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Religious Authority in New Media Era

Muhammad Shuhufi

and Fatmawati

Dakwah and Communication Faculty, UIN Alauddin Makassar

Syariah and Law Faculty, UIN Alauddin Makassar

Keywords: Religious, authority, new media

Abstract : In the social sphere, the development of religion requires "explanation" which has credibility to explain and

convey religious messages. In reality, however, religious authority is not static, but dynamic. In its

development, religion requires an explanation to reach its adherents. In Islam, the authorities interpret the

Qur'anic verses, issue laws and give religious fatwas given to people who have met certain criteria, whether

those relating to the integrity of personality, as well as those related to the mastery of the knowledge used to

extract from the source of Islam. This paper describes descriptively the phenomenon of the so-called "new

media" era that has implications for religious authority, so that there has been a shift in the religious authority

from the concept of conventional authority to this new media authority. In this paper also presented the effect

of change of this authority in Islamic society both from the methodology aspects of the field of religious

sciences and its effects on the practice of Islamic teachings.

1 INTRODUCTION

There are about 142.26 million Indonesia internet

users from the population of 262 million people,

meaning 54.68% on Indonesians have used the

internet(mastel.id 2018). If this data is related to

religious life, it can be assumed that there are relation

between the progress of social media usage and

religious life, because Indonesia is the country with

the largest Muslim population in the world.

One of the most obvious implications of the above

situation is the shift of religious authority from

scholars, kiyai and teachers whose existence is based

on personality integrity to online sources through

impersonal internet and social media.

In the classical perspective, religious authority

rests on the authority of ulama, kiyai and teachers

who are claimed as the heirs of the prophets (al-

ulama'uwarasatu al-anbiya') who have the

knowledge and ability to understand the basic of

Islamic teaching practices. They directly give

direction, advice, warning, and cultivate people in

running the message of Islam in Muslim life.

But now the religious authority has been a shift

(dissemination), that is, people gain new authority

that seems impersonal, based on the main network of

information (internet). Everyone can easily access

information according to their wishes and needs.

Islamic information can be available with just a few

moves on the keyboard. Thousands of books can be

simplified in some flash pieces and can be easily

accessed via the internet.

Someone who needs an answer to a religious issue

may not ask directly to the ulama at the pesantren.

Religious fatwas are not only owned by certain

ulama, but everyone can find answers and make

decisions based on information available in the

media. The tendency of the shift contains challenges

and expectations. The challenge is that fatwas of

ulama and religious institutions are increasingly

vulnerable to scrutiny by alternative online criticized

voices. The doctrines, symbols and practices of

religious traditions are increasingly open to debate.

While the hope is with the opening of new sources of

Islamic authority through new media, encouraging

communication, and spreading the message of Islam

so quickly.

2 RELIGIOUS AUTHORITIES IN

ISLAM

Religious authority in Islam is the right to exercise

and order rules that are considered to be the will of

Shuhuﬁ, M. and Fatmawati, .

Religious Authority in New Media Era.

DOI: 10.5220/0009942223112317

In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Recent Innovations (ICRI 2018), pages 2311-2317

ISBN: 978-989-758-458-9

2311

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God. Religion authority means therefore the right to

impose the rules which are deemed to be in

consonance with the will of God(Gaborieau 2010).

Although the idea still very problematic because the

owner of supreme authority is God. From this

definition, then those who have the authority are

ulama personally or ulama united in an organization

or institution that gets government legitimacy.

The issue of religious authority is not simple,

either in its terminological definition or its

implementation in the experience of religious life.

The issue of who the owner of Islamic authority in the

context of nation and state of Indonesia becomes a

special discussion. It can be said that Indonesia is the

most difficult Muslim country to answer the question

of who is the sole proprietor of religious authority

authorized to organize and give Muslim direction to

translate the messages of Islam in life. Moreover, in a

new media-based society, where society is

increasingly scattered, neither socially nor

intellectually presently can barely determine who the

religious authority is and what its boundaries are. In

other Muslim countries this issue can be answered by

granting religious authority to certain states /

governments or fatwa institutions, such as in

Malaysia, Brunei, or in the Middle East.

