>> abernethy: coming up: democracy and a religious revival in the world's largest muslim nation. >> abernethy: plus, wisconsin monks who needed business advice and the on-line marketing experts who helped them build them a $5 million a year business. >> abernethy: and, a rabbi describes the spiritual challenges of the jewish high holy days, which begin next week: ten days from rosh hoshanah to yom kippur. captioning sponsored by the lilly endowment >> abernethy: welcome. i'm bob abernethy. good to have you with us. there was divided reaction from religious leaders this week to president obama's call on congress to approve comprehensive health care reform. quoting the late senator edward kennedy, the president again called health care a moral issue. >> at stake are not just the details of policy, but fundamental principles of social justice and the character of our country. >> abernethy: liberal protestants generally endorsed the president's proposals, but the conservative family research council branded them a "government takeover" and organized a live web cast to oppose them. the u.s. catholic bishops welcomed quote, "the president's commitment to exclude federal funding of abortion." the bishops have called "affordable and accessible health care a fundamental human right." more evidence that poverty in this country has been expanding. according to new numbers from the u.s. census bureau, the nation's poverty rate rose to 13.2% in 2008-- nearly 40 million people. this is the highest level since 1997. eight years after the 9-11 terrorist attacks, americans say muslims in the u.s. continue to face significant discrimination. according to a new survey from the pew forum on religion and public life, 58% of americans said muslims are subjected to more discrimination than other religious groups. 35% believed jews were the second most likely to face a lot of discrimination. respondents said homosexuals face even more discrimination than muslims. nearly 64% of respondents said gays and lesbians face a lot of discrimination. we have a special report today about the islamic religious revival in indonesia, which has the largest muslim population of any country in the world. indonesia was a dutch colony until after world war two. then there were several authoritarian regimes until 1998, when there was a big shift to democracy. recently, there have been some terrorist attacks. but, in general, the new freedoms have led to a surge in religious observance and moderate politics that oppose extremism. fred de sam lazaro reports from jakarta. >> reporter: jakarta looks like any other modern asian capital, but here, alongside the glittering office towers, you'll also find imposing houses of worship. at the istiqlal mosque recently, about 10,000 worshipers gathered for friday noon prayer. it's part of a religious revival that's been taking place alongside a booming economy in recent decades. it is visible in mosques-and in malls. at this crowded shopping center, the most popular garment seems to be the head scarf. >> i'm here because islam tells women to wear the scarf. >> reporter: this 40-year-old accountant began covering her hair three years ago. >> i feel ashamed, because i should have been wearing it since i was young, but at least i am wearing it now. >> reporter: islam is making a comeback in indonesia along with democracy that began 10 years ago. for years after independence from the dutch in 1945, and then under decades of suharto's dictatorship, religion was officially tolerated at best. >> islam and the traditional, customary laws were regarded as being backward and primarily blamed for, you know, the defeat for many muslim countries under european rule, so that many of the earlier nationalist leaders, many of the educated elite, in fact, turned their back on religion, and among the younger generation there seems to be a greater willingness both to be openly religious and to be modern and educated at same times. i think maybe this is not just a search for greater spiritual anchor, but also i think it's greater self-confidence >> reporter: she and others say this growth of religious expression is spawned by the new democratic freedoms. it's neither fundamentalist nor militant, notwithstanding recent terrorist incidents. bombings in two jakarta hotels killed nine people last july, and a 2002 attack in the tourist haven of bali killed more than 200. but religion scholar ulil abdalla, with the liberal islamic youth association, says such extremism is not widespread. >> for some people, islam as practiced in this country is corrupted. movies and food and, you know, lifestyle and so forth, it's pretty much influenced by american cultures. so when radical islamic ideologies was introduced by some activists to indonesia, it appealed to young people, but that's, you know, the appeal is limited to a fringe in the society. it's not a predominant trend. >> reporter: the more accurate gauge, he says, is indonesia's recent election, in which secular incumbent president susilo bambang yudhoyono won easily. islamist parties, which had surged to 