Asia

INDONESIA Joko Widodo visited a church to greet Christmas

The Indonesian president visited for the first time and without prior notice the Bogor Cathedral, which is located a few hundred meters from the residence where he spends weekends. “Let’s promote tolerance together,” he told the faithful present at the first Christmas mass. In the province of Banten, a group of moderate Muslims brought flowers to the faithful of a parish church that had to wait 32 years to be built.

Jakarta () – Indonesian President Joko Widodo visited the Cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Bogor, in the East Java province, for Christmas. It was a gesture in keeping with the spirit of tolerance among religious communities that the Indonesian Ministry of Religious Affairs also promoted on these holidays.

Joko Widodo arrived at the church without warning, approached the altar and greeted the faithful at the end of the first Christmas mass. “This is the first time that the President of Indonesia has come to visit us and entered the church,” explains the Vicar General of the Diocese of Bogor, Fr. Yohanes Suparto. Every weekend Joko Widodo spends the whole day at the Bogor State Palace, which is only 500 meters from the cathedral.

To the thousands of faithful who attended the mass, the president said that “our Catholic compatriots also collaborate in the commitment to guarantee harmony in our society. Let us together promote tolerant relations with all social groups to strengthen our national unity. Merry Christmas to everyone”.

“The President’s Christmas greetings – commented the priests who were in the cathedral – has been a very strong message for us. It really has been an exceptional ‘gift’ this Christmas.”

A similar surprise was experienced by the faithful who attended the evening mass on Christmas Day in the parish church of Santa Bernadette Pinang, in Tangerang, in the province of Banten. Dozens of activists from the GusDurian Islamic movement – both men and women in hijabs – came up the aisle to bring their Christmas greetings.

The GusDurians are linked to the late President Abdurrahman Wahid or Gus Dur, an interfaith figure symbolic of the nation, who fought to ensure the safety of religious minorities and advocate tolerance in society. The group of Muslims brought flowers to the priests and choir members. The gesture was also particularly significant because the St. Bernadette Pinang community had to wait 32 years to be able to build their own church. To date only 80% of the building has been completed.



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