Misguided in Understanding the Term
" Open Minded "
Muhammad Rafeli Fakhlipi
Introduction
In today's era, open-mindedness is no stranger to being heard. In fact, it has been widely discussed, especially in the mass media. However, not a few also do not understand the true meaning of this open minded. Just like young people who claim that they are open-minded but actually open-minded do not have to be indulged. More and more people claim that they are open-minded, so many 'misinterpret' the meaning of open-minded itself.
Lately, open-mindedness seems to be shifting its meaning or losing its true meaning.
Whether it's because of the influence of globalization and liberalism or the increasingly complex mindset of modern humans or perhaps also because of the emergence of people who claim to be open-minded after the recent virality of LGBTQ issues, people are responding to open-mindedness as a stability. Open mindedness that was supposed to be a filter to be able to determine what is good and which is bad is now like a 'pretext' to justify something wrong.
Most people misguidedly assume that open minded is a thought that always accepts new things in this world without being fittered to justify the wrong, but actually the meaning of open minded is open-minded thinking. Thinking openly here should not mean that everything that is wrong and contrary to the norms of society is right.
They said those who oppose LGBTQ are considered close-minded, also narrow-minded and primitive and unwilling to accept new things and so on. This is very troubling actually, even though we as Muslims live by the rules of Islam and also as citizens we have norms and rules in them.
Many people think that he is open-minded. This is because the meaning of open minded that people think about with reality is different so that people who do not understand the meaning of open minded often misunderstand people who are open minded. This needs to be straightened out so that this country is filled with people who are the real open minded not only in the mouth of the open minded but the reality is not open minded.
Meanwhile, if the term open-minded refers to this erroneous understanding, open minded is not a blessing that must be had but a doom that of course we as Muslims are required to stay away from this false understanding. Because as an example in the case of the wife of the Prophet Luth who was overwritten by doom even though she was not a perpetrator of deviance (LGBTQ) as the actions of the Prophet Luth who practiced homosexual / gay practices. However, she was still disrespected because she was open-minded to tolerate the perversions of her husbands.
Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala says:
ْ مُهَباَصَاْْ اَمْاَهُب ي ِصُمْْ هَّنِاْْ َكَتَا َر ماَّْْلِّاْْ دَحَاْْ مُك نِمْْْ تِفَت لَيَْْلّ َوِْْل يَّلاَْْنِِّمْْ ع طِقِبَْْكِل هَاِبِْْر سَاَفَْْك يَلِاْا وُل ِصَّيْْ نَلَْْكِِّبَرُْْلُسُرْاَّنِاُْْط وُلٰيْا وُلاَق
"They (the angels) said, "O Lut! Indeed we are the messengers of your Lord, they will not be able to disturb you, so go with your family at the end of the night and let none of you look back, except your wife. Verily he (also) will be afflicted (torment) that befell them." (QS. Hud: 81).
Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala says:
اَمُهاَتَناَخَفِْْن يَحِلاَصْاَنِداَبِعْْ نِمِْْن يَد بَعَْْْت حَتْاَتَناَكْْْۖ طوُلَْْتَأ َر ما َوْْ حوُنَْْتَأ َر ماْاوُرَفَكَْْنيِذَّلِلًْْلَثَمَُّْْاللَّْْب َرَض
"Allah made Noah's wife and Lut's wife an example to the disbelievers. Both are under the supervision of two pious servants among Our servants; Then the two wives betrayed their husbands (each)” (QS. At Tahrim: 10).
The correct understanding of "Open Minded"
Open minded is an open attitude towards various ideas, arguments, information, and being able to see things from various sides. Open minded is a filter to filter out what is good and which is bad from the ideas, arguments, and information circulating in society. With open mindedness, it is hoped that our thinking will be more critical in facing the changing times, especially in the current era of globalization.
Reporting from Wikipedia that open-mindedness (English: Open-mindedness) is the acceptance of various new ideas. Open thinking has to do with the way people accept the views
hearing". As for the definition according to Jack Kwong sees open thinking as "a willingness to take a new point of view seriously"3.
