Hundreds of congregants of the Santa Theresia Catholic Church in Semarang, Central Java, watched a performance depicting the last days of Jesus Christ by 35 youths as part of Good Friday service.
The congregants watched the performance, which was guarded by police. Security was heightened following an explosion of firecrackers near the Santo Yusuf Catholic Church in Ambarawa, dozens of kilometers south of Semarang.
“This is my first experience watching a performance on Jesus’ last days. I am grateful for the experience and have learned a positive moral lesson from it,” said Dafa, a congregant.
Semarang Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Vincentius Thirdy Hadmiarso said all churches in the area were being guarded by police. No security disturbances have been reported since the explosion, he said.
A 37-year-old local, M. Fahrudin, the alleged perpetrator of the incident, has been detained.
According to residents, Fahrudin suffers from a mental illness.
“We will work with a psychiatrist to ensure [the suspect’s] mental condition],” Vincentius told The Jakarta Post.
