The visit to Pura Dharma Yatra, Argamakmur (Sunday, 25/10/2020) became a new experience for the participants who took part in this activity. This visit aimed to bring together participants with different beliefs, Christianity and Hinduism, in an interfaith dialogue to strengthen the sense of brotherhood between activist students of the Multiplication of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu and Hindu youths in Argamakmur, members of Sekaa Teruna-Teruni association (STT) Aditya Buana which is also part of the Indonesian Hindu Dharma Student Family (KMHDI).

The introduction was a fun start between the participants from the two groups. They recognized each other by name, education, job, or their activities and hobbies. A brief explanation of the organization and activities of STT Aditya Buana, as well as a brief explanation from Christian youths, added information, and understanding between the two. Not less interesting  is the question and answer session that took place to complement each other's understanding. The church youth explained their activities, the ethnic background, and a brief history of the congregation, while the STT Aditya Buana explained the activities carried out by the organization and explained the customs, naming, and the structure of the distribution of Hindu places of worship in Argamakmur. Many interesting things about Hinduism that Christian friends did not know were the subject of questions during the visit, such as customs, traditions, and structures.

The discussions, conversations, and questions and answers during this visit provided new knowledge, especially for the Church youth about Hinduism in Indonesia. Many interesting terms related to naming, religious structures, customs, and traditions were discussed during the dialogue. The young people of STT Aditya Buana are very good at mastering material and knowledge related to their beliefs. In addition to increase knowledge related to Hindu religion and culture, especially Balinese Hinduism, the dialogue also gave corrections to those that had gone spreadly wrong in society.

Actually, multicultural and interfaith matters are very interesting to discuss. The meetings and dialogues taught that every culture, tradition, custom, and religion in Indonesia is beautiful in diversity. Tolerance must be nurtured so that diversity remains within the unity of Indonesian citizens. ***

The movement to continue to relive and to bring to earth the sense of unity amidst differences of faith even though during the Pandemic Covid 19, is still done by the Multiplication of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu through the volunteer, Yedija Manullang who stays at his hometown, Doloksanggul, Humbang Hasundutan regency, North Sumatra.

After visiting the Doloksanggul Grand Mosque (20/09/2020), Stube HEMAT visited the St. Fidelis, Catholic Church in Doloksanggul (23/10/2020). The visit was planned to be carried out in September, but it was postponed due to the drastic increase of positive Covid-19 patients in Humbang Hasundutan, which caused a temporary suspension of church activities.

The visit of Stube HEMAT was welcomed by Pastor Etus as a pastor at the church at the church guesthouse. By implementing health protocols (washing hands, wearing masks, and maintaining physical distance), Yedija Manullang thanked to him and expressed the idea and purpose of their visit who wanted to learn and discuss deeper about tolerance in Doloksanggul.

Pastor Etus said that diversity within the framework of Bhinneka Tunggal Ika is a fact that cannot be denied, and it has been implemented by the founding fathers of the nation long before the current generation. "The diversity that exists in Indonesia is God's plan. As an East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), I cannot choose and plan to be born as an NTT, as well as all those who were born in Batak ethnic," said Pastor Etus.

Pastor Etus is a migrant to Doloksanggul from East Nusa Tenggara and was resettled in 2019 after previously serving in Doloksanggul from 2008 to 2010. While living in Doloksanggul, Pastor Etus saw that the culture of Batak people is very strong and be the glue for community among a diversity of clans and beliefs. He added that during his life in Doloksanggul, he had never seen incidents of persecution or intimidation against people with different beliefs. "As far as I can see, there has never been an incident of intimidation against people or a small group. It shows that the harmony among the Humbahas community is still good, maybe it is different in some other places," said Pastor Etus.

The discussion which lasted more than an hour got warmer with a banquet from the church with hot sweet tea and fried bananas. Laura Manalu, one of the discussion participants, was grateful that she joined  Stube's activities, from the visit to the mosque and Catholic church, because it is useful to have additional insight about tolerance. She also opened her paradigm and views about people with different beliefs. On that occasion, Yedija Manullang also introduced the Public Journalism program and invited the youth of Doloksanggul church to join. This program will promote the topic of people’s efforts to observe problems, to struggle with them, and  to try to formulate solutions. This program will run from October to December 2020.

