The Concept Of Pluralism In Islamic Education

Abstract

Religious pluralisme is a term used to refer to positive attitudes toward world
religions (e.g., Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Budhism, Catholic, etc) with the aim of
creating a harmonious, peaceful, and prosperous life within a pluralist society by
upholding people's equal rights to live peacefully in this world. The aim of this article
is to elaborate on the concept of religious pluralism and its relation to Islamic
education. There have been a controversy caused by the differing definitions of
religious pluralism, which has led to certain misconceptions and hence its alienation
from Islamic education in general. In the face of such challenges, efforts must
continually be made to foster mutual understanding and respect between people of
different religions in order to avoid potential conflicts, either between people
embracing different religions or people within the same religion. It is this positive
awareness which religious pluralism seeks to foster. Thus, incorporating the concept
of pluralism into Islamic education is a must, especially by making change to the
system of Islamic education which for a long time has focused only on building
individual or communal piety. The new priority should be given to the creation of
social sensitivity toward pluralism, either through cultural, language, or religious
interventions. This all aims at reinforcing the notion of Islam as Rahmatallil’alamin.