JAKARTA. Sharing parking lots between two different religious groups is not just an example of a very modest gesture of tolerance but the humble cooperation has connected the congregation members of the Jakarta Cathedral and the Istiqlal Grand Mosque in Central Jakarta for decades.
As usual, the church will open its gates to provide parking for Muslims wishing to pray on Idul Fitri this year at the Istiqlal Grand Mosque, which is located across from the church.
The cathedral’s security coordinator Thomas Bambang said that as many as 250 motorcycle parking spaces and 160 car parking spaces as well as a number of the church’s employees and youth members would be ready to facilitate Idul Fitri prayers from 3 a.m.
He said that the Istiqlal Grand Mosque’s management was also always ready to return the favor by opening its gates for churchgoers’ vehicles during Christmas, Easter or any other big events at the church.
“This kind of cooperation with Istiqlal has been going on for more than 30 years. The cooperation also continues outside of Idul Fitri prayer times. We will also be glad to help them in their other religious activities,” Thomas told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
The Istiqlal Grand Mosque is the largest mosque in Southeast Asia. It was deliberately built across from the Jakarta Cathedral as a symbol of religious harmony and tolerance in Indonesia. The mosque was designed by Frederich Silaban, a Christian architect, in 1955.
“We hope the Muslims can hold solemn Idul Fitri prayers,” Thomas said.
Separately, Istiqlal’s public relations officer Abu Hurairah Abdul Salam said he expected to see as many as 150,000 people pray for the upcoming Idul Fitri at the mosque. He said he appreciated the additional parking spaces provided by the cathedral.
Abu said, however, that there was more to the relationship between the two houses of worship than shared parking spaces. He said foreign Catholic leaders who attended events at the Cathedral were also likely to visit the Istiqlal Grand Mosque, adding that he was more than happy to give tours.
He said that during Easter this year, dozens of Istiqlal’s employees and several members of Muslim organizations were deployed to secure the church area.
“The cathedral’s security post at Easter and Christmas was even established inside the Istiqlal parking space,” he said.
“Although we have different beliefs to Catholic followers at the cathedral, we have a strong relationship with them,” he said, adding that it was very important for the two places of worship to be an example of religious tolerance.
The city recently saw an act of religious intolerance against a group of Ahmadis in South Jakarta. On June 13, dozens of people blocked a group of Ahmadis from performing Friday prayers at their own An-Nur Mosque in Bukit Duri Tanjakan. While being stared at by their tormentors, the Ahmadis were forced to fulfill their religious obligations on the street in front of the mosque.
Later, on July 9, the mosque was sealed by the South Jakarta administration, which stated that the building had violated a number of bylaws on building management and spatial planning. (Indra Budiari)
