Background

Over the past few years, we have focused our attention on the effort to expand the life space of common Indonesian people, a space that includes the right to dream, to express ideas, to believe, to work and to have appropriate livelihood, a space that God has given us since the creation. Last year we discussed how this space is being continually reduced by many deliberate and complex means, ranging from direct terror, premanism, bureaucratic policies, Sharia law, and many others.

As an effort to be a part of the solution, this year we would like to revisit two important factors in improving the life space of Indonesian people: worldview and engagement, specifically, the worldview of nationalism and engagement in one of our main capabilities (science and technology).

We regard nationalism as the main force that gives life to a nation. A nation is historically evolved, stable community of language, territory, economic life, and physiological make-up manifested in a community of cultures. Without nationalism, a nation would just be a mere political and geographical location. Nationalism is that sense of patriotism or willingness to sacrifice for a nation. Motivated by this observation, we will seek a biblical understanding of nationalism and look closely at the spirit of nationalism in today’s Indonesian society.

Engagement is an important factor for a change. Until today, Indonesia is a country that cannot keep up with its neighbors in science and technology development, not to mention other development. But we know that the development in many aspects of science and technology could have given our people a better economy, a better quality of life, and a better hope of future.

As Indonesian students who have experienced one of the greatest educations in the world, many with science and technology related expertise, one of our engagements to Indonesia naturally can relate to science and technology. Over the last decade, thousands of Indonesian students have come to the United States and pursue majors in fields that relate to science and technology. Yet, the impact of this community cannot be massively felt. In this regard, our goal in this OMC is to unearth the vision and roadmap of Indonesia sci-tech movement that will improve people’s life space and devise our personal roadmap as a part of the movement.

Let OMC XVI be a place where unity, humility, courage and fresh ideas and actions no matter how small are born as we take another step forward in having good relationship with our God which is reflected in our good relationship towards the people in our nation.

Goals

1. To understand the Biblical perspective of Nationalism
   1. To develop Biblical conception of nationalism and nationalism development models in both Old Testament and New Testament.
   2. To identify and articulate Christians values and roles in the pluralistic society.
2. To survey the dynamics and challenges on Indonesian Nationalism
   1. Nationalism in the pluralistic society and in the middle class society
   2. The reality of life space of Indonesian people
3. To formulate our roles in improving the livelihood of Indonesian people though science and technology in the spirit of nationalism.
   1. Formulate short term projects for immediate engagement.
   2. To discuss personal vocational paths in light of nation building and public space engagement.

Invited Speakers

To achieve our conference goals, we are inviting the following distinguished speakers:

1. Prof. Yohanes Surya is currently positioned as the rector at Universitas Multimedia Nusantara in Serpong, Indonesia. He completed his PhD in physics at the College of William and Mary. He felt strongly convinced by the Lord to return to his native Indonesia. He has been running special courses in physics to school-level students, some of whom are too poor to be able to afford intensive studies in the subject. He trains them to compete in national and international Olympiads in physics. He has also been actively training science teachers across the country, some of whom resides in the more underdeveloped region. He has authored many physics textbooks used by secondary schools all over Indonesia.

2. Stephen McDowell is co-founder of the Providence Foundation and President of its Biblical Worldview University. The Providence Foundation is a nonprofit Christian educational organization whose mission is to train and network leaders of education, business, and politics to transform their culture for Christ. After obtaining a B.S. Degree in physics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a M.S. Degree in geology at the University of Memphis, he was ordained for the ministry in 1978, working in the pastorate until 1984 when he assisted in establishing the Providence Foundation.

McDowell is the editor of the Providential Perspective and has authored or co-authored 20 books, videos, and training courses, including America’s Providential History, Liberating the Nations, Building Godly Nations, In God We Trust Tour Guide, The American Dream, and Apostle of Liberty: The World-Changing Leadership of George Washington. His books and writings have been translated into a dozen languages and distributed to hundreds of thousands of people.

He has traveled throughout the United States and to 35 nations in six continents, teaching tens of thousands of people from more than 100 different countries.

He has consulted with numerous government officials, assisted in writing political documents and starting political parties, established classes on godly reformation in numerous churches, and helped start a number of Christian schools. McDowell has been an Adjunct Professor at Regent University, has written scores of articles for various publications, appeared on numerous TV and radio programs, and spoken to many different religious, educational, civic, and political organizations. He also periodically does historic portrayals of Thomas Jefferson. He and his wife Beth live in Charlottesville, Virginia, and have four children.

3. Josef Adreanus Nae Soi is a member of DPR Commission V, which covers issues in transportation, telecommunications, civil works, civil housing, and underdeveloped regional development. He is also past TPM/OMC XIV speaker (see his Crosspoint interview: http://fica.org/crosspoint/xp-0801-interview)