Sow Lord Word of Life
Instill Your Word in our hearts
In order for us to know You
In order for us to live in Thee
So we would not go astray road
So that we unite
Who will sing the verse above with steady if not those who feel themselves people of faith? Could the people shouted "Long live Christ" with all my heart if you do not have faith?
FAITH: THE GRACE OF THE BOAST
Our faith needs to be nourished, so as not withered and dry. It means that faith needs to be nurtured and cultivated. Our faith in the risen Christ needs to be maintained so as not to fade. Faith is a gift, like a seed that is ready to grow and become big.But when the seed was not maintained, he will not be able to survive, let alone grow, it becomes withered and dry. If it does not grow, how will bear fruit?
Because faith is grace, then we need to accept and nurture it with pride. A believer would be proud of his faith. Still remember the solicitation priest after the consecration in the Holy Eucharist? "Magnify our faith!" Then the people answered unanimously, "Lord, you are already dead, Lord, you now live, Thou the Saviour: Come, O Jesus the Lord." Pride Catholics his faith was evident in the phrase. We believe that the great mystery of God, because it is our faith was supreme, and it is appropriate that we praised in mind, with words and deeds.
Since the beginning of the Church seems to have realized the importance of maintaining the faith of the people. Therefore, a wide range of business done. All good effort ever undertaken was well maintained, and a tradition of faith. Tradition is not just a habit of popping, but it's worth the tradition for the faithful because deliver people to the Lord. From there the Church today finds itself so rich in tradition, that every noble effort to rescue the mystery of the Divine as well celebrate it with pride. The pride of the Church will be very beautiful faith recorded in the poem Praise Easter Vigil: "Shout! Sing a happy song for Christ who redeemed us, thank God, we are risen with Christ ... "
EXPRESSING AND CELEBRATING FAITH
We can not see faith or the depth of one's faith. Who can see are the signs someone is believed, for example, he gathered and prayed together with his sisters. Difficult to understand when people who claim to believe, but it never seemed to come together and pray together with his brother and sisters. In togetherness that every believer personally enriching and mutually reinforce each other. Prayer becomes an expression of faith that is sufficient to maintain and foster the spirit of community togetherness allied because of the same faith. In prayer it is also unity with God finds its meaning.
But also difficult to understand when someone claiming to believe but our words and actions do not reflect what it is placed.There may be people who are eager to follow rituals, but in everyday life, it makes other people angry. Others angry not because he says or does truth as taught by Jesus, but because the words and actions precisely the opposite of that should be done by people of faith. When this happens there seems to be lost in that person. It lost its meaning does religious rituals. It could be that he is not aware of the meaning of the celebration of faith does?
Generally expression of the Church's faith in the form of prayer, confession, petition, gestures, and others, formulated and laid out carefully, not arbitrary. That meant that anyone who follows the celebration / worship together the inspiration and develop spiritually in the true faith. Therefore, if each person concerned and involved actively in the whole celebration it with all your heart, mind and strength, he actually gained a lot of things that are important for the development of life.
Celebration of faith is the celebration of a meeting between mankind by the Creator. It becomes a real encounter when opening human hearts to welcome his presence in the celebration. When the encounter that happened, it would become the heart of every personal desire to return to celebrate. People celebrate faith not out of obligation, but because of a deep longing to meet God who loves.
Celebration arranged in such a way that reflects the love and respect the people of God. All parts of the ceremony prepared and organized as possible. No wonder that today we encounter the Church is rich with glorious works that characterize the celebration of faith: songs, music, dance, architecture, gestures, and others. Everything was organized and carried out by the people so that the celebration of God's encounter with majestic, graceful, solemn, pleasing to God and bring mercy to His Church. The closer the people of the Lord, naturally the more he longs to meet with him in the celebration. The more often people celebrate the encounter with the Lord the greater love of God in him. The more the magnitude of the love of God in him made him more joy. The greater the joy in the people, the greater the longing to share the joy with other relatives.
CELEBRATING THE SPIRIT OF CELEBRATION TO LIFE DAILY
James said: "If it is not accompanied pebuatan faith, then that faith is essentially dead" [James 2:17]. If the celebration of faith just a celebration without any follow-ups, the celebration that will never change anything, dead. The spirit contained in the formulation of the faith, homilies, prayers, calls lead us to act on the basis of love. The symbols we use to remind us that the God we believe in fact present a real role in our daily lives. God is not far away from our lives, only prayer. Celebration of our faith will be complete when the animating spirit of celebration and encourage us to make it happen in daily life.
Celebration of faith that is loaded with meaning not first intended solely for the sake of the celebration. But the celebration of faith is also expected to bring about change for man and his world. To the celebration, people bring all the effort and work, complaints and requests, but also the desire to obtain confirmation and a new spirit for tread life full of twists. Therefore, the scope of the celebration of faith that is broad, stretching limitless. All aspects of human life are present and presented in prayer together in the celebration. Thus, the celebration of faith can never be separated from the daily life of the people. There was never a celebration if there are no daily lives. Similarly, daily life has no meaning without celebration. Celebrations affirm the meaning of life for us.
