Writen by: Muryana, S.Th.I, M.Hum
I would like to share my experiences as a resource person during the Redesign Curriculum Workshop on the Religious Studies, which I attended some time ago. My first question is: what prompted the redesign of the curriculum? Secondly, what type of graduates does the Religious Studies program aim to produce?
I began by recalling the courses I took while studying Comparative Religion. Next, I reviewed the current curriculum. Although the courses offered are largely similar, there are some new additions. Based on this comparison, an important skill for alumni of Comparative Religion, I identified a structure that I could follow. First, I study my own religion. Second, I explore other people's religions. Third, I learn various approaches and tools to analyze both my religion and others. Finally, I am encouraged to determine which religion I wish to pursue further.
I learned about my own religion through various courses, previously referred to as institutional courses, as well as courses specifically focused on Islam and those that provide a foundation for understanding it. The subjects I studied include the Qur'an, Hadith and their sciences, Arabic, Fiqh, Sufism, the History of Islamic Civilization, and Tafsir. I recall Dr. Moh Damami Zein explaining in class that studying at State Institute for Islamic Studies (IAIN) serves as a bridge between Islamic boarding schools and higher education. This implies that one of the prerequisites for attending IAIN is ideally having a foundational understanding of Islamic studies from the previous school level. Consequently, education at IAIN is not designed for beginners in religion; rather, the Islamic courses offered are intended for further analysis and advanced study. Will this shake our faith as Muslims? There are many concepts and tools that need to be learned in order to conduct careful and in-depth analysis. Personally, I find myself increasingly eager to deepen my understanding of Islam at this stage in my studies.
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