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Showing posts with label Firman Allah. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Firman Allah. Show all posts

Thursday, October 8, 2009

CUR DEUS HOMO

CUR DEUS HOMO, God became man

That statement will become major misunderstanding Christian doctrine, especially when we try to share it with the Muslims. For them, it sounds too pagan. God became man, it means that God being crucified, died, buried etc. Allah (the God) for them is sacral, just likes YHWH (God) for the Jews. It’s too rude for a Muslim and a Jew to say “Allah/YHWH became man”. And because of Christianity have same root with the Jews, so it’s impossible to say “the God (the Father) became man”. We can compare it with Islamic Theology (called ‘Ilm al-Kalam). In ‘Ilm al-Kalam, the God (Allah) can’t be understood in His Ousia (Dzat) but can be understood through His Hypostasis (Shifatullah). Shifatullah are “not God but not different with God”. Logos (Word of God, Kalimatullah) is one of the Shifatullah in Islam. “Power” and “Life” of God (called the Holy Spirit in Christian faith) are also Shifatullah, that ‘qaimah’ (paste or stand) on Dzatullah (Ousia). Sifatullah are “not God but not creation”.

In Islam, “Logos, Power and Life” of God are not to be understood as having a reality of self-identity entity, but in Christian faith both of them are having hypostasis (a reality that underlining identity). Logos is not the Father (God), but Logos is God (because He is immortal and not different with God), “The Word was God” (John 1:1).

The Word (the Son) is different with the Father, it’s explained by the Word himself when He became a man (nuzul, tajjasud): Jesus Christ and by the Bible statement in: John 1:1, 3:2, 3:17, 3:35, 5:24, 17:3, 20:17, 14:28 and many more. The Father (YHWH) that is transcendent, communicate Himself to mankind through His Word (called Memra in Targum). John 1:18, “No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known.” Logos (the Word, the Son) is eternally coexisting with the Father. Origen of Alexandria appoint Christ as Logos, “if the first born of every creature, is the image of the invisible God, the Father is his arche.”

Because of this difficulty, so the Arabic Christian (may God protect them always!) never use term “God became man” (Allah al-Mutajjasad) but use term “Son of God became man” (Ibnullah al-Mutajjasad). So, clearly that Judaism tawhid (Unity), which is defending the God transcendency, in the same time give some space for Memra (Logos) that will be come in His Messiah, is still guarded and defended in the early church, because of it’s Judaic roots. And if we have open mind, we can more clearly understand this topic through reading The Epistle of St. Ignatius to Ephesians (VII) and to Magnesians (VIII), Adversus Haraeses (III) by Irenaeus, De Haraesibus by John of Damascus, The Dead Sea Scrolls, etc. It’s not just for Catholic or Orthodox Christian but for all Christian of any denomination. Haleluyah, Amen.

Thursday, October 30, 2008

Miltha, The Word

Analysis of Peshitta verse John 1:1
ܒ݁ܪܺܫܺܝܬ݂ ܐܺܝܬ݂ܰܘܗ݈ܝ ܗ݈ܘܳܐ ܡܶܠܬ݂ܳܐ ܘܗܽܘ ܡܶܠܬ݂ܳܐ ܐܺܝܬ݂ܰܘܗ݈ܝ ܗ݈ܘܳܐ ܠܘܳܬ݂ ܐܰܠܳܗܳܐ ܘܰܐܠܳܗܳܐ ܐܺܝܬ݂ܰܘܗ݈ܝ ܗ݈ܘܳܐ ܗܽܘ ܡܶܠܬ݂ܳܐ ܀
Translations
Dr. John Wesley Etheridge (Etheridge)
John 1:1 IN the beginning was the Word, [Meltho.] and the Word himself was with Aloha, and Aloha was the Word himself. 
Dr. James Murdock (Murdock)
John 1:1 In the beginning, was the Word; and the Word was with God; and the Word was God. 
King James Version (KJV)
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

Peshitta Aramaic/English Interlinear New Testament
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Miltha and that Miltha was with God and God was that Miltha.
mlt` - ܡܠܬܐ
Dengan vokal ܡܶܠܬ݂ܳܐ, dibaca miltho (Syria Barat) atau miltha (Syria Timur), merupakan Noun (kata benda) mempunyai arti word, case, cause, matter. Dengan begitu, dalam Peshitta kata Firman (Miltha) dimengerti sebagai tidak hanya Firman (word), melainkan juga dapat dimengerti sebagai Cause (sebab, penyebab, alasan, maksud, perkara). Jika dikaitkan dengan Kol 1:16-17 maka Sang Firman adalah Penyebab utama dalam proses Penciptaan. Dan jika kita setia pada pemahaman bahwa segala sesuatu adalah dari Allah, oleh Allah dan kepada Allah (Roma 11:36) maka sudah barang tentu Firman Allah ini dari Allah, oleh Allah dan kepada Allah. Firman itu dari Allah karena keluar dari “mulut” Allah (Yes 45:23), oleh Allah karena tidak ada yang berhak memberikan Firman kepada alam semesta dan segala isinya selain Allah karena Ia PenciptaNya (Mzm 33:9, Yes 44:24), dan kepada Allah karena Firman itu kembali kepada Allah setelah berhasil melaksanakan Kehendak Allah (Yes 55:11). Oleh karena itu Allah sama sekali tidak perlu pendamping dalam proses Penciptaan, tidak perlu sekutu dalam Penciptaan karena Allah Maha Kuasa, Maha Kuat, Maha Sempurna dan Maha segalanya. Allah tinggal berfirman, maka semuanya jadi (dan memang Allah menciptakan segala sesuatu dengan firman-Nya (Kej 1:2), mengapa harus memerlukan Malaikat (meskipun itu Penghulu Malaikat) kalau hanya untuk menciptakan Manusia? Padahal kita manusia-lah yang akan menghakimi malaikat-malaikat (1 Kor 6:3). Janganlah kamu biarkan kemenanganmu digagalkan oleh orang-orang yang berpura-pura merendahkan diri dan beribadah kepada malaikat, sedang ia tidak berpegang teguh kepada Kepala (Kol 2:18-19). Sebab aku yakin, bahwa baik maut, maupun hidup, baik malaikat-malaikat, ... , atau kuasa-kuasa, baik yang di atas, maupun yang di bawah, ataupun sesuatu makhluk lain, tidak akan dapat memisahkan kita dari kasih Allah, yang ada dalam Kristus Yesus, Tuhan kita. (Rm 8:38-39). Semua penulis kitab-kitab PB sepakat membedakan atau setidaknya tidak melihat adanya persamaan pribadi antara Yesus, guru dan Tuhan mereka, dengan sesosok malaikat pun (termasuk Mikhael, Gabriel, Raphael atau bahkan Satanael). Yesus adalah inkarnasi dari Sang Firman, yang telah keluar dari “mulut” Allah, sebagaimana kata Sang Guru dari Galilea tersebut, “... , sebab Aku keluar dan datang dari Allah ...” (Yoh 8:42) sebab Sang Firman itu telah menjadi manusia (Yoh 1:14).Firman itu juga telah kembali kepada Allah, dan akan datang kembali kelak untuk menghakimi bangsa-bangsa, karena Ia adalah Sang Penunggang Kuda Putih, Yang Setia dan Yang Benar, nama-Nya ialah “Firman Allah” (Why 19:11,13).