JAKARTA (UCAN): Cardinal Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo of Jakarta declared 2020 the Year of Social Justice during a homily at an evening Mass on January 4 at St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral Church in Jakarta.
Cardinal Hardjoatmodjo said the special year will focus on social justice for all citizens, one of the country’s five principles enshrined in Indonesia’s national ideology, Pancasila .
The other principles are a belief in one God, a just and civilised society, a united Indonesia and democracy guided by consensus.
Previous special years have focused on other principles with 2018 being the Year of Unity.
“In this Year of Social Justice, we must continue to renew ourselves. We need to show the dynamic of being more faithful, being more fraternal, being more compassionate. This must be sharpened continually so as to prevent it from becoming blunt,” the cardinal said.
He pointed to something he saw at a parish church in Yogyakarta province as an example.
“I saw something I have never seen in any parish served by Jakarta Archdiocese. Toddlers and children, after receiving a blessing from a priest following Holy Communion, put coins in a coin box … for social service. This was special and can be a model for Jakarta Archdiocese,” he said.
To mark the special year, Cardinal Suharyo unveiled a sculpture titled, Homeless Jesus, in the grounds of the cathedral. The sculpture is the work of Canadian artist, Timothy P. Schmalz, who said he was inspired by a homeless man sleeping on a bench one Christmas.
“Just like homeless people who sleep in fields and city squares, Jesus represents himself as hungry, poor and imprisoned people,” the cardinal said.
In a world of social justice, people should not be without shelter, he said.
The declaration of the Year of Social Justice was mentioned in the a pastoral letter read out during Masses on January 4 and 5 in all 66 parishes of the archdiocese.
