Menjawab Tuduhan kepada Vassula Tentang Kesesatan dalam Konsep Trinitas

A method which enables heresies to be found anywhere

Although the teaching on the Holy Trinity in ’True Life in God’ is the same as in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Vassula Ryden and her writings often become the object of sharp criticism and accusations and allegations of heresy. Thus some theologians accuse her writings of portraying the Persons of the Holy Trinity as identical, and thus expounding heretical trinitarian teaching.

But is it really true that ’True Life in God’ is in opposition to the dogmatic teaching of the Church, according to which there exists a real distinction between the Divine Persons? (see CCC 253, 254, 255)

A careful study of the writings of Vassula, and the analysis of that which she herself speaks about in her numerous witnessings, in no way at all warrants such judgment, since in ’True Life in God’ the three Divine Persons reveal themselves as really distinct from one another.

This real distinction of Persons becomes apparent in the fact that the Divine Persons speak separately. First and foremost however – and surely this is the most important point – the relation of origin of the Divine Persons, through which they are really distinct from each other, is never questioned in these writings (see CCC 254). Thus the Son does not identify with the Father as a Person, because He is never described as He "who generates", but as He "who is begotten". Similarly, the Holy Spirit does not identify Himself with the Father or with the Son as a Divine Person, because nowhere is He called "the One who generates" (that is, the Father), nor is He called "He who is begotten" (that is, the Son). He also is sent by the Father and by the Son. In this act of being sent His separateness is made apparent, because no one can send himself, but a separate person.

Therefore throughout the writings of Vassula the Divine Persons are portrayed – in conformity with the teaching of the Church – as really distinct from one another. There is not a single sentence in the entire work of ’True Life in God’ which could contain a trinitarian heresy, not even in those extracts which have been criticised as allegedly presenting the Divine Persons as having similar names. A trinitarian error could only be when there is clear assertion made of the following nature: "In God there is no relation of origin", "There is only one person in God", "The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are the same Person", "I, Jesus Christ, am the same Person as the Father and the Holy Spirit", "The Father, Son and Holy Spirit identify themselves as Divine Persons, and do not distinguish themselves from one another as Persons". There are no such heretical statements that do not conform to the teaching of the Church in Vassula’s writings. If then, there are no doctrinal errors in ’True Life in God’, then how is it possible for the opponents of this work to allegedly find them? Those who attack this work know very well that they would be wasting their time in trying to find formal heresies – that is, those that are expressed unambiguously and intentionally – because they do not exist in this work. That is why they choose a particular method in order to find errors and heresies ’in spite of all’ and ’at any cost’.

What characterises this method? Its basis is simple. It is enough simply to read the text of ’True Life in God’ according to the following principle: when it is possible to interpret the messages of the Divine Persons either in the spirit of the teaching of the Church or contradictory to it, then the messages are given a meaning which is at variance with the teaching of the Church. Thanks to this method – which is applied with great glee with regard to Vassula’s writings – one can always arrive at the desired conclusion: that her writings negate the dogmas of the Church and spread heresies.

Such a way of interpreting the texts is, however, false. If it were applied also with regard to the Sacred Scriptures, there too one would be able to ’discover’ a multitude of ’heresies’.

This method is not only false but also immoral; it is contrary to God’s eighth Commandment, which forbids us to bear false witness against one’s neighbour, to slander him or to judge him rashly.

The Catechism reminds us with these words: "To avoid rash judgment, everyone should be careful to interpret in so far as it is possible his neighbour’s thoughts, words and deeds in a favourable way (CCC 2478).

The Catechism also cites a valuable teaching of St Ignatius Loyola: "Every good Christian ought to be more ready to give a favourable interpretation to another’s statement than to condemn it. But if he cannot do so, let him ask how the other understands it. And if the latter understands it badly, let the former correct him with love. If that does not suffice, let the Christian try all suitable ways to bring the other to a correct interpretation so that he may be saved". The words of the Catechism which forbid us to pass unfounded harsh criticism are very severe. "He becomes guilty of rash judgment who, even tacitly, assumes as true, without sufficient foundation, the moral fault of a neighbour (CCC 2477).

