Do not be Dazzled

Second Sunday of Lent

March 1, 2015

 Mark 9:2-10

“It is good to be here!” Those are words that naturally come from the mouth of Peter. Indeed, it was an ecstasy to behold the Lord in His splendor. It was pleasant to encounter two great figures of Israel, Elijah and Moses. It was heavenly to hear the voice of the Father. It was a glimpse of heaven and Peter believed that it was really the paradise. It was the experience of being at the pick of the mountain, the moment of glory.

The experience of Peter is not foreign to us. When we achieve success in our works, when we win sport competitions, or when we earn our degree with flying color, these are the crown moments of our lives. For we who are working in the Church, we feel we see the Lord when our ministries are successful, when we gather enough money to fund our big project for the poor, or when people appreciate our help for them. Just this Saturday, our seminary organized a medical mission in Guagau, Pampanga, around two hours from Manila. We brought with us more than 100 volunteers, gathered a lot of medicine and we were able to help almost one thousand poor patients. It was a huge achievement and surely gave us tremendous feeling. 

We climb the mountains of our lives, the mountain of family, of career, and of service. Ask any mountaineering experts, they will tell us that climbing mounts are tough and sometimes even deadly. Yet, after all these difficult and dangerous trails, arriving at the top is enormous experience. At the tops of our lives, like Peter, we shout also, “It is good to be here!” and like the three disciples, we want that the moments to be lasting. Thus, Peter promptly continued, “Let us make three tents.” We, just like the three disciples, like to linger longer at the mountain’s summit.

However, this is not what Jesus wants them to be. He asks not to stay but to go down. Who among us like to descend from glory? Surely, it is natural for us to maintain our position or even ascend to a higher ground. Yet again, the transfiguration was short-lived, Jesus went back to His human appearance and walked down. He invites us all to see our all our achievements in humility. Our success in life, work and ministry are indeed a blessing, but we must not cling possessively to them.

The glories and success can be very edifying, and we might be consumed by this dazzling lights and we fail to see the most important in our lives. Our Gospel reminds us what most important is to listen and follow Jesus. We are reminded that all these achievements are good yet also fickle. They can come and go anytime. Thus, we must not forget what is truly essential in our life, because when everything is gone, only Jesus remains faithful to us.

Belajar Turun dari Gunung

Kedua Minggu Prapaskah

1 Maret 2015

Markus 9: 2-10

“Betapa bahagianya kita berada di tempat ini!” Ini adalah kata-kata yang secara alami keluar dari mulut Petrus. Sungguh, melihat Tuhan dalam kemegahan-Nya adalah sesuatu yang luar biasa. Sungguh membahagiakan bertemu dengan dua tokoh besar Israel, Elia dan Musa. Sebuah pengalaman surgawi untuk mendengar suara Allah Bapa. Bagi Petrus, Yohanes dan Yakobus, pengalaman ini adalah sebuah citarasa surgawi. Ini adalah pengalaman mereka saat berada di puncak gunung bersama Yesus.

Pengalaman Petrus ini sebenarnya tidak asing bagi kita. Ketika kita mencapai sukses dalam pekerjaan, ketika kita menang sebuah kompetisi, atau ketika kita mendapatkan gelar dan penghargaan, ini adalah saat-saat mahkota kehidupan kita. Bagi kita yang bekerja di Gereja, kita merasa melihat Tuhan ketika pelayanan kita berhasil, ketika kita mengumpulkan cukup uang untuk mendanai proyek besar untuk orang-orang miskin, atau ketika orang menghargai bantuan kita untuk mereka. Beberapa minggu lalu, para frater OP mengadakan bakti sosial di Guagau, Pampanga, sekitar dua jam dari kota Manila. Kami memimpin lebih dari 100 relawan, mengumpulkan banyak obat-obatan dan kami mampu membantu hampir seribu pasien miskin. Itu adalah prestasi besar dan pasti memberi kami perasaan yang luar biasa.

Kita mendaki pegunungan hidup kita, gunung keluarga, karir, dan pelayanan. Tanyakan setiap pencinta alam dan pendaki gunung, mereka akan menceritakan bahwa mendaki gunung bukanlah sesuatu yang mudah dan kadang-kadang sangat berbahaya. Namun, setelah semua jalan yang sulit dan berbahaya dilalui, tiba di puncak adalah pengalaman yang sangat luar biasa. Pada puncak dari kehidupan kita, seperti Petrus, kita juga berseru, “Betapa bahagianya kami berada di tempat ini!”. Dengan demikian, Petrus pun berkata, “Mari kita membuat tiga kemah.” Kita, seperti tiga murid ini, ingin berlama-lama tinggal di puncak gunung.

