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Author: Romo Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno OP

Perwira Romawi, Teladan dalam Kemajemukan

Perwira Romawi, Teladan dalam Kemajemukan

Perwira Romawi, Teladan dalam Kemajemukan
 
Senin pada Pekan Adven Pertama
28 November 2016
Matius 8:5-11
 
Di dalam budaya Yahudi pada jaman Yesus, orang-orang Yahudi tidak akan membuat kontak dengan orang-orang asing apalagi bangsa Romawi yang menjajah mereka. Jika ingin tidak menjadi najis sebaiknya menjauhi orang-orang asing ini dan tidak memasuki tempat kediaman mereka. Saat orang Yahudi menjadi najis, mereka tidak bisa mengikuti kegiatan-kegiatan keagamaan baik di Bait Allah maupun di tempat-tempat ibadat yang lain. Mereka harus melakukan ritual pentahiran yang cukup rumit dan panjang.
Namun, ada yang menarik dari Injil hari ini. Seorang permira Romawi datang kepada Yesus dan memohon Yesus untuk menyembuhkan hambanya. Saat Yesus mencoba mengunjungi hambanya, sang perwira tiba-tiba mencegah Yesus, dan berkata, “Tuan, aku tidak layak menerima Tuan di dalam rumahku, katakan saja sepatah kata, maka hambaku itu akan sembuh.” Kata-kata sang permira ini akhirnya menjadi bagian dari Ekaristi kudus dan dikenang untuk sepanjang masa.
Kenapa sang perwira pencegah Yesus? Karena ia mengerti kebudayaan dan agama Yahudi. Dia tahu bahwa Yesus sebagai guru orang Yahudi akan menjadi najis jika Ia masuk ke dalam rumahnya. Hal ini sangat mengesankan karena ia adalah seorang Romawi dan juga perwira. Ia seorang penjajah dan tentunya memiliki perasaan superioritas dengan bangsa jajahannya. Ia pun seorang perwira, sebuah jabatan yang cukup tinggi di kemiliteran Romawi. Tetapi, dengan semua keunggulannya ini, dia tidak menjadi angkuh. Bahkan dia mencoba menyelami kebudayaan dan kepercayaan bangsa Yahudi, yang adalah orang-orang yang ada dalam kuasanya. Tidak hanya mengenal kebudayaan dan peraturan keagamaan Yahudi, dia juga menghormati tradisi ini.
Sikap sang perwira Romawi ini menjadi teladan yang baik bagi kita yang hidup dalam masyarakat yang majemuk. Seringkali kita tidak peduli dengan anggota masyarakat yang berbeda agama dan budaya dengan kita. Terkadang, kitapun menaruh perasaan curiga terhadap mereka. Hal-hal seperti ini tidak banyak membantu dan bahkan menghancurkan kita sebagai komunitas manusia. Kita diajak untuk berani keluar dari sekat-sekat pembatas hidup ini dan mencoba untuk mengenal keindahan kebudayaan dan kepercayaan orang-orang yang hidup di sekitar kita. Hanya dari pemahaman, kita bisa menghargai dan mengasihi sesama kita lebih dalam dan bermakna.
Setiap kali kita merayakan Ekaristi kudus, sang perwira selalu mengingatkan bahwa kemajemukan adalah keindahan yang memperkaya iman kita. Rasa hormat dan usaha untuk mengenal lebih baik perbedaan yang ada menjadi syarat bagi kita untuk mengasihi lebih besar.
 
Frater Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP
Advent: Season of Finding God

Advent: Season of Finding God

Advent: Season of Finding God


First Sunday of Advent.
November 27, 2016.
Matthew 24:37-44

“So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come (Mat 24:44).”

