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Church in Asia

Pope names native Papuan priest as bishop of Jayapura in Indonesia

By Kasmir Nema, RVA News | October 30, 2022
The Emeritus Bishop of Jayapura Bishop Leo Laba Ladjar, OFM (left) and Father Yanurius Theofilus Matopai You, elected bishop (right) (Photo credit: Soscom Diocese of Jayapura)

Pope Francis appointed Father Yanurius Theofilus Matopai You as the new bishop of the Jayapura Diocese, Indonesia.

The Vatican's official announcement was read by the Emeritus Bishop Leo Laba Ladjar, OFM of Jayapura at the Jayapura Cathedral Church on October 29.

"The Apostolic Nuncio instructed me to inform the local church of this diocese that a new Bishop of Jayapura has been appointed,” said Bishop Ladjar.

"He is a native Papuan," said Bishop Ladjar, and the people in the Jayapura cathedral cheered loudly.

Father You will replace the Franciscan Bishop who resigned due to age. 

He is the first priest from West Papua to become a bishop in Indonesia. 

On January 1, 1961, the bishop-elect was born on the fringes of Lake Tage, Paniai, West Papua, to a Catholic family. His spiritual year was spent in Manado, North Sulawesi.

The priest belongs to the Jayapura diocese. 

Jayapura diocese includes seven districts (Jayapura, Keerom, Jayawijaya, Yahukimo, Tolikara, Pegunungan Bintang, and Sarmi) and one municipality (Jayapura).
 
West Papua is an Indonesian province in the country's far east, centered on the island of New Guinea.

He was the vicar general and parish priest of the cathedral church at Jayapura.

Father You was ordained on January 16, 1991, in Nabire, West Papua. He studied philosophy and theology at the Abepura Jayapura School of Theological Philosophy.

In 2020, he finished his doctoral studies in anthropology at Yogyakarta State University.

He has been director of the Higher Seminary of St. John Mary Vianney since 2010 and president of the Fajar Timur School of Theological Philosophy since 2022.-Kasmir Nema. 

 

Radio Veritas Asia (RVA), a media platform of the Catholic Church, aims to share Christ. RVA started in 1969 as a continental Catholic radio station to serve Asian countries in their respective local language, thus earning the tag “the Voice of Asian Christianity.”  Responding to the emerging context, RVA embraced media platforms to connect with the global Asian audience via its 21 language websites and various social media platforms.

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Father Theofilus Matopai You

Comments

Aleksander Dancar, Oct 31 2022 - 8:15am
Kasmir, thank you for the report on the elected bishop of the Jayapura diocese from a Papuan native. Hopefully, this "native" can support the growth of the Papuan Church according to the spirit of the Universal Church today, namely the Synodal Church.
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Yes, San, we can only hope that, as a native bishop, he will not only bring growth to the Catholic Church in Papua but also serve as a "bridge" between the government and the people in order to minimize and, if possible, end all types of violence. In anticipation of the implementation of the outcome of his synodal approach to his ministry, the Papuan church would take on a new look.
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