Namun, ini bukanlah yang Yesus inginkan dari mereka. Dia tidak meminta mereka untuk tinggal berlama-lama tapi turun dari gunung. Siapa di antara kita ingin turun dari keberhasilan hidup kita? Tentunya, wajar bagi kita untuk mempertahankan posisi kita atau bahkan naik ke prestasi yang lebih tinggi. Tetapi kita diingatkan bahwa momen transfigurasi berumur pendek. Setelah beberapa saat bercahaya dalam kemuliaan, Yesus kembali ke penampilan manusia-Nya yang sederhana. Dia mengajak kita semua untuk melihat semua prestasi kita dalam kerendahan hati. Keberhasilan kita dalam hidup, pekerjaan dan pelayanan memang berkat dan usaha kita, tapi kita tidak boleh melekat kepada mereka.

Keberhasilan dan kesuksesan bisa sangat memuaskan, dan kita mungkin akan terpaku pada cahaya keberhasilan yang mempesona ini dan kitapun gagal untuk melihat hal yang paling penting dalam hidup kita. Injil hari ini mengingatkan kita bahwa hal yang paling penting adalah untuk mendengarkan dan mengikuti Yesus. Kita diingatkan bahwa semua prestasi dalam hidup adalah baik namun juga tidak abadi. Mereka bisa datang dan pergi kapan saja. Dengan demikian, kita tidak boleh melupakan apa yang benar-benar penting dalam hidup kita, karena ketika semua hal ini hilang, hanya Yesus yang akan tetap setia pada kita.

Frater Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP

Why Desert?

1^st Sunday of Lent

February 22, 2015

Mark 1:12-15

“At once the Spirit drove him out into the desert (Mark 1:12)”

Today, we are entering the first Sunday of Lent. This liturgical season traditionally serves as a time of preparation for the Paschal triduum and Easter. It is marked by the spirit of repentance and of baptismal renewal. Today’s gospel gives us a foundation why we have forty days of Lent. It is precisely because want to follow Jesus into the desert for forty days. As Jesus was led by the Spirit, we shall open ourselves to the guidance of the Spirit. Then, the big question is: how does it feel to be in the desert?

Honestly, I have never been to any desert. Except through some movies and ‘Google’, the desert experience escapes my senses. But, learning from the bible, we agree that the desert is indeed an important site. In Exodus, Moses and the Israelites journeyed through the desert for forty years before entering the Promised Land. David sought safe refuge in the desert when his enemies pursued him. Then, John the Baptist himself prepared himself in the desert, eating nothing but locust and honey. The desert in biblical world turns to be a place of formation of God’s chosen persons. Yet again, why does it have to be in desert?

Some commentaries mention that desert in Israel is not the kind like in Sahara where the sand seems to cover the entire earth and life is practically impossible. However, desert or wilderness in Israel is unproductive land due to lack of rainfall, and thus, life is still possible. Yet, still Palestine desert is not a child-friendly place since the wild animals found their hiding and it was a belief that the evil spirits lurked for victims. Looking at these features, we can conclude that deserts in Israel can indeed become a training ground. Yet, again what kind of formation we will receive in this kind of place?

 Antonio de Saint-Exupery through the lips of the little Prince once said, “Here is my secret. It is very simple. It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; What is essential is invisible to the eye.” Astonishingly, the author drew inspiration when he was stranded in Saharan desert. It appeared that the utter solitude and deafening emptiness of the desert strip off those complexities and bring us to face our bare humanity. Immersed in this fast-paced and digitalized world, many of us have lost that ability to see what truly matter, and we simply need to go to the desert. I myself knew well of this, as I juggled from reading books, updating my FB status, and browsing the internet, none of these seems truly essential. It is good that I have set aside time for writing this reflection. 

Paulo Coelho started his book ‘Warrior of Light’ with a story of a boy who searched a sound of a bell at the seashore. Initially he heard nothing but waves and he was distracted by the sound, but after sometime, he was no longer distracted and in fact, enjoyed the beauty of the wave. And as he entered into the silence of the sea, he gradually heard the sound of the bell from the deep of the ocean. This is the experience we need; to be in desert. I was lucky enough that I had this desert moment in the novitiate. For almost fourteen months, we were not allowed to have any communication with outside world, no cellphone, no news. But, we survived and even grew as we were confronted with our inner self.

How about lay people who have no privilege to enter the novitiate? The Church has provided this season and we are invited to inhale the spirit of Lent. Do we go to the Church and listen careful to the beautiful readings? Do we really practice fasting and abstinence, and take some distance with our wireless gadgets? Do we spend more time in prayer and personal reflection, and ask what is truly important in our lives? Lenten gives us an opportunity to walk through the wilderness with Jesus and to see the essential that is often invisible to the eyes.

Br. Valentinus Bayuhadi Ruseno, OP