Strengthening the Trust and Authority of Fatwa Institutions in the Digital Era: Lessons from Indonesia
Abstract
Objectives: This study explores how digital platforms, especially YouTube, influence public perception and trust in fatwas issued by institutions such as the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) in an increasingly digital world. It specifically examines MUI fatwas on cryptocurrencies, vaccinations, and boycotts of Israeli products, assessing the impact of digital dissemination on these religious edicts.
Methodology: This study employed qualitative content analysis using QSR NVivo 12, focusing on sentiment and thematic elements in YouTube discussions. The methodology incorporates sentiment coding to assess general perceptions and thematic coding to explore the nuances of digital dissemination, public understanding, and trust in religious guidance online.
Results: The analysis indicates a predominantly negative sentiment within the Indonesian online community towards MUI’s fatwas on vaccines, cryptocurrencies, and boycotting Israeli products. This negativity reflects a disconnect between the public’s understanding and acceptance of these religious edicts. Additionally, variations in netizens‘ comprehension of religious and economic concepts significantly shape their responses to fatwas. This study highlights the need for broader education and more effective communication strategies concerning fatwas, stressing the importance of transparency and context.
Originality: This research underscores the criticality of aligning fatwas with Indonesia’s contemporary socio-economic and cultural contexts. It advocates for enhancing the capacity and credibility of fatwa institutions in the digital era, focusing on improving communicative capabilities and increasing religious knowledge to ensure fatwas’ continued relevance and effectiveness in addressing contemporary challenges.
Metrics
##plugins.themes.bootstrap3.article.details##
FatwaDigital sphereIslamic lawReligious authoritySentiment analysis
Afrizal, Marliyah, and Fuadi. “Analisis Terhadap Cryptocurrency (Perspektif Mata Uang, Hukum, Ekonomi dan Syariah)” (in Indonesian). E-Mabis: Jurnal Ekonomi Manajemen dan Bisnis, Vol. 22, No. 2 (2021): 13–41. https://doi.org/10.29103/e-mabis.v22i2.689
Akmaliah, Wahyudi. “The Demise of Moderate Islam: New Media, Contestation, and Reclaiming Religious Authorities.” Indonesian Journal of Islam and Muslim Societies, Vol. 10, No. 1 (2020): 1–24.
Al-Zanki, Salih Karim. “A Critical Reading of Fatwas on Satellite Channels” (in Arabic), Journal of College of Sharia and Islamic Studies, Vol. 35, No.2 (2018): 137-199. https://doi.org/10.29117/jcsis.2018.0188
Ali, Shaheen Sardar. “Cyberspace as Emerging Muslim Discursive Space? Online Fatawa on Women and Gender Relations and Its Impact on Muslim Family Law Norms.” International Journal of Law, Policy and the Family, Vol. 24, No. 3 (2010): 338–60. https://doi.org/10.1093/lawfam/ebq008
Alrasheed, Rashed; and Simon Mabon. “Fatwas and Politics in Bahrain: Exploring the Post 2011 Context.” Middle Eastern Studies, Vol. 57, No. 1 (2020): 151–65. https://doi.org/10.1080/00263206.2020.1821666
Amrin, Amrin, and Amirullah Amirullah. “Contemporary Legal Istinbat: Study on the Theory of Changes in Fatwa According to Yusuf Qardhawi.” Mizan: Journal of Islamic Law, Vol. 6, No. 1 (2022): 89-108. https://doi.org/10.32507/mizan.v6i1.1244
Auladi, Akrom. “Kuasa Pengetahuan Masyarakat dan Analisis Hirarki Maqâṣid Syarî’ah Terhadap Fatwa MUI Tentang Pencegahan Penyebaran Covid-19” (in Indonesian). Syariati: Jurnal Studi Al-Qur’an dan Hukum, Vol. 6, No. 01 (2020): 31–42. https://doi.org/10.32699/syariati.v6i01.1259
Ausop, Asep Zaenal, and Elsa Silvia Nur Aulia. “Teknologi Cryptocurrency Bitcoin Untuk Investasi dan Transaksi Bisnis Menurut Syariat Islam” (in Indonesian). Jurnal Sosioteknologi 17, No. 1 (30 April 2018): 74–92. https://doi.org/10.5614/sostek.itbj.2018.17.1.8
Awass, Omer. “Fatwa: The Evolution of an Islamic Legal Practice and Its Influence on Muslim Society.” Unpublished PhD Thesis. Temple University: 2014.
