Kidung Jemaat 427 Kusuka Menuturkan - I Love To Tell the Story

 

Charubim Music Team "GKI Kwitang Jakarta"

 

Translete in Indonesia "Kusuka Menuturkan", KJ 427

1	'Ku suka menuturkan cerita mulia, cerita Tuhan Yesus dan cinta kasihNya. 'Ku suka menuturkan cerita yang benar, penawar hati rindu, pelipur terbesar. 'Ku suka menuturkan, 'ku suka memasyurkan cerita Tuhan Yesus dan cinta kasihNya.	Mat 28:19-20;Mrk 16:15;Luk 24:47;Kis 1:8;
2	'Ku suka menuturkan cerita mulia yang sungguh melebihi impian dunia. 'Ku suka menuturkan semua padamu, sebab cerita itu membawa s'lamatku. 'Ku suka menuturkan, 'ku suka memasyurkan cerita Tuhan Yesus dan cinta kasihNya.
3	'Ku suka menuturkan cerita mulia; setiap kuulangi bertambah manisnya. 'Ku suka menuturkan sabdaNya yang besar; dan yang belum percaya, supaya mendengar. 'Ku suka menuturkan, 'ku suka memasyurkan cerita Tuhan Yesus dan cinta kasihNya.
4	'Ku suka menuturkan cerita mulia; pun bagi yang percaya tak hilang indahnya. Dan nanti kunyanyikan di sorga yang kekal cerita termulia yang lama kukenal. 'Ku suka menuturkan, 'ku suka memasyurkan cerita Tuhan Yesus dan cinta kasihNya.

Aceh Shuts Down Buddhist Temples and Churches

illustration picture

Authorities have closed nine churches and six Buddhist temples in Banda Aceh in the last week, following mounting pressure from local Islamist groups, activists and church officials said on Sunday.

Theophilus Bela, chairman of Jakarta Christian Communication Forum, said that the churches’ priests were forced to sign a statement to close their churches. Officials from the province that applies Shariah law supposedly made the demands in a meeting that was attended by several Islamic organizations, including the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI).

“It’s a blatant act of intolerance,” Theophilus said.

The churches include the Indonesian Bethel Church (GBI), the Pantekosta Church and the Indonesia Christian Church.

Nico Tarigan, a priest and head of GBI church, acknowledged that the permit needed for the church to remain open had not been issued from the mayor’s office, even though the paperwork for the permit had been submitted a long time ago.

“We admit we have not had the permit,” he said by telephone. “But they can’t just close down our church. We have 80 members that don’t know where to pray.”

Illiza Sa’aduddin Djamal, Banda Aceh deputy mayor, said that the nine churches and six temples have violated the city’s regulation, and should be closed down.

“The congregation members can join churches that have secured permits,” he said. “As a province that applies Islamist law, Aceh has a special law on this issue.”

He also called on Aceh’s Christians to respect the law.

However, Nico said that other churches were not necessarily open to members from other congregations.

“We hope there is a better solution from the Aceh government,” Nico said. “We have no motive to compete with other religions or ruin Islamic teaching. We have been here for eight years. They can ask local officials if we have done damage to Islamic teaching.”

“The FPI will continue to monitor these illegal churches and temples so that they don’t resume their activities,” said FPI chairman Yusuf Al-Qardhawy. JG

Indonesians Say Democracy Can Hurt Minorities, Spark Conflict: Survey

Illustration Picture (ucanews)

Indonesians support the democratic system but believe that it can harm minority groups and economic development, as well as spark conflict, a survey reveals.

The survey, which was conducted by the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) between June and July, revealed that 53.3 percent of 1,700 respondents believed that democracy tended to put pressure on minorities.

The survey also disclosed that 50.4 percent of respondents said that democracy could hinder the country’s economic development, while 49.9 percent of them believed that democracy could trigger conflicts.

LIPI researcher Wawan Ichwanuddin said Thursday that 35.2 percent of respondents considered that democracy was not in line with the nation’s traditional and community values. “The survey shows that 70 percent of respondents believe that democracy is the preferred political system. However, several people view democracy very negatively,” he told reporters during a press conference in Jakarta.

According to Wawan, the survey also revealed respondents’ disapproval of existing political parties.
Only 23.4 percent of them trusted political parties, he said. The figure was lower than the respondents' trust in the President (55.5 percent), the courts (32 percent) and the House of Representatives (29.7 percent).

Respondents believed that Indonesia should have fewer political parties. A staggering 58.3 percent of them said they would prefer five political parties, while the remaining 28.1 percent wanted three parties. Only 3.5 percent of respondents said Indonesia should have more than 10 political parties.

The survey's participants also said the government’s performance was poor in economic welfare (22 percent) and corruption eradication (46 percent). JP

Battling Hatred Begins at Home

Illustration

When President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono proposed his idea to establish an international protocol against religious denigration at the UN General Assembly, he was probably not aware of all the domestic and international ramifications.

As the leader of a country with the largest Muslim population in the world, and one that has tried hard to project itself as a moderate force in international politics, he may indeed be in the best position to propose such a plan. However, the failure of the Indonesian government to protect the basic rights of various religious minorities at home raises questions about the credibility of his proposal

A closer inspection of Yudhoyono’s proposal makes us doubt whether it is possible to reach any international agreement on such a delicate and sensitive issue like religious denigration. Although it is easy to agree with the president that there is a need to establish an international platform on the promotion of interreligious harmony and peace, a strong resistance may still come from Western democracies if such a noble goal should be achieved at the expense of freedom of expression. As a matter of fact, in addressing the UN General Assembly, US President Barack Obama convinced his audience that he would never discourage American citizens from expressing themselves freely in any form.

Obama’s insistence to uphold the principle of freedom of expression in his country should not surprise us. As a liberal president he speaks on behalf of a secular society that tends to look at any religious belief system as not more than a human-constructed set of ideas that will never be immune from criticism and even mockery.

No wonder sharp and sometimes unjustified criticism of religions — especially Christianity — in Western, secular democracies is regarded as a normal contestation of ideas. If Yudhoyono’s proposal of an international protocol is meant to control or stop public discourses like this, it is doubtful that his plan will have any chance of success. We may expect that there will always be some irresponsible individuals out there who will be tempted to come up with a crazy idea — like the one that has led to the making of an anti-Islamic film “Innocence of Muslims.”

Therefore, before the government goes ahead with its plan to formulate a roadmap for an international protocol against religious denigration, let us re-think its plausibility and then come up with a more sensible idea.

Also, let’s not forget that no matter how compelling our moral exhortation in the international arena, at the end of the day effective promotion of interreligious harmony and peace is very much determined at the national level.

