October is the month of the Rosary. During this month, Indonesian Catholics usually make pilgrimages to Marian shrines, taking their time to make a retreat, give thanks, and ask for grace. However, this year, given the pandemic, pilgrims are unable to travel freely and many feel “homesick” for a pilgrimage, especially to Marian caves.
To answer this longing, the association of religious orders in Indonesia called Kopi Manis Koptari collaborated with Catholic youth to hold a Zoom pilgrimage to Marian shrines in four islands in Indonesia: Java, Sumatra, Kalimantan, and Sulawesi. The virtual pilgrimage involved many religious orders, including young Jesuits as well as Catholic youth spread across Indonesia.
In the first week, nearly 40 participants from various cities joined the online pilgrimage to four Marian caves on Java island. Two Jesuit scholastics acted as hosts and guides during the Ignatian contemplation. One participant said he was deeply touched by the prayer. Besides the Rosary, he did not think one could pray to Our Lady in the form of encounter, contemplation, and dialogue. Through their experience, we saw how young people had a deep desire for spiritual things.
Apart from visiting Marian caves and praying, the virtual pilgrimage also included an introduction to interesting places around the Marian sites. One of these is Girisonta, a Jesuit complex that houses the Novitiate, retreat house, and cemetery in Ungaran, Central Java. The organisers tried their best to make the virtual pilgrimage feel as real as possible through vivid images and descriptions that produced the impression of visiting the sites without actually being there.
For the Jesuits, the virtual pilgrimage was a form of accompanying and walking with the youth by showing them the way to God. It was a confirmation that one could still be with the other even through a virtual encounter. Conducting it online did not diminish the truth and meaning of the journey and process. Especially during this pandemic, we have to be increasingly willing to walk with young people who are thirsty and longing for a spiritual life.
Septian Marhenanto SJ is a second year Regent working full-time in the Indonesian Province’s communication apostolate.