Skull Loc: California

A Sufi inspired version of Islam has many millions of followers in Indonesia. It is a direct challenge to fundamentalist, brutish Islam. This LibforAll site is a window into the hopeful movement:

http://www.libforall.org/media/media-current-news.html

Skull Loc: California

Certain elements in the West have become interested in “Asian Islam,” which appears to be more moderate
than Arab Islam; less inclined to export radical ideology; less dominated by extremist interpretations
of religion; and possessed of a genuine and sincere tendency to act with tolerance.

The great Indonesian Islamic organization, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU)—which is also the world’s
largest, with 70 million followers—has begun to expand its operations internationally, to fill this
gap. The NU represents the most tolerant face of Islam, which is compatible with Western societies’
values and traditions, and shows no sign of wishing to engage in conflict with the West.

The Nahdlatul Ulama holds a view of Islam that its members describe as Islam Nusantara—East
Indies, or Indonesian Islam—which emphasizes the adaptation of religion to local culture, and firmly
rejects the ideology of extremist movements that have produced such a negative image of Islam in
the West. This tolerant face of Islam, in Indonesia, accepts all the different religions and cultures
that exist in the Malay Archipelago, and regards them as having a natural right to live side by side
with Islam.

From "Political Horizons for Indonesian Islam"
by Muhammad Abul Fadl | 15 June 2015 | Al-Arab, London

Skull Loc: California

A seminal survey of "Right Islam vs Wrong Islam":

http://www.libforall.org/news-WSJ-right-islam-vs.-wrong-islam.html