Ayuniyyah, Qurroh, Didin Hafidhuddin, and Hambari Hambari. “Factors Affecting Consumers’ Decision in Purchasing MUI Halal-Certified Food Products.” Tazkia Islamic Finance and Business Review, Vol. 10, No. 2 (2017). https://doi.org/10.30993/tifbr.v10i2.111
Burhanuddin, Jajat. Ulama & Kekuasaan: Pergumulan Elite Muslim dalam Sejarah Indonesia (in Indonesian). Jakarta: Noura Books, 2012.
Caeiro, Alexandre. “Cyber-Muftis, Digital Fatwas: The Ongoing Transformation of Religious Authority.” Daily Sabah. March 27, 2019. https://www.dailysabah.com/op-ed/2019/03/27/cyber-muftis-digital-fatwas-the-ongoing-transformation-of-religious-authority.
–––. “The Politics of Family Cohesion in the Gulf: Islamic Authority, New Media, and the Logic of the Modern Rentier State.” Arabian Humanities, No. 10 (2018). https://doi.org/10.4000/cy.3762
CNN Indonesia. “VIDEO: Nahdatul Ulama Jatim Keluarkan Fatwa Haram Uang Kripto.” Nov. 4, 2021. https://www.cnnindonesia.com/tv/20211104162420-407-716688/video-nahdatul-ulama-jatim-keluarkan-fatwa-haram-uang-kripto
Dahlan, Mohamad. “Respon Jamaah Tabligh Terhadap Fatwa Majlis Ulama Indonesia Tentang Covid-19” (in Indonesian). Qiyas Jurnal Hukum Islam dan Peradilan, Vol. 5, No. 1 (2020): 53–69.
Darwis, Nur Alifyah. “Tinjauan Yuridis Fatwa Majelis Ulama Indonesia Terhadap Vaksin Covid-19.” Unpublished BA Thesis (in Indonesian). Makassar: Universitas Hasanuddin, 2022.
Dwi Kurniawan, Itok, Satryo Sasono, Ismawati Septiningsih, Bambang Santoso, and Muhammad Rustamaji. “Transformasi Penggunaan Cryptocurrency Melalui Bitcoin dalam Transaksi Komersial dihubungkan dengan Diskursus Perlindungan Hukum (Legal Protection) Konsumen di Indonesia” (in Indonesian). Jurnal Hukum Mimbar Justitia, Vol. 7, No. 1 (2021): 65–86.
Echchaibi, Nabil, and Stewart M. Hoover. Eds. The Third Spaces of Digital Religion. London: Taylor & Francis, 2023.
Faidah, Mutimmatul. “Astrazeneca Vaccine Fatwa and Netizen’s Responses: Indonesian Experience.” Journal of Contemporary Islam and Muslim Societies, Vol. 6, No. 1 (2022): 55–81. https://doi.org/10.30821/jcims.v6i1.11242
Fatihunnada, Fatihunnada, Iffatul Umniati, and Raspiani Raspiani. “Otoritas Fatwa di Indonesia: Variasi Respons Pengguna Twitter Terhadap Fatwa MUI Tentang Haram Golput Pada Pemilu” (in Indonesian). JISPO Jurnal Ilmu Sosial dan Ilmu Politik, Vol. 11, No. 2 (2022): 301–30. https://doi.org/10.15575/jispo.v11i2.13879
Haida, Nur. “Analisis Implementasi Produk Hasanah Card Pada BNI Syariah Kota Cirebon” (in Indonesian). Ecobankers: Journal of Economy and Banking, Vol. 1, No. 2 (2020): 28–43.
