C

hristians the world over, including Indonesia, celebrated Christmas Day on Dec. 25. Most of them went to church on Christmas Eve as well as the next morning for mass.

Despite fears that Christmas celebrations would be disrupted by fringe groups on the outskirts of the capital Jakarta, and fears over possible terror attacks - similar to those in 2000 - the celebrations went ahead smoothly and peacefully.

Police officers maintained tight security around churches to head off possible attacks.

Archbishop Julius Darmaatmadja called on Catholics to respect other people regardless of ethnicity, religion or social status.

"This message is the right one for developing Indonesia in the spirit of pluralism," he said in his sermon.

Many people also spent Christmas Day with family and friends.

Since this year's Christmas fell on a Friday, many revelers also used the occasion to flock to tourist resorts. Long traffic lines formed in the Puncak area, south of Jakarta, as well as at the Ancol theme park in North Jakarta.