On Good Friday, thousands of Catholic pilgrims in eastern Indonesia participated in a centuries-old procession to commemorate Easter. This traditional event returned after a three-year hiatus due to the pandemic. Around 7,000 people held Mass on Flores island’s Larantuka before transporting a box that was believed to hold a sacred Baby Jesus statue in a flotilla along the town’s coast. The wider Christian community in the Muslim-majority country has faced many challenges, including discrimination and Islamist militant attacks. Despite this, the Semana Santa or Holy Week rituals returned to Larantuka, known as “Indonesia’s Vatican.” Erasma Arpete Nilam, who flew from Borneo island to participate in the pilgrimage, said, “This is a spiritual pilgrimage. We were amazed. I got goosebumps seeing this for the first time.” The annual event will culminate in a night parade attended by pilgrims in black clothing who will light candles and carry a statue of Mary in a march alongside the Jesus statue, which is typically in a black-draped coffin. Members of other religions also attend this event. The tradition has its origins in a 16th-century myth where a boy discovered a female statue while fishing. The statue was worshipped by locals before the arrival of Portuguese missionaries to Indonesia, who recognised it as Mary.