Hopefully, this brotherhood strengthens the sense of unity in Doloksanggul, as well as in Indonesia. ***

It is important to build conducive issues among people. The 75th anniversary of Indonesia’s independence is a momentum to promote positive issues in the mid of plurality and diversity of Indonesia. It is an irony at the 75th anniversary of independence, a news reported that a religious leader in Solo was persecuted by a group of people, (https://www.google.com/amp/s/jateng.tribunnews.com/amp/2020/08/11/cerita-saat-habib-umar-assegaf-dipukuli-diinjak-kepalanya-oleh-ormas-disolo). It was not the first case of intolerance. A series of cases that occurred have ruined the diversity.

The momentum of commemorating the anniversary of Indonesian is interesting to reflect together. The age of 75 years for human is categorized as old. Naturally, it is time to enjoy the fruits of hard work and struggles for years before. However, this country is still struggling with various things, one of which is intolerance. The Republic of Indonesia was born in 1945, but actually this nation has existed for thousands of years. The heritage of local wisdom is imprinted in each of the islands. The differences are not considered as a problem, and the history recorded that independence of Indonesia is the result of unity among differences!

As an effort to continue knitting communication, eight youths of Doloksanggul, Humbang Hasundutan regency, North Sumatra, joined a visit to the mosque at Doloksanggul as follow-up activity done by Multiplication of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu. They looked so enthusiastic to participate the activity. Ramli Nababan, the mosque administrator and also the deputy chairman of the infrastructure and development, warmly welcomed the participants and accompanied them observing around the mosque (Thursday, 20/8/2020).

Ramli considered that the relationship among religious communities in Doloksanggul is well maintained. The majority of residents around the mosque are Christians. "We are very careful about the inter-religious interaction around the mosque environment, for example, in the last celebration of Eid al-Adha, we did not let our mosque neighbors only smell the aroma of sacrificial meat, but we distributed beef and mutton to all,” Ramli said. He said that he had returned to Doloksanggul for the last 10 years, after 30 years of wandering to other places with his family. Approximately 10.000 m2 of the mosque came from the endowments of his grandparents. Finally, he was called to take care the mosque. He said that at the past time people were closely related even though they had different religions, and the celebration of religious holiday was a chance to strengthen friendship among them.

“When I was young and still in Doloksanggul, I always celebrated New Year's Eve to visit my Christian neighbors. For Christian Batak people, the annual tradition is always preceded by praying with their church’s liturgy and the ‘Mandok Hata’, a Batak forgiveness event. It did not matter for me to join it, even I am respected there,” he said. "However, this tradition has begun to disappear at this time," he added.

Yedija Manullang, one of the participants, responded and asked Ramli about the ‘silahturami’ tradition that had begun to disappear. “When I was a child I was the most diligent kid to knock on the door of my neighbors with a plate filled with New Year's cakes, but along the passing time, that tradition seemed to have disappeared. I miss that time to repeat. According to Pak Ramli, what makes this good tradition of building ‘silaturahmi’ gradually disappear? " Yedija asked.

"The development of technology drove individualism and difficult to bring back the good times. Youth is needed to play role in building friendship and keep it to be established now and then,” he answered.

While walking around, Ramli pointed out the place of ablution, the sacred area, the hall, the place for prayer, the direction of the Qibla and the place for prayer call. One of the participants asked about the condition and relationship of the mosque with the two churches nearby. "How about the communication between the two churches which are nearby to this mosque, for example on Sundays the church holds services past 12 at noon, and it is the time for prayer call for Muslims," he asked. “Our communication is good and we do not feel disturbed by one another due to the sound of the call to prayer which is only brief and does not interfere with the worship process in the church. That is the difference, do we have to make a fuss about it? After all, we also do our obligations and our respective faith calls. That is what beautifies the difference,” Ramli said.

