.
Throughout the history of political philosophy, from Plato’s Republic, Aristotle’s Politics, Machiavelli’s The Prince, Hobbes’s Leviathan, Locke’s Two Treaties of Government, Rousseau’s The Social Contract, Marx and Engels’ The Communist Manifesto, to Weber’s “Politics as a Vocation,” all agreed that killing is a necessary form of force used in a power struggle, if not as a last resort.
Weber even defined “a modern state” as a “human community that claims the monopoly use of physical force within a given territory.” He also added: “He who seeks the salvation of the soul, of his own and that of others, should not seek it along the avenue of politics, for the quite different tasks of politics can only be solved by violence.” Read the rest of this entry »
Bapak Pluralisme Indonesia
Oleh Dr. Beni Bevly
Amukan teroris dan tumbuhnya radikalisme Islam secara pesat setelah runtuhnya Orde Baru pada tahun 1998 di Indonesia telah banyak menimbulkan rasa was-was di kalangan non-Islam radikal, termasuk penghuni bumi di belahan lain di dunia ini. Rasa was-was ini timbul karena persepsi yang tercipta dari tindakan kelompok teroris dan Islam radikal tersebut.
Ternyata ada satu tokoh yang secara berani, kontroversial dan lucu menampilkan sisi lain dari persepsi radikalisme Islam. Read the rest of this entry »
Gus Dur as a defender of pluralism, religious freedom
By Dr. Muhammad Ali
Pluralism has always been a contentious issue, but Abdurrahman “Gus Dur” Wahid worked beyond passive tolerance. He advocated the creation of a public space for communication, dialogue and cooperation between the mainstream and the marginalized.
Raised in a pesantren (Islamic boarding school) and Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) tradition, but also in Western and Eastern traditions, Gus Dur became the advocate of a reform rooted in the traditions. Read the rest of this entry »
Menghentikan Perbuatan Immoral Majority
Sumber Gambar: 3.bp.blogspot.com
Oleh Dr. Beni Bevly
Sangatlah miris menyaksikan kasus-kasus penyelesaian korupsi di Indonesia yang berkembang ke arah yang tidak menentu dan dinilai tidak adil oleh banyak kalangan masyarakat. Perkembangan kasus korupsi seperti ini muncul kepermukaan melalui penahanan pemimpin Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi (KPK) Bibit Samad Rianto dan Chandra Hamzah, kemudian menjalar ke kasus Bank Century. Pekembangan yang lain adalah penyelesaian kasus Prita Mulyasari.
Hal istimewa apakah yang membuat kasus-kasus ini begitu banyak mendapat perhatian dan keterlibatan dari berbagai pihak, baik dalam dan luar negeri? Mengapa kasus seperti ini terus berkelanjutan walaupun sudah lebih dari 10 tahun reformasi digulirkan? Sebagai manusia yang anti korupsi, bagaimana kita bisa mengambil bagian dalam pemberantasannya? Read the rest of this entry »
Just for You: Mutiara-Mutiara Kehidupan
Judul: Just for You: Mutiara-Mutiara Kehidupan
Penulis: P. Mutiara Andalas, SJ
Penerbit: Kanisius, Yogyakarta, 2009
Ukuran: 150×150
Beli: Klik di sini
Kata Pengantar
Buku di tangan pembaca sejatinya sebuah kado ulang tahun. Saya mempersembahkannya untuk seorang remaja yang baru saja menginjak usia 17 tahun. Kisah hidupnya seringkali membawa ingatan saya kembali pada Aya dalam drama serial Ichi Ritoru no Namida. Di balik drama 1 Liter Air Mata, saya menemukan harapan akan kehidupan yang senantiasa bernyala. Harapan hidup ditemukan saat keduanya bergumul dengan sakit. Nafas tulisan berasal dari perjumpaan dengan pribadi-pribadi istimewa seperti penerima persembahan buku. Saya terngiang penuturan A. Alvarez yang mengaku jatuh cinta pada bahasa lebih dari setengah abad. Read the rest of this entry »
Ecce Homo! Kebisuan Negara, Pembisuan Korban, & Politik Kenangan*
Sumber gambar: coffeeoriental.wordpress.com
Oleh Mutiara Andalas[1]
Kebisuan negara dan pembisuan korban adalah halangan terbesar kenangan akan korban. Mutiara Andalas
Clara, karakter imajiner dalam cerita pendek Seno Gumira Ajidarma, barangkali akan menjadi kenangan langka kita terhadap kekerasan seksual massal dalam tragedi Mei 1998. Awan gelap masih membebat identitas sebagian besar perempuan Indonesia etnis Cina yang menjadi korban kekerasan seksual dalam tragedi. Negara menyayangkan tanggapan terbatas korban terhadap undangan kesaksian demi menyingkap kebenaran. Wacana politik berpusar di sekitar selisih data korban, keterbatasan menjangkau korban, dan pembuktian kekerasan seksual. Pendamping korban terjepit dilema antara membongkar pelaku dan melindungi korban kekerasan seksual. Pilihan melindungi keselamatan korban dari ancaman pelaku membiakkan isu kekerasan seksual sebagai drama kebohongan. Tarik-menarik keduanya cenderung berakibat negatif bagi korban. Narasi penderitaan korban kekerasan seksual dan dakwaan mereka terhadap pelaku semakin kehilangan tempat dalam kenangan publik. Read the rest of this entry »
The stoning law, wan’ni, and sharia implementations
Image source: themuslimwoman.org
by Jennie S. Bev
Bylaws in Aceh for stoning adulterers to death and 100 lashes for premarital sex should be nullified as they are not merely against human rights and unconstitutional, but perpetuate the myth of inequality and overindulge in the over-virtuousness of Islam and sharia law.
Failure to nullify them will have grave consequences in which not only will pluralism be threatened but it will engender an age of distrust and Indonesia will be thrust back into the Dark Ages. Read the rest of this entry »
