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Public Lecture in Tentena, Poso district, Central Sulawesi, was held on Thursday, March 17th, 2011, as a joint program by the Institut Leimena, Tentena Christian University (UNKRIT) and Tentena School of Theology (STT). While the Tentena theological school was established long time ago, the Tentena Christian University was founded recently in 2007, with the President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono laid the first stone. Both of them are under the auspices of the Synod of Central Sulawesi Christian Church (GKST). The public lecture took place at the university’s Rectorate Building and was attended by about 200 students and lecturers from both colleges.
The Public Lecture was preceded by the opening remarks from the university’s Rector, Frans Sowolino, S.E., M.Si., and the theological school’s Principal, dra. Lis Saino, M.Si. The lecture was done in two sessions. In the first session, Budi H. Setiamarga, Ph.D. (Director of Leimena Center for Policy Analysis) talked about the “Christians’ Responsibility in Building the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia.” In his lecture, Budi began with the introduction of the Institut Leimena’s vision, mission and activities, then continued with the concept of Responsible Citizens where it is important for Christians to understand their calling both as Christ’s disciples and as Indonesia citizens. Both cannot be separated. On the one hand, they need to develop their Christian mind based on the biblical principles. On the other hand, within the context of Indonesia, they also need to understand the Pancasila (Five Principles ideology) and the 1945 Constitution, as a basis for the application of their faith, for example in policy advocacy.
In the second session, Dr. Maruarar Siahaan, S.H. (Constitutional Court judge for 2003-2009 and Chairman of the Center for Indonesian Constitutional Jurisprudence) spoke on the “Citizens, Church Members, and Responsibility in Nation Building”. In his lecture, Maruarar stressed the importance of the Constitution in a country as a national consensus. The amendments to the 1945 Constitution (between 1999 to 2002) reaffirmed the importance of constitutional democracy as well as dramatic changes in our state form, from the totalitarian state (before the constitutional amendment) to the world’s third largest democracy (after the constitutional amendment). He explained the changes in the state administrative system, including the creation of the Constitutional Court (MK).
The Public Lecture was well received by all participants, being evident from their enthusiastic response. Along with our civic education program, this lecture was aimed to help the participants understand better their responsibilities as church members and citizens in building the nation.
