National

Pesantren should be supported to make expected progress

Jumat, 28 Maret 2014 | 02:43 WIB

Surabaya, NU Online
Pesantren (Islamic boarding schools) should always be supported to make expected progress because the traditional educational institutions have become centers for producing Muslim cadres in Indonesia.<>

On this stand, the government should pay more its attention to the existence of pesantren. As a result the Indonesia's oldest institutions will be able to address any emerging obstacle and keep up with any developments.

Member of the Nahdlatul Ulama Scholars Association ISNU), Masdar hilmy PhD told NU Online here recently.

According to Hilmy, pesantren has in fact proven themselves as educational institutions being capable of producing Islamic cadres whose high quality, especially in taking part in various sectors of life.

"The task of Nahdlatul Ulama is maximize the pesantren potentials especially in the process of transforming knowledge. While at the same time, the government should ensure any required educational facilities," he said.

The man earning his PhD from the Australia's University of Melbourne, asserted that the challenges facing Nahdliyin (NU followers) "in the future are not merely be such religious concepts as akidah (creed), Islamic jurisprudence, or tasawuf (sufism), but the most important thing is how the Nahdliyin could actualize themselves in accordance with the concepts."

Editing by Sudarto Murtaufiq