Joy and gratitude filled St Anthony Church in Kotabaru, Yogyakarta as eight Jesuits were ordained to the priesthood on 19 August. Despite the small number of people in attendance, among them the family members of the ordained, many were able to share in the joy of the celebration through a live stream of the Mass.

Most Rev Robertus Rubiyatmoko, Archbishop of Semarang, presided at the ordination with Indonesian Provincial, Fr Benedictus Hari Juliawan SJ, and Rector of St Ignatius College, Fr Ignatius Aria Dewanto SJ, concelebrating.

In his homily, Archbishop Rubiyatmoko said: “We are called to be men of prayer, men of evangelisation, and men of the church.” The theme of the ordination, “Sharing the grace and love of God with joy”, resonated in the eagerness of the newly ordained to give witness to a faith that is lived through action in the service of our Lord.

Besides the live stream, the province also did several things on social media, including posting videos about the newly ordained priests and their message to young people about vocation. For the first time, too, the Province organised a Zoom meeting where people could congratulate the newly ordained. One Jesuit in Papua expressed his gratitude to be able to greet the new priests and to receive their blessing albeit online.

The new priests come from different parts of Indonesia. Fr Juprianto Bulu Toding (Jupri) is from Kalimantan, the newest mission of the Indonesian Jesuit Province. Fathers Fransiskus Pieter Dolle (Pieter), Aluisius Dian Permana (Ale), Philipus Bagus Widyawan (Wawan), and Alfonsus Ardi Jatmiko (Ardi) are from the Archdiocese of Semarang. Two of them, Fr Pieter and Fr Ale, are actually from Jesuit-run parishes. Fr Hugo Bayu Hadibowo also comes from the Jesuit-managed parish of St Anne in the Archdiocese of Jakarta. Fr Evodius Sapto Jati is from the Diocese of Pangkalpinang and Fr Martinus Dam Febrianto is from the Diocese of Lampung, both are located on Sumatra island.

For the province, the ordination is truly an occasion for joy, more so because it had been delayed for more than a year due to the pandemic. June and July this year saw record high cases of infections and fatalities from Covid-19 in Indonesia. The newly ordained priests will surely pay heed to this global concern in their prayers and future ministries. (Nikolas Kristiyanto SJ)