Traditionally, religious authority in Islam is in the

hands of ulama or kiyai, they have legitimate

authority and interpret the scriptures to resolve the

issue of the people with the fatwas issued. This fatwa

becomes a reference for the behavior of people in

society. The ulamawho teach the basics of Islam and

instill Islamic values to the ummah(Azra 1999).

Because the religious authority in Islam lies in the

hands of the ulama to provide a holy understanding

(mufassir), formulate laws that will be implemented

in daily life for Muslims (mujtahid-faqih), or give a

religious fatwa relating to an act or events (mufti),

then the holder of this authority plays an important

role in Islamic teaching practices.

Under these conditions, any problems to be

resolved should be questioned or explained by

aUlama. So it takes a very strict requirement to

become a mufassir, mujtahid, faqih, and mufti. One

aspect of the requirement is the existence of the

integrity requirements of a ulama, so that people will

only believe in ulama who has a good personality

integrity. Thus, the opinions expressed are not

independent, but strongly influenced by the personal

integrity respectively. Recent developments in the

Muslim words illustrate the complexity with which

religious power and authority are exercised(A 1986).

From the historical aspect, since the beginning of

the spread of Islam, until centuries afterwards, ulama

became the sole actor in determining and forming

Islamic discourses and patterns in Indonesia. This is

reinforced by the fact that, in the pre-colonial Islamic

empire, the important role of these scholars received

political legitimacy with the formalization of the

office of kadi (qadi) and syaikhul Islam which taught

and supervised the implementation of Islamic

teachings, decided and taught Islam, and strengthened

Islam in the kingdom . Therefore, Ulama became the

religious elite and became an elite part of the Islamic

kingdom(Burhanuddin 2012, 11-15). Since the

colonial phase, the Ulama began to pull over from the

center of the city and coastal areas to rural villages.

Because they lost their political legitimacy, they

began to build their own institutions by establishing

Islamic teaching institutions such as pesantren,

dayah, surau, and others. This model of pesantren

teaching will be the formation of the role of ulama as

an authoritative institution in teaching and

determining Islamic teachings and subsequent

Muslim religious practices.

Although a Santri studied the treasures of books

written by classical scholars, the oral tradition had

played a significant role in the pesantren. First,

because the ulama are the holders of religious

knowledge authorities originating from the network

of previous scholars. Second, this tradition is a

guarantee that the knowledge that reaches the santri

is not the result of self-taught processes. These two

reasons make the oral explanation by the ulama an

absolute necessity. Authority is enforced based on

oral transmission of knowledge from their teachers,

which if traced further, will reach the authors,

founders of the School of Islam, or even the Prophet

Muhammad himself. In the pesantren tradition, this is

known as "Sanad of Knowledge".

In the beginning, the use of print technology in

Islam supported this already established process. In

the case of Indonesia, this condition began with the

establishment of a printing press in Cairo, Egypt, in

the 1880s which printed the books of

ShaykhNawawai al-Bantani - a BanteneseUlama who

lived in Mecca - whose books were widely used in

Islamic boarding schools. In addition, a printing press

in Mecca, which was founded in 1884, made Malay-

language books (with Arabic script; among pesantren

better known as Pegon or Arabic-Malay writing) as

an important part of his business. The production

process of the printed books of the Middle East

contributed to the widespread spread of Islamic

knowledge in the archipelago and provided a great

opportunity for ulama Nusantara to increase their

followers and authority among the Muslim

Nusantara(Burhanuddin 2012, 122-127).

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However, printing technology has a dual effect.

Reformism and the idea of Islamic renewal initiated

by Jamaluddin al-Afghani, Muhammad Abduh, and

Rashid Ridha spread from Cairo at the end of the 19th

century. Newspapers are the mouthpiece of the spread

of reformist ideas that actually challenge the

established authority of scholars. The ideas of

reformists were brought to the archipelago, especially

by Nusantara students in the Middle East (especially

Makkah and Cairo) who returned to their regions. The

spread of this idea was further strengthened by the

entry of print media from the Middle East that had

been subscribed to by the students. Some prominent

figures, such as K.H. Ahmad Dahlan and the founders

of Islamic Unity (Persis), for example, were

registered to subscribe to the al-Manar magazine

initiated by RasyidRidha, which has made it an

Islamic teaching material in Indonesia.