We live an era of globalization and liberalization of ideas. With Indonesia’s limited political and economic leverage, there is no way we can stop or control this trend. On top of that, all religious institutions now are under pressure to develop their apologetic system in order to argue against those trying to delegitimize their beliefs. Violent reactions will never solve this problem and sometimes make it even worse.

If the Indonesian government intends to substantiate its claim as a moderate force in international politics, it has to start with its own society. The more we can uphold interreligious tolerance in Indonesia, the more the international community will look at us as an example worthy of emulation. Promoting interreligious harmony after all is more about real-world action than about sophisticated diplomacy that is yet without substance.

Aleksius Jemadu is dean of the School of Social and Political Sciences at Universitas Pelita Harapan in Karawaci. JG

GKI Yasmin Still Unsettled

GKI Yasmin

The Bogor administration’s plan to relocate the GKI Yasmin Church to Jalan Semeru in Kotaparis, Bogor, has been met with rejection from local residents.

Residents in the area slated for the relocation of the long-troubled church argued that relocation will not solve the problem.

“Our rejection is based on the fact that the relocation of the Yasmin Church will not just be a physical relocation. Its problems will also be relocated,” said Yayat A. Suhendar, the head of the Kotaparis neighborhood watch unit, on Tuesday. “The Yasmin Church should stay at the Taman Yasmin housing complex,”

Yayat pointed out that the Eben Haezar Protestant Church is already on Jalan Semeru, where it’s been for almost 30 years.

“If you insist on relocating it, then the distance between one church and the other will only be about 100 meters. We’re just concerned about the impact, that it could create antipathy from the residents against church followers, not to mention the traffic jam it will cause. Basically, one church is enough for us in our area.”

The Bogor administration has allocated Rp 3.5 billion ($365,000) for the relocation of the GKI Yasmin Church.

Jayadi Damanik one of the advocates for GKI Yasmin, said that the church no longer trusts the Bogor administration to solve the problem.

“Can you imagine, the first person who recommended that the church be built in Taman Yasmin in 2002 was Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto, and he gave his appreciation for the building of the church during the ground-breaking ceremony,” said Jayadi.

Diani later bowed to pressure from residents opposed to the church, sealing off GKI Yasmin even after a Supreme Court ruling ordered that the church be allowed to reopen. The Bogor mayor asked Yasmin followers to wait for protests to cool down and promised that the administration would take care of the problem once it was over.

“The mayor has played with our feelings and we no longer have confidence, therefore we’re against the relocation,” Jayadi said.

The Wahid Institute said that the relocation of GKI Yasmin will not solve any problems.

“Looking at the solutions given by the government on cases related to religious intolerance such as the Sampang, Cikeusik, HKBP Filadelfia cases, which just recommended relocation, we see that it will not solve the root of the problem,” said spokesman for Wahid Institute Subhi Azhari in a discussion in Bogor last week.

He said the central government cannot rely on the local administration to solve the GKI Yasmin case because the mayor is involved in the dispute. “Intervention from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is needed to solve the problem,” he added.

In the years since the onset of the reform era, sectarian conflicts have increased nationwide. JG

US slams Pakistani minister’s filmmaker bounty

Pakistani demonstrators take part in a rally against the anti-Islam film in Karachi. The United States denounced a $100,000 bounty offered by a Pakistani cabinet minister for killing the maker of an anti-Islam film that has triggered a wave of deadly, violent protests.

The United States denounced a $100,000 bounty offered by a Pakistani cabinet minister for killing the maker of an anti-Islam film that has triggered a wave of deadly, violent protests.

Pakistan’s Railways Minister Ghulam Ahmed Bilour on Saturday offered the “prize” for killing the filmmaker of “Innocence of Muslims” and invited the Taliban and Al-Qaeda to take part in the “noble deed.”

But the bounty offered was slammed by the State Department.

US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton “have both said the video at the core of this is offensive, disgusting, and reprehensible,” a State Department official said.

“But that is no justification for violence and it is important for responsible leaders to stand up and speak out against violence,” the official added in a statement.

“Therefore we find Mr. Bilour’s announcement is inflammatory and inappropriate.”

Pakistan on Sunday distanced itself from Bilour’s comments, with Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf rejecting the bounty offer even as new protests erupted from Turkey to Hong Kong.

“This is not government policy. We completely dissociate (ourselves) from this,” a spokesman for the prime minister’s office told AFP.

Fresh rallies were held across Pakistan Sunday to condemn the film after violent nationwide protests Friday left 21 people dead when police used tear gas and live rounds to fight back protesters. AFP

An Open Letter to Abu Bakar Bashir

Convicted terrorist Abu Bakar Bashir called on Indonesia’s Muslims to follow the lead of Libyan militants and wage violent protests against the US Embassy in Jakarta.

Dear Abu Bakar Bashir,

I read a news article that you recently urged Indonesia’s Muslims to attack the US Embassy in Jakarta, because of a contemptible, provocative anti-Islamic film made by a filmmaker in the United States. "What happened in Libya can be imitated," you announced. "If it is defaming God and the Prophet [Muhammad], the punishment should be death." As a born and raised American residing in Jakarta, I received a text message from our embassy on Thursday, warning me and fellow US citizens that US Embassy in Jakarta and consular offices in Surabaya, Medan and Bali would be closed on Friday for safety concerns.

You issued your call for attacking the US Embassy from your jail cell. Apparently, you think this is a good idea, even though you've been imprisoned because of your role in organizing the 2002 Bali suicide bombings, which murdered 202 people. But since you believe the US Embassy staff in Jakarta also deserve death, allow me to first describe who exactly your followers would be attacking, if they decide to follow through with your request:

Your followers would be attacking your many fellow Indonesian Muslims who also work side-by-side with Americans in the embassy, in the areas of advancing Indonesia's science and technology, economic growth, education, environmental conservation, and most recently, anti-human trafficking. I have personally met many of them, and I can assure you that they are by and large friends of Islam.

Your followers would be attacking the office of the US Ambassador to Indonesia, Scot Marciel. Like his counterpart the late US Ambassador to Libya Christopher Stevens who was killed by Islamists in Benghazi on September 11th, Ambassador Marciel is one of the greatest advocates and allies whom Muslims could ever have. He has logged hundreds of miles of travel throughout the archipelago, visited mosques, madrassas and Islamic organizations, promoted interfaith harmony between Indonesian Muslims and non-Muslims, opened constructive dialogue with Muslim leaders and imams like yourself, championed bilateral trade and foreign direct investment in Indonesia, overseen millions of dollars in American humanitarian aid directed to Indonesian communities, and personally worked hard to strengthen Indonesia's economy and its role in the international system.

