Halloween party ideas 2015
Tweet Share Share Share Share Share

Sunday, March 15, 2015
gambar dari postingan di kompasiana
Pelajaran Geografi itu penting. Tak sia-sia jika diajarkan di SMP dan SMA. Pelajaran itu akan dibawa terus sepanjang hidup. Hingga masa tua pun, pelajaran itu tetap berharga. Itulah sebabnya pelajaran Geografi menjadi salah satu mata pelajaran yang penting. Mata pelajaran yang kiranya sengaja diperkenalkan sejak SMP. 

Pelajaran Geografi tidak seperti pelajaran lainnya seperti Matematika dan Fisika yang kesannya masuk kategori rumit. Pelajaran Geografi masuk kategori ringan. Meski demikian, pelajaran Geografi berkaitan erat dengan Matematika dan Fisika. Salah satu kaitannya adalah masalah gempa bumi. Cabang ini dipelajari dalam Geografi SMP kalau tidak diubah pada kurikulum yang sekarang. Pertanyaan yang muncul adalah di mana letak gempa. Berapa kekuatan gempa. Sebera jauh getaran gempa.

Untuk pertanyaan seperti ini, Geografi membutuhkan jawaban Matematika dan Fisika. Maka, Geografi memang tidak lepas dari Matematika dan Fisika. Meski, kesannya bukan pelajaran rumit, sebaiknya Geografi jangan dianggap enteng. Geografi sebagai salah satu cabang ilmu tetap relevan dan harus dipelajari dengan baik. Mempelajari Geografi seperti mempelajari kerangka besar dari sebuah benda. Geografi akan menyusuri keliling benda itu hingga mempunyai bentuk geografis. Dengan demikian, mempelajari Geografi Indonesia berarti mempelajari kerangka besar tentang Indonesia. Kerangka tentang kepulauan Indonesia dari Sabang sampai Merauke.

Tahun 2012 yang lalu, saya mengunjungi teman saya yang tinggal di Kepulauan Mentawai. Mentawai masuk provinsi Sumatera Barat. Mentawai dengan beberapa pulau besar dan kecilnya masuk dalam satu kabupaten. Kabupaten Kepulauan Mentawai. Mereka yang mempelajari Geografi akan dengan mudah mengetahui letak dan posisi kepulauan ini. Mudahnya seperti mereka yang dengan cepat menunjukkan posisinya pada peta negara Republik Indonesia. Tapi kalau tidak memahami dengan baik Geografi, akan sulit mencarinya di peta Indonesia. Saya terbantu dengan pelajaran Geografi sejak SMP untuk menemukan letak kepulauan ini. Logikanya, masuk dari wilayah Sumatera Barat. Temukan kota Padang dan sekitarnya. Lalu, masuk ke kepulauannya. Ada Nias dan Kepulauan Mentawai. Di situlah kerumitannya diperkecil. Pada akhirnya, dengan mudah menemukan Kepulauan ini.

Saya berkunjung ke dua dari tiga pulau besarnya. Dengan kapal laut selama 6 jam dari Padang, kami mendarat di Pulau Siberut. Tinggal di sana selama 2 hari. Lalu, dengan kapal lagi, kami ke Pulau Sikabaluan. Di sana tinggal 3 hari, lalu kembali ke Siberut. Satu lagi pulau yang tidak kami kunjungi yakni Pulau Sipora. Ada pulau-pulau kecil lainnya yang tentu tidak saya hafal namanya. Bahkan, masyarakat setempat pun enggan menyebutkan semuanya. Bagi mereka, yang utama adalah ketiga pulau besar ini. Mereka bisa berkeliling ke tiga pulau ini dengan kapal pemerintah.

Di Sikabaluan, saya berincang-bincang dengan anak-anak SMP dan SMA yang tinggal di asrama. Demikian juga dengan anak-anak di Siberut. Sebagai orang ‘asing’ pertanyaan yang muncul pertama adalah, Anda dari mana. Lalu, mengapa Anda ada di sini. Saya menggoda mereka dengan pertanyaan di mana letak NTT? Sebagian besar dari mereka tidak bisa menjawabnya. Berarti, pengetahuan mereka tentang Geografi masih kurang bahkan boleh dibilang minim. Pertanyaan yang sulit ini rupanya bisa dijawab oleh seorang anak SMP. Anak ini rupanya berasal dari keluarga perantau dari luar Mentawai. Merantau rupanya bisa membantu siswa mempelajari Geografi.
Kesulitan mempelajari Geografi seperti ini bukan saja masalah anak-anak SMP dan SMA di Kepulauan Mentawai. Kiranya ini merupakan kesulitan anak-anak di seluruh Indonesia. Indonesia memang-secara Geografi-amat rumit dipelajari. Apalagi dari segi budaya, bahasa, dan sosial-politik. Namun, apa pun tantangannya, orang Indonesia mesti tahu konteks geografis bangsanya sendiri. Dan, ini harus diketahui sejak SMP, saat Geografi diperkenalkan. Malah lebih bagus jika jauh sebelumnya yakni sejak SD.

Anak-anak di Mentawai rupanya tidak jauh berbeda dengan anak-anak SMA di Makasar. Akhir Mei tahun 2012, saya berpetualang ke Makasar. Saya mampir ke tempat teman yang mengajar di salah satu SMA di Makasar. Di situ, saya bertemu anak-anak SMA. Kami berbagi cerita. Saya membagikan pengalaman saya selama tinggal di Jogja dan Jakarta. Lalu, saya menceritakan pengalaman berkunjung ke Padang dan Mentawai. Reaksi mereka sebelum saya melanjutkan cerita adalah bertanya, di mana letak Kepulauan Mentawai?

Rupanya, pertanyaan Geografi seperti ini ada di mana-mana. Bertanya berarti ingin mencari jawaban. Dan, anak-anak ini sedang mencari jawaban. Jawaban yang sebenarnya sudah mereka temukan dalam buku pelajaran Geografi SMP dan SMA. Namun, mereka masih dalam pencarian juga.

