Sea of lights: People light candles during Christmas Celebration at the GPIB Immanuel Protestant Church in Central Jakarta, on Thursday.(JP/DON)" height="341" border="0" width="512">Sea of lights: People light candles during Christmas Celebration at the GPIB Immanuel Protestant Church in Central Jakarta, on Thursday.(JP/DON)Once again, it was the time to spot Christmas trees, decorations and Santa Claus at many malls, hotels and homes. It was also the time to exchange gifts and greetings with friends and families. People outside Indonesia may not be aware of how Christmas is celebrated in the worldâs largest Muslim-majority country; it is just like it is in most other countries in the world. Christians in Indonesia celebrated their biggest festival on Friday with great joy and in a peaceful environment. Millions of people took advantage of the long holiday to travel to tourist spots.
Although intolerance is on the rise in some places, overall Indonesia celebrated Idul Fitri, Nyepi, and Christmas peacefully this year, as in most years. This is due mainly to Pancasila, the state ideology, which promotes religious freedom and tolerance. Indeed, pluralism and religious tolerance are the hallmarks of Indonesian society.
Credit is due to President Joko âJokowi âWidodoâs administration, the National Police and the Indonesian Military (TNI) for making all the arrangements and taking sufficient measures to ensure a peaceful celebration of all religious festivals this year. In a friendly gesture, Istiqlal Grand Mosque in Jakarta allowed Christians to use its parking space on Christmas Day. Many Muslim youth organizations volunteered to protect churches across the country at Christmas.
Of late, some radical elements, who are small in number, have sought to destroy religious harmony by sowing the seeds of hatred in the name of religion. However, the majority of people remain tolerant and moderate as far as religion is concerned.
Many foreigners know little about Indonesian society or its people, who embrace most of the major religions known to mankind. We have hundreds of ethnic groups, who speak numerous languages and embrace different religions, but all Indonesians are one. This diversity has become Indonesiaâs strength, as enshrined in the national motto Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity).
Merry Christmas.
Surprise gifts: Two Muslim babies receive Christmas gifts from Santa Claus on board a local train in Jakarta, on Friday. Indonesian railway company PT KAI decorated all its trains with a âWhite Christmasâ theme in Jakarta.(JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)
Merry moment: Members of the Catholic Youth Association (OMK) acting as Joseph and Mary bring Jesus Christ to the Christmas cave at the Santo Petrus Kanisius Catholic Church in Wonosari, Yogyakarta, on Thursday night. People came to the church dressed in Javanese attire and Javanese gamelan music filled the air. The Javanese language was used as the main language during the celebrations in the Church on the night before Christmas.(JP/P.J. Leo)
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span class="inline inline-center">Sea of lights: People light candles during Christmas Celebration at the GPIB Immanuel Protestant Church in Central Jakarta, on Thursday.(JP/DON)
Once again, it was the time to spot Christmas trees, decorations and Santa Claus at many malls, hotels and homes. It was also the time to exchange gifts and greetings with friends and families. People outside Indonesia may not be aware of how Christmas is celebrated in the world's largest Muslim-majority country; it is just like it is in most other countries in the world. Christians in Indonesia celebrated their biggest festival on Friday with great joy and in a peaceful environment. Millions of people took advantage of the long holiday to travel to tourist spots.
Although intolerance is on the rise in some places, overall Indonesia celebrated Idul Fitri, Nyepi, and Christmas peacefully this year, as in most years. This is due mainly to Pancasila, the state ideology, which promotes religious freedom and tolerance. Indeed, pluralism and religious tolerance are the hallmarks of Indonesian society.
Credit is due to President Joko 'Jokowi 'Widodo's administration, the National Police and the Indonesian Military (TNI) for making all the arrangements and taking sufficient measures to ensure a peaceful celebration of all religious festivals this year. In a friendly gesture, Istiqlal Grand Mosque in Jakarta allowed Christians to use its parking space on Christmas Day. Many Muslim youth organizations volunteered to protect churches across the country at Christmas.
Of late, some radical elements, who are small in number, have sought to destroy religious harmony by sowing the seeds of hatred in the name of religion. However, the majority of people remain tolerant and moderate as far as religion is concerned.
Many foreigners know little about Indonesian society or its people, who embrace most of the major religions known to mankind. We have hundreds of ethnic groups, who speak numerous languages and embrace different religions, but all Indonesians are one. This diversity has become Indonesia's strength, as enshrined in the national motto Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity).
Merry Christmas.
Surprise gifts: Two Muslim babies receive Christmas gifts from Santa Claus on board a local train in Jakarta, on Friday. Indonesian railway company PT KAI decorated all its trains with a 'White Christmas' theme in Jakarta.(JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)
Merry moment: Members of the Catholic Youth Association (OMK) acting as Joseph and Mary bring Jesus Christ to the Christmas cave at the Santo Petrus Kanisius Catholic Church in Wonosari, Yogyakarta, on Thursday night. People came to the church dressed in Javanese attire and Javanese gamelan music filled the air. The Javanese language was used as the main language during the celebrations in the Church on the night before Christmas.(JP/P.J. Leo)
Symbol of pluralism: A Muslim woman (right) conveys her greetings to her Christian friend during Christmas celebrations in Gorontalo, on Friday. Christians constitute only 2 percent of the population in Gorontalo province. Both majority-Muslim and Christian communities live in harmony in Gorontalo.(JP/Syamsul Huda Suhari)