The idea of reform was then developed

independently by the Muslim reformist archipelago.

Through established educational institutions (schools

that adopt the Western system and leave the model of

pesantren / surau / dayah), this idea that was initiated

was mainly disseminated through print media. This is

in accordance with Abduh's statement that Muslims

must adopt modernity and utilize modern devices in

the interests of the advancement and glory of

Muslims. The publication of "al-Imam", the first

Southeast Asian reformist Islamic magazine which

first appeared in 1906, became the first milestone in

the effort to spread this idea. The magazine was

initiated by ThaherDjalaluddin, a Minang student in

Mecca - because he was interested in the ideas of

Abduh and Ridha - decided to study in Cairo. This

publication was followed by the appearance of

another newspaper with a similar direction.

Printing machines and print media, became a

feature that marked the existence of Islamic

reformism. The printing press has played a role in

changing the face of Southeast Asian Islam in the

early 20th century. The use of print media and

education system reform with various other efforts

resulted in traditional ulama no longer being regarded

as the sole holder of Islamic authority. New Muslim

figures - reformists - began to get involved in defining

Islam in the archipelago. This phenomenon shows a

new trend. For example, there was a special column

giving religious fatwa in various Islamic magazines

and newspapers at that time. Religious questions that

were previously only submitted to pesantrenscholars,

are now also being asked of reformist clerics who are

newspaper/magazine editors.

Islamic sources of knowledge from classical

Arabic books and studied exclusively in the guidance

of Islamic boarding schools, as well as oral traditions

that have been established as a method of knowledge

transfer for centuries, were seriously challenged by

the sources produced by the printing press. Along

with the proliferation of religious books published in

Malay and regional languages, Muslims are

increasingly facilitated in accessing religious

knowledge, without having to settle in boarding

schools. In this phase, people can find books,

magazines, and newspapers that discuss or study

religious issues in bookstores, libraries, and other

places that were not previously considered and linked

to Islamic studies. Studies of Islamic teachings can be

found not only in Islamic boarding schools

accompanied by Ulama, but also at home and schools.

In further developments, those involved in the

public sphere are not only Middle Eastern-educated

Indonesian students, but also Western-educated

scholars who study Islam. Various Islamic

movements with various tendencies also emerged.

Starting from a movement that focuses on improving

socio-economic moderation to elaborating on the

latest political ideology. Finally, the ulama who felt

undermined by their influence realized that the wave

of change was inevitable, the ulama began to

accommodate new ways to maintain the Islamic-

traditionalist style they believed in and the authority

of their religion.

If before, scholars seemed to be disadvantaged by

the existence of printing technology. But on the

contrary, print technology actually provides a

diversity and the possibility to maintain, enhance, and

even strengthen the religious authority of the Ulama

in a new way and style. In this case, print technology

also functions to strengthen the network of emerging

scholars. Printing machines play a role in the

formation of a community of scholars in Indonesia.

The print media in fact plays a role in strengthening

authority among Muslims.

In the pre-internet era, the relationship between

people and ulama as the owner of the reference

authority is personal. When people need something

related to religion, they will come directly to the

ulama or kiyai they trust. The effects of personal

relationships between people and ulama have

important implications: the understanding of religion

tends to be collective and communitarian, not

individual. This personal relationship makes a person

has a bond with a particular community who became

followers of the ulama concerned. In this discussion,

Islamic authorities can be classified to individuals

(ulama, teachers, ustadz, da'i), Islamic educational

institutions, Islamic mass organizations, and

government (Ministry of Religious Affairs).

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3 NEW MEDIA PHENOMENON

The development of new media information

technology followed by waning of traditional

authority, the religious authorities shifted to the

impersonal media, such as books, websites, and

blogs. In terms of materials, books derived from

paper can be categorized as conventional

media(Nasrullah 2015). But the bookkeeping

industry is no longer a conventional medium because

the current bookkeeping industry is also based on new

media, the internet. Nowadays everyone can learn

Islam from books and internet available in various

places. Therefore, now the Muslim generation can

master the knowledge of Islam even though never had

formal education in Islamic schools or Pesantren.