Mempelajari Geografi rupanya rumit terutama Geografi Indonesia. Namun, Geografi Indonesia yang sulit itu rupanya memudahkan orang Indonesia mempelajari peta Geografi dunia. Kesulitan ini memang bukan saja dialami anak-anak Mentawai dan Makasar. Boleh jadi juga menjadi kesulitan anak-anak remaja di seluruh dunia. Anak-anak zaman sekarang memang dengan mudah mencari ilmu di internet. Dengan komputer, laptop, bahkan dengan telepon gengam, mereka dalam sekejab mencari jawaban di google. Namun, Geografi sendiri mesti dipelajari jauh-jauh hari, sejak mereka belum menggunakan telepon genggam, belum menggunakan komputer berjaring internet.

Liburan bulan Juni dan Juli tahun 2014 yang lalu, saya habiskan di beberapa kota kecil di bagian Selatan Italia. Di sana, saya juga bertemu banyak orang muda dan kaum remaja. Kami berbincang-bincang karena baru bertemu pertama kali. Dari perbincangan inilah, saya juga berhadapan dengan pertanyaan Geografi.

Dari mana asal Anda? Dari Indonesia. Indonesia di mana yahhh? Di Afrika, Amerika Latin atau Asia. Sulit menebak. Bahkan, ada yang menebak di Afrika. Ini salah besar. Ada juga yang menebak dari Amerika Latin karena kulit saya yang cokelat ini mirip dengan kulit orang Amerika Latin. Saya coba membantu mereka dengan mengarah pada jawaban yang benar. Filipina di mana yah?? Dengan mudah mereka jawab di Asia. Indonesia dekat dengan Filipina juga dekat dengan Australia. Kalau Australia mereka tahu. Maklum, sebagian besar dari mereka sudah bepergian ke luar negeri termasuk Australia. Di sana rupanya banyak orang Italia.

Baik anak-anak Italia maupun anak-anak Indonesia rupanya tidak mudah mempelajari Geografi. Bisa dimaklumi untuk anak-anak Italia. Sebagian dari mereka, tidak mempelajari Geografi di sekolah secara rinci seperti Geografi yang masuk dalam kurikulum di Indonesia. Meski demikian, anak-anak Italia biasanya mencari sendiri pelajaran ini. Ada yang mempelajarinya karena keluarga mereka sering berlibur ke luar negeri. Mau tak mau, mereka juga dibiasakan untuk belajar Geografi. Paling tidak letak negara dan tempat-tempat yang mereka kunjungi.

Anak-anak Indonesia juga semestinya lebih hebat dari anak-anak Italia. Mereka punya kesempatan khusus untuk mempelajarinya di sekolah. Terbantu lagi jika mereka juga diberi kesempatan untuk belajar di luar kota dan pulaunya sendiri. Mahasiswa dari Mentawai yang belajar di Malang, misalnya, mempunyai pengetahuan Geografi yang jauh lebih bagus dari mereka yang belajar di Padang. Di Padang boleh jadi mereka hanya mengenal teman-teman sesama Sumatera Barat atau sesama Sumatera. Sementara di Malang, bertemu dengan teman-teman dari seluruh nusantara. Ya, mudahkan belajar Geografi?

Geografi tidaklah sesulit yang dibayangkan. Bisa jauh lebih mudah. Salah satu kuncinya ya, belajar dengan baik sejak SMP dan SMA. Saat itulah pelajaran Geografi menjadi darah daging dalam diri siswa. Geografi bukanlah ilmu yang sekali dipelajari lalu selesai. Geografi adalah ilmu yang terus diperbarui. Kalau ada kabupaten atau provinsi baru, Geografi juga turut berkembang. Geografi amat penting untuk Indonesia dengan kepulauannya yang luas dan besar, dan juga dengan masalah alamnya yang rumit. Geogologi yang bisa mempelajari perkiraan gempa rupanya juga masuk cabang Geografi. Tak mungkin belajar Geologi tanpa tahu Geografi. Jadi, mari kita belajar Geografi dengan baik.

Salam cinta Geografi.

PRM, 2/3/2015
Gordi

Pentingnya Belajar Geografi

Read more »
Tweet Share Share Share Share Share

Sunday, March 15, 2015
gambar dari footballsoccerschool.com
Bar bagi orang Italia adalah tempat untuk berbicara banyak hal. Dari topik politik, sosial, budaya, ekonomi, bisnis, mafia, sepak bola, perjalanan, kerja, dan sebagainya. Itulah sebabnya bar menjadi tempat yang selalu dikunjungi. Pagi, siang, sore, dan malam, bar selalu ramai oleh pengunjung.

Bar bukan saja bagi kalangan berduit. Semua orang bisa datang ke bar. Duduk dan menikmati minuman dan makanan di sana. Bar tidak mematok harga tinggi. Harganya bervariasi. Dari yang paling murah, 1 atau 2 euro sampai yang mahal misalnya 10 atau 12 euro. Itulah sebabnya di bar, tidak ada pengotakan menurut harga. Yang membeli dengan harga mahal dari golongan kaya dan yang membeli dengan harga murah dari golongan kurang kaya. Tidak ada! Di bar, semua orang punya tempat. Yang mau minum kopi saja ada. Yang mau makan pizza ada. Yang Cuma ambil segelas bir ada. Banyak tawaran. Itulah sebabnya bar menjadi tempat bagi semua orang.

Selain bar, orang Italia juga pada umumnya suka menonton sepak bola. Maklum, Italia adalah negeri sepak bola. Italia menjadi negeri yang selalu difavoritkan menjadi pemenang piala dunia. Dunia sepak bola Italia memang sudah terkenal di seluruh dunia. Meski kenyatannya tidak selalu menang bahkan tahun lalu sama sekali tidak menunjukkan kehebatannya. Lama-lama dunia sepak bola Italia kalah pamor dengan liga lainnya misalnya liga Spanyol, Inggris, Prancis, dan Jerman.