’Unclear’ or ’ambiguous’ does not mean erroneous or heretical

The favourite weapon used in fighting against Vassula’s writings is to accuse them of being obscure, of double meaning or ambiguous. This accusation is not honest, because it suggests that ambiguity or lack of clarity is an error, or that ambiguous expressions are nonsensical and of no value. In this way one can easily put down even the most highly esteemed theological works. To suggest an error where something is unclear or ambiguous, is inadmissible, and contradictory to the true principles of interpretation of texts. If this were the case, it would undermine the value of all poetic expression, metaphors and similes which so frequently occur even in the sacred Scripture. Error or heresy are only found in explicit statements or negations. As regards ambiguous or unclear sentences, they could be erroneous or true. However the deciding factor is the context and not the whim of the reader. It is the context which defines the real meaning of ambiguous of unclear expressions. Ambiguity per se is therefore not necessarily an error or a heresy.

In connection with the problem of so called unclear texts, it is useful to turn our attention to one other thing: that this is not necessarily the fault of the writer or his intellectual failings. There are many texts which are unclear only because they are beyond the capability of understanding of the reader, who cannot grasp them; for example, as with a child reading with difficulty many parts of a book, which adults understand without difficulty – to the child these parts seem incomprehensible and unclear. Let us now go on to a more detailed analysis of these parts of ’True Life in God’ which are attacked and labelled as heretical by their opponents. At the same time we shall investigate the methods used which ascribe the worst possible meaning to the messages, even if it does not harmonise with the whole context of this work.

(From an article of Fr. Michal Kaszowski, teacher of theology at the Archdiocesan Seminary, Katowice, Poland)

Source:http://www.defending-vassula.org/errors_trinity

The Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, Theodoros II Menyambut Vassula dan TLIG

The Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa, Theodoros II, opened the doors of the Patriarchate in Alexandria of Egypt in April of 2008 with a welcoming embrace and gave a moving speech in the Throne Room to officially welcome TLIG and Vassula. Here is what he said:

"From the depths of my heart, I wish to welcome you all officially, here in the Throne Room, where our companion is St. Mark, the Apostle and Evangelist. In the morning, I received you at the monastery of St. Savvas, a humble monastery, which was founded in the 4th century. Today, I greet you officially here, in our Patriarchate, whose history spans 2,000 years from the time of Jesus Christ to the present. Thus, on the one hand, with the exception of the Apostle Paul, we have our history involving the great Apostles, whose successors were the Great Fathers of the Church. That history brings us to present times and, thus, you can see all the Patriarchs that have been appointed to Alexandria on your right and left.

All this is our heritage, the future lies before us: it is for us the entire land of Africa. That is why I want you to know that, before I ascended the steps to the Throne of St. Mark, I was a missionary in Cameroon, the Sudan, Gabon, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi, Botswana and Angola. As a missionary, therefore, I really got to know Africa: the difficulties that it faces and the enormous poverty issues but, most of all during my journeys, I meet people that are searching - searching for the love of Jesus. That is why, Vassula, I was very moved when you all sang to Jesus Christ a few minutes ago as my thoughts went immediately to all my African children who also raise their hands towards the heavens and sing in thousands of languages about Christ; the love of Christ that we so desperately need. I am planning shortly to make a long journey to Ghana, having recently returned from Madagascar.

And now, I would like to welcome you all from the bottom of my heart, especially you, Vassula, as I said in church this morning, welcome to your homeland, welcome to the country of your birth, and greetings to all who accompany you. As they say here, Vassula, "Anyone who drinks from the waters of the Nile never forgets this country."

I would also like to greet the Bishop from India - welcome dear brother to our Apostolic Patriarchate. I wish to welcome the monk, you, Sister, you, Father and you, Father from the Roman Catholic Church and tell you all that with much love we receive you, we love you and that we are under the same protection and love of our Great Lord, Jesus Christ.

Vassula, I would like to thank you for this opportunity, to be together over the next few days. This evening, we will follow together the Passion of Our Lord. Tomorrow, we shall worship before His Epitaph and we shall live, in our devoutly beating hearts, His Passion and His Resurrection. And that joy - that is my wish - that the joy of the Resurrection and the Light may be with us always all the days of our lives. In the name of Jesus Christ I wish to bless you all and your families and please know that Alexandria’s and the Patriarchate’s doors will always be open to you. Thank you"

Source: http://www.defending-vassula.org/orthodox-alexandria

Immaculate Conception dan Sang Perempuan Yang Berselubungkan Matahari

Pesan Yesus kepada Vassula Ryden tanggal 20 Maret 1996

Mari kita simak amanat Yesus tentang begitu besarnya penghormatan Yesus kepada Bunda Teotokos kita. Bahkan dalam Pesan-pesanNya ini, Yesus mengamini bahwa Bunda Maria adalah Bunda Yang Dikandung Tanpa Noda Dosa (asal), suatu doktrin khas Katolik yang masih banyak diragukan oleh orang lain bahkan oleh sebagian internal umat Katolik.

