JAKARTA – Coinciding with the historic moment of Pope Francis’s Apostolic Visit to Indonesia, the Indonesian Bishops’ Conference (KWI) in collaboration with PT Pos Indonesia has launched a special stamp themed “Pope Francis’s Visit to Indonesia.”
“The issuance of the Pope Francis Visit to Indonesia stamp is a great honor for the Catholic Church, especially the Catholic Church in Indonesia,” said the Archbishop of Jakarta, Mgr Ignatius Cardinal Suharyo, during the Launching of the Pope Francis Visit to Indonesia Stamp event at the Cathedral in Jakarta, on Monday (September 2, 2024).
Cardinal Suharyo hopes that with the issuance of this special stamp, it will be distributed across the entire country, along with the message behind the stamp.
“We hope that not only the stamp itself will spread, but also the message behind it, which is the government’s presence in the development of the Catholic Church in Indonesia. This supports the presence of Pope Francis as the leader of the Catholic Church, marking the third such visit in history,” explained Cardinal Suharyo.
Furthermore, Cardinal Suharyo expressed that Pope Francis’s visit could foster individuals who grow stronger in faith. “The hope is that we all grow to become individuals with stronger faith. This is a hallmark of the Indonesian nation, and the fruit of this is fraternity, which is not only a highly valued but also a noble value in national life. We all hope that this dynamic leads to compassion, not just theoretical or conceptual fraternity, but fraternity that truly moves into concrete actions, bringing us closer to our nation’s aspirations of independence,” he said.
Preparations Almost 100% Complete
On the same occasion, the Chairman of the Pope Francis Visit Committee in Indonesia, Ignasius Jonan, stated that the Holy Father Pope Francis is scheduled to arrive in Jakarta on Tuesday (September 3, 2024), and the preparations are almost 100% ready.
“Everything is fully prepared, only a few small details remain that we need to combine and adjust. We are certainly grateful and thank all parties who have participated in these preparations, especially our friends from the government, related agencies, the TNI-Polri, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Religious Affairs, and other ministries that have also taken part in preparing for the Pope’s arrival. For instance, the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (Kemkominfo) took part in issuing the stamp in collaboration with the Indonesian Bishops’ Conference,” said Jonan.
Lastly, Jonan expressed his gratitude and asked for the prayers of all the people so that everything goes smoothly.
“Thank you for all forms of support, whether related to permits, financial support from various parties, spiritual support, and also the media friends who have taken part in enlivening Pope Francis’s arrival. It is truly extraordinary that around 800 media outlets have registered to be involved in this event,” he concluded. (*)
Membantu para Waligereja mewujudkan masyarakat Indonesia yang beriman, menghayati nilai-nilai universal, serta mampu menggunakan media komunikasi secara bertanggung jawab demi terciptanya persaudaraan sejati dan kemajuan bersama.
