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Muhammad Quraish Shihab (Arabic: محمّد قريش شهاب‎; Muḥammad Qurayš Šihāb); February 16, 1944) is an Arab Indonesian Muslim scholar in the sciences of the Qur'an, an author, a cleric, and former Minister of Religion Affairs in the Cabinet of Development VII (1998). He is the older brother of the former Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare, Alwi Shihab.

Biography[edit]

Quraish was born in Lotassalo, Rappang, on February 16, 1944. His father was Abdurrahman Shihab, an Islamic scholar and professor at State Institute of Islamic Sciences and his mother was Asma Aburisyi. Quraish is the fourth son of twelve siblings. His three older siblings, Nur, Ali (d) and Umar, and two younger siblings, Wardah and Alwi Shihab, were also born in Rappang. Seven other siblings namely Nina, Sida, Nizar, Abdul Muthalib, Salwa and twin sister Ulfa and Latifah, were born in the village of Buton.^[2]

Quraish Shihab, called Bang Odes by his younger siblings,^[3] is an Arab Indonesian of Ba'Alawi sada family, where his family lineage traces back to Muhammad, the prophet of Islam.^[4]

Personal life[edit]

Quraish married to Fatmawati Assegaf on February 2, 1975 in Surakarta. From the marriage, they have four daughters (Najelaa, Najwa, Nasywa, Nahla) and one son (Ahmad).

Education[edit]

After completing his early education in Ujung Pandang, Quraish continued his secondary education in Malang, which he did while at the Dar al-Hadith Al-Faqihiyyah boarding school under guidance of Habib Abdul Qadir Bilfaqih.^[3]

In 1958 he went to Cairo, Egypt, and Admitted to 2nd grade in Al-Thanawiya (middle school level) at Al-Azhar. In 1967, he earned an LC (Bachelor's degree) from the Department of Tafsir and Hadith, the faculty of Islamic Theology in Al-Azhar University. He continued his education at the same faculty in 1969 and earned master's degree in Tafseer of the Qur'an with the thesis entitled Al-I'jaz Tashri'i li Al-Qur-an Al-Karim.^[5]

Upon returning to Makassar, Quraish served as the Vice Rector for Academic and Student Affairs at IAIN Alauddin, Ujung Pandang. In addition, he was also entrusted with other positions, both for academic positions such as the Coordinator of Private Higher Education Region VII in Eastern Indonesia, and non-academic positions such as the Assistant Police Chief of Eastern Indonesia in the field of mental development. While in Makassar, he also had time to do some researches. Some of his papers were 'Implementation Harmony Religious Life in Eastern Indonesia' (1975) and 'Problems Endowments South Sulawesi' (1978).^[2]

In 1980, Quraish Shihab returned to Cairo and continued his education at his old alma mater. In 1982 He earned his doctorate in the sciences of the Qur'an with the dissertation studying the method of al-Biqa'i (al-Biqa'i is a scholar of exegesis from Damascus in the 15th century^[6]) entitled The Research and Study of The Pearls System of al-Biqa'i ( Arabic: نظم الدرر للبقاعي – تحقيق ودراسة‎, romanized: Naẓami Al-Durar li al-Biqā'iy - tahqīq wa Dirāsah),^[7] where he graduated Summa Cum Laude with first class honors (Arabic: ممتاز مع مرتبة الشرف العول‎, romanized: Mumtāz ma'a Martabat al-Sharaf al-'Ula).

Career[edit]

in 1984 Quraish was assigned as a lecturer in the Ushuluddin faculty and postgraduate faculty at IAIN Syarif Hidayatullah, Jakarta. He was entrusted to positions at various departments: among others; the co-chairman of Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) (since 1984); member of Lajnah Pentashbih Qur'an at the Department of Religious Affairs (since 1989) and member of the Advisory Board of National Education (since 1989).

Quraish Shihab is also heavily involved in several professional organizations; he is a member of the Shari'ah Science Society; member of the Consortium of the Religions at the Ministry of Education and Culture, and is the Assistant Chief of the General Association of Indonesian Muslim Intellectuals (ICMI).^[2]

Quraish was appointed as Indonesian Minister of Religious Affairs in 1998 for about two months, and later appointed as The Indonesian Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador to Egypt cum Djibouti in Cairo from 1999 to 2002.

