During his apostolic visit to Indonesia, Fr General Arturo Sosa presided over the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Emmaus House in Girisonta, Ungaran. The event held on 31 July marked the beginning of a 15-month construction project that will provide a state-of-the-art wellness and care facility for the ageing members of the Indonesian Province.
These Jesuits have spent decades serving the Church, the Society, and the people of Indonesia as educators, pastors, missionaries, and spiritual guides. Now, as they enter their twilight years, they are being given a new home that reflects the same dignity and care they have so generously offered to others.
As of 2023, the Indonesian Province recorded 77 Jesuits aged 65 and above, comprising a significant portion of the province’s membership that continues to grow each year. The existing Emmaus House, inaugurated on 7 August 1973, by Fr Antonius Soenarja SJ, then Provincial Superior, has served the community for over five decades. However, with only 18 rooms and deteriorating infrastructure, it is no longer sufficient to meet the needs of the province’s senior members. Today, the median age of the nine residents at Emmaus is 79. Among them is His Eminence Julius Cardinal Darmaatmadja SJ, Archbishop Emeritus of Jakarta, who, at 92 years old, is the oldest. The youngest resident is 75. These are men who have given their entire lives to the mission, from pastoral work in parishes to leadership in education and Church governance.
The new Emmaus facility will be built on 2,500 square metres of land, featuring 25 to 30 rooms designed with accessibility and comfort at their core. The architects have drawn from years of practical experience at the existing house, where residents and staff identified key challenges. One significant issue in the older building is that the bathroom doors in the original section are too narrow to accommodate wheelchairs. This lesson has been carried forward: the new rooms will feature larger doorways, and bathrooms will have two entrances, one from inside and one from outside, to ensure that carers can assist a resident in case of an emergency.
The new Emmaus House will also include wellness facilities such as a hydrotherapy pool specifically designed for herniated nucleus pulposus (HNP) patients and a dedicated exercise room. These additions reflect the Jesuit commitment to caring for the whole person, cura personalis, extending even into the final decades of life.
Currently, the residents of Emmaus are supported by a dedicated team of two nurses, five nursing assistants, two housekeeping staff, and a Franciscan nun from Ordo Sancti Francisci (OSF) with a nursing background. The community also benefits from a partnership with St Elisabeth Hospital in Semarang, which provides home care services and routine blood testing every three months. A Jesuit minister and sub-minister assist in accompanying their elder brothers.
Fr General Sosa’s presence at the groundbreaking ceremony underscored the significance of this project. It highlighted the Society’s dual commitment: reaching out to serve others while also caring for her own.
The new building will not replace the old one entirely. The existing rooms will remain available for guests or Jesuits seeking a quiet retreat, ensuring that the Emmaus campus continues to serve the broader community.
