East Timorese president whose faith runs deep visits with Cardinal Tobin, Bishop Cruz

East Timorese President and Nobel Peace Laureate Jose Ramos-Horta visited the Archdiocese of Newark on Tuesday, April 30, touring Newark’s Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart and visiting Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.SS.R., Archbishop of Newark, and Auxiliary Bishop Manuel Aurelio Cruz, D.D.

President Ramos-Horta, who holds a “Doctor Honoris Causa” from Rutgers University, was in the area as the distinguished speaker of the 2024 Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society Visiting Professor event at Rutgers University in Newark. His speech, “Lessons on War and Peace from a Village in Southeast Asia,” was given earlier in the day.

Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia that has undergone occupation and violence for centuries. The Catholic-majority country comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor — of which the western half is administered by Indonesia. It became an independent nation in 2002, following over 400 years of Portuguese colonization, 24 years of Indonesian occupation, and three years of United Nations transitional administration. The republic is 97% Catholic, and the president’s faith runs deep.

During the tour of the Cathedral Basilica, President Ramos-Horta conveyed awe over the space, especially the Chapel of Our Lady of Lourdes, where Pope John Paul II prayed before the Blessed Sacrament during his visit in 1995.

“He was totally stunned by the beauty of the Cathedral Basilica,” Cardinal Tobin said. “He’s studied in Europe and seen such buildings there, but he didn’t expect to find one in northern New Jersey.” 

After the tour, the president sat down with the cardinal in his residence for refreshments. Cardinal Tobin said President Ramos-Horta mentioned how important the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops was during the struggle for independence of Timor-Leste.

“He mentioned that American bishops were able to reach the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, convince them of the cause of East Timor, and thereby ensure a peaceful transition to independence,” Cardinal Tobin said.

President Ramos-Horta is a founder and former member of the political party called Revolutionary Front for an Independent East Timor and served as the exiled spokesperson for the resistance during the Indonesian occupation from 1975 to 1999.

He received the Nobel Prize for Peace in 1996, along with Bishop Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo of Dili, for efforts to bring peace to Timor-Leste during the period it was under Indonesian control. He has been the president of Timor-Leste since 2022, having previously also held the position from 2007 to 2012. Prior to that, he was minister of foreign affairs from 2002 to 2006 and prime minister from 2006 to 2007. He survived an assassination attempt in February 2008.

“He mentioned how his small country is making every effort to live peaceably with some very large neighbors and be a force for peace in the world,” Cardinal Tobin said. “Because of the country’s poverty, many people born in Timor are in other countries now as well—a notable population in Portugal and Great Britain. And so, he visited and encouraged them to be instruments of peace.” 

Bishop Cruz also enjoyed his time with President Ramos-Horta, who he found very impressive.

“Meeting President Ramos-Horta was a wonderful experience of fraternity and leadership,” Bishop Cruz said. “It was a warm, cordial meeting, and it was wonderful to experience his deep faith and deep desire for peace.”

Landmarks in the country’s capital, Dili, speak to the country’s struggles for independence as well as to its faith. The iconic 90-foot-tall Cristo Rei de Dili statue that sits on a hilltop high over the city, and the Statue of the Virgin Mary at Mt. Ramelau, the tallest summit in the country, illustrate Timor’s devotion to the faith over the centuries.

President Ramos-Horta, educated through the Catholic school system, has pushed for the Church’s involvement in a better educational system, saying it is one of the biggest problems for the people of Timor-Leste.

Cardinal Tobin said President Ramos-Horta is “clearly a very erudite man” who is greatly motivated by his Catholic faith.