We are entering the Season of Advent. This season marks the beginning of the new Church’s liturgical year as well as of the four Sundays preparation for Christmas. Advent is from the Latin word ‘Adventus’ meaning ‘arrival’, and thus, this season prepares us for the coming of Christ.
Our faith speaks of two Advents of Jesus. Historically, Jesus’ first coming was in the little town Bethlehem more than two millennia ago, as a little baby, meek and gentle. We fondly call this day as the first Christmas. Theologians  name this sacred moment in history as the Incarnation. This means the Second Person of the Trinity became flesh and dwelt among us (see John 1:14). on the other hand the Second Coming calls our attention to His final coming as the King and Judge of the living and dead. This Second Coming is integral to our belief system as it was explicitly written in both Apostles’ and Nicea-Constantinople’ Creeds.
In the first coming, nobody expected the Messiah would be born in an extremely simple condition and from the poor family of Joseph and Mary. In time of Jesus, Jews naturally expected a Messiah coming from the royal, influential and well-off families. Though we all believe in the Second Coming, nobody knows also when exactly it will knock on our door. There were a lot of self-proclaimed prophets announcing the end of the world, but none were proven true. As the first coming caught the Jews unprepared, so too the second coming will bring great surprise to all of us.
Thus, to avoid the false expectations as well as complacency, the Church invites us to celebrate the season of Advent. This season trains us to expect His Coming and to expect rightly. But, how does the Season of Advent really make us truly prepare? The answer lies on a third coming. St. Bernard of Clairvaux reminded us that there is also the third coming of Christ. This is taking place between the first and the second Advent of Jesus. Jesus is present in our daily lives and knocks in our hearts. If we possess the virtue to discover God in our daily lives, we will not be caught unguarded with His Final Coming.
The Season of Advent reminds us that the presence of God is actually real and manifold. We need to exert effort to open our eyes and heart. Firstly, His presence is the sacraments, especially in the Eucharist. Every time we partake of the Eucharist, we receive the Real Body of Christ in the form of the sacred host. Secondly, His presence is also manifested in the Sacred Scriptures as the Word of God. Saint Augustine reminds us not only to read and study the Bible but also pray with it, as he writes, “When you read the Bible, God speaks to you; when you pray, you speak to God.” Thirdly, we are also trained to seek His invisible presence around us. On the door of his room, our formator in the seminary placed a large inscription. It writes, “Train your mind to see the good in everything.” Yes, we cannot see God directly, but we can always unearth His good works around us. He is present when we choose to forgive rather than take revenge. He is just around when suddenly our children give us much-needed warm hugs. He is not far when a little-impoverished boy decides to share his small piece of bread for his sickly mother.
Be prepared and find God in your midst!
True King on the Cross

True King on the Cross

True King on the Cross
Solemnity of Christ the King
[November 20, 2016]
Luke 23:35-43
 “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise. (Luk 23:43)”
The liturgical celebration of Christ the King is a recent development in the Church. It was Pope Pius XI who instituted the feast day in 1925 in October. Pope Paul VI in 1969 dedicated the last Sunday of the Ordinary Time in the Church’s liturgical calendar to our Lord Jesus Chris, the King of the Universe. Though it was a recent practice in the Church, the truth was revealed in the Scriptures.
Jesus opened His public ministry by proclaiming the Kingdom of God. If God is the King and Jesus is the only begotten Son of God, Jesus was the natural heir to the throne of this Kingdom. Yet, the kingship of Jesus Christ was more pronounced in His passion and death. Some Jewish religious leaders accused Jesus of blasphemy because Jesus claimed to be the Messiah, the Son of God, even God Himself (see John 8:58). However, instead simply stoning Him to death, the leaders wanted a more painful and shameful death for Jesus. They decided to bring Him to Pontius Pilate, the Roman leader of Judea. Since Pilate did not judge on the religious quarrel, the Jewish leaders accused Jesus to be the self-proclaimed the King of the Jews. To be a king in rebellion against the Caesar was considered a high treason, and deserved the crucifixion. Jesus was then condemned to death, and on the cross, the accusation was nailed: Jesus from Nazareth, the King of Jews, in Latin, Iesus Nazarenus Rex Iudaeorum or INRI.
In today’s Gospel, we read from St. Luke who wrote beautifully the event on the cross. For the enemies of Jesus, the crucifixion was an utter mockery of Jesus being a king and the Messiah. One of the main duties of a king and Messiah is to save his people, but then, Jesus was nailed on the cross, and unable even to save Himself. The hostile Jews mocked him as a useless Messiah, while the Roman soldiers jeered him as a good-for-nothing king. Even one of the criminals added insult to the injury. Indeed, Jesus was helpless, extremely weak and bearing extreme and prolonged pains. His friends and disciples left him. His followers abandoned Him. Death awaited Him. It was a moment of apparent total failure.
However, in this hour of darkness, when everyone thought that it was the end of Jesus’ reign, Jesus performed the supreme kingly act. He forgave and saved the repentant criminal on the cross. Instead of nagging, complaining, or cursing, he uttered blessing. Instead of condemning and seeking revenge, He healed. Instead of falling into despair, He gave hope. His rule was not based on brute force and violence, but on justice, mercy and love. This is the true King, Jesus is our King.
If we acclaim Jesus as our King and we are sharing His Kingship in baptism, it is proper for us to exercise this same kingly power. At a time when we are facing many difficulties, when we are hurt, and when we feel so weak, we are empowered to do kingly acts: to bless, to heal, and to give hope. Yes, it is difficult, but if we have a King who is able to love despite all ugliness, so we are also able to love in the midst of brokenness.
Br. Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP
The Temple

The Temple

 
 
33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
November 13, 2016
Luke 21:5-19
 
“All that you see here– the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down. (Luk 21:6)”
 
