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Pope to stop by Istiqlal Mosque during first-ever Indonesia visit
Pope Francis will become the first head of the Roman Catholic Church to visit Indonesia in 35 years when he travels to Jakarta in September, with an itinerary that includes stopping by Istiqlal Mosque.
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Pope Francis waves from the “popemobile” on April 9, 2023 amid a crowd during his tour of St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican. (AFP/Andreas Solaro)
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ope Francis is scheduled to stop by Indonesia’s largest Islamic house of worship during his first-ever visit to the country in September.
"The pope is slated to visit Indonesia from Sept. 3 to 6, during which he will visit Istiqlal Mosque on Sept. 5," Nasaruddin Umar, grand imam of the mosque in Central Jakarta, said on Monday as quoted by Kompas.com.
Indonesia is to be the first stop in the pope’s two-week Asia-Oceania tour that includes Papua New Guinea, Singapore and Timor-Leste, the Vatican announced in April.
Thomas Ulun Ismoyo from the Bishop’s Conference of Indonesia (KWI) said last week that the itinerary for Francis’ Indonesia visit was centered in Jakarta, though changes were possible.
The papal visit is organized by the Vatican Embassy in Jakarta and the Indonesian Foreign Ministry, in coordination with a special KWI committee.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo had previously invited the 87-year-old pope to the world’s largest Muslim-majority country in an effort to promote religious tolerance.
Muslims comprise around 87 percent of the population of Indonesia, with 8.5 million Catholics representing around 3 percent, according to a 2022 report by the Religious Affairs Ministry.