Your followers would be attacking the staff of the US Agency for International Development, which is housed in the embassy. USAID staff and contractors have improved thousands of Indonesian Muslims' lives by tirelessly laboring through dozens of projects in the areas of educational advancement, healthcare, disaster relief, poverty reduction, youth development, biodiversity protection, and humanitarian assistance from Sumatra to Jakarta to the Maluku islands to Papua. USAID staff have also championed inter-faith cooperation and peace-building activities between Muslims and non-Muslims, by focusing on super-ordinate goals and common ground — not on the petty differences that divide us.

Your followers would be attacking the embassy staff who collaborate with the US-Indonesia Society, the American-Indonesian Exchange Foundation (AMINEF), the Joint US-Indonesia Council for Higher Education, the @america cultural center, the US Mission to ASEAN, the government of Indonesia, the ASEAN Secretariat, the American Chamber of Commerce, the Millennium Challenge Corporation, the Peace Corps, and numerous Indonesian NGOs, universities, charitable foundations, companies, multi-laterals and civil-society organizations that have been striving to make Indonesia a better place to live — for both Muslims and non-Muslims.

Our President, Barack Obama, who lived here in Jakarta as a child, recently made the following comments about the hateful YouTube video that spurred you to issue your call for violence: "I have made it clear that the United States has a profound respect for people of all faiths. We stand for religious freedom. And we reject the denigration of any religion – including Islam." Like him, most fellow Americans and I feel the same way. This is why the federal police in California are currently interrogating the misguided creator of that repulsive, deliberately provocative video. Both the United States and the international Muslim community are quite well-aware of the long history of incidents that have caused mistrust and tensions between our two communities, but America has never been at war with Islam — only violent extremism in all forms. I hope you see that America's friendship with the global Muslim community has been growing.

In a changing international system where all actors are increasingly inter-dependent, when I see Americans and Indonesians working together, I'm inspired to advance our bilateral relationship as well. In all of my years of traveling the Americas, Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, some of the Indonesian Muslims whom I've met are a few of kindest, most hospitable and authentic people I have ever encountered on this planet. The national motto of Indonesia is "Bhinneka Tunggal Ika," which is parallel to our own motto: "E Pluribus Unum — Out of Many, One." I can confidently rest assured that the vast majority of Indonesian Muslims believe in inter-faith cooperation, peace-building and cross-cultural respect, and that they don't think or feel the same way you do.

I urge you to call off your followers and lead them away from extremism. Our responsibility as human beings is to reduce suffering, not increase it, and I hope you change your mind about the feasibility of violence.

Sincerely,

Niruban Balachandran


Niruban Balachandran is an author, international speaker and foreign policy expert from Los Angeles, California. JG

US scholar: Jesus cites wife in ancient script

This Sept. 5, 2012 photo released by Harvard University shows a fourth century fragment of papyrus that divinity professor Karen L. King says is the only existing ancient text that quotes Jesus explicitly referring to having a wife. King, an expert in the history of Christianity, says the text contains a dialogue in which Jesus refers to "my wife," whom he identified as Mary. King says the fragment of Coptic script is a copy of a gospel, probably written in Greek in the second century. (AP/Harvard University, Karen L. King)

A Harvard University professor on Tuesday unveiled a fourth-century fragment of papyrus she said is the only existing ancient text quoting Jesus explicitly referring to having a wife.

Karen King, an expert in the history of Christianity, said the text contains a dialogue in which Jesus refers to "my wife," whom he identifies as Mary. King says the fragment of Coptic script is a copy of a gospel, probably written in Greek in the second century.

King helped translate and unveiled the tiny fragment at a conference of Coptic experts in Rome. She said it doesn't prove Jesus was married but speaks to issues of family and marriage that faced Christians.

Four words in the 1.5-by-3-inch(3.8-by-7.6-centimeter) fragment provide the first evidence that some early Christians believed Jesus had been married, King said. Those words, written in a language of ancient Egyptian Christians, translate to "Jesus said to them, my wife," King said in a statement.

King said that in the dialogue the disciples discuss whether Mary is worthy and Jesus says "she can be my disciple."

Christian tradition has long held that Jesus was unmarried even though there was no reliable historical evidence to support that, King said. The new gospel, she said, "tells us that the whole question only came up as part of vociferous debates about sexuality and marriage."

"From the very beginning, Christians disagreed about whether it was better not to marry," she said, "but it was over a century after Jesus's death before they began appealing to Jesus's marital status to support their positions."

King presented the document at a six-day conference being held at Rome's La Sapienza University and at the Augustinianum institute of the Pontifical Lateran University. While the Vatican newspaper and Vatican Radio frequently cover such academic conferences, there was no mention of King's discovery in any Vatican media on Tuesday. That said, her paper was one of nearly 60 delivered Tuesday at the vast conference, which drew 300 academics from around the globe.

The fragment belongs to an anonymous private collector who contacted King to help translate and analyze it. Nothing is known about the circumstances of its discovery, but it had to have come from Egypt, where the dry climate allows ancient writings to survive and because it was written in a script used in ancient times there, King said.

The unclear origins of the document should encourage people to be cautious, said Bible scholar Ben Witherington III, a professor and author who teaches at Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky. He said the document follows the pattern of Gnostic texts of the second, third and fourth centuries, using "the language of intimacy to talk about spiritual relationships."

"What we hear from the Gnostic is this practice called the sister-wife texts, where they carried around a female believer with them who cooks for them and cleans for them and does the usual domestic chores, but they have no sexual relationship whatsoever" during the strong monastic periods of the third and fourth centuries, Witherington said. "In other words, this is no confirmation of the Da Vinci Code or even of the idea that the Gnostics thought Jesus was married in the normal sense of the word."

These kinds of doubts, King said, should not stop scholars from continuing to examine the document.

Those who conducted initial examination of the fragment include Roger Bagnall, a papyrologist who's the director of the New York-based Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, and AnneMarie Luijendijk, a scholar of the New Testament and early Christianity from Princeton University. They said their study of the papyrus, the handwriting and how the ink was chemically absorbed shows it is highly probable it's an ancient text, King said.

Another scholar, Ariel Shisha-Halevy, professor of linguistics at Hebrew University and a leading expert on Coptic language, reviewed the text's language and concluded it offered no evidence of forgery.

King and Luijendijk said they believe the fragment is part of a newly discovered gospel they named "Gospel of Jesus's Wife" for reference purposes. King said she dated the time it was written to the second half of the second century because it shows close connections to other newly discovered gospels written at that time, especially the Gospel of Thomas, the Gospel of Mary and the Gospel of Philip.

The Jakarta Post

Google says it won't take down anti-Muslim clip

Google is refusing a White House request to take down an anti-Muslim clip on YouTube, but is restricting access to it in certain countries.

