Indonesians in Focus: Mudji Sutrisno

By Barrie | December 23rd, 2007 | No Comments

Mudji Sutrisno often speaks of the three life-changing moments in his life. Twenty five years ago, on Dec. 30, 1982, to be exact, Mudji, who was at that time a cultural activist, was ordained as a Catholic priest in Yogyakarta. The first of the three events was in 2003. Mudji had been asked to marry a couple in Wonogiri, Central Java. The couple, who were quite poor, asked whether they needed to rent special clothes for the church ceremony. “We have nothing, Father. We only have our love,” they said.

“There is no need to rent anything. Your love is enough,” Mudji replied. Seven people attended the ceremony: The couple, two witnesses, the parents and Romo Mudji. “They have great love despite being very badly off,” Mudji said.

The second of the three events was when he was taking a public mini bus from Jatinegara to Salemba. During the journey, a woman with two small children asked whether the man with long hair sitting in front of her was really Mudji Sutrisno.

“Are you really Bapak Mudji?” the woman asked, hesitantly. When Mudji answered in the affirmative, she said, “if you don’t mind, let me pay the fare. I though you were wealthy because you frequently appear on TV. It turns out you are a very humble man. Can my children sit on either side of you, Pak?” she asked.

At that time Mudji was a member of the General Elections Commission and often made television appearances. He did have a work car but often chose to take public transportation.

The third event happened in 1990. Mudji was walking along the sidewalk in front of the University of Indonesia campus in Salemba when a man, who had just disembarked from a public minivan, greeted him, “Pak Mudji, I have named my child Veritate,” he said, adding that he had read Mudji’s article, titled Pro Veritate (For the Sake of Truth) in Tempo magazine. “Let my child also take part in the fight for truth,” he said.

Mudji said he had been extremely moved by these three events. A graduate of the Gregoriana University in Rome, he was suddenly made to realize that through preaching he was able to touch people in ways he knew he could not do on his own.

He grew more enthusiastic about his work, looking for new ways to reach out to people and to communicate with them. Mudji spoke at seminars and wrote more than 20 books and thousands of articles, earning a large following in the media world.

He began by writing prose, essays and short articles. Later he felt he could better express himself through poems and drawings.
When his friends learned all this, they said to Mudji, who was formerly a member of the Film Censorship Board and the Commission of Truth and Reconciliation (2005-2996), he should also put his poetry to music.

They began studying Mudji’s poems, interpreting them in music and searching for the right singer. An album of Mudji’s songs was produced called Rekah Lembah (Valley Emergence), the same title as his book of drawings and poems.

The album and the book were launched in early December at the National Gallery. Between Dec. 1 and 13, the same gallery will host an exhibition of sketches made by Mudji, whose literary works include Driyarkara-Filsuf yang Mengubah Indonesia (Driyarkara, the Philosopher that Transforms Indonesia).

When asked why he had decided to go into the priesthood, Mudji said: “In my church, the Church of St Peter Purwosari, I saw a pastor hug children and greet people of all ages and how people also shook hands with him. Then I reflected that the bond of those joined by God is stronger than blood ties, and for a kid this was very interesting,” Mudji said.

So, later, he decided to attend the St Peter Canisius Secondary Seminary in Mertoyudan, Magelang, Central Java. During his time at the seminary, his family experienced economic difficulties. His father had to feed six children on the relatively low wage of a teacher.

In view of this situation, one of Mudji’s uncles said: “Mudji is a smart guy, why don’t you ask him to leave the seminary and support the family?” Mudji’s mother responded with the question “Why don’t you give the best to God?” The uncle could not say a thing.

Mudji said his mother had supported him throughout his career. “My mom was really like an oasis. Her words gave me confirmation and peace.”

He said he had learned the value of sharing, loyalty and trust in God’s will from his mom: “Mom always taught us to share. If there was one egg, it needed to be shared between six children. If we had some food at home, we had to share it with our neighbors.” Mudji said, filled with his gratitude to God.

Now middle-aged, Mudji has grown as a human being and, in the spirit of the silver jubilee of his consecration, has an important message to convey.

“You who have influence in politics must fight with a sense of responsibility. As for you who have been given the mandate to be leaders, for example to be the president, you must pay full attention to the people,” said Mudji, adding that it saddened him that youngsters were too busy sending text messages to think about how they could bring about social change.

Emanuel Dapa Loka