Politicians have an essential role in preserving the unity of a nation by working for the common good and promoting cooperation when “the exasperation of contrasts” threatens to divide a country, Pope Francis has told Indonesia’s leaders.
National unity “is a work of craftsmanship entrusted to everyone, but in a special way to those in political life, who should strive toward harmony, equity, respect for the fundamental rights of human beings, sustainable development, solidarity and the pursuit of peace, both within society and with other peoples and nations,” the pope said.
Seeming well-rested after a 13-hour flight brought him to Jakarta the previous morning, Pope Francis inserted several impromptu comments into his prepared text, including a criticism of Indonesia’s decades’ long efforts to convince families to use contraceptives and have no more than two children.
Pope Francis impressed Indonesians on day one of his apostolic visit to their country with his insistence on travelling simply, opting for an ordinary car and turning down the offer of star-rated accommodation, UCA News reported.
The pope arrived via a commercial flight at Jakarta airport on 3 September for the beginning of the 12-day visit that will also take him to Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Singapore.
Cardinal Ignatius Suharyo Hardiarmodjo of Jakarta said the pope insisted on using a car “that is widely used by the public.”
Also praising the pontiff as “worth emulating” for his humble mode of transport was Indonesia’s religious affairs minister, Yaqut Cholil Qoumas, while Haedar Nasir, chairman of Muhammadiyah, Indonesia’s second-largest Muslim organisation said the pope showed an “example for national leaders.”
On embarking from his 13-hour flight from Rome, Pope Francis was greeted by the minister and two children in traditional dress who offered him flowers.
He was scheduled to take the remainder of the day to rest and try to get used to the five-hour time difference between Rome and Jakarta, but instead visited with migrants and refugees assisted by Jesuit Refugee Service, orphans cared for by Dominican sisters and elderly and sick people assisted by the Community of Sant’Egidio.
The visit on 3 September took place at the apostolic nunciature where the pope is staying while in Indonesia.
Pope Francis is the third pope to visit Indonesia after Pope Paul VI in December 1970 and Pope John Paul II in October 1989.
Matteo Bruni, director of the Vatican press office, told reporters to expect Pope Francis to talk in Indonesia about the importance of fidelity to preserving the unity in diversity enshrined in the country’s constitution.
While Indonesia has the largest Muslim population of any country in the world, it also is home to Catholics and other Christians, Buddhists and Hindus. The country also boasts of having more than 300 ethnic groups with dozens of languages.
The pope’s schedule includes an interreligious meeting at Southeast Asia’s largest mosque as well as opportunities to meet with the nation’s Catholics and to visit some of the social and charitable works they carry out in Jesus’ name.
In Indonesia, like the three other island-nations on the trip—Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Singapore—care for the environment is also expected to be a key theme, Bruni told reporters on 30 August.
In fact, Indonesia is in the process of building a new capital city, Nusantara, because Jakarta is sinking below sea level from the excessive withdrawal and use of groundwater to meet the needs of its growing population.
With additional reporting