Seminar: Faith and the State: A History of Islamic Philanthropy in Indonesia

The ALC Brown Bag Seminar Series is proudly supported by:
Centre for Islamic Law and Society and
Asian Law Centre
Research Seminar Series

FAITH AND THE STATE:
A History of Islamic Philanthropy in Indonesia
Amelia Fauzia
PhD Candidate
The University of Melbourne

TOPIC
Zakat, sedekah (donation, giving) and waqf (religious
endowment) are forms of philanthropy practised by
Muslims in Indonesia, as well as in other parts of the
world. Managing Islamic philanthropy in Indonesia
has, however, long been a contested issue, with a
history of rivalry between faith and the state and
between active state involvement and keeping such
activities under the control of Muslim civil society,
which uses Islamic philanthropy to empower itself
and to promote social change.

In her presentation, Amelia Fauzia argues that
although political circumstances do influence the
development of Islamic philanthropy, the state
cannot successfully control it because Muslim
philanthropic practice is generated by the altruistic
and reciprocal nature of communities. In essence,
Islamic philanthropy remains in the hands of Muslim
civil society, irrespective of the political nature of the
state.

PRESENTER
Amelia Fauzia is currently a PhD candidate in
Islamic and Indonesian studies at the University of
Melbourne. She is also a lecturer at the State Islamic
University (UIN) Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, and a
researcher at the Centre for the Study of Religion
and Culture at the same university. After receiving
her Masters degree from the University of Leiden,
The Netherlands, in 1998, Amelia started teaching
Islamic History of Indonesia at UIN Jakarta in 1999.
In 2002 she became a global research coordinator
for the Islamic Philanthropy for Social Justice in Muslim
Societies, a project covering Egypt, Indonesia, India,
Tanzania, Turkey and the United Kingdom. Amelia
contributed a chapter on women, philanthropy and
Islam to the recently published Indonesian Islam in a
New Era: How Women Negotiate their Muslim Identities
(Dr Susan Blackburn et al, Monash University Press,
2008).

When: Tuesday 5 August, 2008
1.00 – 2.15 PM
Where: Room GM19, Mezzanine Level
Melbourne Law School
185 Pelham St, Carlton
RSVP: Asian Law Centre
Tel: (03) 8344 6847
or
Register Online
http://alc.law.unimelb.edu.au/
Please bring your lunch (in a brown paper bag!) and a critical
mind to the seminars. Tea and coffee will be provide