Last Saturday, I attended the weekly KIA (Kajian Islam
Adelaide – Study of Islam Adelaide). Arioma (one of the four volunteers) is the
president and when I arrived he introduced me as he opened the meeting. Usually
in these meetings, the group discusses Islam beginning with recitations from a
famous Indonesian Islam book. Everyone was very considerate towards my presence
and they helped with the translations so that I understood the discussions.
After these talks, the group did a prayer together while a few of the many
young children did laps of the house. They weaved in between the adults as they
focused on their prayer. It was then time to eat.
Each week the group members rotate cooking duties and cook a
meal from their home region. This week it was a delicious Soto (soup) Betawi.
Soon after dinner, the musical instruments appeared and suddenly there was a
karaoke session underway. The music attracted more of the many young kids and
they played song after song…
Every time I meet a new group of Indonesians I am reminded
of how genuinely welcoming and compassionate they are towards people they
haven’t met. Every member of the group introduced themselves and thanked me for
coming. Religion itself was set aside and I was treated as everyone else in the
room.
Agama bukanlah perbedaan
Pada Hari Sabtu yang lalu, saya mengikuti pertemuan KIA (Kajian
Islam Adelaide). Arioma adalah presiden, dan saya diperkenalkan oleh dia pada
saat pembukaan acara. Biasanya dalam pertemuan ini mereka mendiskusikan Islam,
melalui pengajian. Sesudah itu mereka melakukan sholat bersama sama. Kemudian,
ada makanan kecil dengan percakapan lebih bebas. Lalu banyak piring Soto Betawi
diberikan. Setiap minggu orang lain memasak makanan tradisional dari kampung
mereka. Sesudah makan, alat-alat musik dibawa ke dalam ruang dan tiba-tiba
karaoke mulai. Semua orang menyanyi banyak lagu Indonesia.
Setiap kali saya bertemu orang-orang Indonesian yang belum pernah
saya temui, saya ingat bahwa semua orang Indonesia sangat sopan kepada orang
asing. Menurut mereka, tidak menjadi masalah bahwa saya tidak beragama Islam.
Aside from recitations what else was discussed by the group during your visit? This is great stuff, Daniel. Sangat penting, tentu saja. I'm eager to see the next instalment.
ReplyDeleteThe upcoming Jakarta elections were a hot topic! As well as many jokes about how everyone arrives late.. pasti jam karet!
ReplyDelete
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