In celebration of the 88th birthday of Jesuit cardinal and Archbishop Emeritus of Semarang and Jakarta, Julius Cardinal Darmaatmadja, the Indonesian Province held a special event, called 88+, where Jesuits and companions each ran or walked a distance of 88 kilometers from 27 November to 20 December, the 88th birthday of Cardinal Darmaatmadja.
Some 144 Jesuits and companions aged 21 to 88 in Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, Pakistan, Vietnam, South Korea, Cambodia, and Kenya covered a total distance of 12,702 kilometres, which set a new record for global Jesuit fun runs. Jesuit Conference of Asia Pacific President, Fr Tony Moreno SJ, and several international marathoners were seen among the participants.
On the last day, around a hundred people, mostly Jesuits from Semarang, Jakarta, and Surakarta gathered in Girisonta to run 8.8 kilometres through villages around the Stanislaus College compound. Afterwards, they celebrated His Eminence’s birthday and received a blessing from him. As a gift to the people, Cardinal Darmaatmadja launched his book, Umat Katolik Memuliakan Manusia (Catholics exalting others).
The funds raised from the event are directed to the formation of Jesuit scholastics from Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Pakistan. Total donations reached IDR 2.1 billion (more than US$133,000). Cardinal Darmaatmadja admired the enthusiasm of the young participants. He said he wants to encourage “vocation regeneration” and hopes that through the “special gift” that was raised, more young Indonesians will join the Society.
Parallel to the 88+ fun run was a month-long virtual retreat dubbed, In Nomine Jesu, a motto which Cardinal Darmaatmadja holds firmly in his life. [Indonesian Province Communication Team]