Governing Religious Identity: State Policy and the Convergence of Muhammadiyah and Nahdlatul Ulama

Aris Munandar; Suryani

doi:10.31330/penamas.v39i1.1083

Authors

Aris Munandar Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University Jakarta
Suryani Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University Jakarta

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31330/penamas.v39i1.1083

Keywords:

Religious Governance, Governmentality, Institutional Isomorphism, Muhammadiyah, Nahdlatul Ulama

Abstract

This study examines how contemporary state policies are transforming the traditions and identities of Muhammadiyah and Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), and how both organisations are responding to and negotiating these changes in public life. Drawing on Foucault’s concept of governmentality, Talal Asad’s thesis on the state’s construction of ‘religion’, and coercive isomorphism, this qualitative study—comprising interviews, observation and document analysis—examines policies such as religious moderation, the Pancasila ideology and the regulation of civil society organisations. The findings indicate that the state acts not only as a regulator but also as a normative and discursive force that limits the legitimacy of religious practices; the identities of Muhammadiyah and NU tend to converge towards the state-sanctioned discourse of ‘moderate and nationalist Islam’, although both continue to adaptively preserve their traditional characteristics. This research enriches the theory of religion-state relations by highlighting the governmental and discursive dimensions of religious regulation.

References

Anardianto. (2022, January 18). Muhammadiyah dan NU Tulang Punggung Demokratisasi di Indonesia. Muhammadiyah. https://muhammadiyah.or.id/2022/01/muhammadiyah-dan-nu-tulang-punggung-demokratisasi-di-indonesia/

Achmad Zaky Nauval, Tri Ahmad Tommy Sinambela, & Khairiyah Ramadhani. (2024). Transformasi Media Digital dan Moderasi Beragama: Fenomena Politisasi Agama di Indonesia. Tabsyir: Jurnal Dakwah Dan Sosial Humaniora, 5(3), 192–201. https://doi.org/10.59059/tabsyir.v5i3.1492

Aji Sakti Hidayatullah, Chumeidi, A., Fadli, Y., & Nurlukman, A. D. (2022). Pragmatisme Politik Nahdlatul Ulama Pada Masa Pemerintahan Presiden Joko Widodo. Sospol, 8(2), 197–206. https://doi.org/10.22219/jurnalsospol.v8i2.22504

Akmaliah, W. (2022). RECLAIMING MODERATE ISLAM IN NAHDLATUL ULAMA: Challenging the Dominant Religious Authority in Digital Platform. JOURNAL OF INDONESIAN ISLAM, 16(1), 223. https://doi.org/10.15642/JIIS.2022.16.1.223-248

Al-Hamdi, R. (2020). Paradigma Politik Muhammadiyah. IRCISOD.

Al-Hamdi, R. (2022). Political Consciousness of Muhammadiyah: Historical Trajectories and Future. Studia Islamika, 29(3), 451–484. https://doi.org/10.36712/sdi.v29i3.15866

Amal, M. K., & Saat, N. (2022). TOLERANCE WITHOUT LIBERALISM. Epistemé: Jurnal Pengembangan Ilmu Keislaman, 16(02), 167–189. https://doi.org/10.21274/epis.2021.16.02.167-189

Asad, T. (2003). Formations of the Secular: Christianity, Islam, Modernity. Stanford University Press.

Athaillah, M., Faiz, M. T. I., & Penghabehan, A. D. (2024). TRANSFORMASI POLITIK DALAM MASYARAKAT ISLAM MAYORITAS: DAMPAK DEMOKRASI TERHADAP PERAN AGAMA DAN IDENTITAS KEAGAMAAN. As-Syifa: Journal of Islamic Studies and History, 3(1), 26–42. https://doi.org/10.35132/assyifa.v3i2.596

Burhani, A. N. (2018). Pluralism, Liberalism, and Islamism: Religious Outlook of Muhammadiyah. Studia Islamika, 25(3), 433–470. https://doi.org/10.15408/sdi.v25i3.7765

Bush, R. (2009). Nadhlatul Ulama and the struggle for power within Islam and politics in Indonesia. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.

DiMaggio, P. J., & Powell, W. W. (1983). The Iron Cage Revisited: Institutional Isomorphism and Collective Rationality in Organizational Fields. American Sociological Review, 48(2), 147. https://doi.org/10.2307/2095101

Faturahman, M., & Berakon, I. (2025). Local Indonesian Traditions And The Enhancement Of Social Spirituality In Rural Communities. Penamas, 38(2), 153–167. https://doi.org/10.31330/penamas.v38i2.997

Fealy, G. (2012). Ijtihad Politik Ulama ; Sejarah NU 1952-1967. Lkis Pelangi Aksara.

Foucault, M. (2007). Security, Territory, Population: Lectures at the Collège de France, 1977–1978 (M. Senellart, Ed.). Palgrave Macmillan.

Gusman, Y., Muhaimin, R., Rahman, R., & Chiou, S. (2025). Exploring The Contribution Of Faith-Based Organisations To The Resilience Of Migrant Families In Indonesia And Taiwan. Penamas, 38(2), 250–262. https://doi.org/10.31330/penamas.v38i2.1012

Hamdani. (2020). Religious Moderatism versus Conservatism in Indonesia: Controversy of ‘Islam Nusantara’ during Joko Widodo’s Administration. Tebuireng: Journal of Islamic Studies and Society, 1(1), 17–36. https://doi.org/10.33752/tjiss.v1i1.1221

Hamzah, A. (2020). Metode Penelitian Kualitatif: Rekonstruksi Pemikiran Dasar Natural Research. Literasi Nusantara.

