Indonesia: Pangkal Pinang Diocese Celebrates 100 Years Anniversary

Pangkal Pinang diocese celebrated its 100th anniversary on Sunday, January 14, 2024, at the Engku Putri Batam Center Square, Batam Island, Indonesia. 

Bishop Adrianus Sunarko, OFM, of Pangkal Pinang, presided over the Eucharist celebration. The celebration conveys the theme "The Joy of Being a Participatory and Synodal Church."

Present during the Eucharist were Ignatius Cardinal Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo, Bishop Antonius Subianto B. OSC, chairperson of the Indonesian Catholic Bishops' Conference (KWI), and more than 12 bishops from all over Indonesia.

In his remarks, Bishop Sunarko expressed his appreciation for the presence of the people and also the missionaries who work in the Pangkal Pinang diocese. "In this period of 100 years of hard work to understand and realize God's will, there have been many achievements and challenges faced," he explained.

These experiences led the diocese to listen and rediscover the call that the Holy Spirit desired for the church in Pangkal Pinang to face the future.

Meanwhile, Bishop Antonius Subianto, in his homily, highlighted the motivation of people in the church. "What is our motivation for becoming Catholic?" asked Bishop Subianto. He then invited the people to appreciate the gift of baptism as a mission and responsibility.

The KWI chairperson then briefly told the special history of the Catholic church on Bangka Island.

"The seeds of faith in the Pangkal Pinang diocese were first brought by a layman who had met God," he stressed. "Because of his missionary spirit, Paulus Tjen On Ngie, who came from China, arrived on Bangka Island, Indonesia, and began to preach the Christian faith," he continued.

Paulus Tjen On Ngie arrived in Indonesia in 1830. He is considered the first missionary to serve the community as a healer and teach the Catholic faith.

The church continued to grow in 1923, and a year later, on August 14, 1924, five missionaries arrived on Bangka Island and continued to work until the establishment of the Pangkal Pinang Diocese.

At present, the Pangkal Pinang Diocese covers Bangka Belitung Province and Riau Archipelago Province, as well as parts of Riau Province.

They celebrated 100 years of the Pangkal Pinang Diocese in two places. The Diocese covers two very large archipelago provinces. In Bangka, as the center, a series of activities were carried out from December 27–31, 2023, which were attended by approximately 3,000 congregations.

Meanwhile, in the Riau Islands, the anniversary took place on January 13–14, 2024, starting with a recollection of the activists throughout the Riau archipelago and attended by 1,000 participants.

More than 12,000 representatives of Catholics from the diocese participated in the Eucharist as the main celebration.

At the end of his homily, Bishop Subianto invited the people to become participatory people by asking, "What am I willing and able to give to the church for the glory of God and blessings to others?" considering that the Diocese of Pangkal Pinang consists of so many small islands, which are the outermost areas of Indonesia. - Emiliana Saptaningsih