The White House said Friday that it had asked YouTube to review whether the video violated its terms of use. Google owns YouTube, the online video sharing site.

YouTube said in a statement Friday that the video is widely available on the Web and is "clearly within our guidelines and so will stay on YouTube.

"The short film "Innocence of Muslims" denigrates Islam and the Prophet Muhammad. It played a role in igniting mob violence against U.S. embassies across the Middle East. And it has been blamed for playing a role in violence in Libya, where the U.S. ambassador and three others were killed though the exact cause of the attacks is under investigation.

U.S. and Libyan officials are investigating whether the protests in Libya were a cover for militants, possibly al-Qaida sympathizers, to carry out a coordinated attack on the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi and kill Americans. Washington has deployed FBI investigators to try and track down militants behind the attack.

While the protests intensified over the video, YouTube blocked access to the clip in Libya and Egypt. YouTube cited "the very sensitive situations" in those two countries. Later YouTube also blocked access to the video in India and Indonesia after their governments told Youtube the video broke their laws.

The controversy underscores how some Internet firms have been thrust into debates over the limits of free speech.

In its Friday statement, YouTube said that outside of Libya, Egypt, India and Indonesia, the video will remain on its website.

"We work hard to create a community everyone can enjoy and which also enables people to express different opinions," the YouTube statement said. "This can be a challenge because what's OK in one country can be offensive elsewhere. This video — which is widely available on the Web — is clearly within our guidelines and so will stay on YouTube. However, we've restricted access to it in countries where it is illegal such as India and Indonesia as well as in Libya and Egypt, given the very sensitive situations in these two countries. This approach is entirely consistent with principles we first laid out in 2007."

YouTube's community guidelines say the company encourages free speech and defends everyone's right to express unpopular points of view. But YouTube says it does not permit hate speech.

"'Hate speech' refers to content that promotes hatred against members of a protected group," the guidelines say. "Sometimes there is a fine line between what is and what is not considered hate speech. For instance, it is generally okay to criticize a nation, but not okay to make insulting generalizations about people of a particular nationality."

Indonesia Demands YouTube Block Anti-Islam ‘Innocence of Muslims’ Film

Screenshot from "Innocence of Muslims" on YouTube

Indonesia demanded Thursday that YouTube block an anti-Islamic film that has triggered violent protests to prevent it being watched in the world’s most populous Muslim nation.

The US-made movie enraged protesters in Cairo, who stormed the American embassy on Tuesday and was also linked to an attack on the US consulate in Libya’s Benghazi which left the ambassador and three other Americans dead.

“We demand YouTube block the ‘Innocence of Muslims’ videos from being watched in Indonesia,” Communications and Information Ministry spokesman Gatot Dewa Broto told AFP.

“We are also working with Internet service providers here to block access,” he said. “We are still in talks with YouTube management and believe they will cooperate,” Broto added, saying no deadline had been set.

YouTube said Wednesday it was restricting access in Libya and Egypt. In Indonesia, the low-budget film could still be accessed on the video-sharing website as Broto made his remarks.

“The film certainly is offensive... and has upset Indonesian Muslims. We don’t wish for anyone to be provoked by it and for violence to break out here,” Broto said.

So far, there has been no trouble in Indonesia, where most of the 240 million population practise a moderate form of Islam.

Indonesia’s demand to YouTube came after a wave of protests in Muslim countries against the US-made amateur Internet film that mocks and insults the Prophet Mohammed.

Agence France-Presse

Cairo, Anti-Islam Film Sparks Protests at US Missions in Libya, Egypt; 1 American Killed

Protesters rally in front the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, Egypt, on Tuesday

CAIRO — Protesters angered over a film that ridiculed Islam’s Prophet Muhammad fired gunshots and burned down the U.S. consulate in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi, killing one American diplomat, witnesses and the State Department said. In Egypt, protesters scaled the walls of the U.S. embassy in Cairo and replaced an American flag with an Islamic banner.

It was the first such assaults on U.S. diplomatic facilities in either country, at a time when both Libya and Egypt are struggling to overcome the turmoil following the ouster of their longtime leaders, Moammar Gadhafi and Hosni Mubarak in uprisings last year.

The protests in both countries were sparked by outrage over a film ridiculing Muhammad produced by an American in California and being promoted by an extreme anti-Muslim Egyptian Christian campaigner in the United States. Excerpts from the film dubbed into Arabic were posted on YouTube.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton confirmed that one State Department officer had been killed in the protest at the U.S. consulate in Benghazi. She strongly condemned the attack and said she had called Libyan President Mohammed el-Megarif “to coordinate additional support to protect Americans in Libya.”

Clinton expressed concern that the protests might spread to other countries. She said the U.S. is working with “partner countries around the world to protect our personnel, our missions, and American citizens worldwide.”

“Some have sought to justify this vicious behavior as a response to inflammatory material posted on the Internet,” Clinton said in a statement released by the State Department. “The United States deplores any intentional effort to denigrate the religious beliefs of others. Our commitment to religious tolerance goes back to the very beginning of our nation. But let me be clear: There is never any justification for violent acts of this kind. “

Protesters chant slogans amid orange smoke outside the U.S

In Benghazi, a large mob stormed the U.S. consulate, with gunmen firing their weapons, said Wanis al-Sharef, an Interior Ministry official in Benghazi. A witness said attackers fired automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades at the consulate as they clashed with Libyans hired to guard the facility.

 

Outnumbered by the crowd, Libyan security forces did little to stop them, al-Sharef said.

The crowd overwhelmed the facility and set fire to it, burning most of it and looting the contents, witnesses said.

One American was shot to death and a second was wounded in the hand, al-Sharef said. He did not give further details.

The violence at the consulate lasted for about three hours, but the situation has now quieted down, said another witness.

“I heard nearly 10 explosions and all kinds of weapons. It was a terrifying day,” said the witness who refused to give his name because he feared retribution.

Hours before the Benghazi attack, hundreds of mainly ultraconservative Islamist protesters in Egypt marched to the U.S. Embassy in downtown Cairo, gathering outside its walls and chanting against the movie and the U.S. Most of the embassy staff had left the compound earlier because of warnings of the upcoming demonstration.

Indonesian TV Station Cited Over 'Vulgar' Episode of Renowned Cleric Ustad Solmed's Show

Muslim preacher Sholahudin Mahmoed, better known as Ustad Solmed, hosts the late night talk show 'Akhirnya Aku Tahu' ('I Finally Understand'). (Photo courtesy of ustadsolmed.com)

Indonesian television station Global TV was cited by the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI) after renowned Muslim preacher Sholahudin “Ustad Solmed” Mahmoed hosted a sexually-explicit late night talk show.

