Religious or Consumptive? Rereading the Piety of Urban Muslim Youth in Indonesia
Keywords:
urban Muslim youth, modernity, piety, commodification of religion, IndonesiaAbstract
The Islamic resurgence in Indonesia has driven significant changes in religious expression, particularly among urban Muslim youth. Amidst the currents of modernity, globalization, and digital media development, piety is no longer confined to private practices but appears as a public identity intertwined with popular culture and consumer logic. This research addresses the question of how urban Muslim youth negotiate their religious identity between modernity, piety, and the commodification of religion. Employing a qualitative‑descriptive approach with library research method, this study analyzes academic literature, scholarly articles, and relevant popular sources. The findings reveal that the piety of urban Muslim youth is a dynamic process negotiated through interaction with social media, popular culture, and capitalism. Phenomena such as hijrah (religious migration), Muslim communities, and da’wah influencers demonstrate that piety has become part of a hybrid urban lifestyle. On one hand, this reflects increased religious awareness; on the other, it also shows a tendency toward the commodification of religion, where Islamic symbols are produced and consumed within market frameworks. Thus, the religiosity of urban Muslim youth in Indonesia is fluid, adaptive, and continuously evolving in response to the dynamics of modernity.
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