REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, SOUTH TANGERANG -- Professor Hisanori Kato from Chu University, Japan, believed religion plays an important role in the life of global community. He said that a good Muslim should practice the values of Islam for the sake of world peace.
He began by example of what happened in Japan when the Meiji restoration. Before the Meiji Restoration, Shinto and Buddhist lived peacefully in Japan.
However, after the Meiji restoration, Kato explained, religious harmony was broken and lifestyle was changed. Emperor of Meiji declared himself as living god or arahitogami. At that moment, the Emperor Meiji made Shintoism as official religion in Japan. Of course this created hostility to other religions, particularly Buddhism.
"That's what I meant, that religion has very influential role life, both positive and negative," he said while speaking at the International Public Lecture at UIN Syarif Hidayatullah, South Tangerang, Tuesday (1/12).
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Therefore, he asserted that Islam that has positive values in life should really be carried out, in order to be influential in creating world peace. Moreover, Indonesia, which is a country with a majority Muslim population and diverse ethnicity, should be able to give a good example for the global community.