Muslim advice to have an attitude of "Open Minded"
Basically having an open minded nature is important for our lives. If we refer to the true notion of open mindedness then in Islam we as Muslims are encouraged to have an open-minded perspective. So that we are easily chest-to-chest when we receive different opinions from us both when we are deliberating and when there are differences of opinion / ikhtilaf in the matter of fiqh madzhab for example differences in prayer procedures that really have room for different opinions there. Even A.Suradi mentioned in his journal4 that one of the positive impacts of modernization in the era of globalization is that a Muslim can have an open-minded vision more dynamically, so as not to be shackled by old things that are tough, and develop an anticipatory and selective attitude in assessing things that will or are happening. The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) has also written on their official website that the criteria for Muslims who are open-minded in religion are as follows:
First, it does not feel that the opinion of the group or school it adheres to is the most correct.
Many smart people seem naïve because they are controlled by the feeling of the "truest" opinion and others are wrong. If it is religious in this way, then anyone who disagrees with it will be judged wrong, distorted, heresy, has no guidance, and even accuses infidels. This most self-righteous way of thinking will seriously harm the way we are religious. Religion will only be a trigger for hatred.
Islam clearly forbids us to feel the truest or holiest, because each person has its own uniqueness.
1 Tjosvold, Dean; Poon, Margaret (September 1998). "Singing B*tch lasanga give open mindedness openminded interaction for resolving budget conflicts". Group & Organization Management. 23 (3): 237–58.
2 Baehr, Jason (2011). "The Structure of Open-Mindedness". Canadian Journal of Philosophy. 41 (2): 191–213
3 Kwong, Jack (2015). "Open-Mindedness as a Critical Virtue" (PDF). Topio. 35 (2): 403–411
4 Suradi, A. (2018). Konsepsi Pendidikan Agama Islam dalam Menyikapi Modernitas. Dirasat: Jurnal Manajemen dan Pendidikan Islam, 4(1), 57-70
Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala says:
ْ مُكَسُف نَاْا ْۤ وُّك َزُتْ َلَف
ْْ
ْ ۗ قَّتاْ ِنَمِبُْمَل عَاْ َوُهْ
"You shall not say you are holy. He is the one who knows most about the man of piety." (QS: An Najm: 32).
Why was Satan who was once so noble and diligent in consecrating and worshipping God in heaven along with angels eventually cast out of God from heaven and cursed forever and cursed forever? Because Satan is arrogant and feels superior.
Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala says:
َّْيَدَيِبْ ُت قَلَخْاَمِلَْدُج سَتْ نَاْ َكَعَنَمْاَمْ ُس يِل بِاـْٰۤيَْلْاَق
ْ
ْ ۗ
ْ نِِّمْ ر يَخْۡاَنَاَْلْاَقْ،َن يِلْاَع لاَْنِمْ َت نُكْ مَاْ َت رَب كَت سَاْ
ْ ُه
ْْ رْاَّنْ نِمْ يِنَت قَلَخْ
َْفَْلْاَقْ، ن يِطْ نِمْ هَت قَلَخ َّو
ْ م ي ِج َرْ َكَّنِْاَفْاَه نِمْ جُر خْا
"O devil, what prevents you from prostrating to that which I have created with my hands?
Are you arrogant, or do you feel that you are of those who are higher? He said, "I am better than him, for You created me from fire, and You created him from clay." (QS: Shaad: 75-77).
We are also forbidden to divide religions where we are proud of our group and insult others.
Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala says:
َْن وُح ِرَفْ مِه يَدَلْاَمِبْ ٍۢ ب ز ِحُّْلُكْ ْاًعَيِشْا وُناَك َوْ مُهَن يِدْا وُق َّرَفَْن يِذَّْلاَْنِم
"That is the people who divide their religion and they become several factions. Each group feels proud of what is in their class." (QS: Ar Ruum: 32).
comprehensive conclusion. That's where you'll behave and act by taking the midpoints from those different points of view.
