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| Southeast Asia |
| Indonesia’s Favorite Cleric Preaches, "Be Calm, Plan Well" |
| 2004-06-02 |
| From The Washington Post Abdullah Gymnastiar .... Indonesia’s premier television preacher greeted nearly 5,000 people who overflowed the mosque and who were waiting to follow his weeknight sermon on large-screen televisions. They pressed forward, some kissing his hand, others hailing him as if he were a rock star. More self-help guru in sarong than Islamic scholar, Gymnastiar, 42, has built a following unrivaled among his fellow Muslim clerics by marrying soft, sonorous words of counsel and tearful prayer, delivered not in Arabic but Indonesian, with razor-sharp marketing acumen. Widely known as Aa Gym -- "older brother Gym" in the local dialect -- he estimates that he reaches at least 60 million people weekly through television and radio, not including his books, cassettes, videos, newspaper, management training seminars and aphorisms printed on the red cans of the soft drink he markets, Qolbu Cola. .... Far more than the country’s Islamic extremists, Gymnastiar articulates the sentiments of many in the world’s largest Muslim country who are attracted by the United States but have grown distrustful of its intentions. "I hope America and Indonesia will join together to build a civilization of the heart," he said in an interview, rejecting the extremists’ talk of an inexorable conflict between Islam and the West. But he was quick to heap disdain on a U.S. administration that launched military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan. .... Trained as an electrical engineer, he is the eldest son of an army officer, his name reflecting his father’s passion for athletics. Gymnastiar said he continues to sky-dive and practice shooting at a cardboard target in his back yard. In free moments, he swaps his electric bicycle for one of four motorcycles kept under a dust cover in the alley. ... On a recent evening, as Gymnastiar plunged into the crowd on the electric bicycle -- a model that he sells -- he passed shops and stalls peddling T-shirts, key chains and other souvenirs .... He steered past his supermarket, boutique, bank, hotel and pair of training halls. In one, 20 executives from the state-owned oil company were taking part in a three-day management seminar for $300 a person. Next door, 50 middle managers from a leading national bank were involved in another three-day course for $200 each. .... he buzzed past walls decorated with his capsule teachings. One sign read, "Seven tips for success: Be calm, plan well, be skillful, orderly, diligent, strong and humble." Another advised, "Five tips for a good product: Cheap, high quality, easy to use, up-to-date and useful for both the world and hereafter." .... Despite his unorthodox approach, Gymnastiar has won praise from many in Indonesia’s Islamic establishment for drawing people closer to religion. "His teaching is unusual and a new type for us," said Umar Shihab, chairman of the Indonesian Council of Muslim Scholars. "In addition to using the Koran, he gives examples from real life. And while clerics usually do all the talking, he holds a . . . conversation with his audience. It’s very good for Islam." Gymnastiar does not share the insistence of other clerics that Indonesia implement rigid Islamic law. Although he is a traditional Muslim who prefers his women in head scarves and not in leadership posts, Gymnastiar said imposing sharia, or Islamic law, is not his priority. His chatty, playful and at times bawdy preaching rarely ventures into world politics, a common subject for the country’s firebrand clerics. .... Gymnastiar made front-page news last month when he visited the imprisoned Muslim cleric Abubakar Baasyir, who Indonesian and U.S. officials contend is the leader of an extremist group linked to al Qaeda. Although it was widely seen in Indonesia as a show of support for Baasyir, Gymnastiar said in the interview he simply wanted to get Baasyir’s side of the story. Reflecting the skepticism of many Indonesians, Gymnastiar dismissed the conclusion of Indonesian and Western investigators that Baasyir’s Jemaah Islamiah underground group was behind the bombings of two Bali nightclubs in 2002 and the JW Marriott Hotel in Jakarta last year, which together killed 224 people. Gymnastiar said that there was no terrorist threat by Muslim extremists against either Indonesia or U.S. interests in the region and that he thought U.S. warnings about terrorism were exaggerated. .... |
| Posted by:Mike Sylwester |
| #4 Gymnastiar is a strange guy, more like an American self-help guru than a hard-ass preacher. If you want to learn more about him read V.S. Naipaul's Beyond Belief: Islamic Excursions Among the Converted Peoples. Actually, read it whether you are interested in this Kook or not. It's a hell of a book |
| Posted by: Secret Master 2004-06-02 2:26:59 PM |
| #3 One sign read, . . . "Five tips for a good product: Cheap, high quality, easy to use, up-to-date and useful for both the world and hereafter." .... So, WalMart is expanding to Jakarta? Gymnastiar said that there was no terrorist threat by Muslim extremists against either Indonesia or U.S. interests in the region and that he thought U.S. warnings about terrorism were exaggerated Sounds like Seuss' "Cat in the Hat" denying the destructive nature of "Thing 1" and "Thing 2". |
| Posted by: BigEd 2004-06-02 1:43:53 PM |
| #2 Abdullah Pommel-Horse sounds like an Indo Pat Robertson. Riches and Real Estate await the truly holy |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-06-02 10:28:00 AM |
| #1 Maybe Gymnastiar should let us in on exactly what the body count would have to be to indicate an UNexaggerated terrorist threat. |
| Posted by: jules 187 2004-06-02 10:19:51 AM |