Halevi, Leor. “The Consumer Jihad: Boycott Fatwas and Nonviolent Resistance on the World Wide Web.” International Journal of Middle East Studies, Vol. 44, No. 1 (2012): 45–70. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0020743811001243
Hallaq, Wael B. “From Fatwās to Furūʻ: Growth and Change in Islamic Substantive Law.” Islamic Law and Society, Vol. 1, No. 1 (1994): 29-65. https://doi.org/10.1163/156851994X00147
––– (Ed.). The Formation of Islamic Law. London: Routledge, 2016.
Haras, Rasyid, M. “Fatwa Ulama dan Eksistensinya Dalam Menyelesaikan Problema Umat Islam Di Indonesia (Studi Terhadap Fatwa MUI Dalam Pelaksanaan Ibadah Akibat Kasus Corona).” Ash-Shahabah: Jurnal Pendidikan dan Studi Islam, Vol. 7, No. 1 (2021): 17-24.
Harimurti, Yudi, Encik Fauzan, Indah Purbasari, and Indra Yulianingsih. “The Role of Majelis Ulama Indonesia and its Fatwas within the Indonesian Governance System.” Proceedings of The International Conference on Environmental and Technology of Law, Business and Education on Post Covid 19, 26 September 2020, Bandar Lampung, Indonesia. EAI, 2020. https://doi.org/10.4108/eai.26-9-2020.2302535
Hidayati, Noor Kholifah, Ro’fah Setyowati, and Ninik Zakiyah. “Peran Dewan Pengawas Syariah (DPS) dan Dewan Syariah Nasional Majelis Ulama Indonesia (DSN-MUI) Dalam Pengembangan Industri Wisata Halal Indonesia” (in Indonesian). Jurnal Masharif Al-Syariah: Jurnal Ekonomi dan Perbankan Syariah, Vol. 6, No. 3 (2021): 709–732. https://doi.org/10.30651/jms.v6i3.7585
Iman, Aldi Khusmufa Nur, and Andriani Samsuri. “Cryptocurrency, Financial Risk and Shariah-Compliant Alternative Concept.” Equilibrium: Jurnal Ekonomi Syariah, No. 1 (2022): 109-136. https://doi.org/10.21043/equilibrium.v10i1.13278
Indahsari, Nur. “Pengalaman Masyarakat Mengimplementasikan Fatwa MUI Tentang Ibadah Dalam Masa Pandemi Covid-19 di Desa Bonto Birao Kabupaten Pangkep (Tinjauan Sosiologi Agama).” Unpublished BA Thesis (in Indonesian). Makassar: Universitas Muhammadiyah, 2021.
IDX Channel. “Ijtima Ulama MUI Putuskan Uang ‘Crypto‘ Haram.” Nov. 11, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0JpWN0KYPc
Jannah, Raudhah Tul. “Fenomena dan Respon atas Fatwa Haram MPU Aceh Terhadap Game Online Higgs Domino Island Dalam Masyarakat Gampong Panjang Baru Kecamatan Susoh Kabupaten Aceh Barat Daya.” Unpublished BA Thesis (in Indonesian). Darussalam: University Islam Negeri Ar-Raniry, 2021.