Celebration finished, people go back to daily life, hanging back with the family, community, society, and all the routines and problems. Values beautifully sown in the celebration are now embedded in the hearts of the people and brought into daily life.Need struggle and loyalty to guard it. In the experience of the people, the values themselves not only need to be maintained, contrary to power that enables each person to face the challenges of life. The people become more resilient, patient, passionate, honest, generous, and loyal. Concern and the spirit of community service to those in need is also increasing and resilient.
Faith that we might be wiser, open, humble, and not easily offended. The people became ready to do service to anyone when the words of Jesus echoing in his heart: "I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to Me" [Matthew 25:40]. This is the spirit derived from the celebration of the faith community. Perhaps we do not realize, but the power was there and move us. The more open our hearts, the power of the Spirit of God is manifest charms in our lives. The Spirit transforms us from day to day.
The spirit of celebration of faith that is embedded in the heart should also have an impact on the field of devotion. God we believe not only in the church building. It also permeates the whole of our lives. The Spirit of God not only works in celebration of his people, but also in the stretch of the events of our daily lives. His echoes the same power we feel in the celebration, also works admirably in place and other circumstances.
We glorify God in the celebration, is the same God as the God who accompanies and protects us. It is also the God who gives us the strength to work. It comprehends all movements and our hearts content. We can not deceive him. Perhaps the most often: we fool ourselves with falsehood, dishonesty, oppression and injustice against our neighbor. When we do it there. If he is, why are you silent? Because he respects their choice. Now, if we know that He respects us, how should we honor Him?What is unashamedly committed offenses against the law of His love? Or pretend to be a good person before him? If so let us consider the advice of the Church: "... because people are worried about a wave of the sea, which swayed to and fro by the wind. Let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. For double minded man is unstable in all his life " [Jas 1: 6b-8] . Furthermore, we are also reminded: "But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only; because if not so deceive yourselves " [Yak1: 22]. In short, we are invited to build integrity [personal integrity] and credibility [trustworthy] by faith. Secondly it is of capital importance for us to bear witness to Christ in our communities.
In celebration of our faith, God gives His Spirit. And especially in the Eucharist, Jesus gives his Body and Blood itself in the form of bread and wine. He did it as a sign of His love for us. His body we eat blend with the rest of us. He is in us, and we are in Him. That means we become part of him that is holy, loving, obedient to the Father, caring, ready to serve ..., well, we must also think, behave and act like Jesus himself. "Me want to be like you Jesus, enhanced pobud ..." That means we have to keep ourselves well holiness in thought, word, and deed. When Jesus gave His entire self for us, what can we give him? When we share our love with our neighbor, that is where we embody the spirit of our Eucharist.
RENEWAL never BROKE
Without a doubt, our faith in Christ encourages us to create a good atmosphere for everyone to grow as whole human beings.Jesus never taught us to be the people that selfish. We can notice how the formulation of the prayer which he passed on to us: "Our Father who art in heaven ... Give us sustenance ... and forgive our faults ..." Jesus taught us to pray as a community. He showed that God is the Father of all human beings. He encouraged us to bring others in our prayers, not praying for themselves only. Forgive others, it's not an easy action. But forgiveness is an essential part of our human dignity.Forgiveness is our effort to maintain the sanctity of our dignity as God's image. Forgiveness allows for reconciliation. No peace without forgiveness. Likewise, if God does not forgive us, then we may not be able to make peace with God. Therefore, Jesus taught us to open our hearts and forgive others guilty. At the same time when we forgive, we are also open to forgiveness of God for us. "... And where sin abounded, grace did abound, ..." [Rom 5: 20a], that the grace of forgiveness.
In a story about the Good Samaritan [see Luke 10: 25-37], Jesus taught us to be the people who care. Celebrate faith, prayer, it is good, but it must also be accompanied by concrete actions. If God alone is very concerned with people who are weak, poor, and oppressed his people should too.
Celebrating faith may be easy, if you just follow, especially if only passively: come, sit, silent, once completed home. But not as easy to interpret and make it happen in life. Maintaining faith is not easy. Silent or simply follow a routine is not how to maintain good faith. Faith is a talent that needs to be duplicated with active measures. Like a knife, sharpened increasingly frequent, increasingly sharp. So how to maintain good faith? The answer abound can be found in Scripture, Tradition, and the teaching of our Church.
Celebrating faith means willing to continuously renew life, never stopped. Why is that? Because we realize that we are sinners who only rely on the mercy of God. If we already feel themselves holy, has no sin, we no longer need to celebrate the faith. But really we do not sin again? How will we get the mercy of God if we do not want to admit our sins? How God will give His grace if we do not open our hearts and accept Him? Christ came into the world to call people sinners. ***
* P. Ferry Indrianto, SS.CC is Parish Priest St. Gabriel, Bandung
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar