A respected leader of the 40-million strong Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Gus Said welcomed LibForAll CEO C. Holland Taylor (left) and Programs Director Dr. Ravi Krishnamurthy (center) to the event, which was held in Gus Said's boarding school.  Younger brother to the renowned K.H. Mustofa Bisri, Gus Said heads the NU's Magelang chapter in Central Java, where the organization has millions of followers.

Those in attendance included celebrated kyais (religious leaders) from throughout Java (seated, right), including the head of the Nahdlatul Ulama for East Java, Kyai Haji Dr. Ali Machsan Moesa (delivering speech, below).

Dr. Ali Machsan used a down-to-earth and humorous approach to warn NU members against the dangerous spread of extremist ideology.  He described the true purpose of Islam as "the safekeeping of humanity and nature," and condemned those who cry "Allahu Akbar!" ("God is great!") while killing others or destroying their property.  He called on listeners to return to the true teachings of Islam practiced by their Javanese ancestors, which entailed non-violence and respect for others' beliefs. 

He warned against "religious liars" who seek to spread a doctrine of hatred and intolerance, calling them "ignorant of Islam" and "full of false certainty as to its teachings."

Dr. Ali Machsan concluded his speech with a stirring call to "return to our original beliefs, and be careful of those who come spreading hatred."

The renowned NU leader described God's greatest blessings as a life "free of anxiety, free of suffering, and free of fear," and advised listeners how to achieve this state of grace, by following the path of sincerity, simplicity and moderation.

Gus Mus advised his listeners to reject extremist ideology and embrace the traditional NU teaching of religious moderation and tolerance.

"Rather than hate or kill those who disagree with us, or fail to understand religion as we do," Muslims should recognize differences as God's will and embrace all humanity.

Following the event, Gus Mus and LibForAll CEO Holland Taylor discussed plans to expand the Grassroots Pluralist Network project, and produce an educational curriculum that will promote a pluralistic and tolerant understanding of Islam.  Project deliverables will include 30 videos (derived from events held throughout Indonesia, such as this one in Wonosari), suitable for distribution to Indonesia's 14,000 Islamic boarding schools and broadcast on national television.