KOMPASTV. “MUI Terbitkan Fatwa Haram Pinjol dan Kripto.” Nov. 12, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOQH0UQ9DfQ
kumparan. “MUI Terbitkan Fatwa Haram Uang Kripto, Bitcoin dan Pinjol.” Nov. 12, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rhi6qKbbXtY
Kusuma, Riza H. and Sabar W. Yoyok. “Sikap dan Pandangan Masyarakat Terhadap Fatwa-Fatwa Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI) (Studi Kasus Pada Civitas Akademika Politeknik Negeri Jakarta)” (in Indonesian). Epigram, Vol. 7. No. 1 (2014): 68–79. https://doi.org/10.32722/epi.v7i1.450
Kusumaninghati, S. M. “Pengaruh Religiusitas dan Pengetahuan Tentang Fatwa MUI No. 33 Tahun 2018 terhadap Keputusan Masyarakat Menggunakan Vaksin MR untuk Imunisasi di Desa Bediwetan Kecamatan Bungkal Kabupaten Ponorogo.” Unpublished BA Thesis (in Indonesian). Institut Agama Islam Negeri Ponorogo, 2020.
Lombardi, Clark B. “Designing Islamic Constitutions: Past Trends and Options for a Democratic Future.” International Journal of Constitutional Law, Vol., 11, No. 3 (2013): 615–45. https://doi.org/10.1093/icon/mot038
Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI). “MUI Haramkan Mata Uang Kripto.” BeritaSatu News Channel 24. November 12, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDRXEbTWRcI
_____.‘Survei: MUI Lembaga Non-Pemerintah Paling Dipercaya Masyarakat’, 2019. https://mui.or.id/berita/24913/survei-mui-lembaga-non-pemerintah-paling-dipercaya-masyarakat/.
Masrurah, Abidah, and Muzalifah Muzalifah. “Urgensi Fatwa MUI Dalam Pembangunan Sistem Hukum Ekonomi Islam Di Indonesia” (in Indonesian). Indonesian Journal of Shariah and Justice, Vol., 2, No. 1 (2022): 67–91. https://doi.org/10.46339/ijsj.v2i1.27
Salleh, Mohd Kamel Bin Mat, Mohd al Adib Bin Samuri, and Mohd Izhar Ariff Bin Mohd Kashim. “Kedudukan Fatwa dan Pendapat Mufti Sebagai Autoriti di Mahkamah Syariah Malaysia” (in Malay). Journal of Contemporary Islamic Law, Vol. 1, No. 1 (2016): 1–23.
Muhamad Hashim, Nazlida, and Dick Mizerski. “Exploring Muslim Consumers’ Information Sources for Fatwa Rulings on Products and Behaviors.” Journal of Islamic Marketing, Vol. 1, No. 1 (2010): 37–50. https://doi.org/10.1108/17590831011026213
Nasution, Khoiruddin, and Masnun Tahir. “Morality of Fatwa in the Islamic Law Thinking.” Millah Edisi Khusus (2010): 85–97.
Otto, Jan Michiel. Sharia and National Law in Muslim Countries: Tensions and Opportunities for Dutch and EU Foreign Policy. Leiden: Leiden University Press, 2008.
Papacharissi, Zizi. “The Virtual Sphere: The Internet as a Public Sphere.” New Media and Society, Vol. 4, No. 1 (2002): 9–27. https://doi.org/10.1177/14614440222226244
Powers, David S. “Wael B. Hallaq on the Origins of Islamic Law: A Review Essay.” Islamic Law and Society, Vol. 17, No. 1 (2010): 126–57. https://doi.org/10.1163/092893809X12587131153384.
Putri, Tristinna Nawidia. “Efektivitas Fatwa MUI No 33 Tahun 2018 Tentang Penggunaan Vaksin MR (Measles Rubella) Produk dari Sii (Serum Intitute of India) untuk Imunisasi (Studi Kasus Di Kecamatan Jetis Kabupaten Ponorogo).” Unpublished BA Thesis (in Indonesian). Institut Agama Islam Negeri Ponorogo, 2019.
Quraishi-Landes, Asifa. “The Sharia Problem with Sharia Legislation.” Ohio Northern University Law Review 47 (2013): 46–47.