Publications[edit]

Quraish has written since he was twenty two years old, with his first book was 60-pages book written in Arabic titled Al- Khawathir published in Egypt.^[3] He has written more than 30 books. Among them are:^[8]

• Tafsir Al-Manar: privileges and disadvantages (Ujung Pandang: IAIN Alauddin, 1984)
• Filsafat Hukum Islam (The Philosophy of Islamic Laws) (Jakarta: Department of Religion, 1987);
• Mahkota Tuntunan Ilahi (The Crown of Divine Guidance; a book on The Exegesis of Surah Al-Fatihah) (Jakarta: Untagma, 1988)
• Membumikan al-Qur'an (Earthing Quran) (Bandung: Mizan, 1992). This book is one of the Best Seller that has sold for more than 75 thousand copies.
• Lentera Hati: Kisah dan Hikmah Kehidupan (Lantern of Heart: The Story and Lessons of Life) in 1994 (with multiple reprinted editions)^[9]
• Tafsir Al-Mishbah, a 14-volumes complete (30 juz) interpretation of the Qur'an (Jakarta: Lentera Hati)
• Wawasan Al-Qur'an: Tafsir Tematik Atas Pelbagai Persoalan Ummat (The insights of Koran: The thematic interpretation of various questions)^[10]
• Kaidah Tafsir (The Principles of Exegesis) (Lentera Hati, 2013)
• M. Quraish Shihab Menjawab pertanyaan Anak tentang Islam (Quraish Shihab Answering Children's questions about Islam) (Lentera Hati, 2014)

In addition to writing, he gives lectures in Islam-related programs at some television stations. Some popular programs, among other Kultum and Hikmah Fajar on RCTI, and Tafsir Al Mishbah in MetroTV.

Recognitions and awards[edit]

Quraish has been mentioned as one of 500 the most influential Muslims in the world in 2012 to 2015 by the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre, a research entity affiliated with the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought headquartered in Amman, Jordan.^[11] In 2009, he received the Islamic Book Fair (IBF) Award for his works in writing best-seller books.^[12] He received Lifetime Achievement Award in the same year from the Department of Islamic Theology of the Islamic State University of Jakarta on November 12, 2009.^[13]

Controversies[edit]

Quraish Shihab issues some fatwas which are considered controversial by many Muslims in Indonesia. In 1993 and again on December 6 of 2003, he issued a fatwa allowing Muslims to say Merry Christmas to the Christians and published on the Republika daily-newspaper.^[14]

Around the year 2006, he wrote a book titled 'Jilbab Pakaian Wanita Muslimah' expressing his long held but controversial view that it is not obligatory for women to wear the hijab (veil), which clashed with opinions of many Islamic scholars. In the book he concludes that the verses in the Quran related to women's clothing have various interpretations, and said the legal provisions on the tolerable limit of female's aurah is zhanniy or a conjecture.^[15]

In the program Tafsir Al-Misbah on Metro-TV broadcast on July 12, 2014, Quraish Shihab was accused of saying that Prophet Muhammad does not receive a guarantee from Allah to enter paradise. However, he made a clarification saying that he never said that, and he stated a sahih hadith stating that Prophet Muhammad was given a guarantee to go to heaven because of Allah's mercy.

