Pope Francis, the spiritual leader to the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics (of which about 6.4 million are Indonesia), is planning to visit Indonesia next year. The trip is being planned to coincide with the 7th Asian Youth Day, the largest Catholic youth conference in Asia which is taking place in Semarang, Central Java, in July 2017 and is expected to draw thousands of young Catholics from across the region to Indonesia.
“We are currently discussing with the Vatican and the Pope is pleased to be coming to Indonesia. If he cannot come to Semarang, there is a possibility (the Pope will come) to the Indonesia Youth Day held in Manado. His presence here will be very meaningful,” said Father Aloysius Budi Purnomo, chairman of the Commission for Inter-Religious Relations and Trust at the Semarang Archdiocese on Monday as quoted by MetroTV.
According to Father Aloysius, Pope Francis is planning to visit a number of prominent religious sites in Indonesia, including Borobudur and the Keraton in Yogyakarta.
The news of Pope Francis’ plans to come to Indonesia were also confirmed by the Indonesian ambassador to the Vatican, Antonius Agus Sriyono, last week.
However, Father Aloysius said that the plans for the Pope’s travel plans were not yet totally confirmed, as state protocols and security matters first had to be taken into consideration.
This will not be the first time a Pope will have visited Indonesia. Pope John Paul II visited Indonesia in 1989.
