Gunawan was born on 13 July 1955 to a Chinese Indonesian family in the city of Malang. Gunawan joined the Order of Carmelites on 15 January 1976, and took his solemn vows as a member on 18 January 1981.[2] On 7 February 1982 he was ordained a priest,[1] by then bishop of Malang Franciscus Xaverius Sudartanta Hadisumarta.[3] He has a brother, Antonius Maria Kristijanto Anton Gunawan, who also became a Carmelite priest. Antonius died on 2 October 2015.[4]
Following his ordination as priest, Gunawan continued his education, studying for his master's degree in the field of Scripture at the Pontifical Bible Institute in Rome and graduated in 1986.[5] In 1990, he completed his doctoral program in Biblical Theology at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, also in Rome.[6]
Gunawan taught New Testament theology at the Widya Sasana seminary. On March 14, 2007, at a ceremony that took place at the Surya Wacana Seminary Hall next to STFT Widya Sasana, Gunawan along with Prof. DR. Berthold Anton Pareira were honored.[7]
From 2012 until his ordination as bishop, Gunawan was president of the Philosophical and Theological Higher Institute ‘Widya Sasana’.[2]
On 28 June 2016, Pope Francis nominated Gunawan bishop of the diocese of Malang,[2] to replace Herman Pandoyoputro. Gunawan was ordained by Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo on 7 February 1982 in Stade Gajayana, Malang, with the co-consecrators being Antonius Subianto Bunjamin and Vincentius Sutikno Wisaksono.[1]