References[edit]

1. ^'Quraish Shihab si Pengubah Dunia'. Tempo (in Indonesian). Aug 26, 2012. Retrieved Aug 17, 2014.
2. ^ ^abc'M. Quraish Shihab: Profile'. Retrieved Aug 17, 2014.
3. ^ ^abcIsmail, Rachmadin (July 8, 2015). 'Quraish Shihab, Sahabat yang Penuh Canda dan Fans Real Madrid'. DetikNews (in Indonesian). Retrieved July 9, 2015.
4. ^see Ba'Alawi sada for more info
5. ^Quraish Shihab, Muhammad (2007). 'Membumikan' Al-Quran: Fungsi dan Peran Wahyu dalam Kehidupan Masyarakat. Indonesia: Mizan Pustaka. p. 6. ISBN978-9-794330173.
6. ^Ahmad Khan, Israr (2003). Al-Biqa'i and al-Islahi: A Comparative Study of Tafsir Methodology.
7. ^'الدراسات الإندونيسيون في التفسير وعلوم القرآن'. ملتقى اهل التفسير. Retrieved September 12, 2014.
8. ^'Karya-Karya M. Quraish Shihab'. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
9. ^Quraish, Shihab (2007). Lentera Hati: Kisah dan Hikmah Kehidupan (in Indonesian). Mizan Pustaka. ISBN978-9-794330197.
10. ^Quraish Shihab, Muhammad (1996). Wawasan Al-Quran: Tafsir Tematik atas Pelbagai Persoalan Umat (in Indonesian). Mizan Pustaka. ISBN978-9-794330852. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
11. ^'The Muslim 500'. Retrieved November 19, 2015.
12. ^'Quraish Shihab Terima Penghargaan' (in Indonesian). March 1, 2009. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
13. ^'Quraish Shihab terima Lifetime Achievement Award'(PDF) (in Indonesian). Retrieved October 15, 2014.
14. ^Husaini, Adian (2002). Penyesatan opini: sebuah rekayasa mengubah citra (in Indonesian). Gema Insani. ISBN9789795617303. Retrieved October 15, 2014.
15. ^'Quraish Shihab, Tokoh Tafsir yang Akrab Dengan Kontroversi' (in Indonesian). July 15, 2014.

Alwi Abdurrahman Shihab (Arabic: علوي عبد الرحمن شهاب‎ Alawī ʿAbd ar-Raḥman Šihāb) is one of the leading authorities and scholars on the interaction of Christian and Muslim communities. Currently he is the Indonesian President's special envoy to the Middle East and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. He held the office of Indonesian Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare in 2004–2005 and the Foreign Minister of Indonesia from 1999 to 2001.

Education[edit]

At age of 10, Alwi went to study basic education at Darul Nashihin Boarding School in Lawang, East Java.^[1] Later, Alwi's father sent him and his brother Quraish to Cairo to continue their high school abroad. After completing his high school in Cairo, Alwi continued and completed his bachelor's degree from Al-Azhar University and acquired L.C. degree in 1968 in Islamic philosophy. He then continued his education in Indonesia and completed his master at Alaudin State Institute of Islamic Studies (Institut Agama Islam Negeri Alaudin), Ujung Pandang in 1986. His first doctoral degree was acquired in 1990 from University of Ain Shams, Cairo with research dissertation in the area of tasawwuf and Islamic philosophy with thesis title Islamic Sufism and Its Impact on Indonesian Contemporary Sufism.^[1]

In 1991, Alwi went to US to continue his education at Temple University, US. He and his family initially stayed in Carbondale, Illinois in 1991,^[1] but later moved to a town in Pennsylvania and completed his M.A in 1992. Being not enough with a single doctoral degree, he then completed his second PhD from the same university in 1995 with dissertation The Muhammadiyah Movement and Its Controversy with Christian Mission in Indonesia.^[1] While at Temple, Alwi become assistant professor for the Department of Religion.

Alwi also did some post-doctorate at The Harvard University's Divinity School during 1995–1996 period.^[2] Later, he joined Hartford Seminary in Hartford as professor of religion.^[3] In 1998 he served as fellow and visiting professor at Harvard University's Divinity School - Center for the Study of World Religions.

In the 1990s he wrote a book about Islam-Christianity interaction: Islam Inklusif^[4] He also completed two works for publication: a manuscript entitled American Students’ Perceptions of Islam, and a translated (from Arabic to English) version of a previous publication entitled Islamic Mysticism and Its Impact on Indonesian Society.

In 2002 he became adjunct professor for graduate programs at UI and currently is a member of Universitas Indonesia (UI) Board of Trustees.