More than 45 minutes have passed, the clock indicated that it is almost 12 noon, the time for Ramli and other Muslims to pray. The youths ended the conversation and left the mosque. Laura, one of the participants in the activity, felt lucky because she learned new things. She stated that the differences are actually beautiful and this was the first time for Laura visited a mosque, and hoped to visit other places of worship, such as Catholic church in Doloksanggul with Stube-HEMAT. ***

The experience of togetherness in Stube HEMAT activity brought deep understanding for us. Honestly, in the beginning I joined it because my bestfriends also joined the Stube HEMAT activity. However, at the end I did not think about something wasted after following it. This activity brought us in a collective discussion related to religious diversity. From elementary to high school, I lived in a majority faith, because I studied at Catholic school. Tolerance from one to another is always felt, especially faith. We learned that being religious is not only Chatolicism but also perspectives of other religions in Indonesia. So, it cannot be denied that in general, we are taught to understand each other without seeing ourselves as a better one.

This activity rebuilt memories of a sense of togetherness that I rarely felt in my four years of study in campus. The discussion with Hendra P. Luat Sihombing from Catholic youth (OMK) illustrated that mutual respect between religious communities in Catholic church is always felt, it can be seen from the holy events celebrated by Catholics, such as Easter and Christmas, Banser (security body) from Muslim youths took part to supporting the event security besides the police. Hendra P. Luat Sihombing was the speaker in the first session of discussion held by Stube HEMAT Bengkulu on August 22, 2020 at Adeeva hotel. The sense of tolerance in Bengkulu is still well respected, although it cannot be denied that the formal permission when build the place of worship is still difficult, based on several cases that have occurred in Bengkulu. One important point that we got from the discussions with our Catholic youth friends, that we can take part in colouring the nation, become friend to everyone, appreciate the important times of our friends who have different religions and respect whoever around us.

This activity also carried out a discussion with Arnold Hok, the representative of Buddhayana youth in Bengkulu city by visiting directly the Buddhayana monastery. The main point obtained during the discussion was how the Buddhists reflected their grateful for life on their worship by respecting other living beings and all creations. It can be seen clearly through the inscription on the organizational structure board, namely ‘Sabbe Satta Bhavantu Sukhitatta’ which means ‘may all living beings be happy’.  We toured the monastery which has five floors, from the first floor where the statues of gods or Buddhist religious figures placed as a form of respect, prayer candles to pray for their deceased ancestors, and offerings as a form of gratitude for the crops they have harvested. Then, the second floor is a large place of worship, with three big statues of Buddha. The third floor contains rooms for monks who visit to Bengkulu to attend Buddhist’s holy events. The 4th and 5th floor are used as a warehouses and a rooftop having direct views to beach and Fort Malborough. Togetherness in diversity, what an unforgettable memory.***

(Marta Yuli Kristianti Tambunan, participant in Multicultural and Interfaith Dialogue training, Multiplication Program of Stube-HEMAT in Bengkulu).

On Saturday, August 22, 2020, The Multiplication program of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu held one-day discussion in two sessions presenting resource person from Catholic Youth, Hendra P. Luat Sihombing in the first session and Arnold Hok, activist of Youth of Vihara Budhayana Bengkulu. The lively discussion took place at Adeeva Hotel, Panjang beach, Bengkulu City. The participants were asked to write down their experiences when they were participating program of Stube HEMAT. The following note was written by Marta Sihotang, one participant of Multiplication of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu, after joining the series of discussion.

Diversity is a sensitive issue for national harmony. Tolerance is needed to maintain the fortress of harmony. It requires means of educating and fostering personality of Indonesian that must be instilled consistently. Being a person who is tolerant among young generation become the guarantee for the unity of the nation. I appreciate the activity held by Multiplication Program of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu because it is a means of education for young people and community. This activity was interesting especially with its theme ‘Multicultural and Interfaith Dialogue’. In Indonesia, conflicts on religion still occur frequently, so this discussion provided participants opportunity to get to know more about the context or ritual of other religions.

This discussion was started with the Catholic Youth, Hendra Luat Sihombing and Rikkot Malau. The dialogue itself really enriched the participants’ experience, especially those who were not Catholics. The number of  Catholics habitants in Bengkulu Province is around 6.000 people and the Catholic Church considers the people in Bengkulu are tolerant. It is not only the community but also the local government who concerns to the church and the congregations.

In the second session, it was conveyed that Buddhists also felt the concern and tolerance from the community as well as from the government in Bengkulu. The visit to Vihara became an interesting moment because it was new and first experience for the participants. When they were invited to enter the prayer room (Vihara Buddahaya), the first impression was its well-arranged room. A young Buddhayana activist, Arnold Hok informed many things about Buddhism and its development in Bengkulu. For me, one of the interesting teachings of Buddhism is 'Sabbe Satta Bhavantu Sukhitata' which means ‘may all beings be happy', a wish of goodness for all creations.

