The Makings of Indonesian Islam : Orientalism and the Narration of a Sufi Past

Contents Illustrations Preface Acknowledgments List of Abbreviations and Archival Referents Part One. Inspiration, Rememoration, Reform Chapter One. Remembering Islamization, 1300–1750 Chapter Two. Embracing a New Curriculum, 1750–1800 Chapter Three. Reform and the Widening Muslim Sphere, 1800–1890 Part Two. Power in Quest of Knowledge Chapter Four. Foundational Visions of Indies Islam, 1600–1800 Chapter Five. New Regimes of Knowledge, 1800–1865 Chapter Six. Seeking the Counterweight Church, 1837–1889 Part Three. Orientalism Engaged Chapter Seven. Distant Musings on a Crucial Colony, 1882–1888 Chapter Eight. Collaborative Encounters, 1889–1892 Chapter Nine. Shadow Muftis, Christian Modern, 1892–1906 Part Four. Sufi Pasts, Modern Futures Chapter Ten. From Sufism to Salafism, 1905–1911 Chapter Eleven. Advisors to Indonesië, 1906–1919 Chapter Twelve. Hardenings and Partings, 1919–1942 Conclusion Glossary Notes Index "Indonesian Islam is often portrayed as being intrinsically moderate by virtue of the role that mystical Sufism played in shaping its traditions. According to Western observers -- from Dutch colonial administrators and orientalist scholars to modern anthropologists such as the late Clifford Geertz -- Indonesia's peaceful interpretation of Islam has been perpetually under threat from outside by more violent, intolerant Islamic traditions that were originally imposed by conquering Arab armies. 'The Makings of Indonesian Islam' challenges this widely accepted narrative, offering a more balanced assessment of the intellectual and cultural history of the most populous Muslim nation on Earth. Michael Laffan traces how the popular image of Indonesian Islam was shaped by encounters between colonial Dutch scholars and reformist Islamic thinkers. He shows how Dutch religious preoccupations sometimes echoed Muslim concerns about the relationship between faith and the state, and how Dutch-Islamic discourse throughout the long centuries of European colonialism helped give rise to Indonesia's distinctive national and religious culture. 'The Makings of Indonesian Islam' presents Islamic and colonial history as an integrated whole, revealing the ways our understanding of Indonesian Islam, both past and present, came to be"--Provided by publisher Indonesian Islam is often portrayed as being intrinsically moderate by virtue of the role that mystical Sufism played in shaping its traditions. According to Western observers--from Dutch colonial administrators and orientalist scholars to modern anthropologists such as the late Clifford Geertz--Indonesia's peaceful interpretation of Islam has been perpetually under threat from outside by more violent, intolerant Islamic traditions that were originally imposed by conquering Arab armies. __The Makings of Indonesian Islam__ challenges this widely accepted narrative, offering a more balanced assessment of the intellectual and cultural history of the most populous Muslim nation on Earth. Michael Laffan traces how the popular image of Indonesian Islam was shaped by encounters between colonial Dutch scholars and reformist Islamic thinkers. He shows how Dutch religious preoccupations sometimes echoed Muslim concerns about the relationship between faith and the state, and how Dutch-Islamic discourse throughout the long centuries of European colonialism helped give rise to Indonesia's distinctive national and religious culture. __The Makings of Indonesian Islam__ presents Islamic and colonial history as an integrated whole, revealing the ways our understanding of Indonesian Islam, both past and present, came to be.