Mgr Pius Riana Prabdi, 45, vicar general of Semarang, is the new bishop of Ketapang, West Kalimantan Province, on the Indonesian side of the island of Borneo. Benedict XVI appointed him after accepting the resignation of Bishop Blasius Pujaraharja on 25 June.
The new prelate has a number of challenges ahead of him, including the diocese's finances, badly affected by the economic crisis, as well as an inadequate number of priests and a lack of vocations.
Born in the eastern province of Papua, Mgr Riana Prabdi grew up in Yogyakarta's Catholic community, where he also took his first steps towards the Church.
His father was a former seminarian and his younger brother was ordained as Redemptorist priest on Sumba Island.
When they heard about Fr Pius' appointment, priests and believers in the diocese celebrated.
As one of Indonesia's youngest prelates, he is known and respected for the strength of his character, spiritual depth and faith. However, he will have to deal with many challenges in his new post, such as fixing the diocese's finances and providing pastoral care to its members.
In fact, Ketapang diocese is facing a major financial shortfall and does not have the resources to meet its needs, this in an area known for its rich nature.
Bishop Riana Prabdi's predecessor, Mgr Blasius Pujaraharja, already had to cope with the same problems, especially in terms of the pastoral care of the faithful and the provision of basic services to the local Catholic community. The bishop's residence itself is not much and lacks basic comforts.
In addition to these practical problems, the new bishop has to deal with the paucity of priests and seminarians. The last time a priest was ordained, an ethnic Dayak, was last year.
Overall, the number of priests is far short of what is needed in a territory of 35,000 sq km with 101,000 Catholics (out of a total population of 544,000), mostly ethnic Dayak but also some Javanese migrants and Sino-Indonesians. The diocese can count only 30 priests and 91 religious to serve such a large area where distances are great and some Christian communities, very remote.
Mgr Pius Riana Prapdi was born on 5 May 1967 in Painiai, West Papua province. He attended the minor seminary in Magelang, followed by the St Paul major seminary in Yogyakarta.
Later, he studied philosophy and theology at the Wedabhakti Faculty in Yogyakarta, earning a Bachelor in Theology.
Ordained priest on 8 July 1995 in Semarang, he was appointed parish vicar at St Mary of Fatima in Sragen and parish priest at St Aloysius Gonzaga in Mlati.
Between 1999 and 2001, he directed an educational foundation, the Yayasan Dinamika Edukasi Dasar.
In 2003-2005, he taught at the Wedabhakti Faculty and was parish vicar in Kidulloji.
In 2006, he became the director of the diocesan Caritas.
In 2008, he was appointed vicar general in the Archdiocese of Semarang.
In 2009-2010, he served as diocesan administrator in Semarang.