This activity needs to be carried out periodically to add insight and to foster tolerance among young people in Bengkulu.  It is really effort to maintain tolerance that cannot be ignored. Thank you Stube HEMAT. ***

Stube HEMAT Bengkulu enter the program on Multicultural and Interfaith Dialogue in July - September 2020. The programs series will be done by implementing health protocols (washing hands, wearing masks, distancing). Participants who are not healthy enough are suggested to have rest and  to join the next meeting. The multicultural program entitled ‘Believe and be better’ took place in Bengkulu City during August 2020.

On August 22, 2020, Stube-HEMAT Bengkulu held a two sessions discussion. The first session was hosted by Hendra P. Luat Sihombing, a young man, an activist of Catholic Youth organization in Bengkulu. The second session was facilitated by Arnold Hok, an activist of Youth Organization of Vihara Buddhayana (AMVB) Bengkulu city. The first session was held at 10.00 WIB at Adeeva hotel and the meeting itself are limited to 10 participants regarding to the regulation of crowd limits set by the government during the pandemic. Six Bengkulu University students and four church youths attended this discussion.

Hendra P. L. Sihombing said that in Bengkulu city there are around 6.000 Catholics. Protestants have about 13.000 inhabitants. This number is around 1,7% of the total population of Bengkulu province. Are there any problems so far related with other religions? He is very grateful that Bengkulu is blessed with harmony and peace. SETARA Institut stated that Bengkulu is not considered an intolerant area, only sometimes we find that worship from house to house is not widely accepted by the community. Hendra encouraged the participants not to be trapped in their own negative prejudices. If people forbid our worship, it does not mean that the people are fanatical but we should be more active to communicate with the people about our worship. Sometimes the worship is prohibited by society because of our unability to explain what we are doing.

Bengkulu society is getting more advanced even though the customs of each ethnic is different. The more developed a city is, the more inclusive society is. However, the churches of Bengkulu actually had a problem, they are unable to make the members diligent in communication. The Christians are still comfortable with the way they are today. In this condition, young people should have a breakthrough. Do not let this comfort lull us so we no longer work to maintain the harmony.

Let us take a look at this nation, it is like building a house. The multiculture is a home and Pancasila (the five principles) is the foundation. The pillar is the Constitution. We must protect this house. The strength of the house can be disrupted by at least three things: 1) globalization, 2) weak democracy while a strong leader is needed, 3) being selfish to be a leader.

In 2006, the Catholic students of Bengkulu, the members of PMKRI actively assisted farmers, laborers and fishermen. The ministry itself was truly providing assistance to them but sometimes it was rejected because of the Christian label attached. Therefore, Stube-HEMAT Bengkulu does not need to be weary in making various approaches to Bengkulu students.

The tolerance that thrives in Bengkulu is proved on religious holidays, the Christians are invited to celebrate Idul Fitri and Idul Adha. They also have started to invite others with different religions to celebrate Christmas and Easter. Hendra closed the discussion with a message to Stube-HEMAT Bengkulu that the responsibility for tolerance belong not only to religious leaders but also to all of us, the young people, because the church leaders bear heavy internal responsibility.

That was the explanation from Hendra P. Luat Sihombing in a limited discussion session. Hopefully we can meet together in another occasion in the next Stube-HEMAT Bengkulu discussion. ***

On Sunday, August 16, 2020, at the house of the Multiplicator of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu, six young people of the South Sumatra Christian Church (GKSBS) in MT area gathered to share stories and multicultural and interfaith experiences. On that occasion, the multiplicator presented Ratna Andriani, a final year student of Bogor Agriculture Institute (IPB).

Bogor Agriculture Institute (IPB), is one of the public campus that accepts Indonesian students from Sabang to Merauke. The students in this campus are heterogeneous with various ethnicities, religions and cultures. The campus itself unites the diversity of these students through General Competency Preparation Program (PPKU) at grade I and dormitory. It is a compulsory for students to participate during their first two semesters, as well as other campus events such as Gebyar Nusantara. The campus can be categorized as a campus that tolerates religious diversity in its environment.

