September 2, 2024
JAKARTA – Many Catholics are eager to attend a Mass led by Pope Francis in Jakarta this week, as the pontiff brings a message of peace and interfaith harmony on his first visit to Indonesia.
Around 70,000 worshippers are expected to attend the service, to be held on Thursday at Gelora Bung Karno (GBK) Stadium in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on the third day of the Pope’s four-day trip to Indonesia.
It has been more than three decades since the last papal visit to the country, and Maria Caecilia, a 67-year-old homemaker from North Jakarta, was among those who could not wait to see the head of the Catholic Church in person.
“I never expected I would be able to attend the upcoming Mass, given my age. But now that I’ve got [a spot at the service] from my church, I feel so excited,” Maria told The Jakarta Post. “I know the Mass will be quite tough because of the heat and the crowds, but who doesn’t want to meet the Pope?”
Twenty-three-year-old writer Marshel Leonard from Depok, West Java, meanwhile, said the Pope’s visit was “a ray of hope to us in the midst of despair”, citing a tumultuous week that saw nationwide protests over a potential constitutional crisis two weeks ago.
“I am very happy to welcome the Pope. But the gloomy mood certainly still lingers, especially among the youth who last week took to the streets to protest,” Marshel said, expressing hope that the papal visit might lift their spirits.
He said he hoped Francis would deliver a message encouraging Indonesians to be more aware of politics, adding that the pontiff had previously mentioned that Catholics were supposed to live in coexistence with the political sphere.
Peace message
Bearing the theme “Faith, Togetherness and Compassion”, the Pope’s visit is expected to bring a message of unity amid differences.
“Strong faith creates true camaraderie, while true camaraderie is expressed in our compassion for others and the universe,” the Bishop’s Conference of Indonesia (KWI) said in a statement on Saturday.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who is set to meet the Pope on Wednesday at Merdeka Palace, said Francis’ visit to Indonesia would not just be religious but would also tackle global issues, “especially for peace”.
“I think this [topic] is crucial and our meeting will discuss it so that peace can prevail in all wars, whether in Gaza, Ukraine or other conflicts in several countries,” Jokowi said on Thursday during a visit to Tasikmalaya, West Java, as quoted in a release by the Cabinet Secretariat.
Thomas Ulun Ismoyo, the spokesperson for the KWI’s papal visit committee, told the Post on Friday that the visit would address new challenges that had come up in the last decades, including “humanitarian issues, such as human trafficking and poverty”, as well as climate change.
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Pope Francis is also expected to bring a message of interfaith harmony during an interreligious meeting at Istiqlal Mosque in Central Jakarta on Thursday, before his Mass begins.
Preparations set
KWI chairman Antonius Subianto Bunjamin said on Saturday that the special committee had “been working to prepare everything” for the Pope’s visit to ensure it went smoothly, in coordination with the Apostolic Nunciature, the Vatican’s embassy in Jakarta.
The special committee includes 56 core members and 107 volunteers.
The Pope will depart from Rome Fiumicino Airport in Italy on Monday evening and will arrive at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport on Tuesday. Francis will reportedly take most of the first day in Jakarta to recover from the flight.
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He is scheduled to meet outgoing President Jokowi on Wednesday and then to visit Jakarta Cathedral to meet regional bishops, priests and other church members. He is also set to hold a separate meeting with a group of young people and another with Vatican diplomats.
The pope will leave Indonesia on Friday morning to travel onward to Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore on his two-week tour.
KWI special committee head Ignasius Jonan said organizers had also prepared a health team for the Pope, as he had suffered some bouts of illness in recent years. The 87-year-old now, at times, uses a wheelchair because of knee and back pain.