Dan kini dunia sepak bola Italia memang sudah sampai pada puncak kerapuhannya. Di balik ketenarannya, tersimpan sejuta keburukannya. Di luar tampak bagus, tapi dalamnya rapuh. Dunia sepak bola Italia saat ini ibaratnya bis metro mini di Jakarta yang di luarnya dipoles cat baru nan mengkilat, tapi di dalamnya keropos. Bahkan, sesekali bisa saja terbakar di tengah jalan. Dunia sepak bola Italia bukanlah bis metro mini tetapi memang dunia sepak bola Italia sedang keropos seperti mesin bis metro mini di Jakarta.

Keburukannya ini makin nyata dengan bagkrutnya beberapa klub seperti Parma. Beberapa klub lain sudah pindah peringkat dari A ke B. Parma pun tampaknya sudah sebagian kakinya di seri B. Parma hanyalah contoh klub yang gagal. Gagal dalam hal manajemen. Beberapa pengamat menunjukkan hal ini misalnya tertundanya pembayaran gaji pemain, pembayaran stadion, pembayaran pajak klub pada penyelenggara liga nasional, dan sebagainya. Bahkan, beberapa pengamat terang-terangan mengatakan Parma sedang dirasuki mafia akut. Pratik mafia memang bukan main ruginya bagi Italia. Bukan saja di dunia sepak bola. Dunia lain pun kena. Politik, keamanan, ekonomi, dan sebagainya. Rapuhnya manajemen sepak bola Italia saat ini hanyalah salah satu akibat dari kuatnya jaringan mafia di Italia saat ini.

Mafia juga masuk kota Parma. Tentu dengan berbagai modus. Modus yang kadang sulit dilihat tetapi akibatnya tampak. Mafia bekerja seperti angin. Angin tidak bisa dilihat tetapi bisa dirasakan tiupannya, bisa dilihat akibat gerakannya lewat daun yang bergoyang. Mafia di kota Parma juga demikian. Teman saya yang penggemar klub Parma mengatakan, “Baru kali ini Parma mengalami keadaan sulit seperti ini.” Ini berarti betapa sulitnya keadaan Parma saat ini. Teman-teman lain berkomentar, “Mafia sudah masuk dan merusak manajemen klub Parma.”

Boleh jadi ada benarnya komentar teman-teman ini. Ada beberapa bangunan di luar kota Parma yang diduga sebagai milik para mafia. Bangunan ini dibiarkan kosong begitu saja. Letak bangunannya juga aneh. Gedung itu dibangun jauh dari perumahan penduduk. Tidak ada rumah penduduk di sekitar. Bangunan itu berdiri sendiri. Bagi orang baru, akan muncul pertanyaan, ini bangunan apa, untuk apa dibangun di sini. Dan beberapa jawaban spekulasi pun muncul. Bangunan ini dibangun oleh mafia untuk mengelabuhi anggaran uangnya. Boleh jadi demikian. Hanya saja kadang sulit menunjukkan buktinya. Wong mafia bekerja seperti angin.

Bicara tenang mafia juga kadang-kadang terang-terangan berlangsung di bar. Sambil minum bir, perencanaan pun dimulai. Memang kata mafia haram disebut di tempat umum. Penulis pernah bertanya tentang hal ini kepada orang Italia sendiri. Dan, langsung dijawab, lebih baik kita bicarakan nanti. Tidak boleh menyebut kata itu di tempat umum. Boleh jadi antara sesama anggota jaringan mafia, bisa saja. Itulah sebabnya, di bar, sambil minum bir, lebih baik menyaksikan pertandingan sepak bola saja. Tidak dilarang dan bahkan banyak yang suka.

Menonton sepak bola di bar tentu benda sensasinya ketika menonton langsung di stadion. Orang Italia sendiri gemar datang ke stadion. Ini salah satu pemasukan besar bagi klub sepak bola. Sayang, dengan adanya krisis, banyak orang Italia yang menanggalkan atau mengurangi kebiasaan ini. Hanya mereka yang penggemar berat yang datang ke stadion. Meski krisis, orang Italia tidak kehilangan minat untuk menyaksikan sepak bola. Dunia sepak bola yang mendarah-daging ini memang sulit dihilangkan. Dengan berbagi cara, mereka mencoba mencari jalan keluarnya.

Salah satu jalan keluarnya adalah menyaksikan di TV. Bisa nonton di rumah masing-masing. Sayang, cara ini pun tidak gampang. Tidak semua pertandingan ditayang di stasiun TV. Kalau mau menyaksikan semua pertandingan, harus berlangganan stasiun khusus misalnya SKY SPORT atau MEDIA SET PREMIER. Harganya pun tidak murah. Untuk SKY SPORT misalnya, dipatok harga dengan kisaran 600 euro ke atas dalam setahun. Kalau dirupiahkan kira-kira Rp. 9.000.000. Mahal bukan? Daripada buang-buang biaya sebesar itu setiap tahun, ada cara yang lebih mudah.

Cara ini memang betul-betul murah dan sesuai dengan gaya hidup orang Italia. Caranya adalah menonton di bar. Dengan biaya 4 euro pun, satu pertandingan bisa ditonton. Tak perlu menunggu jadi bos untuk menyaksikan pertandingan sepak bola seperti ini. Cukup dengan 4 euro dapat 1 botol bir dan dapat bonus tonton sepak bola. Cara ini jauh lebih murah ketimbang datang sendiri ke stadion yang harga tiketnya berkisar dari 30-an euro ke atas. Jauh lebih murah juga ketimbang berlangganan MEDIA SET PREMIER. Di sini sensasinya juga lumayan. Lebih ramai kalau di dalam bar ada dua kelompok pendukung. Adu teriak pun tak terhindarkan. Tetapi semua tetap menjaga kenyamanan di bar. Tidak seperti di stadion yang bisa berteriak sekuat tenaga.

