4th Sunday in Ordinary Time [C]
January 29, 2023
Matthew 5:1-12

Jesus began His teaching ministry with the Beatitudes. The Church has recognized that the Beatitudes are not just any teaching of Jesus, but ‘at the heart of Jesus’ preaching’ (see CCC 1716). The Beatitudes are foundational because they answer the most basic longing of any man and woman: desire for happiness. If we want to be genuinely happy, then we need to live the beatitudes.

However, if we read it carefully, we may realize that the instructions in the Beatitudes are counter-intuitive with our desires for happiness. We believe that having more possessions makes happy, but Jesus says that happiness is for the poor in spirit. We want to laugh and feel ‘happy’ but then, Jesus says happiness is for those who mourn. We know that being powerful and having the ability to control others make us feel fulfilled and ‘happy’, but Jesus says happiness is for those are meek, merciful as well as the peacemakers. We desire to be freed from all difficulties in our lives, but Jesus says that happiness is for those are persecuted for the sake of righteousness. Beatitudes does not make any sense.

Again, if we go back to the Old Testament, we discover that if the Israelites are faithful to observe the Law, they will be blessed with land, prosperous harvest and cattle, many children, and protection from the enemies. In fact, if the Israelites are breaking the laws, they will be cursed and thus, losing all these blessings (see Deu 28). Jesus’ Beatitudes is not even in line with these Old Testament’s blessings, but Jesus reverses the order!

What really happen? Is Jesus out of His mind? Fortunately, the Church provides us the answer, “[Beatitudes] take up the promises made to the chosen people since Abraham. The Beatitudes fulfill the promises by ordering them no longer merely to the possession of a territory, but to the Kingdom of heaven… They express the vocation of the faithful associated with the glory of his Passion and Resurrection (CCC 1716-7).”

Through Beatitudes, Jesus teaches us that the true happiness does not stop here on earth but must reach its destination in God alone. As followers of Christ, sometimes we receive an earthly blessing, but sometimes, we experience earthly ‘curses.’ Yet, these are temporal, and not the most important. In fact, material blessings may become a curse if we become addicted to it and do many evil things to acquire them. And our misfortunes and sufferings here on earth may turn to be a spiritual blessing, if we endure patiently and unite them to the Passion of Christ in our prayers.

Does it mean we cannot work to become rich and successful? Surely, we must work and be successful in life, but in the ways that are pleasing to the Lord. If we neither steal, nor cheat, then our works and material possessions are true blessings.

Does it mean we must passively receive our sufferings and injustice? Not at all! We have to do our best also to fight injustice among us and alleviate sufferings. In fact, just be silent in the face of evil is not only stupid, but also makes us a participant in that evil. Yet, we know also that sometimes, there are certain hardships that no matter we do, they remain. These are our crosses, and we shall bring them to Jesus.

Through Beatitudes, Jesus reminds us that our desire for happiness is coming from God, and thus, only God alone can fulfill it.

Rome
Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP

3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
January 22, 2023
Matthew 4:12-23

Matthew, our Evangelist, indicated that Jesus began His public ministry after John the Baptist was arrested. Why did Jesus take this decision? There are several reasons. The first one is that Jesus fulfilled what John himself has prophesied, “He must increase, but I must decrease (John 3:30).” John was highly popular, and many people followed him and considered him as a prophet of God, but his ministry came to a halt after he was imprisoned because he reprimanded Herod who married his brother’s wife (Mat 14:1-12). As John was no longer able to preach, Jesus came and bring the Good News.

Another interesting reason is that John serves as a mirror to the life and ministry of Jesus. What John did and experienced, would be done and experienced by Jesus, but with much greater scale. John’s conception was miraculous, because Zacharias and Elizabeth were deemed to be too old to have a child. Jesus’ conception was even unparallel because He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. John had great followers and disciples, and also many people followed Jesus, and some became His close disciples. Both John and Jesus preached repentance, but the distinction is also clear. John preached to prepare the way of the Lord, while Jesus preached to build His Kingdom of God.

John baptized as an outward sign of inner repentance, while Jesus granted true forgiveness of sins. John authenticated his messages through his lifestyle, Jesus proved His Gospel through unprecedented miracles and mastery of the nature force. Both John and Jesus were persecuted and executed because they preached the repentance and truth, and thus, offended the authority. However, Jesus resurrected and ascended into heaven, while John, who is already in heaven, is still waiting for his resurrection of the body.

