Pope tells Indonesia’s small Catholic community to take risks in following Christ

JAKARTA – On his final day in Indonesia, Pope Francis celebrated Mass for the country’s minority Catholic population, telling them not to be discouraged in the face of difficulties and failure and to take risks in following Christ.

Speaking in Jakarta’s Gelora Bung Karno Stadium before a crowd estimated by the Vatican at 100,o00 people, the pope said that in the face of daily tasks and the desire to build a more just society and to advance the cause of peace and dialogue, “We can sometimes feel inadequate.”

“We sometimes feel the weight of our commitment and dedication that does not always bear fruit, or of our mistakes that seem to impede the journey we are on,” he said.

When this happens, the pontiff said, it’s important not to focus on one’s failures or mistakes, but to focus on Jesus and trust in him.

“Even when we have passed through the night of failure and times of disappointment, when we have caught nothing, we can always risk going out to sea and cast our nets again,” he said.

Pope Francis celebrated Mass Thursday, his third and final day in Jakarta, after attending an interreligious meeting at the city’s Istiqlal Mosque earlier that morning, where he signed a joint declaration with the grand imam and visited the “Tunnel of Friendship” that connects it to the Catholic cathedral across the street.

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Francis is on a lengthy Sept. 3-12 tour of southeast Asia and Oceania that will also take him to Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Singapore.

Indonesia is the world’s largest Muslim nation, where roughly 87 percent of the overall population of 275 million adhere to Islam. Just 10 percent of the population is Christian, with 3.1 percent identifying as Catholic, amounting to an estimated 8 million people.

Though pockets of extremism exist in the country, with an attack on two Catholic churches thwarted by police in East Java just a month ahead of the pope’s arrival, interreligious relations are generally good in Indonesia, which is celebrated as a place of tolerance.

In his homily, Francis stressed the importance for Catholics of both listening to and living the word of God.

“Listening, because everything comes from listening, from opening ourselves to him, welcoming the precious gift of his friendship. Then it is important to live the word we have received, so as not to listen in vain and deceive ourselves,” he said.

Listening to God is important, the pope said, because “the human heart is always searching for a truth that can feed and satisfy its desire for happiness.”

“We cannot be satisfied by human words alone, the thinking of this world and earthly judgments,” he said, saying the word of God is “the only true compass for our journey, which alone is capable of leading us back to the true meaning of life amid so much woundedness and confusion.”

He cautioned Catholics against embracing an outward religiosity, making grand gestures or doing things that are visible to the world but without substance.

“The first step, instead, is to know how to listen to the only word that saves, the word of Jesus,” he said, and referred to the Gospel passage in which Jesus tells the disciples, tired from a night of fishing to no avail, to toss their nets out again, resulting in a generous catch.

“Our life of faith begins when we humbly welcome Jesus into the boat of our lives, make room for him, listen to his word and let ourselves be questioned, challenged and changed by it,” he said.

Pope Francis said Catholics are also called to live the word of God, which he said “cannot remain as a fine abstract idea or stir up only a passing emotion.”

Rather, God’s word is a challenge to believers and an invitation to “cast courageously the nets of the Gospel into the sea of the world, running the risk of living the love that he first lived and in turn taught us to live.”

“The Lord, with the burning power of his word, also asks us to put out to sea, break away from the stagnant shores of bad habits, fears and mediocrity and dare to live a new life,” he said, and urged faithful to let of the obstacles and excuses that get in the way.

When Christians themselves feel tired and discouraged by life’s daily challenges, it’s important to stay focused on Christ, Francis said, urging them to continue giving of themselves, even when they feel that they have nothing left.

“Do not grow weary of setting sail and casting your nets, do not grow weary of dreaming and building again a civilization of peace! Always dare to dream of fraternity!” he said.

Pope Francis closed his homily encouraging Catholics in Indonesia “to sow seeds of love, confidently tread the path of dialogue, continue to show your goodness and kindness with your characteristic smile and be builders of unity and peace.”

“In this way, you will spread the fragrance of hope around you,” he said, telling them to “walk together for the good of the Church and society! Be builders of hope, the hope of the Gospel, which does not disappoint but instead opens us up to endless joy.”

On Friday Pope Francis will leave Indonesia and fly to Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea, where he is expected to address social issues such as poverty and climate change.