INDONESIA Pope Francis’ Mass at Jakarta Stadium: “Dare to have hope”

In front of thousands of people gathered at two nearby sports facilities, the Pope invited the local Church to “go out to sea.” “The Word of the Lord cannot remain a nice abstract idea; it asks us to change our outlook, our bad habits, our fears and our mediocrity.” Tomorrow morning will see the farewell from Indonesia and the departure for Papua New Guinea.

Jakarta () – “Do not tire of setting sail, do not tire of casting nets, do not tire of dreaming and of continuing to build a civilization of peace,” Pope Francis told the Indonesian Catholic community gathered in Jakarta this evening for the solemn Eucharistic liturgy, the culminating moment of his visit to the country.

In total, around 100,000 faithful gathered at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium and at the nearby Madya A Stadium (which the Pope also visited in the Popemobile before the Mass, accompanied by Cardinal Suharyo), while thousands more followed the celebration via streaming in their parishes. Indonesian President Joko Widodo, as promised, also wanted to be present at the most important moment for the Catholic community, which is the last public moment before the farewell ceremony that will take place tomorrow morning at Sukarno-Hatta airport and the departure for Papua New Guinea, the second stage of this trip.

Drawing on the passage from Luke’s Gospel in which Jesus encourages Peter to set sail again after an unsuccessful night and catch a large number of fish (Lk 5:1-16), Francis invited the Indonesian Church to take the risk of betting on the Word of Jesus, which “cannot remain a nice abstract idea, or awaken only the emotion of the moment – he said – but asks us to change our way of looking at things, to let our hearts be transformed into the image of Christ. We too, brothers and sisters, with the burning power of his Word, the Lord asks us to go out into the deep, moving away from the swampy shores of bad habits, fears and mediocrity, in order to dare to undertake a new life”.

Francis urged above all not to be discouraged by difficulties and recalled a phrase from St. Teresa of Calcutta, whose liturgical feast is today: “When we have nothing to give, let us give that nothing. And remember: even if you reap nothing, never tire of sowing.” “Always dare to dream of fraternity, which is a true treasure among you,” said the Pontiff to Indonesian Catholics. “With the Word of the Lord, I encourage you to sow love, to confidently walk the path of dialogue, to continue to show your goodness and kindness with the smile that characterizes you. Have you been told that you are a smiling people? Please, do not lose your smile and continue forward. And be builders of peace. Be builders of hope.”

This morning, at the headquarters of the Episcopal Conference, after his visit to the mosque, the pontiff met privately with a group of sick, disabled and poor people assisted by various charities. Among them was Mikail Andrew Nathaniel, an 18-year-old boy who suffers from an autism spectrum disorder, who recounted with joy that he had been selected to take part in the local Paralympic swimming games. Pope Francis congratulated him and invited everyone to become “champions of love in the great Olympics of life.”

“We all need each other, and that is not a bad thing,” he added. “In fact, it helps us to understand ever better that love is the most important thing in our existence, to realize how many good people there are around us. It also reminds us how much the Lord loves us all, beyond any limit or difficulty. Each one of us is unique in his eyes, in the eyes of the Lord, and He never forgets us, ever. Let us remember this to keep our hope alive and to commit ourselves too, without ever tiring, to making our lives a gift for others.”