Catholic Churches: Jakarta, West Java

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese has added color to the capital’s melting pot of multiculturalism since it was established in the city two centuries ago.

Catholicism represents a minority in the capital with some 500,000 members, or five percent of Jakarta’s population. However, the 57 Catholic churches in the city serve not only congregation members, but also the general public, making its influence quite vast.

May 8 marked the day the first Roman Catholic authority was set up in Batavia, as Jakarta was then known, in 1807. The Apostolic Prefecture, a form of Roman Catholic representation, was led by Dutch priest Jacobus Nelissen from 1808.

Current Jakarta Archbishop Julius Darmaatmadja said the Jakarta Archdiocese is not the oldest in the country, but its establishment 200 years ago marked the start of official Catholic representation in the archipelago.

Prior to the establishment of the prefecture, Catholicism was strictly monitored in most Dutch colonies, including Batavia.

“During the VOC (Dutch East India Company) occupation, Catholic priests were banned from preaching and were often cast away from Batavia,” Julius said recently.

This was a reflection of how in the Netherlands, following reform movements in Europe against the deemed-corrupt Roman Catholic church, the institution was at its lowest point.

Even after the church received support from the Roman Catholic Pope, the Dutch administration in Batavia tried to intervene with the policies of the church’s representatives.

As a result of opposition to the government’s intervention, all Catholic priests were sent away until a treaty assuring freedom for the church was signed by the Dutch administration and the Roman Catholic Pope in 1847.

It was not until 1901 that a neo-Gothic cathedral was built as a gesture signaling the strengthened Roman Catholic presence in Batavia.

Designed by Dijkmans, the cathedral, built on the side of Waterlooplein (now Lapangan Banteng), was a sign the Catholic church was among influential institutions in the city.

The cathedral became the first of several other catholic churches to be built in the capital. Among the first churches built after the construction of the cathedral were in Matraman, Kwitang, Theresia (near Menteng) and Kampung Sawah in the east of the city.

Those in Matraman, Kwitang and Theresia were conventional Catholic churches. The church in Kampung Sawah incorporated subtle cultural influences from native Jakartans, or Betawi people as they are more commonly referred to. Such a combination was rare, as Betawi people generally follow Islam.

The church in Kampung Sawah, influenced by the Dutch Reformed Church movement in 1851, established a more Catholic wing in 1896 after Jesuit priest Bernardus Schweitz baptized 18 native Jakartans in the area.

However, the church still had a local feel, in spite of the declining population of Betawi people in the area at the time.

Similar multicultural influences can currently be seen in several churches in Chinatown, or Glodok, in West Jakarta.

Occupying a Chinese-style building, the Santa Maria de Fatima church, established in 1953, caters to the ethnic Chinese community by inviting Chinese-speaking priests to the church once a week.

Earlier this year, the church held a Chinese New Year mass, which also included burning incense and distributing oranges, two typical features of Chinese culture in celebrations and prayers.
However, Father Yosef Bagnara, who currently heads the church, said every culture is represented in the church.

The Batavia prefecture was declared an archdiocese in 1961 and currently has 57 churches under its jurisdiction, with the newest church having been established in Ciputat, Tangerang, in 2000.

Among other contributions to the city, the Catholic church is heavily involved in the development of education.

In accordance with its European heritage, the church has set up schools as part of its service to the community. The fact Catholicism is a well established religion in Jakarta contributes to the renowned reputation of these schools.

Private Catholic schools such as Canisius, Santa Ursula and Tarakanita are among the best schools in the capital amid criticism they have became institutions for the elite.

Anissa S. Febrina