They learn Islam without the guidance of the ulama

or the kiyai. This means that the Muslim generation is

now studying Islam from new sources that are

different from previous sources of traditional

knowledge.

In recent years, recent studies of the Islamic

public have emphasized the importance of new media

in shaping and influencing Muslim behavior in the

public sphere(Anderson 2001, 39). Primarily about

how the process of democratization and public

fragmentation has occurred as a result of the capacity

of new media to weaken established domination such

as the state and institutions of Ulema. Conclusion

Eickelman (2005) states that the existence of a new

class of "Islamic activists" throughout the Muslim

world has taken place along with the spread of new

information technology, such as cassettes, audio CDs,

satellite television and the internet(Hefner 2005).

This is a new discussion about how Muslims present

themselves with their identity in a society that is

constantly changing. New media has created a new

structure so that its fundamental impact changes

established patterns in people's lives beyond their

limits, and allows a reduction in traditional religious

authority.

It is very difficult to define and understand what

new media is. The term is still a new term if it is

opposed to old media. The term is also very widely

used differently by many interests, including various

meanings, concepts, technologies and functions. New

media is understood as a product of future media

communication technology with digital computers.

Before the 1980s media was relied primarily on print

and analogue media such as newspapers, cinema,

television, and radio. Now radio, television, digital

and cinema, and printing machines have been

changed by new digital technologies such as software

for displaying images and publications. New media is

a term intended to cover the existence of the digital

era, computers, or information and communication

technology networks in the late 20th century. Most of

the technologies described as "new media" are digital,

often having characteristics that can be manipulated,

are networked, interactive and impartial. Some

examples can be called: Internet, websites, computer

multimedia, computer games, CD-ROMS, and

DVDs(Wardrip-Fruin and Montfort 2003, 13-25).

Vin Crosbie explained that there are three

communication media that play a role. First,

interpersonal media called "one to one". This media

allows someone to communicate with each other or

exchange information with someone else. Second, it

is known as mass media. This media is used as a

means of disseminating information from one person

to many people called "one to many". The third

communication media, called "new media". This

media is an acceleration and refinement of the two

previous media. Furthermore this media is used to

communicate ideas and information from many

people to many other people, called "many to

many"(Crosbie n.d.). Based on this terminology, the

characteristics of new media can provide access to

content anywhere and anytime, are digital, are

interactive media, and give everyone the opportunity

to participate creatively and collectively.

In general, all new media have the same

characteristics, which are related to distribution,

production and consumption. Its characteristics are

digital, interactive, hypertextual, virtual, networked,

and simulative. Without technical elaboration, these

characteristics allow new media to present various

forms of content, such as text, video images, and

sound, all together as part of the same media, based

on digital technology. It also transforms new media

audiences into users, independent, autonomous, who

are free to choose specific content or topics, in the

form of presentations, from any new media site on the

Internet, or a combination of both, users feel more

comfortable because of the interactive, hypertextual

and network from new media.

Unlike conventional media such as newspapers or

magazines, new media is real time, so it can provide

up to date information. Newmedia is also considered

more democratic and independent both in making,

publishing, distribution, and in terms of consumption

of available content. This media is relatively more

"independent" in conveying information because it is

not affected by the power and interests of the

authorities (both government and capital holders).

Likewise, the audience is free to enjoy the content

provided with high privacy. Even today, between

media owners, users can interact with each other and

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share information. New media makes the audience

part of the community, because senders and recipients

have more in common, not only in interests but also

in cultural styles in social positions. Although not as

large as production and consumption of tapes and

pamphlets, the internet reproduces many features on

a social scale. As the characteristics of all new media,

the socio-cultural distance on the internet between

producers and consumers is radically reduced. This

trend is evident in the growing development of citizen

journalism (participatory journalism). Citizen

journalism presupposes a communication link that

anyone can be a source of information as well as a

user for the public as long as it does not conflict with

the journalistic code of ethics.

Subsequent developments as a result of new

media are the increasing numbers of Islamic sites

both by religious institutions and by individuals who

both offer the importance of Islamic Implementation.

Each portal offers opinions, fatwas, articles, and

programs to meet the needs and answer the issue of

the ummah. Some offer dialogs, online reviews, on-

line chats. Some others let their portals be accessed

without mutual communication. Interesting and also

encouraging in the context of democratization of

religion are that the web, portals, sites, blogs and

others are so openly indefinitely and uncontrolled by

institutions or persons of any religious authority and

widely accessible.