When I met Fr. Gerard Timoner, our Master of the Order, in Rome, he told me this interesting fact about John and Jesus. John’s birthday is June 24 while Jesus is December 25. What is fascinating is not only the date is six months apart, but also the natural phenomena happening around those dates. John’s birthday is near to summer solstice. It occurs when the tilt of the Earth’s axis is most inclined towards the sun, resulting in the longest period of daylight for the year. Yet, after this solstice, the days are growing shorter and shorter. Meanwhile Christ’s birthday is near winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. Yet, after this solstice, the days are growing longer and longer. These phenomena also fulfil what John said, “He must increase, but I must decrease”

What is for us? As we begin our journey through the Ordinary Season, we are called to be like St. John the Baptist. We are to mirror Christ in our lives. We may have different vocations in this world, like laity, married persons, priests, or religious women, but in our way of life, we are to reflect Christ. Do other people see Jesus when they see us? Do we bring peace, repentance, and truth to others like Jesus does? Are we leading others to Jesus and not be tempted to draw people to ourselves?

Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP

2^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time [A]

January 15, 2023

John 1:29-35

Reading through today’s Gospel, we may have some questions in our minds, “why did John call Jesus ‘the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world?’ and ‘why did John say that he did not know Jesus and Jesus was before him?’ we know for sure that John was a relative of Jesus and, in fact, he was born six months ahead of Jesus. In this reflection, I will no longer write about the identity of Jesus as the Lamb of God because I have talked about it two years ago [kindly check my reflection dated January 17, 2021]. Thus, we try to answer the second question.

We know from the Gospel of Luke that Mary and Elizabeth, the mother of John, were close relatives, and Mary even spent around three months at the place of Elizabeth and Zachariah, her husband [Luk 1:39-56]. The birth of John and Jesus are even closely linked. Sometimes, I stumble upon a religious art depicting John and Jesus were playing together as little children. Surely, this is coming from the imagination and creativity of the Christian artists. Then, why did suddenly John say ‘he did not know Jesus’?

The answer may be discovered in the early life of John recorded in the Gospel of Luke. Luke writes that John grew strong in the Spirit, and he was in the wilderness until the day he appeared publicly to Israel (see Luk 1:80). Thus, John may hear about Jesus from his parents, but it is most likely that they were never personally met because John was in the wilderness since he was very young. Why wilderness? How could a young child survive in the wilderness? A number of scholars suggest that John, as young boy, entered one of the Essences communities. The Essences are the Jewish religious group that flourished in the time of John, and they were well-known for their strict adherence to the Law of Moses. They were also famous because they lived as communities in the wilderness.

Another interesting thing is that John said that Jesus was ‘before’ him. Yet, John was born earlier than Jesus. Here, John was not referring to the chronological date of birth and biological age. By divine inspiration, John testified that Jesus has existed even before him, and in fact before everything else. This is consistent with the prologue of the fourth Gospel (see John 1:1-14). Even before Jesus was born into the world, He was already with the Father and the Holy Spirit for all eternity. John the Baptist recognized the divinity identity of Jesus.

What do we learn from John’s testimony? Many of us may know little about Jesus. We may celebrate His birthday every year and recognize His face (because of the shroud of Turin), and be familiar with some His stories and teachings, but we do not know much about Him. Even for many biblical scholars and theologians who spend almost their lives to study Jesus’ life, Jesus remains a mystery. Here is the consolation: even John, Jesus’ relative, does not know much about Jesus!

It is true that John knew very little about Jesus, but what he recognized is the most fundamental, that is, Jesus was before him. In short, Jesus is divine. Surely, I am not saying that we must stop getting to know Jesus, and simply believe that He is divine. In the contrary, we are invited to know Him better and deeper, and at the same time, we must not lose sight of the fundamental: His divine identity. Otherwise, we can easily fall into a temptation that Jesus is anything, but divine. In our study, we can discover that Jesus is a great prophet, a wonderful healer, a powerful exorcist, a righteous teacher, but if we fail to acknowledge His divinity, everything will be in vain.

St. John the Baptist, pray for us.

Rome

Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP

The Epiphany [A]
January 8, 2023
Matthew 2:1-12

The story has what it takes to be magical. It begins with a long and adventurous journey of people searching for a great treasure, the new-born King. There is also a mysterious star that guides them. Then, the antagonist, in the person of Herod, appears. He seems to be a helpful and sincere guy, but secretly hides his evil intention and plot to destroy the true King. Here comes the twist. The main characters discover their King in the most unexpected way: a little child in a humble house with His poor family, yet He is also Emmanuel, God-with-us. Then, for the finale, the Magi barely escape the mad king as they are warned in a dream and return to their own countries through a different and safer way.

