EN.MUHAMMADIYAH.OR.ID, YOGYAKARTA — Since its founding, Muhammadiyah has maintained a strong concern for social issues, particularly poverty, limited access to education and inequality. The movement is rooted in tawhid, or the oneness of God, and expressed through a commitment to marginalized communities.
Arif ‘An, a member of the Muhammadiyah Central Board’s Council for Social Welfare (MPKS), made the remarks during Ngaji Sore, a program on TVMu, on Sunday (6/9).
In a discussion titled “Muhammadiyah and Socialism: Toward a More Progressive Civilization,” Arif explained that Muhammadiyah cannot be described as a socialist organization. However, he said, it has a strong social orientation.
“Muhammadiyah is not a socialist party. But Muhammadiyah has a strong social conscience,” he said.
According to Arif, Muhammadiyah’s social character was evident from the time KH Ahmad Dahlan founded the organization. Poverty, hunger, lack of access to education, and social backwardness were realities that encouraged Ahmad Dahlan to launch his movement of dakwah.
“From the beginning, Muhammadiyah movement and its dakwah have always had a strong social dimension,” he said.
That social dakwah has since taken many forms, from community-based economic empowerment and education for poor communities to social services. Arif noted that Muhammadiyah developed cooperatives and Baitul Maal wat Tamwil (BMT), as well as various social services, even before similar models became part of governance policy.
Difference between Muhammadiyah and Socialism
For Arif, Muhammadiyah’s main point of convergence with socialism lies in its concern for social justice, its commitment to disadvantaged communities, and its opposition to poverty, inequality, and oppression.
“Muhammadiyah is fundamentally based on justice because it is commanded by Allah,” he said.
Yet Arif stressed a fundamental difference between Muhammadiyah and socialism as a political ideology. Socialism tends to place the state in a dominant role in regulating economic and social life, while capitalism leaves many matters to market forces. Muhammadiyah, by contrast, sees the state, society, and religion as complementary forces.
“In socialism, the state takes care of everything. In capitalism, the market takes care of everything. Muhammadiyah, on the other hand, brings society, the state, and religion together,” he said.
From Al-Ma’un to Social Tawhid
Arif said one of the main sources of Muhammadiyah’s social character can be found in the way KH Ahmad Dahlan taught Surah Al-Ma’un to his students. The Quran, he said, must not remain merely a text to be recited. Its teachings must be translated into concrete action.
“What he instilled in his students was that the Quran is not simply something to be read. It must be put into practice,” Arif said.
Ahmad Dahlan therefore taught Al-Ma‘un repeatedly until his students understood that its message had to be reflected in daily life. At its core, Arif said, the lesson calls on Muslims to stand with the poor and those in need.
“Al-Ma‘un teaches us to care for poor and disadvantaged children,” he said.
Arif expanded the meaning of poverty beyond economic deprivation. Poverty can also take the form of limited access to education and a lack of religious understanding. Empowerment, therefore, should help vulnerable communities become more independent.
He described this approach as a social tawhid. This is a form of religious commitment that connects individual piety with concern for society.
“Social tawhid means that the prayer mat should not be confined to the prayer room,” Arif said.
Implementing Tawhid to Our Daily Life
The values of tawhid, he argued, should be present in every sphere of life. In a marketplace, for example, tawhid is expressed through honesty and fairness in trade.
“What does tawhid mean there? The scales must be fair,” he said.
Muhammadiyah’s dakwah, therefore, should not stop at the mosque. Offices, markets, educational institutions, neighborhoods, and other spaces of everyday life can all become places where good deeds are practiced.
“Good deeds are not limited to the prayer mat in the mosque. They must extend everywhere. Whether it is in the market, in our institutional activities, or in every aspect of life,” he said.
Arif urged Muhammadiyah cadres not to define piety solely through a person’s relationship with God. Individual devotion must go hand in hand with concern for others.
He offered a simple example. A person may regularly perform the five daily prayers and tahajjud, yet at the same time ignore a neighbor who is going hungry. Such behavior, Arif said, contradicts the spirit of the social dakwah inherited from Ahmad Dahlan.
“There is a gap, a disparity, between individual spirituality, hablum minallah, and social spirituality, hablum minannas. They cannot be separated. They must be connected,” he said.
For this reason, Muhammadiyah cadres must develop a strong sense of social responsibility. Standing with disadvantaged communities must be expressed through concrete action, including helping people facing economic, educational, and other social difficulties.
Arif also emphasized that social dakwah must not be discriminatory. Social concern should be extended to anyone in need, regardless of religion, ethnicity or background.
“Islam teaches us that we must help everyone,” he said.