Although there were several issues regarding the ‘radical campus’ and other issued related with ideology, these did not affect the campus’ daily activities, both learning and students’ interactions. As a Christian student who is from a minority religion at IPB, I did not feel any negative influence from ideological issues and intolerance. The friendship environment in the department and other campus activities are quite diverse in ethnicity, religion, and culture, and all of these actually improve knowledge, experience and networking among friends.

I am a student of Bogor Agriculture Institute coming from Bengkulu with Javanese ethnicity. The campus location helped me to have adaptation easily as the campus environment located in Java island. Although the campus academic community tends to be heterogeneous, at the end I often met with Javanese or Christians with different ethnicity. The same feeling of interest, circumstances and responsibility made us comfortable with the link of friendships. It can be concluded that humans will tend to gather with those who have the same characteristics and preferences. Adaptability is necessary if we are in a heterogeneous environment. Adapting itself does not mean changing oneself, but adapting to the existing circumstances. Tolerance and mutual respect are important to deal with the situations of diversity, especially in campus life. Our goal not only to pursue higher education, to obtain knowledge and degrees, but also to build relationships with various people from various fields of expertise.

This sharing made the youths of Bengkulu understand that interactions in campus environment contain values of diversity and tolerance. Hopefully, this will encourage them to be open minded and tolerant with differences. ***

All religions teach goodness and respect for others, not only humans but all creations on earth. Although, it should be admitted that there was an action in the name of religion, creating disintegration among society. In addition, Indonesia is actually already final with diversity and plurality. It is proved by the many ethnics, languages and cultures in Indonesia that are one, within the frame of Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity)

From the above situation, Yedija Manullang, activist of Multiplication of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu invited church youths and the surrounding students  to know Stube HEMAT and talk about faith differences in the community.

The discussion was held at Yedija Manullang's residence, Jl. Sisingamangaraja, Doloksanggul, Humbang Hasundutan regency, North Sumatra (Wednesday, 29/07/2020). Humbang Hasundutan (Humbahas) is a regency having less friction, conflict and division among religious communities. This regency has just celebrated its 17th anniversary. Especially in Doloksanggul, where Yedija lives, the capital of Humbahas, the majority of Christian community inhabited the area, but in the center of the city there is a mosque, and even many restaurants and businesses owned by Muslims.

Before the activity started, Yedija encouraged all participants to spend about 10 minutes to read some books in order to campaign literacy and reading enthusiasm for youth. Furthermore, Yedija introduced Stube HEMAT dan his experience to be involved in the student service that focuses on mentoring students and youth for about one year. They listened enthusiastically because the name of Stube-HEMAT was unique and they had never heard it before.

In the discussion process, Yedija distributed paper to each participant and ask them to write down their impressions and feeling when they meet or interact with people having different religions. Their answers were surprising because some were weird, uncomfortable, afraid and insecure. Actually, Yedija also felt the same thing when he became one of the participants in Multicultural training and Inter-religious Dialogue at Stube-HEMAT Yogyakarta, with the topic "Connecting souls, Celebrating differences". Initially, Yedija felt awkward with the event because he was accustomed to join activities in his comfort zone, namely with people of one ethnicity and one religion, moreover the training is an international events.

The analogy of a rainbow and a garden with its beautiful flower and a variety of colors are simple examples to enter the topic of diversity. "Rainbows will be very unattractive and monotonous when consist of one color only. Likewise, a flower garden is decorated with only one type of flower, people will quickly get bored. But it would be very beautiful if the rainbow has diverse colours, and the flower garden will be attractive to man’s eyes when many flowers planted there. So, it would be nice if our society and environment were filled with different people in ethnicity, language or religion,” Yedija said.

But ironically, divisions and conflicts occured because of long-standing differences. These will drain energy and break the diversity of the nation, and disrupt Indonesia's preparation to face the Demographic Bonus and Golden Indonesia 2045. If the society, especially youth, is still debating about differences that lead to conflict and division, then the demographic bonus would be disaster. "The Indonesian youth will later become leaders, system managers, regulators and policy makers in Indonesia. In order to be ready to face challenges and problems, youth must think critically, work creatively, communicate well, and be able to work as a team," he explained.

