Viral: Photo of Muslim men helping nuns with broken down motorcycle is everything good about Indonesia

One of the founding principles of Indonesia is supposed to be “Unity in Diversity”, but it is easy to lose faith in that ideal given that news about intolerance seems to be increasingly daily in our country.

But a lot of that is because shocking news stories about intolerance easily get attention, whereas the simple, everyday acts of tolerance, compassion and love that are actually so common in Indonesia rarely get the spotlight they deserve.

Which is why we love this photo so much. To us, this represents Indonesia at its truest and best:

The photo has gone viral across several social media platforms in Indonesia over the weekend. It shows two Muslim men stopping on the side of the road to assist two Christian nuns, whose motorcycle appears to have broken down.

Not much is known about the identities of the people in the photo or even where and when it was taken. Yet this simple photo conveys a hugely important lesson about tolerance and it’s indeed resonating with many netizens.

The true face of Islam.

This must be followed. Not much talk, but real actions with good deeds.

There’s actually a lot of tolerance in this country, but it’s rarely exposed.

Regardless of the circumstances of the photo, we hope that the sentiment it carries reminds Indonesians to be more tolerant towards each other, especially at a time when some people are using religion to create tension among Indonesians for political gain.

As another viral photo beautifully reminded us last year, no matter the differences in our religions, we are all one people. We are all Indonesians.



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