The Indonesian Province of the Society of Jesus rejoiced with eight of their men who pronounced their Final Vows on two separate occasions.
At the start of the year, 1 January, on the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, five Jesuits said their Final Vows at the Church of St Anthony of Padua in Surakarta. They are Fr Elias Ambirat Duhkito SJ, Associate Parish Priest of the Church of St Isidore’s in Sukorejo; Fr Agustinus Budi Nugroho SJ, Associate Parish Priest of the Church of St Josef in Ambarawa; Fr Heribertus Dwi Kristanto SJ and Fr Fransiskus Wawan Setyadi SJ, both Lecturers at the Driyarkara Philosophy School in Jakarta; and Fr Ignatius Windar Santoso SJ, Province Archivist based in Semarang.
At the beginning of the Mass, Indonesian Provincial Fr Benny Hari Juliawan SJ remembered Fr Stefanus Bagus Aris Rudiyanto SJ, who was supposed to pronounce his Final Vows, but had died suddenly on 1 October 2020. A picture of Fr Bagus Aris was placed near the altar to remind the congregation of his continued presence.
In his homily, Fr Juliawan said that the Final Vows are not limitations, but an empowering force for members of the Society of Jesus to keep moving forward. They liberate Jesuits to be free from (1) the will for power (obedience); (2) attachment to property (poverty); and (3) unhealthy relationships (chastity).
A month later, on 2 February, Feast of the Presentation of the Lord and World Day of Consecrated Life, three more Jesuits pronounced their Final Vows at the Chapel of St Ignatius Loyola in Semarang: Fr Antonius Vico Christiawan SJ, Principal of Loyola College Senior High School in Semarang; Fr Yosef Andi Purwono SJ, Formation Staff of Wacana Bhakti Minor Seminary in Jakarta; and Br Ignatius Ulrig Jumeno SJ, Minister in the Community of Le Cocq d’Armandville College, in Nabire, Papua.
The occasion of the Final Vows is an important moment of decision for a Jesuit regarding his future, said Fr Juliawan, adding that by pronouncing their vows, they receive sufficient grace to be courageous in dedicating their lives to God.
Scholastic Tomas Becket Pramudita SJ is in his third year of philosophy studies in Sekolah Tinggi Filsafat Driyarkara in Jakarta