Cooperation requires unity, the unity is started by accepting all the differences and diversity that exist. Therefore, the existing differences must be transformed into a harmony of life because these differences will continue to exist and remain as long as this nation still exists. Let us stop arguing over differences but campaign unity by respecting-accepting each other, and starting the changes.

Rijon Silaban, one of the participants responded to the topic by telling that in the environment where he studied, outside the Humbahas regency, he still cannot fully accept differences. "The location of my campus is in the middle of a Muslim neighborhood, unfortunately there are still many people in the neighborhood who are reluctant to interact and some even stay away from us, Christian students because we eat pork," Rijon, a 7th-semester-theology student said. "Though differences are common for our society and they beautify the Indonesia like the analogy of flower garden and rainbow, but dialogue forums and the spirit of openness to accept differences must be carried out continuously," he added.

Yedija then asked what they would feel when they meet people of different religions. Those who were initially afraid, awkward and insecure, then stated that they would be normal and enjoy the difference. However, there was one participant who was still afraid, because so far he had never interacted with people of different religions. “Since I was in elementary school, junior high school, I never interacted with non-Christians. All my friends are Christians,” he said with a flushed face. Therefore, Yedija and the participants will manage a visit to a mosque in the middle of Doloksanggul town, providing experiences of interaction with differences. (YDJ)

The Multiplication program of Stube-HEMAT in Bengkulu through ‘Simple-B Editorial Programs’ held a live broadcast via Instagram (Sunday, 26/07/2020). It lasted 45 minutes (14:00 – 14:45 WIB) hosted by Linda Titiwijayanti, editor of Simple-B, presenting the speaker, Lidia Hotmaida Naibaho, S.P. Lidia is a student from Sidikalang, North Sumatera who is currently pursuing a postgraduate education program at Georg August Goettingen University, Germany. She took a program of Sustainable International – Agriculture. She has completed her undergraduate program at Sriwijaya University majoring in agriculture.

At the beginning of the broadcast, Lidia said that currently lectures in Germany are being conducted online to avoid the spread of Covid-19. She also shared the differences of student life in Germany and in Indonesia. She admitted that lectures in Germany are more relaxed, the interaction between lecturers and students is like friends, when lecturers cannot answer the question from the student, they will apologize. The living cost in Germany is clearly higher. For non-scholarship students, at least they must have a savings around 130 million rupiah per year. The monthly cost of renting a boarding house reaches 4 million rupiahs, and it is very different with in Indonesia. However, no need to worry about food as there are several Asian shops that provide foods from Asia.

Lidia then explained how to get a scholarship. The very important thing is always maintaining enthusiasm because there are many processes that must be passed, being confident and optimistic about success, and trying to meet the requirements made by the scholarship provider such as a minimum IELTS score of 6 (scale 0-9), having work experiences, and being active in organizations or as volunteer. To add to the assessment, Lidia suggested that before applying for a scholarship, it would be better if you take a short course. Short-course is a type of course usually lasting 1 to 8 weeks, such as student exchanges, training on certain scientific studies, and introduction to culture and education in host countries or universities around the world. Lidia also advised Indonesian students to use smart phones to hunt information about scholarships such as from the Education Fund Management Institute (LPDP) and DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) scholarships which support the mobility of international students who wish to continue their studies in Germany.

At the end of the conversation, Lidia emphasized again that pursuers of scholarship, never be afraid to try, we have nothing to lose because we will gain experience and learn from the experience itself. Before moving on, of course, we must have clear plans and goals and prepare long-term and short-term plans.

The Live program on Instagram by the Stube-HEMAT Multiplication program in Bengkulu started in July 2020 and it expected that more participants will participate in every discussion because there will be always interesting topics discussion. ****

By Dahlia Sitohang

The earth rotates and time goes by. The millennials rule the world because they grow up with technology, computers, and the internet. This condition is different from the previous generation. There are positive and negative things that can be taken according to their roles and decisions. How is ‘Christian leadership’ in the present time?

Leadership is a way of influencing others to achieve the goals desired by the leader by taking advantage of technological advances. Many young people play roles to encourage and to achieve digital success, such as collecting donations for those in need, voicing injustice or manipulation, gathering support votes for a petition, etc.

