A Reflection of the Peaceful Life between Muslims and Christians in Desa Kertajaya: An Analytical Study from Qur’anic and Biblical Perspectives

Abstract

Living in peace is, perhaps, a term or a situation that is longed for by every community in the world. Living in peace may mean living in a harmonious life, to be secure and prosperous, and to love one another in a community. In many cultures in the world, people can find the concept of peace, such as in language, worldview, art, and others. However, the owners of these cultures forget that they have that notion in their life. Thus, in many conflict issues, people in conflict within a particular culture often seek a third party to be a mediator. In this article, the researcher describes a case study of a peaceful life in a village in West Java, Indonesia, named Desa Kertajaya. The researcher observed that some aspects supporting the harmonious life in Desa Kertajaya bear similarity with the facets of peace found in either the Qur’ān, the Bible, or the Sundanese culture. The researcher collected the data for this study through participant observation and two types of interviews - semi-structured and unstructured interviews. The researcher used the data to develop a case study that involved thirteen Sundanese from Desa Kertajaya. The semi-structured interview included five questions that serve as a guide.

Keywords: Peace, Qur’an, Bible, Muslims, Christians