Hefner, R. W. (2011). Civil Islam: Muslims and Democratization in Indonesia. Princeton University Press.

Hidayah, A., Rizky Fauziyah, N., & Wibowo, W. (2024). The Role Of The State In Fostering Religious Harmony In Indonesia: A Historical Review, Challenges, And Policy Towards Moderation. Academic Journal of Islamic Principles and Philosophy, 5(1), 1–36. https://doi.org/10.22515/ajipp.v5i1.9181

Imanita, M., Perdana, Y., & Pratama, R. A. (2025). NAHDLATUL ULAMA SEBAGAI KEKUATAN SOSIAL POLITIK PADA MASA PERGERAKAN NASIONAL. JEJAK : Jurnal Pendidikan Sejarah & Sejarah, 5(2), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.22437/jejak.v5i2.48502

Imdad, M. K., Rahayu, T. D. P., Ramdhani, S., & Busro. (2025). The Living Qur’an In Maritime Culture: Symbolism, Ritual, And Ecological Spirituality In The Tasela Boatmaking Tradition. Penamas, 38(2), 138–152. https://doi.org/10.31330/penamas.v38i2.983

Kurniawan, D., & Afifi, A. A. (2023). Penguatan Moderasi Beragama Sebagai Solusi Menyikapi Politik Identitas. AL-IMAM: Journal on Islamic Studies, Civilization and Learning Societies, 4(1), 13–21. https://doi.org/10.58764/j.im.2023.4.30

Machali, I. (2021). Metode Penelitian Kuantitatif: Panduan Praktis Merencanakan, Melaksanakan dan Analisis dalam Penelitian Kuantitatif (3rd edn). Fakultas Ilmu Tarbiyah dan Ilmu Keguruan. https://z-library.sk/book/27026374/9255b9/metode-penelitian-kuantitatif-panduan-praktis-merencanakan-melaksanakan-dan-analisis-dalam-penelit.html

Maksum, A., & Kholish, M. A. (2025). Sosiologi Agama. Bumi Aksara.

Marfiando, B. (2020). Pembubaran Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI) Ditinjau dari Kebebasan Berserikat. Jurnal Ilmu Kepolisian, 14, 13. https://doi.org/10.35879/jik.v14i2.253

Menchik, J. (2017). Islam and democracy in Indonesia: Tolerance without liberalism (First paperback edition). Cambridge University Press.

Muaddab, H. (2018). Nahdlatul Ulama’ Sebagai Opinion Leader dalam Politik Demokrasi di Indonesia (Sebuah Kajian Teoritik. Jurnal Politika, 1(1), 14–40.

Muhammad Iqbal, M. (2019). Nahdlatul Ulama Dalam Pusaran Politik: Sebuah Otokriktik Orientasi NU Dalam Politik Perspektif Insider. Jurnal Inovasi Ilmu Sosial Dan Politik, 1(2), 181. https://doi.org/10.33474/jisop.v1i2.4852

Munandar, A. (2024). The contribution of Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah in strengthening democracy in Indonesia: A study of moderate Islamic politics. ALMUSTOFA: Journal of Islamic Studies and Research, 1(01), 123–136.

Nurhayati, S., Idris, M., & Burga, M. A. (2020). Muhammadiyah dalam Perspektif Sejarah, Organisasi, dan Sistem Nilai. Yogyakarta: TrustMedia Publishing.

Rahman, M. A., Setiyani, W., & AlGayyar, S. S. (2024). Makna Simbolik Tradisi Lokal dalam Kehidupan Sosial Masyarakat. PERSEPTIF: Jurnal Ilmu Sosial Dan Humaniora, 2(2), 75–81. https://doi.org/10.70716/perseptif.v2i2.394

Ramdhan, T. W. (2019). The NU’s Concept of Islam Nusantara in Dealing with Radicalism and Terrorism. Jurnal Pemikiran Keislaman, 30(2), 283–294. https://doi.org/10.33367/tribakti.v30i2.800

Saadah, M. (2023). Religious Organization Capacity in Governing Social Distancing in Indonesia. Kontekstualita, 37(2), 79–98. https://doi.org/10.30631/37.2.79-98

Saeed, S. (2021). Religion, classification struggles, and the state’s exercise of symbolic power. Theory and Society, 50(2), 255–281. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11186-020-09415-z

Saputra, M. N. S., & Hayat, M. (2025). Moderasi politik muhammadiyah dalam dinamika politik indonesia. Indonesian Journal of Muhammadiyah Studies (IJMUS), 6(2), 112–125.

Setiawan, I., & Taebenu, M. M. (2025). Dinamika Organisasi Kemasyarakatan Dan Reformasi Kebijakan Pemerintahan Yang Demokratis. Jurnal Politik Pemerintahan Dharma Praja, 18(2), 35–63. https://doi.org/10.33701/jppdp.v18i2.5531

Triana, E. D. (2024). Eksistensi Partai Politik Islam Pada Era Pemerintahan Jokowi Menuju Tahun Pemilu 2024: Regresi Demokrasi Di Indonesia. Reflektika, 19(2), 213–236. https://doi.org/10.28944/reflektika.v19i2.1923