Bar, bir, dan sepak bola. Tiga dunia yang berbeda namun bisa diselaraskan. Minum bir di bar sambil menyaksikan pertandingan sepak bola. Bahkan, kalau mau bukan saja dunia sepak bola. Dunia lain seperti politik, perencanaan perjalanan, dan bisnis pun jadi. Menonton di bar sambil minum bir tidak akan membahayakan sesama pendukung. Tentu tidak seperti menonton sepak bola di Gelora Bung Karno Jakarta atau di Stadion Mandala Krida, Yogyakarta. Tapi, sasaranya sama, menyaksikan pertandingan sepak bola.

Salam sepak bola.

PRM, 8/3/2015

Gordi


Read more »
Tweet Share Share Share Share Share

Sunday, March 08, 2015
GENERAL AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
Saint Peter's Square
Wednesday, 4 March 2015

The family - 6. The elderly (I)
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good Morning,

Today’s catechesis and next Wednesday’s will be dedicated to the elderly, who in the family are the grandparents, aunts and uncles. Today we will reflect on the current problematic condition of the elderly, and next time, that is, next Wednesday, on a more positive note, on the vocation pertaining to this stage of life.

Thanks to the progress of medicine life-spans have increased: but society has not “expanded” to life! The number of elderly has multiplied, but our societies are not organized well enough to make room for them, with proper respect and practical consideration for their frailty and their dignity. While we are young, we are led to ignore old age, as if it were a disease to keep away from; then when we become old, especially if we are poor, if we are sick and alone, we experience the shortcomings of a society programmed for efficiency, which consequently ignores its elderly. And the elderly are a wealth not to be ignored.

Benedict XVI, visiting a home for the elderly, used clear and prophetic words, saying in this way: “The quality of a society, I mean of a civilization, is also judged by how it treats elderly people and by the place it gives them in community life” (12 November 2012). It’s true, attention to the elderly makes the difference in a civilization. Is there attention to the elderly in a civilization? Is there room for the elderly? This civilization will move forward if it knows how to respect wisdom, the wisdom of the elderly. In a civilization in which there is no room for the elderly or where they are thrown away because they create problems, this society carries with it the virus of death.

In the West, scientists present the current century as the aging century: children are diminishing, the elderly are increasing. This imbalance challenges us, indeed, it is a great challenge for contemporary society. Yet a culture of profit insists on casting off the old like a “weight”. Not only do they not produce — this culture thinks — but they are a burden: in short, what is the outcome of thinking like this? They are thrown away. It’s brutal to see how the elderly are thrown away, it is a brutal thing, it is a sin! No one dares to say it openly, but it’s done! There is something vile in this adherence to the throw-away culture. But we are accustomed to throwing people away. We want to remove our growing fear of weakness and vulnerability; but by doing so we increase in the elderly the anxiety of being poorly tolerated and neglected.

During my ministry in Buenos Aires I was in direct contact with this reality and its problems: “The elderly are abandoned, and not only in material instability. They are abandoned out of a selfish incapacity to accept their limitations that reflect our own limitations, because of the numerous difficulties that must be overcome in order to survive in a society that does not allow them to participate, to have their say, or be referents in the consumer model of ‘only the young can be useful and enjoy’. These elderly persons throughout society ought to be a reservoir of wisdom for our people. The elderly are the reservoir of wisdom for our people! How easily the conscience falls dormant when there is no love!” (Solo l’amore ci può salvare, Vatican City, 2013, p. 83).

And it happens like that. I remember, when I was visiting a retirement home, I spoke with each person and I frequently heard this: “How are you? And your children? Well, well. How many do you have? Many. And do they come to visit you?. Oh sure, yes, always, yes, they come. When was the last time they came?” I remember an elderly woman who said to me: “Mmm, for Christmas”. It was August! Eight months without being visited by her children, abandoned for eight months! This is called mortal sin, understand? Once as a child, a grandmother told us the story of an old grandfather who got dirty while eating because he couldn't easily bring the spoonful of soup to his mouth. And his son, that is, the father of the family, had decided to move him from the dinner table and set up a little table in the kitchen to eat alone, so he couldn’t be seen. In this way he wouldn’t make a bad impression when friends came over to lunch or dinner. A few days later, he came home and found his youngest child playing with some wood and a hammer and nails, he was making something there, he said: “What are you making? — I’m making a table, papa. — A table, why? — To have one for when you grow old, so that you can eat there”. Children are more aware than we are!

In the tradition of the Church there is a wealth of wisdom that has always supported a culture of closeness to the elderly, a disposition of warm and supportive companionship in this final phase of life. This tradition is rooted in Sacred Scripture, as these passages from the Book of Sirach attest: “Do not disregard the discourse of the aged, for they themselves learned from their fathers; because from them you will gain understanding and learn how to give an answer in time of need” (Sir 8:9).

The Church cannot and does not want to conform to a mentality of impatience, and much less of indifference and contempt, towards old age. We must reawaken the collective sense of gratitude, of appreciation, of hospitality, which makes the elder feel like a living part of his community.

Our elders are men and women, fathers and mothers, who came before us on our own road, in our own house, in our daily battle for a worthy life. They are men and women from whom we have received so much. The elder is not an alien. We are that elder: in the near or far future, but inevitably, even if we don’t think it. And if we don’t learn how to treat the elder better, that is how we will be treated.

We old people are all a little fragile. Some, however, are particularly weak, many are alone, and stricken by illness. Some depend on the indispensable care and attention of others. Are we going to take a step back? Abandon them to their fate? A society without proximity, where gratuity and affection without compensation— between strangers as well — is disappearing, is a perverse society. The Church, faithful to the Word of God, cannot tolerate such degeneration. A Christian community in which proximity and gratuity are no longer considered indispensable is a society which would lose her soul. Where there is no honour for elders, there is no future for the young.

Before: The family - 5. Siblings

Special Greetings
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, including those from Great Britain, Austria, Denmark, Sweden, Japan, Korea and the United States of America. Upon you and your families I cordially invoke joy and peace in the Lord Jesus. God bless you all!