Ustad Solmed discussed Islam and marital sexual relations on the July 15 episode of  “Akhirnya Aku Tahu” (“I Finally Understand”). The Islamic cleric allegedly discussed intimate details of the audience’s sex lives during what the KPI has called a “vulgar” episode of the show.

“The sex-ridden discussion happened between Ustad Solmed and members of his audience. They discussed contraception, intimate relationships between husbands and wives, the engorgement of genitals, oral sex and other ways to have sex,” the KPI said in a statement published on its website kpi.go.id Monday evening.

The show, which aired at 4 a.m., was rated “teen,” a fact that has drawn ire from the KPI, who alleged that this program violated Indonesia’s child protection laws.

“We classify this as a violation of child protection laws, norms of politeness, restrictions on sexual themes and the broadcast program’s rating,” the statement read.

The KPI urged Global TV to clean the show up and get its broadcasting in line with the commission’s standards in a letter signed by KPI chairman Mochamad Riyanto on July 30.

The commission sought the opinion of the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) before issuing the letter.

“The MUI says the dialog was very vulgar and should never happen again,” the KPI says, adding a letter from the MUI was attached to a warning sent to Global TV. Jakarta Globe

Indonesian Protection of Religious Freedom Deteriorating

Articles Explore U.S. Responses to Worldwide Threats to Religious Freedom

In Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, government protection of religious freedom has been deteriorating, the United States says.

While the Indonesian government generally respects the freedom of the country’s six officially recognized religions, it has failed to overturn local regulations violating religious freedom, the US State Department said in a report released on Monday.

And despite the country’s tradition of religious pluralism, societal abuse against religious minorities is on the rise, it added.

“There were several significant lapses in enforcing protections,” it said.

The International Religious Freedom Report, which examined religious freedom in 199 countries and territories in 2011, highlighted discrimination and violence against religious minorities in Indonesia including Ahmadi Muslims and Christians, as well as atheists.

It cited a case in February 2011 when a mob of more than 1,500 people attacked Ahmadis in Cikeusik, Banten province, killing three and injuring five others. Videos of the attack posted online showed members of the mob beating the Ahmadis to death as the police failed to intervene.

While 12 members of the mob were brought to trial, the report said, “they were given disproportionately light prison sentences” of three to six months. By comparison, an Ahmadi injured in the attack was arrested, charged with provoking the attack and sentenced to seven months in prison, it said.

“Due to inaction, the government sometimes failed to prevent violence, abuse and discrimination against individuals based on their religious beliefs,” the report said. “In some cases, it failed to hold the perpetrators of violence accountable.”

During 2011 there were 93 government-instigated violations of religious freedom, up from 64 the year before, the report said, citing the Wahid Institute.

It criticized the closure of houses of worship, as well as restrictions on freedom to construct houses of worship, citing the high-profile case of the GKI Yasmin church in Bogor.

The Bogor city government initially approved a construction permit for GKI Yasmin in 2006, but construction was halted after a 2008 city government decision, the report said. The church challenged this city-level decision in the court system and the Supreme Court ruled in its favor in 2010, but the city government did not enforce the court’s decision.

“At times, local public order police [Satpol PP] and Bogor City police blocked access to the church site,” the report said. “Throughout the year the congregation faced intimidation from hardline organizations when attempting to attend Sunday services at the site of their church.”

The report also criticized the detention and imprisonment of individuals under the 1965 Blasphemy Law, which allows a maximum sentence of five years’ imprisonment for blasphemy. In February 2011, Antonius Richmond Bawengan was jailed for five years for blasphemy in Temanggung, Central Java, after distributing books deemed “offensive to Islam,” it said.

Indonesia grants official status to six religious groups, including Islam, Catholicism Protestantism, Buddhism, Hinduism and Confucianism.

“Members of religious groups outside of the six officially recognized religions continued to experience some official discrimination in the context of civil registration of marriages and births as well as in the issuance of identity cards,” the report said.

The US government, the report said, has regularly raised the issue of religious freedom with the Indonesian government and Indonesian civil society leaders in a bid to promote human rights.

“[Freedom of religion] goes hand in hand with freedom of expression, freedom of speech and assembly, and when religious freedom is restricted, all these rights are at risk,” Suzan Johnson Cook, the US ambassador for religious freedom, said in a press briefing about the report in Washington on Monday. “And for this reason, religious freedom is often the bellwether for other human rights.”

Jakarta Globe

Jakarta: Indonesia's FPI Speaks Out Against Excessive Loudspeaker Use During Ramadan

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, in blue dress, visits Istiqlal Mosque in Central Jakarta during her visit to Jakarta on July 10. (Antara Photo/Andika Wahyu)

In a move few could have predicted, Indonesia’s hard-line Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) threw their support on Wednesday behind calls to curb the excessive use of loud speakers by mosques during Ramadan.

“It is indeed better that mosques adjust their loud speakers when reciting the Koran, so as not to disturb other people, especially if the reciters can’t recite fluently or don’t understand what they are reading, lest there be negative comments from others,” the head of the Jakarta office of the FPI, Habib Salim bin Umar Alatas, told beritasatu.com on Wednesday.

Central Kalimantan’s deputy governor Achmad Diran asked local mosques on Wednesday to refrain from blasting their speakers sporadically throughout the day. The call to prayer — or azan — is commonly broadcast over a mosque’s loudspeakers five times a day. But during Ramadan, many mosques broadcast Koran recitations and the azan repeatedly throughout the day.

“Don’t use loud speakers when reciting the Koran. Take pity on people of different faiths who want to rest,” Achmad said during an event in Palangkaraya on Wednesday.

The Jakarta branch of the FPI — usually known for inciting angry protests against “immoral” culture — surprisingly agreed.

“If they recite well and understand what they read, then [using loud speakers] should be okay; it might even inspire remorse to those who hear it. But please don’t be too loud, and do it only during the day not at night,” Salim said.

During evening hours, Muslims should recite the Koran at home instead of airing the speech through loudspeakers, Salim said.

He said Muslims should respect people of different faiths and take care to not disturb others when performing their religious obligations.

“The point is don’t disturb [others]. Muslims should respect others,” Salim said.

Devout Muslims in Indonesia take care to focus on religious activities during the fasting month of Ramadan. Good deeds like recitation of the Koran, fasting and visiting the mosque for evening prayers (“tarawih”) take on a special significance during Ramadan, when pious acts are given more weight than during other months in the year.

FUI Said: 'Christians Should be Upset With Gaga'

"Lady Gaga"

The Islamic People’s Forum (FUI) — a unit of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) — said on Tuesday that Indonesian Christians should be upset with Lady Gaga, and opposed to her upcoming concert in Jakarta because she often wears Christian symbols “inappropriately.”

