The roles of Christian schools in mitigating ethno-religious violence in Indonesia

Abstract

Ethnic and religious violence in Indonesia has been rampant, especially during the last three decades. In addition, many educational institutions have become hotbeds for radicalizing young minds. Amid these conditions, what role can Christian schools play to mitigate ethno-religious violence? I argue that Christian schools will have a significant place in and make an important contribution to the nation if they are willing to broaden their purpose from merely focusing on evangelism to educating for shalom, renewing their identity by adopting dual citizenship in Christ, and changing their pedagogical approaches from a banking model to hospitable teaching and learning practices.