Pesan Yesus sbb:

…………………..*) Jika kalian berkata: "Kami tidak memerlukan Hati Maria", ketahuilah bahwa kalian sebenarnya berkata: "Kami tidak memerlukan Hati Tuhan Yesus!" belajarlah, hai manusia lemah, bahwa Hati Kudus Ku dan Hati Tak Bernoda Bunda kalian begitu bersatu dalam kesatuan yang sempurna yakni Dua Hati Suci menjadi Satu; Aku berkata sesungguhnya: apabila kalian mengakui Hati Maria, bukan hanya kalian akan mengakui HatiKu tetapi juga Hati Bapa, Bukankah Aku telah berkata bahwa Aku ada dalam BapaKu dan BapaKu ada dalam Hatiku? Apabila Aku ada dalam Bapa dan Bapa ada dalam Aku, maka HatiKu begitu pula, ada dalam Bapa dan HatiNya ada dalam HatiKu; dengan mengatakan bahwa Kami terpisahkan satu sama lain dan Kami tidak satu, maka kalian mengingkari SabdaKu; oleh sebab itu janganlah kalian menjadi budak dari rohmu sendiri dan janganlah kalian menerima argumen dunia ini;

Katakan kepadaKu, hati ciptaan mana yang menyerupai Hati Maria? Tidak ada satu pun yang menyerupai Hati Maria; Hatinya sempurna sejak permulaan, Tanpa Noda Dosa (Immaculate) sejak kelahirannya[13] dan penuh rahmat, bahkan melebihi rahmat yang diterima oleh segenap MalaikatKu; inilah sebabnya kumpulan para MalaikatKu bertanya satu sama lain begini:

“mengapa puncak-puncak gunung menundukkan kepalanya, memberikan salut kepadanya setiap kali dia melewati gunung-gunung tersebut?”

“siapakah gerangan tanpa sedikit pun cela dalam Hatinya dan begitu menyenangkan Allah?’; “apakah kalian sudah melihat bagaimana ciptaan Allah menatap ke bawah setiap kali dia lewat?”

“siapakah dia yang seperti air mancur membuat taman menjadi subur oleh rahmatnya, sebuah sumur air hidup ini?”

“siapakah Dia, dengan Hatinya begitu murni terisi kasih ilahi, selalu berhasrat akan Allah setiap siang dan malam, setiap hari dan ada dalam kesatuan sempurna dengan Yang Maha Tinggi?”

“siapakah Sang Perawan ini yang begitu rendah hati meskipun memiliki begitu banyak kebaiakn dan penuh rahmat sehingga Mata Allah Yang Maha Kuasa tidak pernah berhenti menatapnya?”

banyak dari MalaikatKU tertegun diam dalam kekagumannya, tidak ada lagi kata-kata yang terucap dari mereka….

Yang ada dalam Hati itulah, yang ada dalam lembah rahmat, Aku menjalankan KuasaKu; Pencipta langit dan bumi ini, Pencipta rahmat ini menemukan SurgaNya dalam surga; RahmatNya dalam rahmat; untuk datang ke dunia dalam kondisi seorang budak; Aku datang kepada sifat Kerendahan hati yang Luar Biasa[14] untuk melayani dan bukan dilayani; Aku, Penebus umat manusia, Mesias yang dijanjikan, datang kepada gambaran sempurna dari Hati KudusKu untuk berbagi duka, suka-cita, penderitaan, kemartiran, mujizat, bahkan penghianatan, kesengsaraan, siksaan, tusukan, dan penyaliban; bersama-sama Hati Kami menebus kalian;

setiap saat Bunda SuciKu menghabiskan hidupnya di dunia merupakan madah kasih, amal, kerendahan hati dan kemurnian; suatu harta karun dari HartaKu; Aku datang ke dalam Hatinya Yang Suci ini, kepada gambar dan rupa Hati KudusKu, untuk menjadi Manusia-Allah sehingga Aku mengikuti jejaknya[15] dan kemudian Dia mengikuti Jejak-Ku[16]; Aku telah berkata bahwa Dia dan Aku berbagi segalanya dalam rangka menuju ke SalibKu;

