Lessons learned from women’s emancipation in Saudi Arabia
The increasing freedoms and flexibilities Saudi women enjoy today offer a few pertinent lessons in social practices and behavior with respect to religious practicesI...
Indonesia’s Future under Prabowo: Will be Better?
Since October 20, 2024, Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority country and Southeast Asia’s largest economy, has had a new president and a vice president: Prabowo...
The Ambivalence of Human Defense
It is sad to witness the ongoing Israel-Hamas/Palestine war. It is even sadder to see many countries and communities around the world being ambivalent...
Yemen’s Houthis and Shiites
In recent years, the name Yemen's Houthi has emerged, no less popular than Palestinian Hamas, Lebanese Hezbollah, or ISIS (NIIS) in Iraq and Syria. In fact,...
Why is the divorce rate so high in Saudi Arabia?
From year to year, divorce cases tend to increase in Saudi Arabia, and the divorce rate has been staggeringly high in recent years. According...
The Refugee Dilemma in the Middle East
When visiting Lebanon several years ago, I stopped by an area where there were many refugees. Here (in Lebanon but also Syria), refugees are spread across a...
About Qatar
Qatar's social history is full of intrigue, conflict and violence, in stark contrast to the contemporary image of Qatar as relatively devoid of communal...
Religious Studies in Higher Education
Can Perguruan Tinggi (PT) Islam (Islamic Higher Education) in Indonesia become a pioneer in studying non-Islamic religions and non-Muslim societies?
It is interesting to question...
Religious Tolerance in the United Arab Emirates
The UAE is now known as a very tolerant country. An important lesson that can be drawn from the UAE is that in order...
Middle East, Religion and Religiosity
Why do some people in the Middle East become atheists? The phenomenon of atheism in the Middle East is actually the same as the...
Studying Secular Sciences in the Middle East
For most Indonesians, education in the Middle East, especially higher education, is associated with "Islamic education". What is meant by "Islamic education" here is...
Taliban, Afghanistan, and Indonesia
A number of religious groups and members of the political elite in Indonesia seem to be rejoicing at the success of the Taliban military...
Prospects of Interreligious Relations in Saudi Arabia and Indonesia
At a time when Indonesia is undergoing serious tests and challenges regarding the development of inter-religious and intra-religious relations lately, Saudi Arabia has even...
Malaysia and Indonesia in the Eyes of the Middle East Arab Community
There is a striking difference in the perception of the Arab community, especially in the Gulf Arab region, which is a rich and prosperous...
Wealth, Power and Religion
Among Indonesian people, a popular adage goes “harta, tahta dan wanita” . These three things are considered as factors that, if not approached wisely,...