Third, it is not easy to be influenced by what people say. In essence, the religious beliefs and beliefs that you believe in are not easily swayed, depending on where the wind blows.
Moreover, this kind of social media era often obscures the correct governance of information.
Having a religious principle is important, as a basis, as long as you don't feel the most self- righteous. That principle is built from shahih knowledge. That is, the scientific source is clear, the genealogy of his religious studies can be accounted for.
Fourth, it tends to have an objective mind in seeing a phenomenon or opinion. Open- minded people will always see things from a whole, non-simplistic context. Especially getting info that is not yet clear about the truth. You don't look at who says or is involved or what class he belongs to. For you, any data is information as long as it can be accounted for. You are willing to spend more time doing research (check and recheck) and discussions to be able to propose solutions, input or objective answers.
Fifth, not liking something or hating something excessively. Because you are a person who is open to all possibilities. You believe that there is good within the circle of bad and there is the possibility of bad within the circle of goodness. So for example, there is news or info proven that there are bad things about what you like or vice versa there are positives about what you hate, you don't necessarily refuse. The easiest example, if there is someone you consider to be your life example turns out to be proven to have made a mistake and then you reject or refute it by blindly defending.
َْسَع
َْوُْمَل عَيُْ َّاللّ َوْ ْ مُكَلْ ٌّرَشْ َوُه َوْاًئ يَشْاوُّب ِحُتْ نَأْ ٰىَسَع َوْْۖ مُكَلْ ر يَخْ َوُه َوْاًئ يَشْاوُه َر كَتْ نَأْ ٰى
َْنوُمَل عَتْ َلّْ مُت نَأ
"It may be that you hate something, when it is very good to you, and it may be (also) that you like something, when it is very bad for you, God knows, while you do not know." (QS: Al- Baqarah: 216)
Therefore, in everyday life it is important for a Muslim to have an open-minded attitude so that life is not like a rigid horse and only stares straight without looking at its right and left. By having an open-minded nature we can know various things from all sides.
Even the American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS: 1993) included an open-minded attitude as one of the main scientific attitudes that a person should have.5 The Scientific Attitude is an attitude of being able to accept the opinions of others well and correctly, acting in solving a problem systematically through scientific steps that do not know despair and with perseverance as well as openness.6 From the above understanding, a Muslim should have a scientific attitude in facing a problem where one of the scientific attitudes is that he must have an open mind or be called open minded.
Conclusion
From this it can be known that the term open minded is now widely misinterpreted and converted from its true meaning and function. Open minded is not someone who tolerates various things that are small, for example, tolerating the deviant behavior of LGBTQ people. But open minded is an attitude of critical thinking, seeing things from different sides, filtering out which is good and which is bad. So that one can still have an open-minded attitude without having to violate the norms of society, eliminate the values of intimacy or even defy the commands of Allah Subhannahu wa taa'la.
5 Anwar, H. (2009). Penilaian sikap llmiah dalam pembelajaran sains. Jurnal Pelangi Ilmu, 2(5).
6 Ulfa, S. W. (2018). Mentradisikan Sikap Ilmiah dalam Pembelajaran Biologi. Jurnal Biolokus: Jurnal Penelitian Pendidikan Biologi dan Biologi, 1(1), 1-7.
Mitchell, R., & Nicholas, S. (2006). Knowledge creation in groups: The value of cognitive diversity, transactive memory and open-mindedness norms. The Electronic Journal of Knowledge Management, 4(1), 67-74.
“MAU JADI OPEN MINDED MALAH JADI OVER MINDED”. lpmmata.com 15 Februari 2021.03 Juni 2022 http://www.lpmmata.com/2021/02/mau-open-minded-malah-jadi-over-minded.html
“OPEN MINDED DALAM BERAGAMA” MUI Digital, Pojok MUI mui.or.id 21 April 2019.03 Juni 2022 https://mui.or.id/pojok-mui/26354/open-minded-dalam-beragama/
“OPEN-MINDEDNESS” wikipedia.org 24 January 2022.03 June 2022 wikipedia.org https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open-mindedness