Liberating Mud

Fourth Sunday of Lent

March 30, 2014

John 9:1-41

“I do believe, Lord (John 9:38)”

Sickness and suffering as a punishment from God was a prevalent mentality in Jesus’ time. They were punished because of their sins and offenses. This is why in today’s Gospel we hear that a Pharisee could simply say to the blind man, “You were born sinner and now you teach us!” He was conceived with a defect in his eyes and he had to beg for living. He bore physical disability and was so poor. He must be a grave outlaw!

This was an ancient explanation of the reality of suffering, yet believe it or not, the mindset still holds sway today. When torrential rain caused severe flooding in Metro Manila just August last year, some people started making connection with God’s wrath upon the present Philippine government. They would say that we were chastised since the legislative and executive branches passed the controversial Reproductive Health Bill into a law (a legislation that supports artificial contraception). Another interpretation came from Nanay Lina (not her real name). She lived in our neighborhood, and when her house was flooded, she took refuge in Santo Domingo Church. She told her story to some of our brothers, “God punishes us because there are many drug-addicts near my area!”

Why do we think like this? Reality of suffering and of death is overwhelming, and deep inside, we cannot bear this mystery. We cannot grasp the pain and agony we have within us. Why does it take place in us? Then, to find solace, we start projecting this weakness to others who are less fortunate. “O, he got poorer than I, so I must be happy!” Worse, we transfer our imperfections to our God. If we seek revenge every time we are wronged, therefore, God must let us suffer as the expiation of His anger as well. Yet, this is a terrible mistake!  Without realizing it, we mold our God in our image and likeness and not we in His image and likeness.

Fortunately, this is not the God of Jesus, the true God of Israel.  Jesus became an instant sensation not only because He eccentrically healed people (He used a mud mixed with His saliva!), but also freed them from the negative and sickening mentality. Jesus disrupted the status quo of Jewish religious leaders as He introduced a true understanding of God. He did not only restore health, but more fundamentally, He implanted the true faith. Our God is not avenging and blood-thirsty God, but loving and merciful One. “I did not come to call the righteous but sinners.” This is why after the healing, Jesus often asked their confession of faith. “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” Jesus asked the man. He then professed his faith in Jesus, “Lord, I believe.”

Lenten season turns to be a perfect time for us to ask, “Who is our God?” Take a deep breath and pause a moment. In the depth of our hearts, we look for the honest answer: “Is He a mere reflection of our feeble humanity? Or is He the true and living God?” The truth might chill us to the bones, and we begin to resist like the Pharisees, but we need to be glad because Jesus is slowly opening our eyes and the Good News is that we may once again be formed in His image and likeness.

Br. Valentinus Bayuhadi Rusneo, OP

Lumpur yang Membebaskan

Minggu Pra-Paskah keempat

30 Maret 2014

Yohanes 9:1-41

“Tuhan, aku percaya (Yoh 9:38)”

Ada mentalitas di zaman Yesus bahwa penyakit dan penderitaan adalah hukuman dari Allah. Mereka dihukum karena dosa-dosa mereka atau orang tua mereka. Inilah sebabnya mengapa dalam Injil hari ini kita mendengar bahwa para Farisi bisa dengan mudanya berkata kepada orang buta yang baru disembuhkan, “Engkau ini lahir sama sekali dalam dosa dan engkau hendak mengajar kami?” Dia dilahirkan dengan cacat di matanya dan dia harus mengemis untuk hidup. Pastinya si buta ini adalah pendosa besar dan layak menderita.

Ini adalah sebuah penjelasan kuno terhadap realitas penderitaan, namun percaya atau tidak, pola pikir seperti ini masih mencengkram pemahaman kita. Ketika hujan deras menyebabkan banjir besar di Metro Manila bulan Agustus tahun lalu, beberapa orang mulai membuat hubungan dengan murka Allah kepada pemerintah Filipina saat ini. Mereka berpendapat bahwa rakyat Filipina dihukum karena DPR and pemerintah Filipina bersekutu untuk membuat Reproductive Health Bill (yang mendukung kontrasepsi buatan) menjadi undang-undang. Interpretasi lain tentang banjir besar ini datang dari Nanay Lina (bukan nama sebenarnya). Dia tinggal di dekat Gereja Santo Domingo, dan ketika rumahnya terendam banjir, ia berlindung dan mengungsi di Gereja Santo Domingo. Dia menceritakan kisahnya dengan beberapa frater, “Tuhan menghukum kita karena ada banyak pecandu obat terlarang di dekat rumah saya!”

Mengapa kita berpikir seperti ini? Realitas penderitaan dan kematian memang tak terhindari dan menjangkiti semua orang, dan di dalam lubuk hati kita, kita tidak bisa mengerti misteri penderitaan harus terjadi ini. Mengapa hal-hal ini terjadi di dalam hidup kita? Kemudian, untuk menemukan pelipur lara, kita mulai memproyeksikan kelemahan ini kepada orang lain yang lebih menderita. “Oh, ia bernasib  lebih buruk, maka saya harus bergembira!” Lebih buruk lagi, kita mengalihkan ketidaksempurnaan kita kepada Allah. Kita membalas dendam setiap kali kita menerima perlakuan buruk, dan karena itu, Allah kita pastinya akan juga membalas tindakan jahat manusia dengan penderitaan yang setimpal. Namun, ini adalah kesalahan fundamental! Tanpa disadari, kita membentuk Allah kita menurut gambar dan rupa kita dan bukan kita menurut gambar dan rupa-Nya.