FUI spokesman Munarman compared the debate in Indonesia with the Philippines, where Catholic youth protested against the concert.

“Lady Gaga wore the cross on her genitals. Many of her songs are insulting to Christian beliefs. I wonder why we are the ones that are attacked when opposing her,” Munarman said.

Munarman said the Lady Gaga concert was an exploitation of people who did not understand global capitalism. “People who oppose it still have a healthy mind to reject a fool industry like this,” Munarman said. “This is clearly exploitation.”

Munarman made his statement following a meeting with the House Commission III to clarify the reasons behind the FUI’s objection toward the concert, and to urge the House to support their objections.

He said that he did not believe that the promoter, Big Daddy, would abide with the law by adjusting the concert to adhere to Indonesian culture.

“Lady Gaga refused to be regulated by the Philippines,” he said. “Lady gaga said she was not a [Filipino] and therefore did not have to comply with Philippine law. We should not believe the statements of someone who can not be trusted.”

While some hardline Islamist groups opposed the June 3 concert, the Indonesian Council of Churches said last week that the show should be allowed because it represented freedom of expression.

“Don’t teach our young generation pseudo-formality by wearing good outfits, but being bad on the inside,” Gomar Gultom, secretary general of the Indonesian Council of Churches (PGI), said responding to complaints about Lady Gaga’s wardrobe.

Ask The Atheists, Christians, Shiites and Ahmadis: Indonesia Is No Model for Muslim Democracy

peace was existing ... when we were to accept the difference

It is fashionable these days for Western leaders to praise Indonesia as a model Muslim democracy. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said: “If you want to know whether Islam, democracy, modernity and women’s rights can coexist, go to Indonesia.” And last month Britain’s prime minister, David Cameron, lauded Indonesia for showing that “religion and democracy need not be in conflict.”

Tell that to Asia Lumbantoruan, a Christian elder whose congregation outside Jakarta has recently had two of its partially built churches burned down by Islamist militants. He was stabbed by these extremists while defending a third site from attack in September 2010.

This week in Geneva, the United Nations is reviewing Indonesia’s human rights record. It should call on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to crack down on extremists and protect minorities. While Indonesia has made great strides in consolidating a stable, democratic government after five decades of authoritarian rule, the country is by no means a bastion of tolerance.

The rights of religious and ethnic minorities are routinely trampled. While the Constitution protects religious freedom, regulations against blasphemy and proselytizing are often used to prosecute atheists, Bahais, Christians, Shiites, Sufis and members of the Ahmadiyah faith, a minority Muslim sect. By 2010, Indonesia had over 150 religiously motivated regulations restricting minorities’ rights.

In 2006, Yudhoyono, in a new decree on “religious harmony,” tightened criteria for building a house of worship. The decree is enforced only on religious minorities — often when Islamists pressure local officials not to authorize the construction of Christian churches or to harass and intimidate those worshiping in “illegal” churches, which lack official registration. More than 400 such churches have been closed since Yudhoyono took office in 2004.

Although the government has cracked down on Jemaah Islamiyah, an Al Qaeda affiliate that has bombed hotels, bars and embassies, it has not intervened to stop other Islamist militants who regularly commit less-publicized crimes against religious minorities. Yudhoyono’s government is reluctant to take them on because it rules Indonesia in a coalition with intolerant Islamist political parties. He has courted conservative Islamist elements, even granting them key cabinet positions, which emboldens Islamic extremists to use violence against minorities.

In August 2011, for example, Muslim militants burned down three Christian churches on Sumatra. No one was charged and officials have prevented the congregations from rebuilding their churches. And on the outskirts of Jakarta, two municipalities have refused to obey Supreme Court orders to reopen two sealed churches; Yudhoyono claimed he had no authority to intervene.

In June 2008, the Yudhoyono administration issued a decree requiring the Ahmadiyah sect to “stop spreading interpretations and activities that deviate from the principal teachings of Islam.” The government said the decree was necessary to prevent violence against the sect, but local governments used the decree to write even stricter regulations. Muslim militants, who consider the Ahmadiyah heretics, then forcibly shut down more than 30 Ahmadiyah mosques.

In the deadliest attack, in West Java in February 2011, three Ahmadiyah men were killed. A court eventually prosecuted 12 militants for the crime, but handed down paltry sentences of only four to six months.

Yudhoyono has also failed to protect ethnic minorities who have peacefully called for independence in Papua and the Maluku Islands. During demonstrations in Papua on May 1, one protester was killed and 13 were arrested. And last October, the government brutally suppressed the Papuan People’s Congress, beating dozens and killing three people. While protesters were jailed and charged with treason, the police chief in charge of security that day was promoted.

Almost 100 people remain in prison for peacefully protesting. Dozens are ill, but the government has denied them proper treatment, claiming it lacks the money. Even the Suharto dictatorship allowed the International Committee of the Red Cross to visit political prisoners, yet the Yudhoyono government has banned the ICRC from working in Papua.

Instead of praising Indonesia, nations that support tolerance and free speech should publicly demand that Indonesia respect religious freedom, release political prisoners and lift restrictions on media and human rights groups in Papua.

Yudhoyono needs to take charge of this situation by revoking discriminatory regulations, demanding that his coalition partners respect the religious freedom of all minorities in word and in deed, and enforcing the constitutional protection of freedom of worship. He must also make it clear that Islamist hard-liners who commit or incite violence and the police who fail to protect the victims will be punished. Only then will Indonesia deserve Cameron and Clinton’s praise.

The New York Times

Andreas Harsono is a researcher for the Asia division at Human Rights Watch.

An Elementary Cchool in Solo Receives Complaints for Book Depicting Prophet Muhammad

A page from the book "Interesting Stories of the Prophets' Childhood," which displays a blurred illustration of the Prophet Muhammad immediately following his birth. (JG Photo/Hangga Brata)

Solo, Central Java. An elementary school in Solo has received complaints for having books in its library which display pictures of the Prophet Muhammad, which is prohibited in Islam.

Some parents have filed complaints against SD Jamsaren to the Solo office of the Religious Affairs Ministry about the book, “Interesting Stories of the Prophets’ Childhood". quote from thejakartaglobe.com

The complainants also accused the Ministry of distributing the book to the school, as evidenced by stamps in the book identifying them as donations from the Ministry in 2011. But Ahmad Nasirin, the head of the Solo office of the Religious Affairs Ministry, denied that his office circulated the books to Solo schools.

“We also object to the pictures of Rasulullah [the prophet] in the book. But most of the content is all right, and there is nothing wrong with the stories. But we will definitely withdraw the copies,” Ahmad said in Solo on Wednesday. “They were not printed in Solo but in East Jakarta in 2010,” he added.