Dear friends, may our time, marked by many shadows, be ever illuminated by the sun of hope, which is Christ. He promised to always be with us and manifests his presence in many ways. It is our task to proclaim and witness to his love which accompanies us in every situation. Hence, never tire of entrusting yourselves to Christ and spreading his Gospel in every environment.

I greet young people, the sick and newlyweds. Dear young people, may this Lenten journey be an occasion for authentic conversion so that your faith in Christ might fully mature. Dear sick people, by participating lovingly in the very suffering of the Son of God incarnate, may you henceforth share in the joy of his Resurrection. And may you, dear newlyweds, find in the covenant that Christ, at the cost of his blood, made with his Church, find the foundation of your marital bond.

© Copyright - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Read more »
Tweet Share Share Share Share Share

Sunday, March 08, 2015
GENERAL AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
Saint Peter's Square
Wednesday, 18 February 2015

The family - 5. Siblings
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning,

In our continuing catechesis on the family, after having considered the roles of the mother, the father, the children, today we shall reflect on siblings. “Brother” and “sister” are words that Christianity really loves. And, thanks to the family experience, they are words that all cultures and all times comprehend. 

The fraternal bond holds a special place in the history of the People of God, who received his revelation at the core of the human experience. The Psalmist sings of the beauty of the fraternal bond: “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!” (Ps 133[132]:1). And this is true, brotherhood is beautiful! Jesus Christ also brought to its fullness this human experience of being brothers and sisters, embracing it in Trinitarian love and thereby empowering it to go well beyond the ties of kinship and enabling it to surmount every barrier of extraneousness.

We know that when the fraternal relationship is destroyed, when the relationship between siblings is destroyed, the road is open to painful experiences of conflict, of betrayal, of hate. The biblical account of Cain and Abel is an example of this negative outcome. After the killing of Abel, God asks Cain: “Where is Abel your brother?” (Gen 4:9a). It is a question that the Lord continues to repeat to every generation. And unfortunately, in every generation, Cain’s dramatic answer never fails to be repeated: “I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?” (ibid., 4:9b). The rupture of the bond between siblings is a nasty, bad thing for humanity. In the family too, how many siblings quarrel over little things, or over an inheritance, and then they no longer speak to each other, they no longer greet one another. This is terrible! Brotherhood is a great thing, when we consider that all our brothers and sisters lived in the womb of the same mother for nine months, came from the mother’s flesh! Brotherhood cannot be broken. Let us consider: we all know families that have divided siblings, who have quarrelled; let us ask the Lord — perhaps in our family there are a few cases — to help these families to reunite their siblings, to rebuild the family. Brotherhood must not be broken and when it breaks, what happened to Cain and Abel occurs. When the Lord asks Cain where his brother is, he replies: “I do not know, my brother does not matter to me”. This is terrible, it is a very, very painful thing to hear. In our prayers let us always pray for siblings who are at odds.

Should the bond of fraternity which forms in the family between children arise in an educational atmosphere of openness to others, it is the great school of freedom and peace. In the family, among siblings, human coexistence is learned, how one must live in society. Perhaps we are not always aware of it, but the family itself introduces fraternity into the world! Beginning with this first experience of fraternity, nourished by affection and education at home, the style of fraternity radiates like a promise upon the whole of society and on its relations among peoples.

The blessing that God, in Jesus Christ, pours out on this bond of fraternity, expands in an unimaginable way. He renders it capable of overcoming all differences of nationality, language, culture and even religion.

Consider what becomes of the bond between men and women, even when completely different from each other, when they are able to say of another: “He is truly like a brother, she is just like a sister to me!”. This is beautiful! History has shown well enough, after all, that even freedom and equality, without brotherhood, can be full of individualism and conformism, and even personal interests.

Familial fraternity shines in a special way when we see the care, the patience, the affection that envelop the weakest little brother or sister, sick or physically challenged. There are countless brothers and sisters who do this, throughout the world, and perhaps we do not appreciate their generosity enough. And when there are many siblings in a family — today, I greeted a family that has nine children? — the eldest boy or girl helps the dad, the mom, to take care of the younger children. This work of helping among siblings is beautiful.

Having a brother, a sister, who loves you is a deep, precious, irreplaceable experience. Christian fraternity happens in the same way. The smallest, the weakest, the poorest soften us: they have the “right” to take our heart and soul. Yes, they are our brothers and sisters and as such we must love and care for them. When this happens, when the poor are like family members, our own Christian fraternity comes to life again. Christians, in fact, go to meet the poor and the weak not to obey an ideological programme, but because the word and the example of the Lord tell us that we are all brothers and sisters. This is the principle of God’s love and of all justice among men. I should like to suggest something: before concluding, just a few words, in silence each of us, let us think of our brothers, our sisters, and from our heart let us pray in silence for them. A moment of silence.

Here then, with this prayer we have brought all, brothers and sisters, with our thoughts, with our hearts, here to the Square to receive the blessing.

Today more than ever it is necessary to place fraternity back at the centre of our technocratic and bureaucratic society: then even freedom and equality will find the correct balance. Therefore, let us not thoughtlessly deprive our families, out of criticism or fear, of the beauty of a bountiful fraternal experience of sons and daughters. And let us not lose our trust in the broad horizon faith is able to draw from this experience, enlightened by God’s blessing.

Before: The family - 4. The children

Special Greetings
I would like once again to invite you to pray for our Egyptian brothers who three days ago were killed in Libya for the sole fact of being Christians. May the Lord welcome them to his house and give comfort to their families and their communities.

Let us also pray for peace in the Middle East and in North Africa, remembering all the victims, the wounded and the refugees. May the international community find peaceful solutions to the difficult situation in Libya.

I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, including those from England, Japan and the United States of America. Upon you and your families I cordially invoke joy and peace in the Lord Jesus. God bless you all!

I cordially greet the Bishops of Ukraine — Praise be to Jesus Christ! —, who have come on their “ad limina” visit, as well as the pilgrims from the dioceses who have accompanied them. Brothers and sisters, I know that among the many other intentions that you bring to the Tombs of the Apostles, there is the request for peace in Ukraine. I bear the same wish in my heart and I join in your prayer, that a lasting peace may come to your homeland as soon as possible. God bless you!