On Sunday, 19 July 2020, I, Dahlia Sitohang from the Multiplication of Stube-HEMAT in Bengkulu held a live broadcast with Made N. Supriadi, S.Th, a lecturer at the Bible College in Bengkulu (STIAB). This program is one of the online discussions as a part of Multiplication program in Bengkulu on Multicultural and Interfaith Dialogue. Through this discussion, the Christian students learned the character and values ​​of Christian leadership so that they can be trusted and to be better. The live broadcast via Instagram was a way to reach and share experiences on social media which the conversation started at 20.00-20.45 WIB.

The main point of the discussion discussed the leadership of Christian youth in the globalization era. What is the goal of young people as a leader? Who deserves to be a leader? When should young people become a leader? Where do the young people be? Why should young people be a leader? And how do young people become good and true leaders? The following is a summary of the discussion.

“Young people have high enthusiasm and willingness. They deserve to be leaders because they are called to glorify God. This is the main principle. God will be glorified through the young generation as the leading figure. Being a leader is God's calling in him because no one can make himself a leader, even he has abilities, skills, gifts, or forms of leadership. The mandate as a leader itself is a gift, calling and mandate from God,” he explained

"Every young person is responsible to lead himself; how to live, how to study; how to learn and communicate. The millennials must be ready to lead their lives to God and with others. Now, it is the time for young people to lead," he added.

"Meanwhile, in a formal context, young people will face regulations. It requires self-readiness, age, and the right time for young people to lead formally. Later, the young people will replace the current leaders, such as the chancellor or president. All of that requires the right time, young people must prepare from now to become leaders,” the speaker explained about the time and leadership.

The interesting point is the young people sometimes want to lead rather than to be led, and it needs to be evaluated. The high ego sometimes caused difficulty to accept direction, leave off the responsibility and burden. So, where is now the responsible young man? It will be a problem when young people run and hide, afraid and insecure. It means that the most important thing in leadership is qualified for character, responsibility, and spirituality.

“Being a leader with integrity, a young person who leads with a balance in mind, heart, words, and truth. Being a leader who dares to admit mistakes, dares to be responsible, dares to change, and dares to solve problems. Dare to move forward to face problems and dare to be honest. Give a chance and be prepared. Never wait to be successful but let the process itself makes it worthy and proper,” he concluded the discussion.

Well, how about you, young friends? Now, be ready to strengthen your steps so that God is pleased and enables you to become leaders. ***

In the additional session, the Multiplicator explained the next three-month activities, covering multiculture and dialogue. So, the participants will meet many figures from different religions to reach the  goal of building tolerance and coexist harmoniously with different believers. Hopefully this program will run well and beneficial for students and youth. (YDA)

May 2020 was the second month of the Covid-19 pandemic in Indonesia. The economic situation was slowing down, all eyes focused on the efforts to handle and prevent the spread of pandemic, so the budget and donation were distributed to handle it.

The Multiplication program of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu also concerned with this situation and prayed that the pandemic would soon pass and activities could return to normal as soon as possible. Based on some news references both local dan foreign media, the multiplicator caught the signs that the global pandemic will affect world food production and it needs to be responded wisely.

Most of food products that fill our kitchen are supplied from imports. Sugar, rice, soybeans for tempe, tofu, soy sauce are all imported. It seems that domestic production has not enough to fulfill the needs of the Indonesian people, and it is risky because of its vulnerable conditions to be easily overthrowed. Brazil for example, has managed to get out of oil imports because some of their sugar cane is processed into raw material for ethanol. Germany reduces the dependence on wheat by encourage the citizens to consume and grow potatoes. Indonesia also campaigns carbohydrate sources from tubers other than rice.

Food independence is supported by the independence of fertilizers, seeds and markets. We are not talking about the big things of one nation or one region. The independence itself must be started from the place where we live. The preparation of food independence program at home has been prepared since early 2020. The secretariat of Multiplication Program in Bengkulu has produced seeds independently and available for free for those who want to plant them. The vary of seeds available are green mustard, chilies, eggplants, sweet potatoes, coconut, basil, black nightshade, cinnamon, salam leaf, ginger, coffee, turkey berry, cutcherry, pigeon pea, papaya, winged beans, velvet beans, and banana. If their seeds die or have crop failure, they can return the polybag to the secretariat and get the new one.