40% of the vote in 2004, lost ground, to less than 30%. >> some people feared that if democracy, if the democratic space is opened it will allow islamist party to dominate the arena. that is not true. >> reporter: significantly, the reaction of the islamist and other parties after the election indicates a commitment to democracy, says anies baswedan, a scholar of political islam. >> we have around 40 parties. only nine were able to gain seats in the house, yet we don't see significant problems from supporters who are not having their parties in the house. acceptance to political result, democratic result, is very important. >> reporter: he says indonesians, especially the 14% who survive on less than a dollar a day, have much more pragmatic concerns: food prices, the economy in general, and corruption. even voters who'd like to impose stricter islamic law or sharia. >> from what i understand about islamic states, the people live in prosperity, and the law is enforced very strictly. those who steal, those who are corrupt, they cut off their hand, rather than here, where people who can bribe judges and police get away with things. >> reporter: yet marta, who like many indonesians uses just one name, voted for the secular president. so did his neighbor, samsuddin, who praises a government initiative that's helped the poor. >> ( translated ): number one is cash for poor families, and the second is cheap rice. we get $10 a month in cash and 15 kilos of rice. we are a muslim family, but we are not that strict. i voted for the party that is already helping people. it doesn't matter whether it's islamic or not. >> reporter: that kind of sentiment has moved islamist parties to the center. >> people understand now, campaigning, that "we are muslims, we are an islamic party, this is a sharia platform" does not sell. people ask, "tell me what else, tell me in reality, what will you deliver beyond the slogans?" >> we don't name it sharia, because if you name it sharia people then from beginning suspicious to see. >> reporter: fahri hamzah is a member of parliament with the most successful islamist party, called prosperity and justice, which joined the ruling coalition government. although it once campaigned for islamic law and more conservative women's attire, hamzah says they are happy to govern by consensus in a liberal democratic framework. >> we are an islamic party, but what we talk about islam is islam as the universal value, because we believe every religion, you know, inspired by god. that's why we follow this direction that anti-corruption is islamic agenda, clean government is islamic agenda, you know, welfare, manage our economy, open economy, you know, liberalize our economy is one of the, you know, good agenda. >> reporter: that interpretation might well have its roots in the history of islam in this vast, diverse archipelago. >> we are used to living in differences. indonesia is composed of islands, over 17,000 islands and over 700 different ethnic groups with different languages, different cultural traditions. islam came to indonesia fairly late, from 12th century up, mostly through traders and sufi teachers. they found indonesia already very rich layers of cultures, and to be accepted a new belief, a new religion would have to adapt to local circumstances from the beginning. i think that was the case when hinduism came here and when buddhism came here and then when islam came here, when christianity also came here. >> reporter: so even though its 85% muslim today, islam here reflects indonesia's polyglot culture, readily evident in architecture, language, even in the mall scarf shops. >> we believe in indonesia that islam is more modern, more moderate. people who wear the plain dress, it's not our way. >> ( translated ): it will look strange if an indonesian woman wore that kind of plain clothes, especially nowadays. they probably think you are a terrorist's wife. >> reporter: shop owner, saleswoman, and customer told us there's no contradiction between islam and fashion, that the notion of a plainly dressed, fully covered woman is foreign. shopping here was nur inani, who was buying for customers in her own clothing business in the island of sumatra. >> mostly they are looking for clothes this long and this long, which is basically covering the butt and the arms. i look for the dress first, and then i will find the matching scarf, the color, the style. >> reporter: terrorist incidents aside, indonesia is enjoying a period of stability rarely seen in its independent history. indonesians are free to choose their government, and they are free to pursue religion, and they've made it clear in elections that they want to pursue each separately, that is, to keep religion out of government. for "religion & ethics newsweekly," this is fred de sam lazaro in jakarta. >> abernethy: controversy in egypt this week as police in the a female journalist in sudan was freed this week after being jailed for wearing pants in public. the case gained international attention. lubna hussein was found guilty of violating the country's decency