Indonesian cardinal begs clemency for transsexual jailed for blasphemy

An Indonesian cardinal has called for the release of a transsexual who was jailed for blasphemy after after making a joke about Jesus.

Rata Thalisa was sentenced to two years and 10 months in prison for “hate speech” but Cardinal Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo of Jakarta said “to live out our religion, we have to have a sense of humour,” and called for the release of the trans activist.

“We among interfaith close friends used to make jokes about our own and other religion. And these kinds of jokes make us closer to each other,” the cardinal told Crux.

The March 10 conviction against the trans artist relates to the comments made in TikTok on Oct. 2, 2024.

Two days later, five Protestant Christian groups filed a complaint to the police accusing her of blasphemy, which is a crime in Indonesia.

Indonesia is the world’s largest Muslim nation, where roughly 87 per cent of the overall population of 275 million adhere to Islam. Just 10 per cent of the population is Christian, with 3.1 per cent identifying as Catholic, amounting to an estimated 8 million people.

The cardinal said: “Not everything is to be taken very seriously. Jesus would laugh if he heard the suggestion to cut his hair.

“In my opinion as a follower of Jesus Christ, the Catholic Church is actually not at all tarnished and does not feel insulted by the actions and words of Ratu Thalisa through her/his Tiktok ‘asking Jesus to cut her hair.’

“The Catholic Church upholds the principle of freedom and therefore opens up space for all forms of expression, including Ratu Thalisa’s freedom to express her opinions.”

The cardinal continued: “It seems that only people who are unable to celebrate diversity feel disturbed by this, which cannot be generalised as the universal Church.

“Throughout the history of the Catholic Church, the dynamics of Christian life have been coloured by thorns and various insults and even persecution,” he added.

Cardinal Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo noted that Jesus told his followers to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. For in this way you will become children of your Father in heaven, who makes his sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.”

He said: “Therefore, the case that ensnared Ratu Thalisa … should not have been brought to the legal realm. Even if it had to be included as a crime of insult or blasphemy, as demanded by the prosecutor, it should have been resolved with advice or at most with a warning.”

He said the laws against blasphemy in Indonesia “must be reviewed”.

“The use of all forms of blasphemy law and its derivatives is fundamentally dangerous, because it gives the state the opportunity to exercise theological understanding – doing theology – something that should be avoided, because it is not its domain,” the cardinal said.

“Therefore, I hope that Ratu Thalisa will appeal, and hereby I urge the high court to correct the Medan District Court’s Decision and acquit Ratu Thalisa. Theologically, the principle of Christian faith that prioritises forgiveness may indeed be inconsistent with the socio-juridical principles of civil,” he added.

“Once again, the Catholic Church has never felt demeaned or insulted even when it had to endure martyrdom.

“Instead of legally processing cases of blasphemy like this, the state and its apparatus must be more assertive in dealing with intolerant attitudes that hinder and/or prevent people from worshiping and expressing their faith properly and correctly.

“Punishing people who are considered to have insulted the Lord Jesus Christ is not in line with the law of love taught by the Lord Jesus Himself.

“In fact, didn’t the Lord Jesus Himself ask us to love those who are our enemies, to pray and ask for blessings for those who insult us?”

He added: “While still respecting every choice and attitude that exists, even though and perhaps different; for cases that attack the faith and the Catholic Church, let us hold on to the principle of love as taught by Christ. Let us not easily bring the case to the realm of blasphemy.

“Even if it is truly blasphemy, let us return to the law of Christ’s love, namely forgiveness and reconciliation.

“That there is a positive legal realm that is enforced, in principle we respect every legal process and the rights and obligations that accompany it.

“I will take the example of the case when Pope John Paul II was shot in the Vatican Basilica field. The legal process for the shooter continued according to applicable procedures.

“However, look at how Pope John Paul II with the full authority of Christ still forgave and even visited the shooter? This is a testimony of Christian love. “

(Photo from Instagram via Crux)

The post Indonesian cardinal begs clemency for transsexual jailed for blasphemy first appeared on Catholic Herald.

The post Indonesian cardinal begs clemency for transsexual jailed for blasphemy appeared first on Catholic Herald.