In many other ancient religions, temple was a sacred place. It is holy because their gods or goddesses chose to make their dwelling place and they may serve and worship their gods there. Thus, many cultic rituals in honor of their gods like animal sacrifices and prayers took place in the temples. The temple became the visible signs of the divine presence among the people. Zeus was felt alive in his temple in Mount Olympus, or the gods of Rome were present in the Pantheon.
The Israelites incorporated the mindset and they built their own temples for the God of Israel. Initially, they had several major temples like in Bethel (see Gen 35:1), Shiloh (see Jos 18:1), and Shechem (see Gen 12:6). Yet, when David and Solomon tried to consolidate tribes of Israel into one unified nation, the worship of Yahweh then was centralized at the temple of Jerusalem. Eventually, the Temple of Jerusalem became the only temple in land of Israel.
In the center of this temple, there was the most sacred ground called the Holy of Holiest. One day a year, only a high priest may enter this space and offer the sacrifice. Jesus himself called the Temple as His Father’s place. It is the house of the Lord and there, the tribes have come, the tribes of the LORD (Psa 122:4). In the time of Jesus, the Temple had been structurally enhanced and richly adorned by King Herod the Great. Not only the holiest site for the Jewish, but perhaps it was the most beautiful edifice in Jerusalem. Because of its beauty, importance and sacredness, people of Israel thought it was indestructible.  
However, Jesus prophesied that this magnificent Temple would be destroyed. Jews who honored the Temple would be shocked and scandalized. To say bad against the Temple meant to say bad against the Lord who dwelt in it. No wonder Jesus was accused of blasphemy and indeed this was one of the accusations against Jesus during His persecution. Jesus was then crucified, and in 70 AD, forty years after Christ died, the Temple would follow the same fate. The Roman soldiers under Titus captured Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple. Jesus’ prophesy turned to be a reality. What remains to the present day is the West Wall of the Temple, known also as the Wailing Wall.
Then we may ask ourselves: What is our Temple? What becomes the symbol of the presence and blessing of God in our lives? What part of our lives that we think so important and indestructible? Are these our achievements, success, wealth or status and title in life? Are these our families, friendships and even our religious practices?  Yet, all these things are not indestructible.
Indeed, the Temple of Jerusalem was destroyed, but it did not mean God was lost also. True that sacred Temple was associated with the Most High, but temple was not God. When Jesus was murdered, the disciples thought it was the end, but they were wrong. It was rather the end of their false expectations and ideas of Jesus. Even God would allow the greatest symbol of our God in our lives to be destroyed, it does not mean our God is lost. It means that He calls us to reorient our lives not to ourselves but to Him, to come into a truer and deeper relationship with Him.
 
Br. Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP
God of the Living

God of the Living

32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time
November 6, 2016
Luke 20:27-38
“He is not God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.” (Luk 20:38)
 
The month of November is dedicated to honor all the saints in heaven as well as to pray for the souls in the purgatory. It begins with the celebration of All Saints’ Day on November 1 and the commemoration of the All Souls Day on November 2. We, the Dominicans, celebrate the all Dominican Saints on November 7 and pray for the souls of our Dominican family on November 8. This Church’s celebration traces its origin to Pope Boniface IV in the 7th century, yet its roots go deeper into Jesus Christ Himself.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus affirmed the truth of the resurrection of the dead. This truth presupposes that life is not ended in death but transformed. There is hope after this earthly sojourn. The probable context behind this verse is that of Jesus’ critique of the Sadducees’ unbelief as well as the pagan belief of the realm of the dead. During those times, ancient civilizations worshiped the gods of death more than other gods because they feared the power of death that could destroy life and bring human existence to nothing. The Greeks had Hades, the Romans worshiped Pluto and the Egyptians honored Osiris. Yet, Jesus revealed fundamentally a different truth: Our God is not God of the dead, but God of the living. He still gives us life despite our physical death. This means that we are not mere afterlife disposable garbage or useless souls wandering on earth. We are loved even if we are no longer here on earth. Thus when Jesus commanded us to love one another, this love is not only for our Christian fellows who are still alive, but also for our brothers and sisters who have gone ahead of us.
In ancient Roman tradition, the cemetery was located far away from the cities. These were called necropolis, literally the city of the dead, because the dead had nothing to do anymore with the living. Yet, early Christians opted to do their liturgy inside the catacomb, the underground cemetery. True, it was a hiding place from the Roman authority who persecuted the early Christians, but it was also reflected their faith that they were actually praying for and with the dead brothers and sisters. In many churches, the burial ground was within the same complex. Even in our place in Manila, the burial place of the departed Dominican brothers and priests is just beside our seminary. Their permanent rest place is just a few meters away from our temporary rest place! This proximity reminds us of the bond of brotherhood and love among us. We are reminded to pray for them and to imitate them who were faithful until death. We are reminded, too, that they also pray for us from heaven.
Following the teaching of Jesus, the Church believes that those who are no longer with us, are still part of the Church. Those in heaven are members of the Church triumphant; those in purgatory belong to the Church suffering, and we here on earth are part of the Church militant. Yet, all are one of the same Church, profess the same faith, and worship the same God. Since all are members of the body of Christ, we are united closely in Christ and His love. Thus, it is proper for us to manifest our love for our departed brothers and sister through our prayers and they help us in prayer and intercessions.
 
Br. Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP
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