The book contains stories about the childhood of 11 prophets, including Muhammad. There are four rather blurred illustrations of him, including when Muhammad had just been born and when he herded a flock of sheep in the desert.

“We do need to intensively call on schools and Muslim parents to more selectively pick reading for students,” Ahmad added.

Muchus Budi Rahayu, one of the parents who complained about the book, said he learned of the pictures from his child, a student of the school.

“My child told me there were pictures of Prophet Muhammad,” Muchus said. “I thought it was a joke, but after I checked, apparently it’s true. I’ve asked the school to return the books to the Religious [Affairs] Ministry because the pictures are improper,” adding that his child told him there were more than 10 copies of the book in the library.

The school, meanwhile, said the book was among hundreds of copies of other books donated by the Religious Affairs Ministry.

A representative of the school, who refused to be named, admitted that the school had immediately put the books inside the library without first reading them.

Best Traditions Celebration of Easter In The World

 

Many countries in the world has its own traditions in the celebration of Easter. Next are some of the best tradition of the Easter celebrations in several countries.

Virtuous in Argentina

Many Easter is quite a big event in Argentina and various traditions are carried out to mark the occasion. Holy Week continues the style of fasting introduced by Lent where all meat is avoided apart from fish. As such, traditional dishes that normally include meat are replaced by seafood and fish. Good Friday is a rather somber event when people attend their local Christian parishes to observe the Station of the Cross or Via Crucis where Jesus is depicted during his final hours, carrying the Cross to his crucifixion. As is common to most Christian denominations, the Saturday before Easter is quiet in order to mark the mourning associated with the crucifixion and Sunday sees the start of celebrations.

Easter Sunday in Argentina consists of consuming and sharing eggs as well as the special Easter cake, Rosca de Pascua. Tradition holds that people exchange eggs not only with their family, but also with friends and colleagues and the day culminates in attending mass followed by a big family gathering involving lots of food. Argentinians tend to celebrate Jesus’ resurrection with a huge barbeque and a treasure hunt organized by the local governments in the main cities, so that everyone has a chance to participate.

Greek Methodology

Greece and Godliness go hand in hand. From Mythology to Christianity, Greek religious practices have always been carried out with great zeal. The Greek Orthodox Church follows the Byzantine calendar, so its Easter is celebrated on a different date, which is determined by the moon’s cycle. In Greece, it is the most sacred holiday of the year marked by a full week of celebration. This year’s Orthodox Easter Sunday takes place on April 15.

In Athens, Good Friday marks the first main event where a replica of Christ’s tomb is carried through town. The most sacred of Easter events takes place the following day when people flock to the churches at midnight carrying unlit candles for the declaration of Christ’s resurrection in saying “Christos Anesti” (Christ is Risen!) to which the reply is “Alithos Anesti” (He is risen indeed!). Following this announcement, they light their candles from the Holy Flame taken from Christ’s nativity cave in Jerusalem and walk through town enjoying a glorious display of fireworks, bells and jubilation.

Easter Sunday is a day of food and more fun. After an arduous 40-day fast, the menu comprises spit-fire roast lamb and lots of coloured eggs. In the Orthodox tradition, you knock eggs with your neighbour attempting to crack theirs to bring yourself good fortune.

Ceremonious in Lebanon

Lebanon’s Christians not only make up almost half of the country’s population, but are also very fervent in their beliefs. As such, Easter is a big deal here. Visitors will notice the ornately decorated streets, shops and restaurants filled with all things Easter from bunnies to chocolate, painted eggs and even live baby chicks in some places. Good Friday is marked by a mass that symbolizes the crucifixion and, depending on one’s Christian denomination, can last up to three hours. Easter Sunday is a huge celebration where absolutely everyone goes to church. After taking communion, the 40-day fast comprising a strictly vegan diet, is broken with an absolute feast featuring lamb and lots of egg breaking. A custom that is particularly unique to Lebanon is Shanineh, which is held at church where candles decorated with ribbons and flowers are handed to children who form a procession and carry them around the church. Also unique to Easter in the region is the consumption of sweets called Maamoul, these are little cookies made with a mixture of semolina and butter then stuffed with either dates or ground sugared nuts and dusted with icing sugar. They melt in your mouth.

Egg Rolling in Scotland

Easter in Scotland is a mostly laid-back event. The Scots do the traditional things commonly associated with Easter like attending mass and having a big meal, but they also add a bit of fun, particularly for the kids. Easter fun here is all about eggs. After they’re boiled and painted in all kinds of colours and designs, they’re taken to the park hills for rolling on Easter Sunday. While it may just sound like playtime for the kids, the event is very symbolic as it is carried out to represent the rolling away of stones on Jesus’ tomb thereby assisting in His resurrection.

Celebration and Sobriety in Spain

In Spain, Easter is also the most important Christian event. Celebrated en mass throughout the country, Easter Week begins with Domingo de Ramas (Palm Sunday) and ends with Lunes de Pascua (Easter Monday). The country is marked by a carnival atmosphere throughout, with trumpets and drums.

Seville in Andalucia is the most famed Spanish region for Easter celebrations. It has 52 different religious brotherhoods whose members parade through the streets for the entire Holy Week manifesting the crucifixion. Processions continue for almost 24 hours culminating in the jubilation of the resurrection which is observed by floats covered in flowers, dancing in the streets and traditional sweet cakes.

Eggy Fun in Sweden

Easter in Sweden is about fun, food and festivity. It is especially good for family breaks as many of the Easter activities involve children.

Humor-filled celebrations commence on Easter Saturday with children dressing up as good witches setting the Easter mood by giving out letters and cards in return for eggs, sweets and coins.

On Easter Sunday, food takes centre stage where, in typically Nordic fashion, the feast comprises mostly fish. Edibles include different kinds of herring, a selection of smoked salmon, a hint of roast ham and various cheeses. Of course, the main attraction are eggs which are exchanged and later used in a game where participants roll them down roofing tiles to see which egg can go the furthest without breaking.

All Bells en France

In France, church bells ring every day of the year except for the three days of Easter. Legend has it that the reason the bells stop ringing is because they’ve made a trip to Rome in order to be blessed. On Easter Sunday, the bells make their return and tour the entire country sprinkling chocolate eggs, chickens and rabbits as they go in each and every garden. After midday, children head to the gardens to find their hidden treasures left by the blessed bells. The day of events also includes a hearty meal, normally consisting of lamb, which is the Easter dish of choice in France.

