ID Nugroho , THE JAKARTA POST , KEDIRI, EAST JAVA | Fri, 02/20/2009 11:32 AM | Java Brew
The rain had just stopped when Yakobus lit his offertory candle in Goa Maria Lourdes.
Carefully, the Surabaya native placed the candle at the highest point, where it sat precisely below the 3.5-meter statue of Mother Mary.
“I only want to offer a prayer, which I can ask of Mother Mary,” Yakobus told The Jakarta Post. “Some nights ago I had a dream where I was called by her.”
Yakobus, who lives in Bandung, West Java, came to Goa Maria Lourdes especially to pray because of a great conflict in his life. “I hope that after praying here my way will become easier,” he said. To show his seriousness Yakobus plans to stay several nights to wait for his next “guidance”.
Goa Maria Lourdes is part of the 13.5-hectare Catholic church complex at Puhsarang in Kediri, East Java. Rather than just a place to pray, the complex, on the slopes of Mount Wilis in Kediri, has a range of functions: tourist attraction, cemetery, camping ground, columbarium, seminary and meeting hall.
The Puhsarang Church was built in 1936, at the request of Pastor H. Wolters CM, by a Dutch architect, Father Hendricus Maclaine Port, who also built the Trowulan Museum in Mojokerto, East Java.
At first glance, the main building resembles a ship stuck on a small hill – the architect wanted to provide a reminder of the story of Noah’s Ark.
The main building has a baptismal font, sacristy and confessional box, all of which are under the dome, decorated by the symbols of the writers of the Gospels.
Matthew is drawn as a winged man, Mark as a winged lion, John as an eagle and Luke as an ox. The altar has been carved in such a way that it looks like a deer drinking. On the altar is a relief made from bricks and cemented with palm sugar.
The unique character of the design extends to the exterior, which was made from the river rocks common to Puhsarang village. The arched gateway, called St. Joseph, is built like a giant bell. At the top of the church, hanging in the Hendricus Tower, is a church bell, rung every hour to sound the time.
During its history the Puhsarang Church has been renovated four times, each time to strengthen the building without changing its original design. The most substantial renovations were carried out in 1999 when Father Emilio Rossi was the priest. That project, designed by engineers Harry Widyanto, Rusly and Djoko, changed the basic building materials used from wood to steel.
Other facilities added at the time were the multipurpose hall Emaus, the Hidangan Kana Park and the camping ground. The renovations also enlarged the prayer facilities by building Goa Maria Lourdes, the Pieta Columbarium, The Way of The Cross and the Rosario Cottage.
Of these, Goa Maria Lourdes – a replica of the cave of Maria at Lourdes in the Pyrenees in Southern France – is at the heart of the Puhsarang Church.
The original cave in the Pyrenees is where a girl named Bernadette Soubirous claimed to have had a vision of the Virgin Mary in 1858. It is still a much-visited sacred place for the Christian community.
But as Floreanus Josep (F.J.) Lasijo, one of the employees, explained, making the replica required special permission from the Pope in Vatican City.
The site of the replica has its own church, a cave, a source of holy water, the Way of the Cross, a huge parking area and a market, all close to a running river.
“Not all places have facilities like these,” Lasijo said. “In Indonesia, only Puhsarang has all these facilities, and that has been confirmed by the Vatican.”
The cave, made from cement and stone, is 18 meters high and 17 meters wide. On the right side is the towering statue of Mother Mary and in the middle is a big altar used by priests when they lead Mass.
Twelve sources of holy water flow down the left side and under the cave. Many people believe this water has special therapeutic properties, and visitors often take some away as an alternative treatment.
The Way of the Cross comprises 15 Stations of the Cross. They start with Jesus Christ being sentenced to death, and trace the events of the Christian story of his death and resurrection: carrying the cross, falling down, meeting his mother Mary, the Crucifixion, burial and the empty tomb, because Jesus Christ is believed to have ascended to heaven. There are 100 life-size statues used in the Way of the Cross.
Many events are held at Puhsarang Church, the peak of which is the ritual of the Legi Friday night prayers (Legi is the first day of the Javanese five-day week).
In this ceremony, around 3,000 Christians from various parts of Java, Bali and elsewhere in Indonesia gather to pray in the garden outside the Maria Lourdes Cave. This unique ceremony takes place during a night Mass.
“Even though Catholic prayers are used, there are many people from outside the Catholic church who follow this ceremony. They do this just to feel the silence, to get closer to God, or enjoy the East Java gamelan music that is used,” said Lasijo.
The thousands of people only have one intention: To ask for blessings from Mother Mary of the Goa Maria Lourdes.
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