#3 Humanistic Studies

Personal identity among other’s identity

By: Rahma Chintia/Section C

The others’ view of my personal identity

I was born in Jakarta and most of the time of my life was spent in this city. It makes me often labeled as Jakartanese. My family’s background culture is Javanese although my mom is Betawi the Javanese culture is the dominant one in my family. My parents threated me with all manners in Javanese culture, all the things that I did should as a truly Java woman: full of politeness culture. In sort, Javanese culture takes a big role in my family with its rules. In fact, it is really contradicted with my friends’ perception toward me. They assumed that I really look like Javanese woman with my behavior but instead of that, they tend to labeled me as Jakartanese because they looked at my personal characteristics such as high living style-hedonism, consumptive, and mingle to everyone. I took a conclusion that they labeled me as a Jakartanese because of the strength point in me which is refers my life style. Could it be accepted? Somehow, I wonder if there’s any rubric to labeling our identity.

The others’ identity on a view of me

I am Moslem, but I have many friends who are not same with me. Both of me and my friends, we have own faith, we believe in God but maybe we have different ways to communicate with our God. Sometimes, I really adored my friends whom are Christians or Catholics because they really proud of their faithfulness. They were pray wherever and whenever they wanted to tell anything to God. They really believe that God always listened to their pray or their problems then God will give them a miracle, hopes, joyful and peaceful. Once, my friend ever told me that we are as a human cannot merely trust or rely on other human one hundred percent because one day they will make you disappointed, but whatever  God did to you, even it was worst, He will never make you disappointed because He has a good planning for you. I was stuck on my mind at that time, the words were hypnotizing me and forced me to recall about how deeply my relation with God. They really nice to me and I love making friends with them. Sometimes I was thinking about who will be in heaven and hell. Is that true that heaven is for Moslem only? Then, how about my friends who are not Moslem? Will God put them in hell? When I was thinking about that it was like I have to do something for my friends. They are nice persons and I love making friends with them, I want to tell them about the truth but it’s going to be radical if I judge about their doctrine. I don’t want to let them placed in hell. I wonder that perhaps several of them knew about this issue; heaven and hell, but why did they don’t want to accept the only God in this universe is Allah SWT instead of their God?