During the weeks before Ramadan, the Islamic fasting month, we received good news and bad news. That Mahfud MD, the new head of the Constitutional Court, slammed sharia bylaws in less than 24 hours after being sworn in is good news. That a Muslim mob has driven Christians to leave their campus is bad news.

Many members of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) went to the streets again to demand both their leader's release from police custody and the banning of Ahmadiyah, horrifying news. Minister of Religious Affairs Maftuh Basyuni guaranteed the government will not issue any Presidential regulation to outlaw Ahmadiyah, which is a relief.

In addition, the FPI has already unleashed an assault against a certain kiosk they suspect of selling alcohol. Give me a break. I don't want to hear any more awful news.

The old Javanese saying, sing waras ngalah (The sane should recoil), is no longer relevant for the above-mentioned news. On the contrary, those still in control who are exercising full wisdom and reason should fight back.

The silent majority, who disagree with any form of violence and intolerance, should raise their voices to counterbalance those who do not believe in the use of human reason. Now that Mahfud MD has shown his courage, others should be inspired by it.

Once again, we should show our willingness to stand behind Mahfud.

It is not true that sharia-inspired bylaws, already adopted by some 480 regencies, will strengthen the Muslim community in Indonesia. That's the argument radicals have tried to sell us.

What is correct is that these sharia ordinances will -- and in many instances have already -- become a hurdle for Indonesian Muslims to overcome. These bylaws only put forth a limited version of sharia dictated by the local governments, who have based their initiatives neither on the advice of competent Muslim scholars nor on the reading of the rich body of literature on the subject.

Instead, a significant number of sharia bylaws are products of copy-paste. Verse by verse and word by word, certain regions have taken regulations from other regions. Pathetic as it may sound, those local governments are defining what sharia means for their fellow local Muslims. Take a wild guess whether those local governments have taken the local needs and demands into consideration or not.

True, the annulment of sharia bylaws will help Indonesian Muslims rediscover their own identity. They do not require literal and immature versions of sharia to help them behave as better Muslims. Nor do they need local governments to guide and spy on them as they carry out their religious duties.

What Indonesian Muslims need is to be proud to be Indonesians, whose cultures, traditions, and wisdom are distinct from other Muslims in the world. In fact, each Muslim culture in the world offers its own way to contribute to humanity.

It is false that annulling immature sharia interpretations encoded in many local ordinances will threaten Indonesian Muslims. Annulling them will instead undermine those who exploit Muslim sentiment for political and other purposes.

As for the Ministry of Religious Affairs of Indonesia, its long tradition has so far hatched many progressive ideas in the course of the history of Indonesian Muslims. It is worth recalling that Mukti Ali, a minister under Soeharto, may be one of the most important fathers of religious dialogue in Indonesia.

Mukti Ali coined the phrase "agreement in disagreement" in calling for maintaining harmonious relations among many religious communities. In interpreting Islamic inheritance law, Munawir Sadzali, another New Order minister, also boldly proposed men and women should inherit equal shares.

The torch of progressive tradition in that ministry passed to Tarmizi Tahir whose enthusiasm for sending Indonesian students abroad to broaden the perspective of Islamic studies in Indonesia was apparent.

This open-mindedness should not be extinguished. The torch now rests in Maftuh Basyuni's hands, and his duty is to keep it ablaze. His statement negating any ban against Ahmadiyah should be interpreted as his initial step in restoring the tradition of that ministry under his administration.

It is time for both Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah to lend support to Mahfud. Let the past frictions between NU and Muhammadiyah become history so they can stand shoulder to shoulder to fight against radicalism.

A new kind of santri, or observant Muslim, has emerged in the aftermath of reformation and challenged the older type of santri. These new santri have gone astray, betraying the old tradition, which is deeply rooted in NU and Muhammadiyah. Thus, only these two organizations can guide their ummah (community of Muslims) to rediscover truly Indonesian Islam.

The writer is a lecturer at State Islamic University Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta. He can be reached at nabiy13@yahoo.com

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