Wish you a Merry Christmas? ‘Heresy’, cry some in Indonesia - but not this peace-loving Muslim cleric

Social media zealots preaching intolerance have supercharged Indonesia’s recent dive into Islamic ultraconservatism, squeezing out minority groups

You can’t even wish Christians a ‘Happy Christmas’ any more, apparently. But Aan Anshori and his Islamic civil society organisation aim to change that

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Children play in artificial snow near a Christmas tree at a Jakarta shopping centre this month. A resident of Surabaya said she believed it was “wrong” for Muslims to take selfies near Christmas trees. Photo: Reuters

Published: 8:00am, 25 Dec 2022Updated: 12:06pm, 25 Dec 2022

Wishing someone a “Merry Christmas” can be fraught with difficulties in Indonesia these days, as the creep of religious conservatism reaches further into every aspect of life in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation.

“It’s not OK for Muslims to say it,” said Surabaya resident Dini Priyastuti, explaining that in her understanding of Islam the festive greeting was forbidden. “I see some people taking selfies near huge Christmas trees at malls [too]. That’s also wrong.”

Nurul Choirunnisa, a fellow Surabayan, said she no longer offers her friends or neighbours Christmas greetings after hearing sermons against the practice on social media. “I now feel so conflicted so I stay away from non-Muslims at this time of the year,” she said.

Similar sentiments – echoing the sermons of radical preachers who have weaponised social media to spread their message of religious conservatism and intolerance – can be heard with increasing regularity across Indonesia’s vast archipelago.

Muslim cleric Aan Anshori speaks into his smartphone camera as he delivers his Christmas goodwill message. Photo: Handout

The result is increasing polarisation – something Aan Anshori, a progressive Muslim cleric from Jombang in East Java, wants to nip in the bud. He’s determined to spread festive cheer and, more importantly, do his bit to neutralise Indonesia’s increasingly spiky public discourse.

“For me, wishing someone of a different faith my best wishes for their celebration is not an act that weakens my faith as a Muslim,” he told This Week in Asia. “In fact, it reinforces my faith and affirms the beauty of Islam.”