In the new media era, citizens as well as audiences

also become producers, commonly referred to as

citizen journalism, such as personal blogs and private

video recordings(Harahap 2013). Many people are

searching for Islamic knowledge on television or

digital magazines that are subscribed to, or preferred

books that are all based on new media.

New mediaencourages communication and

spreading Islamic teachings. The internet network is

the most successful da'wah tool in modern times in

Islamic history. Information on the sources of Islamic

teachings can be available only with some movement

on the keyboard. The translation of the Qur'an is

available and can be downloaded on Islamic websites

in several languages. Thousands of books can be

packaged in multiple CDs and can be easily accessed

on the internet just by moving the mouse.

Currently,those who are interested in learning

about Islam simply need to browse the website to

learn more about religion. Currently they prefers

internet browsing than directly inquiring to the ulama

or read books in the library in search of answers to

religious issues. Many observers fear the internet and

new media will create a new religious authority, as a

moderator of an online group that is venerated and

treated as a legitimate spiritual authority by members

of the religious community online(Herring 2005, 149-

165).

4 NEW MEDIA EFFECTS ON

RELIGIOUS AUTHORITIES

In the Internet era, personal relationships are not lost

immediately. Until now, there are still many segments

of Muslims who continue to maintain personal

relationships with religious leaders (kiyai, ustaz), but

the fact that there are radical changes in the relation

of ummah and ulama. It can be seen the symptoms of

impersonalizing relationship. This phenomenon can

be seen through of a new generation of Muslims who

get information about Islam through sites that exist in

cyberspace. No scholars they meet directly. There is

no ulama that they kiss his hand, but the relationship

is impersonal with the text available on an internet

site.

Of course, the internet will not completely replace

a personal figure like the ulama as a religious

reference. However, the position of the 'ulama also

began to shift, because their role was no longer the

sole authority, the only source of reference. Some of

their roles are gradually being replaced by "digital

scholars" on the internet(Hoover 2001, 2).

In reality, there is a generation of progressive

Muslims in the new media era today. They describe

this is a new sketch of the wider religious space

marked by the rising religious spirit among Muslims

as a result of the growing number of new sources of

religious authority other than the source of traditional

authority(Kuntowijoyo 2003, 165). In the period, it

will be very possible for the process of dialectics,

mutual examination, mutual correction, even

contradiction between one product of religious

authority fatwa with other religious authority. In a

deep study, the impersonalizing Islamic religious

authority, which shifts the increasingly traditional

authority, should be viewed positively and

optimistically. Because whatever the situation, in the

context of today's global development(Mahbunani

2011, 178-185).

In a personal relationship, the position of a

Muslim individual is not too free, because he is tied

to the figure of kiyai/ulama. He is also tied to the

Islamic tradition developed by the kiyai. In the

Internet era there is a phenomenon of "the dispersal

of authority," the spread of authority. Authority is no

longer concentrated on kiyai or ulama, but spreads

anarchically to various sources. Each site can be an

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independent source, an autonomous kiai. At this point

will emerge the freedom of choosing religious

understanding, but still also have a negative effect,

namely the existence of freedom that is not guided

directly by the scholars as a guide to avoid a Muslim

selecting wrong teachings.

New media-based religious life that needs to be

supervised while learning Islam with an impersonal

source will form a "wild" understanding that is very

different from Current mainstreams. Because the new

media with all its advantages still cannot give

feedback on interpretation, so that the learner is not

accustomed to dialogue mutually and only follow the

match with his own opinion. As a result, people are

not familiar with the differences in religious

interpretations that exist among Ulama. This

condition will be more vulnerable when the learner

gets a mentor who has a radical ideology and requires

single loyalty in one interpretation. Although this is

not the predominant trend among Muslims in new

media-based religion, it often affects the notion of

Muslim society's inhumanity in the eyes of the

international community.

One of the effects of new media is the distortion

of the meaning of Ulama in traditional terms.

Leaders, Ulama or ulama organizations are aware of

the dissemination of knowledge resources that allow

new interpretations of religious messages to be faster.