I address a warm welcome to the Italian-speaking pilgrims. I greet in particular the Rural Catechist Sisters of the Sacred Heart with the “Zambia for Life” Association and the “Villa Maria” rehabilitation home in Monticello Conte Otto. My thoughts go to the young people of International Catholic Charismatic Renewal who, in various parts of the world today, are gathering in prayer for an hour of Eucharistic adoration. I spiritually join them in expressing appreciation for this initiative and I hope the new generations may increasingly meet Christ.

I greet the young people, the sick and newlyweds. Lent is a favourable time to intensify your spiritual life: may the practice of fasting be of help to you, dear young people, to acquire mastery over yourselves; may prayer be for you, dear sick people, the means to entrust your suffering to God and to feel in it his loving presence; lastly, may works of mercy help you, dear newlyweds, to live your marital life by opening it to the needs of your brothers and sisters.

Happy Lent to all!

© Copyright - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Read more »
Tweet Share Share Share Share Share

Sunday, March 08, 2015
GENERAL AUDIENCE POPE FRANCIS
Wednesday, 11 February 2015

The family - 4. The children

Dear Brother and Sisters, Good morning,
 
After reflecting on the figures of the mother and father, in this catechesis on the family I would like to talk about the child, or even better, about children. I shall use a beautiful image from Isaiah. The Prophet writes: “they all gather together, they come to you; your sons shall come from far, and your daughters shall be carried in the arms. Then you shall see and be radiant, your heart shall thrill and rejoice” (60:4-5). It is a splendid image, an image of happiness which is fulfilled in the reunion of parents and children, who journey together toward a future of freedom and peace, after a long period of deprivation and separation, when the Hebrew people were far from their homeland. 

In essence, there is a close link between the hope of a people and the harmony among generations. We must consider this carefully. There is a close link between the hope of a people and the harmony among generations. The joy of children causes the parents’ hearts to beat and reopens the future. Children are the joy of the family and of society. They are not a question of reproductive biology, nor one of the many ways to fulfil oneself, much less a possession of their parents.... No. Children are a gift, they are a gift: understood? Children are a gift. Each one is unique and irreplaceable; and at the same time unmistakably linked to his/her roots. In fact, according to God’s plan, being son and daughter means to carry within oneself the memory and hope of a love which was fulfilled in the very kindling of the life of another, original and new, human being. And for parents each child is original, different, diverse. Allow me to share a family memory. I remember what my mother said about us — there were five of us: — “I have five children”. When they asked her: “Which one is your favourite”, she answered: “I have five children, like five fingers. [He displays his fingers] Should they strike this one, it hurts me; should they strike that one, it hurts me. All five hurt me. All are my children and all are different like the fingers of a hand”. And this is how a family is! The children are all different, but all children.

A child is loved because he is one’s child: not because he is beautiful, or because he is like this or like that; no, because he is a child! Not because he thinks as I do, or embodies my dreams. A child is a child: a life generated by us but intended for him, for his good, for the good of the family, of society, of mankind as a whole.

From this also derives the depth of the human experience of being son or daughter, which allows us to discover the most gratuitous dimension of love, which never ceases to astonish us. It is the beauty of being loved first: children are loved before they arrive. So often I find mothers in the square who are expecting a baby and ask me for a blessing ... these babies are loved before coming into the world. And this is free, this is love; they are loved before being born, like the love of God who always loves us first. They are loved before having done anything to deserve it, before knowing how to talk or think, even before coming into the world! Being children is the basic condition for knowing the love of God, which is the ultimate source of this authentic miracle. In the soul of every child, inasmuch as it is vulnerable, God places the seal of this love, which is at the basis of his/her personal dignity, a dignity which nothing and no one can ever destroy.

Today it seems more difficult for children to imagine their future. Fathers — I touched on this in previous catecheses — have perhaps taken a step backward and children have become more uncertain in taking their steps forward. We can learn the good relationship between generations from our Heavenly Father, who leaves each of us free but never leaves us on our own. And if we err, He continues to follow us with patience, without abating his love for us. Our Heavenly Father does not take steps back in his love for us, ever! He always goes forward and if He cannot go forward He waits for us, but He never goes backward; He wants his children to be brave and take their steps forward.

The children, for their part, must not be afraid of the task of building a new world: it is right for them to want to improve on what they have received! But this must be done without arrogance, without presumption. One must know how to recognize a child’s virtue, and parents always deserve honour.

The fourth Commandment asks children — we are all children! — to honour our father and mother (cf. Ex 20:12). This Commandment comes immediately after those regarding God Himself. Indeed, it contains something sacred, something divine, something which lies at the root of every other type of respect among men. And to the biblical formulation of the fourth Commandment is added: “that your days may be long in the land which the Lord your God gives you”. The virtuous bond between generations is the guarantee of the future, and is the guarantee of a truly human history. A society with children who do not honour parents is a society without honour; when one does not honour one’s parents one loses one’s own honour! It is a society destined to be filled with arid and avid young people. However, even a society with a paucity of generations, which does not love being surrounded by children, which considers them above all a worry, a weight, a risk, is a depressed society. Let us consider the many societies we know here in Europe: they are depressed societies, because they do not want children, they are not having children, the birth rate does not reach one percent. Why? Let each of us consider and respond. If a family with many children is looked upon as a weight, something is wrong! The child’s generation must be responsible, as the Encyclical Humanae Vitae of Blessed Pope Paul VI also teaches, but having many children cannot automatically be an irresponsible choice. Not to have children is a selfish choice. Life is rejuvenated and acquires energy by multiplying: it is enriched, not impoverished! Children learn to assume responsibility for their family. They mature in sharing its hardship. They grow in the appreciation of its gifts. The happy experience of brotherhood inspires respect and care for parents, to whom our recognition is due. So many of you present here have children and we are all children. Let us do something, let us observe a moment of silence. Each of us think in our heart about our children — if we have any; — think in silence. And let us all think about our parents and thank God for the gift of life. In silence, those who have children think of them, and everyone think of our parents. (Silence). May the Lord bless our parents and bless your children. May Jesus, the eternal Son, who in the fullness of time became a child, help us find the path of a new radiation of this so great and so simple human experience of being children. In the multiplication of generations there is a mystery of enrichment of the life of all, which comes from God Himself. We must rediscover it, challenging prejudice; and live it, in the faith, in perfect happiness. And I say to you: how beautiful it is when I pass in your midst and I see the dads and moms lift up their children to be blessed; this is an almost divine gesture. Thank you for doing it!

APPEAL
I am anxiously following the distressing news from Lampedusa, where there are more dead among the immigrants due to the cold weather during the crossing of the Mediterranean. I wish to ensure you of my prayers for the victims and once again to encourage solidarity, in order that no one lack the necessary aid.

* * *

Finally, I would like to invite you to pray for the Consistory, which will be held in the coming days. May the Holy Spirit assist the work of the College of Cardinals and enlighten the new Cardinals and their service to the Church.

Special Greetings:
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, including those from England, Scotland, Ireland and the United States of America. Upon you and your families I cordially invoke joy and peace in the Lord Jesus. God bless you all!

I encourage all to grow in the love of the Lord, wisdom, and in the generous service to neighbours suffering in body and spirit.

I address a special thought to young people, the sick and newlyweds. Today is the memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lourdes and the World Day of the Sick is being celebrated. Dear young people, offer yourselves to be “eyes to the blind, and feet to the lame”; dear sick people, may you always feel sustained by the prayer of the Church: and you, dear newlyweds, may you love life which is always sacred, even when it is marked by frailty and sickness. Thank you.

© Copyright - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Read more »
Tweet Share Share Share Share Share

Sunday, March 08, 2015
GENERAL AUDIENCE
POPE FRANCIS
Paul VI Audience Hall
Wednesday, 4 February 2015

The family - 3. The father (Second part)
 
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning!
Today I would like to develop the second part of my reflection on the figure of the father in the family. Last time I spoke about the danger of “absent” fathers, today I would like to look instead at the positive aspect. Even St Joseph was tempted to leave Mary, when he discovered that she was pregnant; but the Angel of the Lord intervened and revealed to him God’s plan and his mission as foster father; and Joseph, a just man, “took his wife” (Mt 1:24) and became the father of the family of Nazareth. 

Every family needs a father. Today we shall reflect on the value of his role, and I would like to begin with a few expressions that we find in the Book of Proverbs, words that a father addresses to his own son, and it reads like this: “My son, if your heart is wise, my heart too will be glad. My soul will rejoice when your lips speak what is right” (Pr 23:15-16). Nothing could better express the pride and emotion a father feels when he understands that he has handed down to his child what really matters in life, that is, a wise heart. This father does not say: “I am proud of you because you are the same as me, because you repeat the things I say and do”. No, he does not say anything so simple to him. He says something much more important, which we can understand in this way: “I will be happy every time I see you act with wisdom, and I will be moved every time that I hear you speak with rectitude. This is what I wanted to leave to you, that this one thing become yours: the attitude to feel and act, to speak and judge with wisdom and rectitude. And that you might be like this, I taught you the things you didn’t know, I corrected the errors you didn’t see. I made you feel a profound and at the same time discrete affection, which maybe you did not fully recognize when you were young and unsure. I gave you a testimony of rigour and steadfastness that perhaps you didn’t understand, when you would have liked only complicity and protection. I had first to test myself in the wisdom of my heart, be vigilant of my excesses of sentiment and resentment, in order to carry the weight of the inevitable misunderstandings, to find the right words to make myself understood.” Now, continues the father, “I see that you strive to be this way with your own children, and with everyone, and it moves me. I am happy to be your father”. This is what a wise father, a mature father, says. A father knows all too well what it costs to hand down this heritage: how close, how gentle and how firm to be. But what consolation and what recompense he receives when the children honour this legacy! It is a joy that rewards all the toil, that overcomes every misunderstanding and heals every wound.

The first need, then, is precisely this: that a father be present in the family. That he be close to his wife, to share everything, joy and sorrow, hope and hardship. And that he be close to his children as they grow: when they play and when they strive, when they are carefree and when they are distressed, when they are talkative and when they are silent, when they are daring and when they are afraid, when they take a wrong step and when they find their path again; a father who is always present. To say “present” is not to say “controlling”! Fathers who are too controlling cancel out their children, they don't let them develop.

The Gospel speaks to us about the exemplarity of the Father who is in Heaven — who alone, Jesus says, can be truly called the “good Father” (cf. Mk 10:18). Everyone knows that extraordinary parable of the “prodigal son”, or better yet of the “merciful father”, which we find in the Gospel of Luke in chapter 15 (cf. 15:11-32). What dignity and what tenderness there is in the expectation of that father, who stands at the door of the house waiting for his son to return! Fathers must be patient. Often there is nothing else to do but wait; pray and wait with patience, gentleness, magnanimity and mercy.

A good father knows how to wait and knows how to forgive from the depths of his heart. Certainly, he also knows how to correct with firmness: he is not a weak father, submissive and sentimental. The father who knows how to correct without humiliating is the one who knows how to protect without sparing himself. Once I heard a father at a meeting on marriage say: “Sometimes I have to strike the children lightly... but never in the face so as not to humiliate them”. How beautiful! He has a sense of dignity. He must punish, but he does it in a just way, and moves on.

If, then, there is someone who can fully explain the prayer of the “Our Father”, taught by Jesus, it is the one who lives out paternity in the first person. Without the grace that comes from the Father who is in Heaven, fathers loose courage, and abandon camp. But children need to find a father waiting for them when they come home after failing. They will do everything not to admit it, not to show it, but they need it; and not to find it opens wounds in them that are difficult to heal.

The Church, our mother, is committed to supporting with all her strength the good and generous presence of fathers in families, for they are the irreplaceable guardians and mediators of faith in goodness, of faith in justice and in God’s protection, like St Joseph.

The family - 3. The father (First part)

APPEAL
Once again my thoughts go to the beloved people of Ukraine. Unfortunately the situation is deteriorating and the polarity between the parties is growing worse. Let us pray first and foremost for the victims, among whom are so many civilians, and for their families, and let us ask the Lord that this horrible fratricidal violence cease as quickly as possible. I renew the heartfelt appeal in order that all effort — on the international level as well — be made for the reopening of dialogue, the only possible way to restore peace and harmony in that tortured land. Brothers and sisters, when I hear the words “victory” or “defeat” I feel great sorrow, great sadness in my heart. They are not just words; the only just word is “peace”. This is the only just word. I am thinking of you, Ukrainian brothers and sisters …. Think, this is a war among Christians! You all share one baptism! You are fighting with Christians. Think about this scandal. And let us all pray, for prayer is our protest before God in times of war.

Special Greetings
I greet the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors taking part in today’s Audience, including those from England, Wales, Finland, Sri Lanka and the United States of America. Upon you and your families I cordially invoke joy and peace in the Lord Jesus. God bless you all!

© Copyright - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Read more »
Tweet Share Share Share Share Share

Sunday, March 08, 2015
ANGELUS POPE FRANCIS
Saint Peter's Square
Second Sunday of Lent, 1st March 2015

Dear Brothers and Sisters, Good morning.
Last Sunday the Liturgy presented Jesus tempted by Satan in the desert, but victorious over temptation. In the light of this Gospel, we are again made aware of our condition as sinners, but also of the victory over evil for those who undertake the journey of conversion and, like Jesus, want to do the Father’s will. In this second Sunday of Lent, the Church points out to us the end of this journey of conversion, namely participation in the glory of Christ, which shines on the face of the obedient Servant, who died and rose for us.

The Gospel page recounts the event of the Transfiguration, which takes place at the height of Jesus’ public ministry. He is on his way to Jerusalem, where the prophecies of the “Servant of God” and his redemptive sacrifice are to be fulfilled. The crowds did not understand this: presented with a Messiah who contrasted with their earthly expectations, they abandoned Him. They thought the Messiah would be the liberator from Roman domination, the emancipator of the homeland, and they do not like Jesus’ perspective and so they leave Him. Neither do the Apostles understand the words with which Jesus proclaims the outcome of his mission in the glorious passion, they do not understand! Jesus thus chooses to give to Peter, James and John a foretaste of his glory, which He will have after the Resurrection, in order to confirm them in faith and encourage them to follow Him on the trying path, on the Way of the Cross. Thus, on a high mountain, immersed in prayer, He is transfigured before them: his face and his entire person irradiate a blinding light. The three disciples are frightened, as a cloud envelops them and the Father’s voice sounds from above, as at the Baptism on the Jordan: “This is my beloved Son; listen to him” (Mk 9:7). Jesus is the Son-made-Servant, sent into the world to save us all through the Cross, fulfilling the plan of salvation. His full adherence to God’s will renders his humanity transparent to the glory of God, who is love.

Jesus thus reveals Himself as the perfect icon of the Father, the radiance of his glory. He is the fulfillment of revelation; that is why beside Him appear transfigured, Moses and Elijah appear; they represent the Law and the Prophets, so as to signify that everything finishes and begins in Jesus, in his passion and in his glory.

Their instructions for the disciples and for us is this: “Listen to Him!”. Listen to Jesus. He is the Saviour: follow Him. To listen to Christ, in fact, entails taking up the logic of his Pascal Mystery, setting out on the journey with Him to make of oneself a gift of love to others, in docile obedience to the will of God, with an attitude of detachment from worldly things and of interior freedom. One must, in other words, be willing to “lose one’s very life” (cf. Mk 8:35), by giving it up so that all men might be saved: thus, we will meet in eternal happiness. The path to Jesus always leads us to happiness, don’t forget it! Jesus’ way always leads us to happiness. There will always be a cross, trials in the middle, but at the end we are always led to happiness. Jesus does not deceive us, He promised us happiness and will give it to us if we follow His ways.

With Peter, James and John we too climb the Mount of the Transfiguration today and stop in contemplation of the face of Jesus to retrieve the message and translate it into our lives; for we too can be transfigured by Love. In reality, love is capable of transfiguring everything. Love transfigures all! Do you believe this? May the Virgin Mary, whom we now invoke with the prayer of the Angelus, sustain us on this journey.

After the Angelus:
Appeal for peace in Syria, Iraq and Venezuela:
Dear brothers and sisters, dramatic news of violence, kidnapping and harassment aimed at Christians and other groups continues to arrive from Syria and Iraq. I want to assure those suffering in these situations that we will not forget them, we are close to them and we are praying that a stop be put to this intolerable violence of which they are victims. Together with members of the Roman Curia last Friday I offered the last Mass of the Spiritual Exercises for this intention. At the same time I ask all, according to their capacities, to work to alleviate the suffering of those being tried, often only because of the faith they profess. Let us pray for these our brothers and sisters who are suffering for the faith in Syria and Iraq.... Let us pray in silence....

I would also like to call to mind Venezuela, which is again undergoing moments of acute tension. I pray for the victims and, in particular, for the boy killed a few days ago in San Cristóbal. I exhort everyone to reject violence and to respect the dignity of every person and the sacredness of human life and I encourage them to take up the common path for the good of the Country, opening again space for encounter and sincere and constructive dialogue. I entrust that beloved nation to the motherly intercession of Our Lady of Coromoto.

I address a cordial greeting to all of you — families, parish groups, associations — pilgrims from Rome, from Italy and from different countries.

I wish a good Sunday to all. Don’t forget, please, to pray for me. Have a good lunch and goodbye!

© Copyright - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
Read more »
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)

Contact Form

Name

Email *

Message *

LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL © 2010. All Rights Reserved. "FROM INDONESIA TO THE WORLD, ADESSO SONO IN THAILANDIA"
Powered by Blogger
Powered by Blogger.