Career[edit]

In politics, His political career started when he was elected as member of Indonesian parliament and then minister of foreign affairs in The Wahid administration. Alwi was the chairman of PKB (The National Awakening Party). He served as Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare and a minister in Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's cabinet.

Alwi, unlike his brothers who focus their career in education and Islamic studies only, has also strong business entrepreneurship. Since after completing his education in Cairo, Alwi started some businesses. In 1975 to 1979 he was CEO of Glass Priangan Factory in Cianjur, Indonesia. During 1979 -1982 he was the President of Director for Alfa Contracting Company in Jeddah. In 1982 to 1986 he was the President of Director of PT. Prima Advera company in Jakarta. In 1982 he founded Yayasan Darul Qur'an, also in Jakarta. During 1986 -1990 he became a member of board of directors at Eagle Tripelti in Jakarta and since 1986, he has been a member of the board of Dhafco Manunggal Sejati, Jakarta.

On October 26, 2004 he was honorarily discharged from PKB due to the party's internal political conflict and clash with some other leaders. In 2007 he founded his own party, Partai Kebangkitan Nasional Ulama (PKNU) or 'Party of National Scholar Awakening' in which he still serves as the chairman until now.

Since 2006, Alwi has been appointed as the president's special envoy to the Middle East and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.^[5]

Publications[edit]

Alwi has written some books, among others are:

• Akar Tasawuf di Indonesia - Antara Tasawuf Sunni dan Tasawuf Falsafi (The root of Sufism in Indonesia - Between Sunni Sufism and Philosophical Sufism), published by IMaN in 2009.
• Membedah Islam di Barat - Menepis Tudingan Meluruskan Kesalah pahaman (Dissecting Islam in the West - Dismissing Allegations, Straightening the Misunderstandings), published by Gramedia in 2004.
• Islam Sufistik, Mizan 2001.
• Membendung Arus - Respon Gerakan Muhammadiyah Terhadap Penetrasi Misi Kristen di Indonesia (Curbing the current - The Muhammadiyah's Response against Penetration of Christian Mission in Indonesia), Mizan, 1998.
• Islam Inklusif - Menuju Sikap Terbuka dalam Bergama (Inclusive Islam - Towards an Openness in Religion), Mizan, 1997.

Personal life[edit]

Alwi Shihab is of HadhramiArab descent and claims a lineage as a Sayyid, or a descendant of the Islamic prophetMuhammad (via Zayn al-Abidin, great-grandson of Muhammad).^[6][7]

Shihab is married to Ashraf Shahab and has two sons: Muhammad Rizvi and Samy, and one daughter: Samira Shihab. Two of his children, Samy and Rizvi, currently live in The United States.

He has continuously tried to present Islam as an inclusive, moderate religion, basing this on his reading of the Qur'an.^[8]

References[edit]

1. ^ ^abcd'Sekilas Mengenal Sosok Prof. Alwi Shihab' (in Indonesian). Retrieved December 23, 2015.
2. ^Shihab, Alwi (2011). Examining Islam in the West: Addressing Accusations and Correcting Misconceptions. Translated by Dr. Ralph B. Brown with Rumtini. Jakarta: Gramedia Pustaka Utama. p. 166. ISBN9789792267716.
3. ^Contributing biographiesArchived 2010-06-15 at the Wayback Machine
4. ^Islam Inklusif: Menuju Sikap Terbuka dalam Beragama (Inclusive Islam: Interreligious relations between Islam and Christianity)Archived 2011-07-16 at the Wayback Machine
5. ^Alwi, Shihab (31 December 2017). 'Alwi Shihab profile'.^{[dead link]}
6. ^The Straits Times, June 1, 2007, Insight–Boosting links, 'software' to rekindle Arab ties, by Jeremy Au Yong
7. ^Indonesia's Radical Arabs Raise Suspicions of Moderate Countrymen
8. ^'The Good, The Bad And The Violent'. Archived from the original on 2009-07-11. Retrieved 2010-03-05.

External links[edit]

• Profile at TokohIndonesia.com (In Indonesian)
• Biodata (in Indonesia)