Pope Francis Arrives in Indonesia for Historic Visit

Pope Francis arrived in Indonesia on Tuesday, marking the beginning of a significant 12-day journey that includes stops in Papua New Guinea, East Timor, and Singapore. This visit is particularly notable as it makes Francis the third pope to visit the world’s largest Muslim-majority country, following Pope Paul VI and Pope John Paul II.

Upon arrival at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta airport, the 87-year-old pontiff was welcomed and greeted by Indonesia’s religious affairs minister and various bishops before heading to the Vatican Embassy, where he will stay throughout his visit.

The pope’s agenda includes meetings with political leaders, young people, and diplomats, according to Vatican officials.

A key event during his visit will be an interfaith meeting on Thursday at Istiqlal Mosque, Southeast Asia’s largest, where Francis will engage with representatives from six officially recognized religions in Indonesia. This meeting aims to strengthen relations between Catholics and Muslims.

This papal visit, which is held under the slogan “faith, brotherhood, compassion”, will take place for the first time after three decades and has been considered by many observers as a historic step in strengthening inter-religious relations in the region. It should be noted that in this trip, he is supposed to be a messenger of peace and friendship between world religions and dialogue instead of violence.