Indonesia: “Pope Francis’s visit showed us the meaning of simplicity”

An Indonesian priest recalls how Pope Francis’s visit to his country, where Christians are a small but vibrant minority, illustrates his legacy as a Pope of simplicity, close to the peripheries of the Church.  

Pope Francis’s visit to Asia and Oceania in September 2024 remains a symbol of his concern with the peripheries and with Christian communities, however small they might be. At the time, Francis visited East Timor and Papua New Guinea, which are mostly Christian, but also Indonesia, which is the largest Muslim country in the world, in demographic terms.

According to Father Jack Umbu Warata, provincial of the Redemptorist Fathers in Indonesia, Indonesian authorities and civil society were enthralled by the Pope’s visit. They were struck by his simplicity, the priest told Aid to the Church in Need (ACN).  

“Many of my fellow Redemptorists work in very simple parishes. Some are very difficult, but his visit showed us the meaning of simplicity. In Indonesia, people were talking about the fact [that] his watch costs eight dollars, and about how the Pope gives us an example of living in simplicity,” the priest said, during a visit to ACN International’s headquarters in Germany. 

There are only 7 million Christians in Indonesia, out of a population of 280 million, and although there are problems in some regions, Father Jack says that the overall atmosphere is positive. “In several places, like in Aceh, it is very difficult for Christians, because they have Shariah rule. But in general, over 80 percent of the Muslims are very tolerant. That is why dialogue in Indonesia is so important. The Catholic Church tries to have dialogue with our Muslim brothers, and during the Pope’s visit, there was also dialogue. A very good example is the friendship tunnel, which links the Istiqlal Mosque, the largest in southeast Asia, and the Catholic Cathedral across the road. They built it to show that in Indonesia, dialogue and harmony are so important.” 

Besides focusing on interreligious dialogue, the Pope’s visit also gave the Indonesian Church strength to face the challenges before it, Father Jack believes. “One of the priorities is poverty. In many places, there is poverty, and many Catholics live in poverty. So, we try to preach the Good News, but since the priests and sisters have a voice in society, and the people listen, we also try to tell people how they can improve their living conditions. The second challenge is education, and the third is improving our formation, to help people grow in faith.” 

“We understand the meaning of new missions” 

Indonesia is an archipelago of over 17,000 islands. Although most of the population is Muslim, there are some islands that are majority Christian, especially in the east. Flores, evangelized by the Portuguese in the 16th century, boasts the world’s largest seminary, but Sumba, from where Father Jack hails, had only a small number of Catholics until the mid-20th century. 

“My father is Catholic, and my mother is Protestant, but my grandparents practiced traditional religions. When I was a child, in 1957, the Redemptorists came to our village to preach the Good News. At that time, we [had] 10,000 Catholics, but after 60 years, we have 250,000 Catholics out of a population of 800,000.” 

The result, says Father Jack, is that Indonesia has become a missionary Church. “We understand the meaning of new missions. A long time ago, the Europeans came to us, but now, the priests from Indonesia are going to Europe. In my congregation, we have 45 Indonesian Redemptorists in nine different countries. Mission has a new face! For 60 years, you gave us missionaries, and now, we are giving back many priests to work for the missions,” he says.  

“We have over 80 students at our major seminary in Java, 18 in the novitiate, and 24 postulants. And this is just Redemptorists! So we are not afraid of a lack of vocations,” the provincial explains.  

But although Indonesia may be rich in vocations, it needs help from friends and partners, such as ACN, to make sure that seminarians get the best education they can. “ACN helps with ongoing formation for our seminarians and priests. Without ACN, there are many things that we would not be able to do! When Pope Francis visited, ten of our priests flew to Jakarta and were able to greet the Pope personally. Some of them had just finished their formation, thanks to ACN,” Father Jack says.  

ACN funds many projects in Indonesia, including the construction of a guesthouse for the Redemptorists in Sumba, so they can welcome visitors more comfortably.