TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
MUI edict on Christmas imbues spirit of tolerance: Minister
Change Size
Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin. (Antara Foto/Hafidz Mubarak A)
R
eligious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin said the Indonesian Ulema Council’s edict banning Muslims from wearing other religious paraphernalia was a form of religious tolerance.
“The spirit of the edict is that tolerance does not mean you have to immerse yourself [in a different religion],” he said as quoted by Antara news agency on Friday.
Lukman said Muslims should follow the edict without dismissing others and while respecting other religions.
“We should see the edict as having that spirit,” he said.
He emphasized that the edict was based on a principle of tolerance, respecting each other and other religions.
“We don't have to wear religious symbols that are not part of our faith,” he explained.
Lukman said he hoped Muslims would respect the Christmas celebration because many Indonesians are Christian. (evi)