Untungnya, Tuhan yang pendendam dan suke menghukum ini bukanlah Tuhannya Yesus, Allah Israel yang sejati. Yesus menjadi sensasi instan bukan hanya karena Dia menyembuhkan banyak orang dengan cara eksentrik (Dia menggunakan lumpur yang dicampur dengan air liur-Nya!), tetapi juga membebaskan mereka dari mentalitas negatif dan memuakkan ini. Yesus menantang status quo para pemuka agama Yahudi dan Dia memperkenalkan pemahaman yang benar tentang Allah. Dia tidak hanya memulihkan kesehatan, tetapi lebih mendasar lagi, Dia menaanamkan iman yang benar di hati orang-orang yang disentuh-Nya. Tuhan kita bukanlah pendendam ataupun Tuhan yang haus akan darah, tapi penuh kasih dan siap memaafkan kesalahan kita. “Aku datang bukan untuk memanggil orang benar melainkan orang berdosa.”  Inilah sebabnya mengapa setelah penyembuhan, Yesus meminta pengakuan iman dari mereka. “Apakah kamu percaya pada Anak Manusia?” Yesus tanya pria itu. Dia kemudian menyerukan imannya kepada Yesus, “Tuhan , saya percaya.”

Masa Pra-Paskah menjadi waktu yang tepat bagi kita untuk berintrospeksi, “Siapakah Allah kita?” Ambil napas dalam-dalam dan berhenti sejenak. Dalam kedalaman hati kita, kita mencari jawaban yang jujur: “ Apakah Dia sekedar refleksi kemanusiaan kita yang lemah? Atau Dia adalah Allah yang benar dan hidup?" Kebenaran yang kita temukan mungkin menyakitkan, dan kita mulai menolaknya seperti halnya orang-orang Farisi di Injil hari ini, tetapi kita juga berbahagia karena Yesus secara perlahan telah membuka mata kita dan kita dapat dibentuk menurut gambar-Nya dan rupa.

Frater Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP

Power of Touch

Second Sunday of Lent

March 16, 2014

Matthew 17:1-9

Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Rise, and do not be afraid." (Mat 17:7)

 

We, human, normally possess five senses and the most basic among the five is hardly in our consciousness: sense of touch. In fact, all the other senses are rooted in this particular sense. Eyes need to be in touch with the light spectrum in order to see. Our eardrums receive sound vibrations. Our taste buds are activated when they are in contact with chemical substances coming from the things we chew. And unlike other senses that occupy only small portions of our body, sense of touch virtually covers our entire being. Yet, unfortunately, being most fundamental and common, we tend to take this for granted.

Now, being dominated by sense of touch, every physical contact is very simple yet powerful. Being touchable creatures, each corporeal gesture may make or break an individual. Bodily interaction can either transform or deform a person. One time I visited an orphanage in the heart of Quezon City. I met small kids from the age of 4 to 6, many of them abandoned. One particular thing they would like to do was to hug me and ask me to carry them in my arms. There was a subtle emotional closeness that these kids wanted me to provide, all because they lack the most essential gesture: their physical closeness and loving warmness of their own parents.

When I was still a novice, I was assigned in a leprosarium in Tala, Metro Manila. There, I helped in dressing the wounds of some patients, but more importantly, we listened and became one with these deserted people. These persons belong to exceptional cases since though leprosy is curable nowadays, there was something in their bodily system that rejected the medication. What monstrous about Leprosy is that it slowly eats up our sense of touch! As the lepers’ nerves are plainly disappearing, gradually their limbs are disintegrating due to unfelt wounds and injuries! The sense of touch is critical that the lack or excess of it may kill us in emotional and even literal ways.

Jesus is greatly aware of this power of touch. In today’s Gospel, Jesus expresses his intimacy to the three disciples just in the right time and right way. In the Mount, He is not only transforming into a powerful and terrifying appearance, adored even by Moses and Elijah, but He is also touches His three trembling friends and assures them that very thing is going to be just fine. In fact, reading through the four Gospels, we may be amazed on how ‘touchy’ Jesus is. He embraces a lot of people, including sinners and men with contagious diseases, He enjoys the close company of His disciples, and finally, He gives up His own body and blood as a holy sacrifice for our salvation. “Take and eat: This is my Body!”

Jesus knows that every person longs for sincere intimacy and meaningful friendships, and Jesus understands that these basic desires may be fulfilled by a little yet loving gesture of touch. One thing I notice when I enter the Dominican Order is that the senior brothers would embrace the younger brothers every time, they pass through the crucial stages in their religious life, like wearing habit for the first time, professions and ordinations. We call this ‘abrazzo’. It is indeed a lovely sign of welcoming, but more than that, it is a powerful symbol that tells them, “Don’t worry, you are now safe because we are here!” 

As the followers of Christ, we must no fear to touch and be touched, and let this ordinary and simple gesture become a powerful sign of love and assurance. As Jesus touches our lives, so we shall touch other people’s lives.

Br. Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP