The Concept of 'Islam Berkemajuan' (Progressive Islam): A Conceptual Systematic Review

Abstract

This article systematically reviews how scholarship and official Muhammadiyah texts published up to 2020 conceptualize Islam Berkemajuan, commonly translated as Progressive Islam. Using a qualitative conceptual systematic review, the study synthesizes 19 analytical sources comprising fourteen journal articles, three books, and two institutional documents. The review identifies five interrelated dimensions: a normative foundation in tawhid, the Qur'an, Sunnah, and Islam as mercy; an epistemology of tajdid, ijtihad, tarjih, and the integration of religious and modern knowledge; an ethical orientation toward enlightenment, justice, moderation, emancipation, and human dignity; an institutional praxis expressed through education, healthcare, philanthropy, community da‘wa, citizenship, and humanitarian action; and a civilizational horizon linking Indonesian progress with cosmopolitan responsibility. The findings show that Islam Berkemajuan is neither a new sect nor a simple synonym for modernization. It is a Muhammadiyah religious perspective that interprets progress as the balanced advancement of spiritual, intellectual, social, and material life. Its distinctiveness lies in joining scriptural fidelity with contextual renewal and in testing theological claims through organized public benefit. The literature nevertheless reveals unresolved tensions between purification and cultural openness, textual authority and contextual reasoning, organizational ideals and uneven implementation, and the universality of the concept and its strong Muhammadiyah identity. The review proposes an integrative architecture in which normative commitments are translated through epistemic mechanisms into ethical orientations, institutional practices, and a civilizational horizon, with critical accountability and renewal operating across all levels.Islam Berkemajuan