TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Interfaith groups welcome Pope Francis with delight
Various religious organizations in Indonesia welcome Pope Francis to Jakarta with messages of hope that the papal visit, the first in over three decades, will provide an example for interreligious harmony in the country and also the world.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Pope Francis (center, in wheelchair) waves during his arrival at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, on Sept. 3, 2024. Francis arrived in Muslim-majority Indonesia on Sept. 3 for the first stop of a four-nation tour in the Asia-Pacific that will be the longest of the 87-year-old's papacy. (AFP/Tiziana Fabi)
P
ope Francis touched down in Jakarta on Tuesday at noon to start the first leg of his much-anticipated Asia-Pacific tour, with his arrival in Indonesia, home to one of the world’s largest Muslim populations, hailed by the country’s interfaith groups as a significant move for promoting tolerance and peace.
The plane carrying the 87-year-old pontiff landed at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Tangerang, Banten, at around 11:15 a.m., bringing an entourage of 136 people, including journalists and Catholic bishops.
The trip to Jakarta, along with the other visits to Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and Singapore, will be the pope’s longest trip abroad since assuming the papacy.
Upon landing, Pope Francis received a red carpet welcome and was greeted by several Indonesian officials.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo was not at the airport, but welcomed the pope through a statement delivered several hours before the plane landed.
“On behalf of the people of Indonesia, I warmly welcome and extend my gratitude for the visit of His Holiness Pope Francis to the country,” Jokowi said.
“Indonesia and the Vatican share the same commitment to nurturing peace and brotherhood, as well as welfare for humanity,” added the President, who is scheduled to welcome Francis in a ceremony at the State Palace in Jakarta on Wednesday.
