Din Syamsuddin was elected to be Chairperson of the Indonesia Ulema Council (MUI) on February 18, 2014. He replaces the late KH Sahal Mahfud who passed away on January 24, 2014.

Graduate of the famous Gontor Islamic Boarding School in Ponorogo, he earned both his Master’s and Ph.D. in Islamic Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles under the sponsorship of the Fulbright program.

He has been Chairperson of Muhammadiyah Central Board since July 2005. He is also Professor at Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University in Jakarta.

In November 2013, he was appointed as co-President, Religions for Peace Organization in the 9th World General Assembly of Religions for Peace (RfP) held in Wina, Austria in November 2013. RfP is an organization of eminent religious leaders in the world headquartered in New York. Din was elected as co-President representing the Muslims. In his speech during the Assembly, Din invited the world religious leaders to transform the conflict energy into an energy encompassing cooperation and unity. Further, he called all to emphasize the similarities rather than the differences among religions. “Religions, in spite of their fundamental theological differences, have a common take on humanity,” Din stated.