laws. under islamic law, she faced a possible sentence of 40 lashes. instead, she was assessed a $200 fine, which she refused to pay, but which others paid for her. now, have you heard the one about the cistercian monks who wanted business advice? and the two colorado women who are experts at online marketing? bob faw reports from wisconsin. >> reporter: for 900 years, this has been the hallmark, indeed, the passion, of cistercian monks: prayer seven times every day. nearly five hours each day are devoted, says the superior of this abbey, to the solitary pursuit of friendship with god. >> it's really about a relationship with god, and prayer is just the word we give to the conversation and the relationship we have with the divine person. >> reporter: on nearly 600 remote acres in south central wisconsin, even private time, as when brother stephen treat walks the stations of the cross, even that time is spent, he says, lifting his mind exclusively to god. >> the main part of our business is going into that church seven times a day and praising god and praying for the safety and well- being of the world. >> reporter: even when father bernard relaxes with his spanish hotbloods allehandro and tinaco, or with the ordinary bert, there is meditation. >> theirs is about being and about awareness, and there is a quietness to them, obviously, for the most part, so they are a very contemplative presence in our life. >> reporter: the rituals, the routines here are familiar, but what sets this abbey apart is that while it keeps one foot in the 11th century, the other is firmly planted in the 21st. on the grounds nearby, with a background of gregorian chants, is a high-powered internet operation run by two laywomen which permits the abbey to flourish. >> we allow them to be what they were put on the planet to be: to be monks, to do good, to pray for the world. >> reporter: all this began seven years ago when father bernard went to buy toner for his printer. >> i said, "you know, wow, this is just way too expensive for a bunch of black dust or a few squirts of ink. there has got to be a better way." >> reporter: so in 2002, father bernard started lasermonks, selling ink and toner to charitable groups at prices far less than office supply stores. in colorado, online marketing experts cindy griffith and sarah caniglia noticed and gave father bernard a call. >> he said, come on out to wisconsin. he said, there is beer, you know, there is beer, there are brats, come on out. we're on 600 acres, and see what you think. >> reporter: sarah and cindy didn't just visit; they stayed. >> i saw an opportunity to take the monks where they needed to be and to relieve... to take a business idea, the germ of an idea which he had, and turn that vision into a success. >> it's a wonderful symbiosis that lets us use our talents, lets them use their talents, and helps us do a lot of good work. >> reporter: i gather you regard that as serendipitous? i gather you regard it almost as providential? >> both. i would call it sacred serendipity. >> reporter: now they also sell deluxe coffee, benevolent blends, with profits supporting families who pick the coffee beans-- also chocolates, creamy caramels, jams, and jellies made in other monasteries, many of78 sales last year were nearly $5 million. 80% of that was for expenses, but 10% went to fund the abbey, and the remaining 10% went to charity, from a camp for kids with h.i.v. to buddhists in tibet. >> we're a for-profit whose bottom line is to not make any profit at the end of the year, because it's all given away in some form or fashion. that's social entrepreneurism, really, at its radical best. >> reporter: their product line also includes benevolent biscuits, treats for dogs prepared in the abbey kitchen, rolled, stamped, and baked by the cistercians themselves and sampled by the abbey's quality control officer, ludwig, the abbey's doberman pinscher. here no talent is kept under a basket. what father robert keffer paints will someday be sold to help maintain the abbey. >> you work during the work hours. you stop, you go to prayer. it's a very... regimented is the wrong word, but it is a very disciplined life. so that's a little hard for the artist: oh, i've got this great inspiration. i can't stop and go pray now. >> reporter: but you have to. >> yes, you have to, and you most certainly can. >> reporter: so here there is a balance between the rigors of monasticism and the demands of the marketplace in an abbey which is both in the world and apart. >> we have cell phones. we have wi-fi. we have, you know, things like the normal world. but we know when to turn them off. >> reporter: even though that takes some getting used to, says brother stephen, who left what he says was a satisfying job for a quaker social service agency because he felt the need to do something more. >> i do miss certain things, but you would be surprised with what you replace it with. here i am in a community of six guys, and if it all works out i will spend the rest of my life with them and whoever comes after, and i will be buried on that