Matthew is a genius storyteller, and allows us, his readers, to be part of the story. Most of us can easily identify ourselves with the Magi. He also leaves some elements ‘incomplete’ so that we may fill them in with our interpretation and imagination. One of those is the Magi’s gifts. Why do they offer gold, frankincense, and myrrh?

One of the earliest answers comes from St. Irenaeus (ca. 200 AD). He said that the gifts represent the identity and mission of Christ. Gold is one of the most precious and expensive metals, and this is for His kingship. Frankincense is a resin from a particular plant and is commonly used for religious ritual, and this is the symbol of His divinity and priesthood. Meanwhile, myrrh is a spice used in burial (see John 19:39), and this points to His death and human nature. St. Thomas Aquinas in his commentary on Matthew explained that these gifts served practical purposes. Gold is to support the Holy Family, who was poor. Myrrh may be used to warm the baby’s body, and frankincense to remove the stench.

Another interesting interpretation is that gold, myrrh, and frankincense are materials used in ancient alchemy and sorcery. Magi (from ‘magos’ and the root word of ‘magic’) were believed to be involved in magical activities, but when they discover Jesus, they decide to give up these things and find a new way in their lives. Thus, these gifts represent the conversion of the Magi to true faith.

However, I am personally inclined towards the simplest interpretation. The Magi offered these items because these gifts were the most precious things in their possessions. They offered the best they had to the true King. This is a fitting gesture of honoring a king as well as worshiping God. In the Bible, acts of worship involve offering the best we have to God. The Magi discovered the true God and worshipped Him. This transformed their lives and brought them joy and salvation.

The story of Epiphany tells us that the human race has a purpose, that is to find its God. We are extremely blessed because we have discovered our God. Yet, the question is: do we wish to worship Him? What will we offer to Him? Are we willing to give the most precious things in our lives? Do we desire our lives to be transformed? Until we offer our gold, myrrh, and frankincense, it is not yet a glorious ending.

Rome
Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP

Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God [A]
January 1, 2023
Luke 2:16-21

After eight days (octave) we ponder the mystery of our Savior’s birth, we turn our eyes to the woman who gave birth to the Savior. Therefore, exactly on January 1, we celebrate the solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God. It is once again an opportunity to clarify some misconceptions about this important dogma, as well as to deepen our understanding on her motherhood.

The title mother of God for Mary does not mean that she is a god-mother who created other deities. Neither she is a goddess-wife of God the Father. The Church always teaches that Mary is not a god, but a human being. To understand better, we look closely the word ‘mother’. A mother is someone who has a person in her womb and eventually give birth to that person. Mary had the second person of the Trinity in her womb, and in due course, gave birth to Him. Thus, as simple logical conclusion, Mary is the mother of Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity. In short, Mary is the Mother of God.

However, being a mother is not only about getting pregnant and giving birth. A true mother is a woman who also raises, nourishes and educates her children. Mary did not stop when she gave birth to Jesus in Bethlehem. She did not leave Jesus on the manger and went away. She did not abandon baby Jesus to the Magi or to Herod’s army. With Joseph, Mary protected, nurtured and ‘made big’ Jesus. In fact, Mary was faithful to follow Jesus to His cross and tomb.

How did Mary perceive her identity as a mother? We recognize that when Mary received Jesus in her womb, she was entering extremely perilous situations. She could lose her life because people may stone her, or Herod’s soldiers may arrest and kill her. She endured the life of exile in Egypt, and had to contain with life of poverty. But, did she regret her decision?

The answer we can get from Mary’s song, ‘Magnificat’. “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior… (Luk 1:46–47)” In Hebrew language, the term ‘my soul’ or ‘my spirit’ is another way to say ‘I’. Thus, Mary said, “I magnifies the Lord, and I rejoices in God my Savior.” Interesting to note is the word ‘magnify’ or literally ‘make big’. What does it mean ‘Mary makes big the Lord’? The Greek word is ‘μεγαλύνω (- megaluno)’ and it is related to Hebrew word ‘גָּדַל’ (- gadal) which means to become physically mature. Therefore, what Mary said is that she physically nourishes the Lord in her womb as well as to make sure the Lord grow into maturity. And in her role as a mother of the Lord, she rejoiced exceedingly.

Mary becomes an antithesis to modern toxic maternity. In our time, many separate sexualities with pro-creation, and even consider fertility as disease. Many see being a mother and having a child are unnecessary burden that must be avoided and disposed. Mary saw things the opposite way. Despite life-threatening situations, Mary accepted her motherhood as integral part of her identity as woman. She saw Jesus in her womb as great blessing, and her participation in God’s will. She knew well only when she fulfilled God’s plan, she found her true joy.

Happy Mothers’ Day!
And
Happy New Year!

Rome
Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP