Priest devotes his life to help Acehnese

Nani Farida, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh, Aceh Nanggroe Darussalam

Father Ferdinando and four sisters of Paroki Hati Kudus Church in Banda Aceh kneel before the altar at 6 a.m. Father Ferdinando has been doing this for almost 12 years.

The essence of the prayer is largely the same: he prays for the victims of the prolonged war in the troubled province he is serving, Aceh Nanggroe Darussalam.

He prays in order for those who have died - whether they be the personnel of the Indonesian Military (TNI), the Free Aceh Movement or civilians -- so that they may rest in peace.

"Those people did not have peace in this world. So, we pray in order that they have peace in heaven," Fernando Severi, 69, told The Jakarta Post.

Christians are a minority in Aceh. Of the 4 million people in Aceh, 5,916 were Catholics, and 40,226 are Protestants. There are 12 Catholic churches in Aceh and 61 Protestant churches.

Fernando said he had witnessed many events in the troubled province. These include when Aceh was declared a military operations area (DOM) in 1993, when military atrocities were rampant in the area.

Having been in Aceh for 12 years, he acknowledges that he has faced many challenges in his mission to serve people. He recounted that many of his congregation fled Banda Aceh for fear of war.

Before the TNI and GAM were engaged in full-scale war this year, the members of his church were around 600. But, the war has reduced his congregation to 400.

He also admitted that he had problems serving poor and disabled persons in the area.

"When I enter the kampongs in order to find and help disabled children, for example, locals suspect that the effort is aimed at converting them to Christianity," he recalled.

However, he said that he understood it and regarded it merely as a misunderstanding. He acknowledged that in Aceh the majority perceived themselves as devout Muslim and Islamic law was even applied here.

"It takes time to convince them that I am merely trying to lend a hand to those unfortunate people," he said.

Despite the challenges, he said that he would stick to his mission: to help the people in Aceh. "Those who suffer are Jesus, and I have to help them," he said.

Despite suspicions, he still wanders around Aceh and lends a hand to the victims of conflict, the disabled and the poor.

He still visited the penitentiary in Aceh before Christmas and handed over aid to the inmates. He also set up a foundation that takes care of disabled persons. For almost 12 years, he has brought some 1,000 children to Pematang Siantar in North Sumatra for free surgery. Funding was obtained from various donors.

Isa, 38, the father of Azis, a child who was helped by Fernando, said that he was thankful to the priest for his help. "He approached us when we were in Zainal Abidin Hospital here, and offered help. It was a joyful moment, because I had lodged requests with the government and non-governmental organizations in Aceh, to ask help to finance the harelip surgery of my son, but they never responded to my request," said Isa, who is from Lingke area in Banda Aceh.

Isa said that Fernando had financed the harelip surgery for his son.

Besides serving people, Ferdinando admitted that he was often asked by the TNI to pray for Christian soldiers killed in battle.

Although he is living in a conflict area, Ferdinando enjoys being here. He has devoted his life to help people in the conflict area.

"I am badly needed here. I want to do as much as I can to help the Acehnese, because there is so much suffering here," he said.

Ferdinando acknowledged that Indonesian Muslims are tolerant and moderate. He acknowledged that he has good relations with Muslims in Aceh. He has never experienced religious conflict in the area.

Alyasa' Abubakar, the head of Sharia Office in Aceh province, said that he had good relations with the priest.

"I occasionally meet him at events held by the government. We have different faiths, but we have no problem with that," he said.

Ferdinando was born in Rovenna, Central Italy. He has seven brothers and sisters. His father, who was a supporter of Mussolini, was shot dead by a communist group in 1943.

He goes back to Italy to see his family every five years. Several years ago, he had a heart attack and had surgery there.

The surgery almost failed because he had excessive bleeding.

"Thank God, I am still alive," he said.

God indeed has given him a long life so that he could pursue his dream, to help the Acehnese people.