History of the Apostolic Nunciature

in Indonesia

  1. On 6 July 1947, Pope Pius XII appointed Archbishop de Jonghe d’Ardoye “Apostolic Delegate in the Indonesian Archipelago” and on the following day the Apostolic Letter to erect the Apostolic Delegation “in the Indonesian Archipelago” was issued. Three weeks after his appointment, on Sunday, 27 July 1947, Archbishop de Jonghe d’Ardoye arrived by plane in Batavia. On 6 August 1947, the Apostolic Delegate gave the Lieutenant General of the Dutch East Indies, Hubertus Johannes van Mook, the letter of presentation signed by Mgr Tardini.

  2. On 4 January 1950, the Holy See gave instructions to its Representative to convey that it recognized the Republic of the United States of Indonesia. Two days later Mgr de Jonghe d’Ardoye personally informed the Vice-President and Foreign Minister Hatta about this decision; the latter requested him to ask the Holy See to establish diplomatic relations with Indonesia. On 10 January 1950, the Holy See informed Jakarta that it had accepted the proposal, that an Internunciature in Indonesia would be established and that it would receive a Legation to the Holy See.

  3. On 16 March 1950, it was announced that “The Holiness of our Lord has been pleased to erect the Apostolic Internunciature in the United States of Indonesia, located in Jakarta, deigning at the same time to appoint as Apostolic Internuncio His Excellency Mgr Georges de Jonghe d’Ardoye, titular Archbishop of Misthia” (L’Osservatore Romano, 17 March 1950). On receiving his Credential Letters, the new Internuncio was able to present them to President Sukarno on 6 April 1950, in the State Palace.

  4. On 25 May 1950, Ambassador Sukardjo Wirjopranoto, the Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of the Republic of the United States of Indonesia presented his Letters of Credence to Pope Pius XII.

  5. On 13 June 1956, President Sukarno was received in audience by Pope Pius XII, who conferred the Pian Order on him. Sukarno returned to the Vatican on 14 May 1959, and was received by John XXIII; on that occasion, the President invited the Pope to visit Indonesia. The other two visits of the Indonesian President took place on 15 June 1963 (during the sede vacante following the death of John XXIII) and on 12 October 1964, when he met Pope Paul VI.

  6. On 3 January 1961, Pope John XXIII issued the Apostolic Constitution “Quod Christus”, establishing the Catholic hierarchy in Indonesia. Six Ecclesiastical Provinces were created (Jakarta, Semarang, Ende, Medan, Pontianak and Makassar) and the existing Apostolic Vicariates and Apostolic Prefectures became Archdioceses and Dioceses. The execution of the Apostolic Constitution was entrusted to the then Apostolic Internuncio, Archbishop Gaetano Alibrandi.

  7. On 7 December 1966, the Apostolic Internunciature in Indonesia was elevated to the rank of Apostolic Nunciature. On the same date, Archbishop Salvatore Pappalardo was appointed Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to Indonesia.

  8. In 1966 the Legation of Indonesia to the Holy See became an Embassy. On 16 May, the Minister Plenipotentiary Isa Mohamad Nazir presented the Letters accrediting him as Ambassador to Pope Paul VI.

  9. That same year, on June 1, the new building of the Apostolic Nunciature was inaugurated. The construction of the new building of the Papal Representation had been initiated in October 1964 by Archbishop De Liva and was carried out in accordance with plans drawn up by the German architect Hermann Bohnenkamp. The formal inauguration of the new building took place on 29 June 1966, at which President Sukarno was present.

  10. At the Consistory of 26 June 1967, Pope Paul VI created Mgr Justinus Darmojuwono, Archbishop of Semarang, Cardinal Priest with the title of the Most Holy Names of Jesus and Mary in Via Lata: he was the first Indonesian Cardinal. After him, at the Consistory of 26 November 1994, John Paul II created Mgr Julius Darmaatmadja, Archbishop of Semarang, Cardinal Priest with the title of the Sacred Heart of Mary.

  11. On 3 December 1970, during his visit to Asia and Oceania, Paul VI visited Indonesia. He arrived in Jakarta from Sydney and was greeted by President Suharto; the Pope then met the priests and religious in the cathedral of the capital. After a stop at the Nunciature and a courtesy call to the President of the Republic, the Pope celebrated Holy Mass in the capital’s stadium, before departing for Hong Kong. At that time the Papal Representative was Archbishop Joseph Mees.

  12. During his Apostolic Visit to the Far East and Mauritius (6-16 October 1989), Pope John Paul II visited Indonesia from October 9 to 14. Besides visiting Jakarta, he also visited Yogyakarta, Maumere, Dili and Medan. In the capital the Pope met the Bishops, the civil authorities, religious leaders, the clergy and religious, and the world of culture. During those days the Pope stayed at the Apostolic Nunciature, which at that time was led by Archbishop Francesco Canalini.

  13. After the independence of East Timor from Indonesia (2002), the Apostolic Nunciature which was established in that country on 23 June 2003 was entrusted to the Papal Representative in Jakarta; this remained the case until 2011.

  14. From 2007 to 2010, extensive restoration and extension works were carried out in the residence of the Apostolic Nunciature. On 11 October 2009, Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli inaugurated the new chapel dedicated to the Twelve Apostles.

  15. On 18 June 2011, Benedict XVI appointed Archbishop Leopoldo Girelli, Apostolic Nuncio to Singapore, as Apostolic Nuncio to the Association of South-East Asian Nations (ASEAN), which has its headquarters in Jakarta.

  16. On 23 March 2011, Pope Benedict XVI appointed Archbishop Antonio Guido Filipazzi as the Apostolic Nuncio to Indonesia. After more than six years of service in Indonesia, on 26 April 2017, Pope Francis appointed Msgr. Filipazzi as the Apostolic Nuncio to Nigeria.

  17. On 8 September 2017, Pope Francis appointed Msgr. Piero Pioppo as the Apostolic Nuncio to Indonesia, replacing Msgr. Antonio Guido Filipazzi. Later, on 19 March 2018, Msgr. Pioppo was also appointed as the Apostolic Nuncio to ASEAN.

  18. On 5 October 2019, Pope Francis elevated Mgr. Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo, Archbishop of Jakarta, to the rank of Cardinal Priest with the titular church of ‘Holy Spirit’ in Ferratella. He became the third Cardinal from Indonesia.

  19. From 2–13 September 2024, Pope Francis undertook a State Visit to several countries: Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Singapore. The Pope visited Indonesia from 3–6 September 2024. In addition to paying a courtesy visit to the President of the Republic of Indonesia on 4 September, the Holy Father also attended an interfaith leaders’ meeting held in the courtyard of Istiqlal Mosque and visited the Tunnel of Friendship. On 5 September, in the afternoon, the Pope led a Holy Mass at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, attended by more than 80,000 Catholics. The series of events in Jakarta concluded on 6 September, and the Pope continued his apostolic journey to Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste, and Singapore, as part of the longest Asia–Oceania tour of his pontificate to date.