Preaching Christ in Central Java
The past few weeks have been eventful for the Orthodox mission in Central Java, Indonesia, where the native priest Fr. Methodios Sri Gunarjo continues his work with the support of the Fraternity of Orthodox External Mission.
Recently, sixteen Muslims declared their desire to embrace Orthodoxy and requested to be taught the basics of the faith. Two of them were baptized on June 14 , in a mystery performed with the blessing of Metropolitan Konstantinos of Singapore.
On June 27, Fr. Methodios visited the village of Sepogo, at the foot of a volcano, and officiated a liturgy in a small and poor parish . On the way, he met three Orthodox faithful working hard for their daily living: Mr. Polykarpos collecting firewood, Mr. Antonios gathering grass, and Mrs. Sophia carrying vegetables for the market. He gave them a small financial aid before continuing his journey to the neighboring village of Selo, where he celebrated a liturgy in the community office. The next day, June 28, another Muslim, Alexandros, was baptized.
In parallel, the Mission prepared a two-day camp for children on July 4-5. The cost amounted to 1,075 euros. We thank the Fraternity for responding to our request for assistance.
The camp was finally completed successfully, with a total of seventy participants: sixty-four Orthodox and six Muslims. These six declared their intention to turn to Orthodoxy and are now ready to be named catechumens. We hope this annual gathering will continue.
On July 9, our small parish received a visit from Makarios, an Australian student of Byzantine music, who chanted during the Divine Liturgy. We hope to welcome the Board of Directors of the Fraternity at some point.
The work of evangelization in Central Java, Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim country, continues steadily, with new catechisms following the recent baptisms. We ask for the prayers of all friends of the Mission for the continuation of this work.
Fr. Methodios Sri Gunarjo
