In Europe, we had a Indonesian Christian couple in our church that came over on an expat assignment. They had many stories about the persecution they faced. I know you are aware way more than I am of the state of Christians in your country, but I do hope for better days
Thanks for the kind words. I have yet to deal with any persecutions first hand (thanks be to God), but I have heard stories from friends and families about the issues they faced because they’re Christians. And a lot of them are pretty subtle, liking using the government/bureaucracy to make life harder for you and stuff like that.
That said, a lot of these Muslims are my friends and neighbors, so I don’t want to paint with a broad brush. And for what it’s worth, the situation seems to be better here than they were 10-20 years ago or so. I remember when we were afraid that some psychopath might go off and blow up a mall with an IED or something (because it did happen). And like I said in my article, the leadership do reject the militant/extremist brand of Islam. And as funny as the idea of eco-friendly/feminist Islam is, I’ll take that over the mujahideens.
Praise God the situation is better. I have noticed from afar that Indonesians Muslims seem less fanatic than other varieties across the world. I don’t want to paint with a broad brush and it’s excellent that you can live at peace with your neighbors. That is what Scripture calls us to, to the extent that can happen.
Yes, eco-friendly mosques are a step in the right direction!
In Europe, we had a Indonesian Christian couple in our church that came over on an expat assignment. They had many stories about the persecution they faced. I know you are aware way more than I am of the state of Christians in your country, but I do hope for better days
Thanks for the kind words. I have yet to deal with any persecutions first hand (thanks be to God), but I have heard stories from friends and families about the issues they faced because they’re Christians. And a lot of them are pretty subtle, liking using the government/bureaucracy to make life harder for you and stuff like that.
That said, a lot of these Muslims are my friends and neighbors, so I don’t want to paint with a broad brush. And for what it’s worth, the situation seems to be better here than they were 10-20 years ago or so. I remember when we were afraid that some psychopath might go off and blow up a mall with an IED or something (because it did happen). And like I said in my article, the leadership do reject the militant/extremist brand of Islam. And as funny as the idea of eco-friendly/feminist Islam is, I’ll take that over the mujahideens.
Praise God the situation is better. I have noticed from afar that Indonesians Muslims seem less fanatic than other varieties across the world. I don’t want to paint with a broad brush and it’s excellent that you can live at peace with your neighbors. That is what Scripture calls us to, to the extent that can happen.
Yes, eco-friendly mosques are a step in the right direction!