 

The youth in Bengkulu who had started planting in their house are, first, Bibit Hariadi. He already had his crops, sweet potatoes, chilies and vegetable potatoes. In May, the Multiplicator handed over greens mustard seeds to grow on his field. He is a youth leader in village VII and raising goats so it is easy to get compost. Second, Yohanes Suherman. The chilli seeds brought last March did not grow well, so in May he began to grow green mustard and will harvest it in a few days ahead. He has been actively supporting the multiplication program since 2017. Third, Marta Lita Viani planted chilies in a covered cement sack because chickens infiltrated the garden and destroy the chili beds in her former garden. Now, she planted sweet potatotes and chilies and could be harvested in the next two months. While the multiplicator, Yohanes Dian Alpasa has planted chili, cassava, and vegetable cassava. However, as long as the home-based food program is in progress, the multiplicator wanted to keep the supply of seeds well maintained, such as chili and black nightshade. At present, the oil eggplant seeds that are known to be pest-resistant are being developed. By planting at home, it is expected  that half part of the daily needs of vegetable can be fulfilled. The program is expected to reach more than eight youths of Bengkulu to broaden the impacts.

The Multiplication program of Stube-HEMAT in Bengkulu hopes that young people will not be lethargic but remain enthusiastic to be more creative, and they will not lose their intellectuality. Let us to be the middle guard in the pandemic. Thank you Stube-HEMAT’s activists wherever they are who always give support and attention to us in Bengkulu. (YDA).

In February 2020, the Multiplicator of Stube-HEMAT in Bengkulu was invited to attend the BfdW (Brot Fuer Die Welt) alumni meeting, a donor institution from the Lutheran churches, Germany, which provides educational scholarships to students in Indonesia and other countries in the world. This meeting aims in establishing communication between BfdW and alumnus who have received scholarships and find out what the alumni do after they had graduated. The meeting was held in Yogyakarta, on February 7-10, 2020 and the main activity took place at the Duta Wacana Christian University with ‘Hunger for Justice’ as the main theme, which was adapted from the theme of BfdW's 60th anniversary. This theme has a noble desire and hopes that each alumni continues to work in his/her field to fight for and provide justice wherever they live.

The alumni were asked to prepare material, which was delivered both in the seminar or in a panel and parallel discussions. Many of them have worked as pastors, lecturers, and social workers. The majority of participants have a postgraduate (S2/S3) education and focus on their respective fields of science and research which the materials were delivered in English. For the Multipicator of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu, this event was very memorable and useful because it enables the Multiplicator to meet with experts and scientists who have experiences in their fields, such as Dr. Ferry Kawur, an expert in Bioscience and lecturer in Health Sciences, Satya Wacana Christian University, Salatiga. He explained the development of bioscience understanding and its dynamics in Indonesia. At the end of the presentation, Dr. Ferry gave four books of his writing that can be studied further.

When presenting the presentation as a Multiplicator of Stube HEMAT in Bengkulu and an alumnus of Theology in UKDW, the multiplicator shared the activities done in Bengkulu and the dynamics of the community. This is the difference between academics and social workers, which have their way of serving the community. Bengkulu was claimed as the poorest province in Sumatera, which the majority of the population works as farmers, while the manufacturing industry has not developed much. The access in and out of stuff commodity is still relatively minimum. Three years of service in Bengkulu made multiplicators understand more the reality of life. Currently, Bengkulu education facilities continue to develop, infrastructures grow, and health facilities expanded, while access to bank credit is widely opened. But these efforts did not automatically solve the problems that hit young people, such as the high number of drug cases among them and increasing cases of intolerance.

The Multiplication of Stube-HEMAT presents the interaction dynamic of Bengkulu students and young people. Twice a month they meet together as students and local youth to discuss actual problems, weekly meetings for Bible study, and once a month arrange a discussion with a lecturer for Bengkulu students.

The meeting with other BfdW alumni certainly increased the enthusiasm of service because the lecturers, pastors, and social workers were possible to work together in dealing with social problems in the community. The seminar meetings that facilitate alumni to meet are very important to get new insight, knowledge, and experience in the empowerment works. Thank you to Stube-HEMAT Yogyakarta and BfdW, hopefully, this opens a chance for more networks to learn and do activities together. (YDA).