Perhaps, the new interpretation will be different from

before. The progressiveness and openness of new

media has accelerated the process of "rejuvenation of

scholars". What has been called the "young ulama"

has been born which is more progressive in

addressing new problems that arise in society as a

consequence of information and communication

technology. It is possible that this "new Ulama" is not

an alumni of Islamic Boarding Schools, has not yet

held the title "Kiyai" or Ustadz but has far and wide

access to the exploration of information and sources

of Islamic studies.

The possibility of the emergence of diverse and

tend to be free needs attention in the development of

new media-based religious life in the learning of

Islam with impersonal sources which opens

opportunities for the spread of "wild" understanding

that is very different from the mainstream. Because

new media with all its advantages still has limitations,

it cannot give a response back to someone's

interpretation, so that the learner is not used to

dialogue reciprocally and only follows what matches

his own opinion. As a result, the learning community

is less familiar with the differences in religious

interpretations that exist among scholars. This

condition will become increasingly dangerous when

learners get teachings from mentors who have radical

ideology and require monoloyalty in one

interpretation. Although this is not a dominant

tendency among Muslims in new media-based

religion, it often influences the perceived lack of

civilization of Muslim societies in the eyes of the

international community.

Openness in the accessibility of religious

teachings. Religious teachings will be more open to

access by anyone. The inevitable necessity in the

development of new media is the increasingly

dispersing religious fatwas without clear boundaries.

The difference in religious fatwa in Indonesia is not a

new problem. The difference is even the opposition to

fatwas has become commonplace in Islamic legal

treasures. This is evidenced by the sociological

approach comparing the Muhammadiyah, NU, Persis,

and MUI fatwas (as well as several other Islamic

organizations and several individual ulama fatwas).

But now the spread of fatwas is increasingly

unlimited, which allows in one institution to oppose

regional authority. Organizational authority

internally shows how the decentralization of religion

is very far and uncontrollable.

From the aspect of internet media users, the

information available on the internet is abundant,

diverse and rapidly changing, but also superficial.

Every second, someone can get new information right

away. As a result, society does not have enough time

to understand. In-depth information and

'sophisticated' are not in demand in the digital age.

The public prefers short and simple information, but

superficial.

On the other hand, the new media is less

concerned about aspects of culture and local social

values. In personal relationships with ulema, usually

the explanation given is very conditional with the

culture and social conditions of society faced by a

Muslim or scholar concerned, so that fatwa,

interpretation and understanding in accordance with

the social conditions and culture in which they are

located. While the Internet era, religious dialogue

occurs in cross-cultural, social and community, so

sometimes found the understanding, interpretation

and fatwa that is different from the circumstances in

which Muslims are located.

The change of global and domestic societies based

on new media has shifted and expanded the variety of

religious authority, changing patterns of relations

between people and leaders, requiring Muslims to

reformulate the ways of communicating and learning

"new languages" to interact. The continuing shift in

religious authority and its implications are not to be

stopped. Shifting is a necessity and a part that can’t

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be separated from new media and social, cultural and

political changes, both at the national and

international levels. Among those that need to be

developed is the attitude of tasamuh, tolerance of

each other, while minimizing the dominative and

hegemonic tendencies among the various authority.

Moreover, developing and familiarizing an honest

and synergistic intellectual attitude are clearly the

way for a dynamic religious life.

5 CONCLUSIONS

Religion and media have significant relationships.

The development of new media (internet) also

develops religious and media relations. In its

development, it will appear that the media will change

religious authority, this is caused by the easier access

of religious teachings through this internet media

which is followed by the development of this

information technology. So it can be said that the new

media not only serves as an entity that produces

culture, but coverts the function into a new religion /

theology for some people. Religion and the media are

a very interesting discourse to continue to see its

development.

This shift of religious authority must be followed

by the strengthening of methodological aspects in

making internet media as religious sources, and the

need for religious experts to master the internet media

and make it as a medium of delivery and teaching of

Islam.Therefore the interpretation of Islamic

teachings does not ignore the culture of the Ummah

Islam. In addition, there is a need to balance

information on any religious information to avoid

certain dominant understandings and the importance

of socializing this new media usage method in the

search for religious information.

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