Memorial of the Saint Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. The Ethiopian Church, one of the first among the African churches, venerates St. Michael as her protector. Baca lebih lanjut
Memorial of the Saint Archangels Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. The Ethiopian Church, one of the first among the African churches, venerates St. Michael as her protector.
Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Whoever lives and believes in me
will never die.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Luke 9,43b-45
'For your part, you must have these words constantly in mind: The Son of man is going to be delivered into the power of men.' But they did not understand what he said; it was hidden from them so that they should not see the meaning of it, and they were afraid to ask him about it.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
If you believe, you will see the glory of God,
thus says the Lord.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
The Gospel passage we just heard contains the second foretelling of the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus. It is like he is obliged to repeat it. Indeed, the moment of his death and resurrection represent his "hour," the moment of his glory which passes through the cross. But it truly was difficult for the disciples to understand this statement. Like all Jews at that time, they could not accept the figure of a servant-Messiah, and certainly not a defeated one. They expecting a Messiah who could conquer the way the world conquers: one who would defeat their enemies and free Israel from slavery. This idea was reinforced when Jesus healed a boy by freeing him from the demonic spirit that possessed him. The wonder caused by this healing led Jesus to gather the disciples and clarify the nature of his path one more time again. One again he insists, "Let these words sink into your ears: The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands." In the language of the Bible, "to be betrayed into human hands," refers to the painful and cruel fate of someone abandoned by God and left at the mercy of the power and judgment of human beings. And this is exactly what will happen. But despite this clarity, the disciples do not understand. This could be said of us, we who are often distant, like the disciples of that time, from the thoughts and concerns of Jesus and especially distant from the sense he had of himself and his mission. It is not that the disciples do not understand his words, but they risk not understanding the very substance of his mission: that salvation comes through his death. How could they accept a defeated Messiah? This is a scandal for the Jews and foolishness for the pagans, the apostle Paul will say. And even for us today this path seems to be senseless. And yet it is from the cross that salvation is born. Redemption from the slavery of sin comes from a love that knows no limits. Salvation is not gained through human power or force, but only through love for all, a love that goes as far as to give its own life for its enemies. The evangelist notes that the disciples still could not understand Jesus' words and remained in silence, without asking for any further explanation. It is an attitude of harshness and mistrust. They do not accept their ignorance and prefer to stay in the dark. Nonetheless, Jesus does not abandon them. He continues to instruct them, hoping that little by little they will understand the Gospel. So, it is for us today. We have to let ourselves be guided and instructed.
Doa merupakan jantung kehidupan Komunitas Sant'Egidio dan merupakan prioritas yang paling penting. Di penghujung hari, setiap Komunitas Sant'Egidio, besar maupun kecil, akan berkumpul di sekeliling Tuhan untuk mendengarkan sabda-Nya. Sesungguhnya Sabda Allah dan doa merupakan landasan seluruh kehidupan Komunitas. Para rasul tidak bisa tidak selain tetap di sekitar kaki Yesus, seperti yang dilakukan oleh Maria dari Bethani, untuk menerima kasih dan belajar cara-Nya (Fil. 2:5).
Sehingga setiap malam, ketika Komunitas kembali ke kaki Tuhan, Komunitas mengulangi kata-kata dari rasul tak bernama: "Tuhan ajarkanlah kami cara berdoa" Yesus, Sang Guru, terus menjawab: "Ketika kamu berdoa, katakanlah: Abba, Bapa". Hal itu bukanlah satu seruan sederhana. Dengan kata-kata ini, Yesus membiarkan para murid untuk berperan serta dalam hubungan mereka sendiri dengan Bapa. Oleh sebab itu, fakta bahwa sebagai anak-anak Bapa yang bertahta di surga, muncul sebelum kata-kata yang mungkin kita ucapkan. Jadi doa di atas segalanya merupakan cara untuk menjadi manusia. Ini untuk mengatakan bahwa kita anak-anak yang berpaling kepada Bapa dengan iman, dan yakin bahwa hal itu akan didengar.
Yesus mengajar kita memanggil Allah dengan sebutan "Bapa Kami" Tidak hanya "Bapa" atau "Bapaku" Para murid, meskipun mereka berdoa dengan cara mereka, tidak pernah terisolasi tidak juga menjadi yatim; mereka selalu menjadi anggota keluarga Tuhan.
Dalam doa bersama, di samping misteri anak Allah, ada juga misteri persaudaraan, seperti Bapa Gereja mengatakan: "Kamu tidak bisa memiliki Allah sebagai Bapa tanpa memiliki gereja sebagai ibu". Ketika berdoa bersama, Roh Kudus menyatukan para rasul di ruangan atas bersama dengan Maria, Bunda Allah, sehingga mereka dapat memusatkan pandangan mereka kepada wajah Tuhan dan belajar dari Dia rahasia hati-Nya.
Komunitas Sant'Egidio di seluruh dunia berkumpul bersama di berbagai tempat doa dan menghamparkan di hadapan Tuhan harapan dan penderitaan manusia yang lelah dan letih seperti yang di katakan oleh Injil (Mat. 9:37). Dalam kumpulan di masa lalu ini kita bisa melihat jumlah massa yang sangat besar di kota-kota modern ini, jutaan pengungsi yang terus melarikan diri dari negeri mereka, orang miskin yang terpinggirkan ke tepi kehidupan dan mereka yang menantikan seseorang yang akan merawat mereka. Berdoa bersama termasuk di dalamnya tangisan, seruan, permohonan, keinginan bagi damai, penyembuhan dan penebusan manusia di dunia ini. Doa tidak pernah sia-sia, doa terus menerus kepada Tuhan sehingga mengubah kecemasan menjadi harapan, air mata menjadi kegembiraan, putus asa menjadi kebahagiaan, dan kesepian menjadi persatuan. Semoga Kerajaan Allah hadir segera di antara manusia.