Toy Hunting in Germany

Easter Baskets are the main tradition in Germany where each child receives a basket put together by their parents, containing not only eggs and chocolate, but also toys and other gifts. The baskets are hidden in the back garden and the kids have to hunt for it after church on Easter Sunday. This is particularly popular in rural areas where houses tend to have big gardens, sometimes comprising several levels and full of trees and bushes.

In more urban areas, families tend to go on an Easter walk and hide their Osternest, which means Easter nest, in the forest or a meadow and the kids go hunting for it during the walk. Alternatively, if the nest doesn’t appeal, some families like to hide chocolate eggs along the route of the walk.

Chocolate and candy in the US

Apart from dressing up in one’s Sunday best and heading off to church on Easter Sunday, Easter in the United States is, unsurprisingly, dominated by candy and chocolate. Various popular brands release a special line of sweet treats available only for the Easter period including Easter coloured M&Ms, jelly beans, malted milk eggs, Cadbury Mini Eggs, Cadbury Creme Eggs, chocolate bunnies, Reese’s eggs, Peeps and Hershey’s miniatures with Easter coloured wrappers.

Those headed to Washington, DC can enjoy one other very famous tradition where the White House opens its lawn to kids for some Easter egg rolling. This tradition was first carried out in 1878 and has continued ever since. Other attractions on the day include a visit with the Easter Bunny and an afternoon of storytelling.

Festivities and feasts in Canada

Food, festivals and fun in general are the things that make up Canadian Easter celebrations. Those who are religious may attend church, but even those who aren’t partake in the festivities, which include putting on Easter plays, special songs, holding spring festivals and even winter festivals to signify the start of Lent and decorate with Easter lilies and the famous bunnies. A good meal is also enjoyed with the Easter menu featuring things like apple tart, Maple Baked Beans and Cape Breton Scones. Uniquely, Canada is also home to the world’s largest pysanka (Ukrainian Easter egg) located in Vegreville. The egg was constructed in 1975 in honour of the Ukrainian settlements in Edmonton. The egg is a symbol of life, prosperity, eternity and good fortune and is recognized the world over as an architectural masterpiece.

     

Calligraphy - The Lord's Prayer - ABANA

Calligraphy - The Lord's Prayer

Calligraphy - Abana

Calligraphy - Abana

Calligraphy - Abana

Calligraphy - Abana

Calligraphy - Abana

 

Cetho Temple (Candi Cetho), Religious and Exotic Temple on The Side of Mount Lawu

In Java language, cetho means clear or pure. Thriving over 1400 meters above the sea level on the slope of the Mount Lawu, Cetho Temple can only be reached by a narrow pavement road which is steep and curve. The anxiety and afraid would be paid off when you reach the temple complex. The mild mountain air and the breakthrough scenery would accompany your trip enjoying the temple.

A high gate standing elegantly under the sky will bring your memory to the temple's gates in the God's island, Bali. The gatekeeper statues look like pre historic statues. The temple, standing on a terraces land, was built at the end of the Majapahit Kingdom under the Brawijaya V reign. In one of the terraces, there is a rock stacked with a carved of the sun depicting the Majapahit's Sun, the symbol of Majapahit kingdom. The first scientific report about it was made by Van de Vlies in 1842. A.J. Bernet Kempers also doing research about it. Excavation (digging) for the purposes of reconstruction was first performed in 1928 by the Archeological Department of the Dutch East Indies. Based on the situation when the debris started to study, this temple has not aged a lot with Sukuh Temple. Location in the village temple Ceto, Gumeng Village, Sub Jenawi, Karanganyar District,

Until now, the temple complex is used by local residents who are Hindus as a place of worship and popular as a sanctuary for those in the original religion of Java / Javanese beliefs.

When he found the situation of this temple is the stone ruins on the plain fourteen-story, stretching from the west (the lowest) to the east, though currently living in 13 terrace, and the restoration carried out on the porch just nine. Structure terraces will make the emergence of allegations of cultural revival of the original ( “punden berundak”) at the time, which is synthesized by the Hindu religion. This suspicion is strengthened by the relief of the body such as the wayang kulit, similar to the description in the temple Sukuh.

The restoration is done by Humardani, Suharto’s personal assistant, in the late 1970s changed many of the original structure of the temple, although the concept berundak punden retained. This restoration was much criticized by archaeologists, given that the restoration of archaeological sites can not be done without in-depth study. The new building is the restoration of the magnificent gate in front, the buildings of the hermitage wood, statues Sabdapalon, Nayagenggong, Brawijaya V, and the phallus, and building on the top of the cube punden.

Cetho temple consists of nine levels to the railroad. Before the great gate of the temple-shaped moment, visitors find two pairs of statues guard. The first level after the gate into the temple yard. The second level is still a page and here are petilasan Ki Ageng Krincingwesi, Cetho ancestral village community.

At the third level there is a flat stone carvings on the ground depicting a giant tortoise, solar majapahit (allegedly as a symbol of Majapahit), and the symbol of phallus (penis, genitals male) 2 meters long with piercing jewelry (piercing) of type ampallang. The tortoise is a symbol of the creation of the universe while the penis is a symbol of human creation. There are representations of other animals, such as Mimi, frogs, and crabs. Animal symbols available, can be read as suryasengkala dated Saka 1373, or 1451 the modern era.

At the next level can be found at the stone rows of two adjacent terrain containing reliefs Sudhamala story excerpts, as there are in the Temple Sukuh. This story is still popular among the Java community as a basis Ruwatan ceremony. The next level includes two buildings flanking pendapa entrance of the temple. Until now, pendapa pendapa used as a place of religious ceremonies. At the seventh level of the two statues can be found on the north and south. On the north side is a statue Sabdapalon, and in the south Nayagenggong, two half-mythical figures (many who think they are actually one person) is believed to be the servants and spiritual advisor to King Brawijaya V.

At the eighth level there is a statue phallus (called “kuntobimo”) on the north side and the statue of the King Brawijaya V in the form of Mahadeva. The cult of the phallus statues, symbolizing gratitude, and hope for fertility of the earth’s abundant local. Last level (ninth) is the highest level as a place of prayer climbing. Here there is a cube-shaped stone building.

At the top of the building Cetho Temple, there is a building used in the past, as the place cleaned up before carrying out the ritual worship ceremony (patirtan). Near the temple, with a steep slope, was found again a temple complex by the surrounding community called Temple Kethek ( “Monkey Temple”).


http://indonesiacountry.com/2010/08/candi-cetho-temple-in-central-java/
http://www.pbase.com/rileyuni/cetho
http://travel.detik.com/read/2012/02/12/142534/1840444/1025/4/indahnya-pemandangan-candi-cetho
http://www.adirafacesofindonesia.com/article.php?id=483&msg=Rate%20Successful
http://www.flickr.com/photos/wisata_karanganyar/1668372837/lightbox/