REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Debating within Islam is perfectly permissible, but it should not be allowed to strip away the etiquette and ethics of arguing. Nahdliyin circles, including boarding school residents, have become accustomed to the tradition of debate. How is the tradition?
PBNU Chairman of Religious Affairs KH Ahmad Fahrurrozi (Gus Fahrur) explained that interactive dialogue or debate is allowed to share and remind each other. But, he stressed, civility and decency must be maintained.
“(In the debate) there should be no elements that corner, insult or drop,” Gus Fahrur said when contacted by Republika on Wednesday (13/12/2023).
In the boarding schools, for example, he said, there is a tradition of yellow book deliberation and a scientific discussion forum called Bahtsul Masail. In such forums there are often fierce and very long arguments, but still in the corridor of seeking sporting truths.
Because it upholds civility, ethics, and the values of civility, it follows that in scientific forum debates such as Bahtsul Masail, Gus Fahrur says, there is no such thing as a tendentious tone that attacks the personal.
“That's why every bahtsul masail always has its moderator leading the deliberative discussion. There is also a pen task team that assesses the quality of an answer and straightens the discussion if it is timid,” says Gus Fahrur.
He added that Bahtsul Masail scientific forum is a tradition in every boarding school even inter boarding schools. Namely, there are those that are internal within the regular boarding school, and there are also those that apply between boarding schools in an area. Usually, says Gus Fahrur, this is done every year alternately.
Bahtsul masail scholarly forum debates in the NU tradition usually include discussions of an actual nature. Such as cryptocurrency law, eyebrow shaving law, electronic transaction law, money politics law, discussion of environmental invitation laws, to how peaceful elections are themed.
“This Bahtsul Masail discussion covers the issue of the fiqh of worship and muamalah, even the issue of nationality from the point of view of his religion is discussed,” he said.