Rosidi, Mohd Harifadilah. “The Impact of Social Media on the Acceptance of Fatwas among Malaysian Muslims.” Journal of Fatwa Management and Research, Vol. 26, No. 1 (2021): 17–36. https://doi.org/10.33102/jfatwa.vol26no1.389
Rusli, Rusli. “Tipologi Fatwa di Era Modern: Dari Offline Ke Online” (in Indonesian). Hunafa: Jurnal Studia Islamika, Vol. 8, No. 2 (2011): 269-306. https://doi.org/10.24239/jsi.v8i2.365.269-306
Rusli, Rusli, Muhammad S. Hasyim, and Nurdin Nurdin. “A New Islamic Knowledge Production and Fatwa Rulings: How Indonesia’s Young Muslim Scholars Interact with Online Sources.” Journal of Indonesian Islam, Vol. 14, No. 2 (2020): 499-518. https://doi.org/10.15642/JIIS.2020.14.2.499-518
Rusli and Nurdin. “Understanding Indonesia Millennia Ulama Online Knowledge Acquisition and Use in Daily Fatwa Making Habits.” Education and Information Technologies, Vol. 27, No. 3 (2022): 4117-40. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-021-10779-7
Sirry, Mun’im. “Fatwas and Their Controversy: The Case of the Council of Indonesian Ulama (MUI).” Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, Vol. 44, No. 1 (2013): 100-117. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0022463412000641
Soleh Hasan Wahid. “Pola Transformasi Fatwa Ekonomi Syariah DSN-MUI dalam Peraturan Perundang-Undangan di Indonesia” (in Indonesian). Ahkam Jurnal Hukum Islam, Vol. 4, No. 2 (2016): 171-198. https://doi.org/10.21274/ahkam.2016.4.2
Suaedy, Ahmad, Fariz Alnizar, Juri Ardiantoro, and Said Aqil Siroj. “Language, Authority, and Digital Media: The Impact on the Legitimacy of Fatwas.” Ahkam: Jurnal Ilmu Syariah, Vol. 23, No. 1 (2023): 1–24. https://doi.org/10.15408/ajis.v23i1.28875
Sukardani, Puspita S., Vinda M. Setianingrum, and Aryo B. Wibisono. “Halal Lifestyle: Current Trends in Indonesian Market,” 334-39. Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Social Sciences (ICSS 2018). Paris: Atlantis Press, 2020. https://doi.org/10.2991/icss-18.2018.68.
Tamam, Ahmad Badrut. “Kedudukan Fatwa Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI) dan Fatwa Dewan Syariah Nasional (DSN) dalam Sistem Hukum Indonesia” (in Indonesian). Al-Musthofa: Journal of Sharia Economics, Vol. 4, No. 2 (2021): 172–81.
Umar, Ahmad Ulil Albab Al, Muhammad Iqbal Adrian, Yuni Inawati, Muammar Taufiqi Lutfi Mustofa, and Arum Teguh Fitriyani. “Analysis of Cryptocurrency in Islamic Perspective and its Existence in Indonesia.” Sciendo (2022): 85–90. https://doi.org/10.2478/9788366675827-016
Whyte, Shaheen. “Are Fatwas Dispensable? Examining the Contemporary Relevance and Authority of Fatwas in Australia.” Oxford Journal of Law and Religion, Vol. 11, No. 2-3 (2022): 314-42. https://doi.org/10.1093/ojlr/rwac015
Wilkins, Stephen, Muhammad Mohsin Butt, Farshid Shams, and Andrea Pérez. “The Acceptance of Halal Food in Non-Muslim Countries: Effects of Religious Identity, National Identification, Consumer Ethnocentrism and Consumer Cosmopolitanism.” Journal of Islamic Marketing, Vol. 10, No. 4 (2019): 1308–31. https://doi.org/10.1108/JIMA-11-2017-0132
Yahya, Imam, and Akhmad Arif Junaidi. “Authority of Fatwa in Digital Era: Methodology and Transmission of Nahdlatul Ulama’s Bahtsul Masail in Indonesia.” Webology, Vol., 18, No. 2 (2021): 654–74. https://doi.org/10.14704/web/v18i2/web18345