hill. >> reporter: and for those who contend this way of life, this withdrawal from the world, is ultimately selfish, cistercians have an answer for that. >> the christian tradition understands places like this, contemplative monasteries, as these lighthouses, these beacons where people are joined together in prayer and praying on behalf of the whole world. >> reporter: theirs is a calling which appeals only to a few, but a calling which transforms those who embrace its rigors, just as being part of the community has changed a lapsed catholic and a divorced grandmother. >> personally, i think i'm more grounded, more settled, more peaceful. i mean, i was going to say the abbey has brought that kind of religious part of me that i didn't have before i came here. >> for me, it's been as much of a spiritual journey as it has all other types of journeys. it's really brought me back into the fold in a really slow, step- by-step, peaceful way. >> reporter: so here in this oasis of serenity, seven times every day the psalms, the chants will continue to echo. >> in some ways, we perch a little bit more lightly on this planet, and, you know, we have one foot firmly planted in the earth and another one off in the heavens. >> reporter: here where they live both simply and smartly, having learned, as one put it, "only those who can see the invisible can accomplish the impossible." for "religion & ethics newsweekly," this is bob faw in sparta, wisconsin. >> abernethy: last week, we had a story about catholic priest leo patalinghug who combines ministry and cooking. food network celebrity chef bobby flay had challenged father leo to a tv cook off making the priest's trademark steak fusion fajitas. this week the duel aired. father leo won. on our calendar, during this last week of the islamic month of ramadan, muslims mark the night of power, when they believe the angel gabriel revealed the first verses of the koran to the prophet mohammad. according to islamic tradition, this night is the time when god establishes the events to occur in the coming year. and the jewish high holy days, which begin next friday evening with rosh hoshana, the jewish new year, and end ten days later with yom kippur, the day of atonement, forgiveness. the process over that time is to make teshuva, repentance. our guide to the observances was rabbi irwin kula, an author and head of the national jewish center for learning and leadership in new york. >> i think one of the interesting things about rosh hashanah in general and about the high holiday period is that the celebratory aspect, which is rosh hashanah and the celebration of the new year, actually comes before the atonement focus, which is yom kippur. so you come out of rosh hashanah and say, "new year. everything's sweet. it's amazing. life is good," and then okay, well, given that, why not check out who i am? teshuva is this process over rosh hashanah and yom kippur in which we return to that place deep, deep down of who we really want to be, and so everything having to do with rosh hashanah and yom kippur, all the prayers and all the liturgical readings and all the readings from scripture and the variety of practices, whether it's blowing a shofar, or on yom kippur it's fasting and staying in the synagogue for most of the day, all of the practices are designed to help us make teshuva, return to that deepest path that we know we want to be on. there really are three basic questions that these 10 days invite us to think about. one is can i change as a human being? can i really become better? and the second question is, is forgiveness possible? can i forgive other people and can i feel forgiven? and the third question that runs through all of these days is am i accountable for my behavior? and the jewish high holy days, in the central prayer of rosh hashanah-yom kippur, "who shall live, and who shall die," in that prayer it says on rosh hashanah it is written-in other words your fate, your destiny, in a sense, is written down, is inscribed: and on yom kippur, it's sealed. our behavior does affect the nature of our life. i don't know if it affects whether we literally live or die, but it surely affects whether we live or whether we die in life. if rosh hashanah and yom kippur work, at the end of yom kippur there's a final blast. the last thing on yom kippur is a final long blast of the shofar, and at that moment i should feel two things exactly at the same time. one is i am really perfect and loved just the way i am, and i can do better, and to hold those two things together: i'm perfect and loved just as i am, and i can do better is the process of teshuva working. >> abernethy: that's our program for now. i'm bob abernethy. we have much more on our website, including more about the jewish high holy days and much more of our interview with rabbi irwin kula. audio and video podcasts are also available. join us at pbs.org. as we leave you this week cantor abraham lubin from congregation beth el in bethesda, maryland. captioning sponsored by the lilly endowment captioned by media access group at wgbh access.wgbh.org