Persatuan Kami begitu sempurna sekali dan eratnya sehingga Kami tidak memerlukan kata-kata untuk bicara, karena ucapanKu satu-satunya berlangsung dalam Hati Kami; Kata-kata-Ku dan PikiranKu tidak perlu disampaikan kepadanya dalam Ketidak-hadiranKu; dalam Kuasa Tertinggi dari Roh Kudus-Ku; segala sesuatunya diketahui oleh dia; dalam HatiNya yang perawan segala sesuatu diketahuinya karena Dia memiliki Allah dan Allah memiliki Dia;

Oh ciptaan! JiwaKu ada dalam kecemasan besar ketika begitu banyak dari kalian menolak Hatinya! Dan MalaikatKu bergetar ketakutan ketika pada suatu hari nanti Aku akan menyatakan orang-orang ini bersalah! Namun bagi mereka yang menghormati BundaKu dan mencintainya, Gerbang Hatinya akan terbuka bagi kalian untuk melangkah masuk ke dalam surga; dan Aku akan berkata kepada kalian yang mencintai dan menghormatinya: ”mari datanglah! Cintamu kepadanya begitu besar di bumi sehingga hari ini kalian dapat masuk ke ruanganmu dan di depan Bait[17] KudusKu kalian merendahkan badan;”

ciptaan, Tanda Besar[18] ini dalam surga, adalah Sang Perempuan yang berselubungkan Matahari sedang memegang iblis lumpuh yang ketakutan, Tanda Besar yang menyinari surga dan membuat takut Sang Kegelapan[19] itu adalah tiada lain daripada BundaKu sendiri; berlawanan sekali dengan kegelapan itu, Aku malah mengangkat Perawan Suci ini untuk menjadi Pilar Api berkilauan bagi kalian agar setiap malam Dia membimbing langkah kalian dan setiap siang hari Matahari menyinari kegelapan kalian yang menyeramkan;

Ketika pada hari itu Aku dikandung oleh Roh Kudus dalam Rahimnya Yang Perawan, seluruh setan dilumpuhkan dengan penuh ketakutan sementara di surga pada saat yang bersamaan sekumpulan besar penghuni surga memuliakan Allah dan bernyanyi: “Kemuliaan kepada Allah di Tempat Yang Maha Tinggi, dan damai di bumi bagi orang yang percaya kepadaNya;” demikianlah, Aku turun dari surga ke surga yang lain, dari Tahtaku ke Tahta yang lain…

Ya, setiap kebaikan berkembang mekar, menggairahkan Hati KudusKu oleh keharuman Cintanya yang sempurna; Hati SuciKu Yang Sempurna dan Satu itu tidak ada tandingannya dan seluruhnya dapat dicintai….Hatinya, sejak Dia Dikandung Tanpa Noda (Immaculate Conception) adalah suatu doa yang tak putus-putusnya, suatu dupa penebusan, suatu adorasi yang tak habis-habisnya bagi Allah; Ini adalah Kebun AnggurKu[20] yang kepadanya Tangan Perkasa Bapaku memanennya sehingga Anggur Sejati ditanamkan pada akarNya dalam tanah ini;

Datanglah kepada Hati Bunda Kalian, yang terangnya seterang siang hari; datang dan terimalah Rahmat-rahmatnya, yang tak terhitung jumlahnya dan memancarkan kilatan sinar dari Tangannya; HatiKu, yang adalah penuh rahmat dan kebenaran, dijadikan dari daging dalam Rahimnya Yang Perawan penuh dengan rahmat dan kebenaran; dan sekarang, Dua Hati Kami, bergabung menjadi Satu akan mengalahkan Wabah Ganas ini, bukan dengan kekuatan fisik atau pun kekuatan senjata melainkan melalui cinta dan pengorbanan;

*) Diterjemahkan bebas dari sebagian Amanat Yesus. Terjemahan oleh Leonard T. Panjaitan dari http://www.tlig.org/en/messages/961/

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[13] Dia dikandung tanpa noda dosa (Immaculate Conception-red)

[14] maksudnya adalah Bunda Maria

[15] ketika Yesus kanak-kanak mengikuti IbuNya

[16] Aku paham bahwa Bunda Maria juga mengikuti Yesus dalam MisiNya

[17] Bait Allah: Bunda Maria

[18] Wahyu. 12:1.

[19] Sang Iblis

[20] Bunda Maria