Imifanekiso Yonqulo—Imvelaphi Yayo Yamandulo

“Imifanekiso yonqulo yindlela yokusinxulumanisa nobulungisa nobungcwele bukaThixo neeNgcwele Zakhe.”—IBHUNGA LENQILA LASEOSTRELIYA LOBUOTHODOKI BAMAGRIKE

OLU yayilusuku olugqats’ ubhobhoyi ngoAgasti, yaye ilanga lalithe thaa kwindlela enezinyuko zesamente eya kumzi woonongendi “kaMama Ongcwele kaThixo,” kwisiqithi saseTínos, kuLwandle lweAegean. Elo langa ligqatsileyo aliwatyhafisi loo marhamente anenzondelelo ecawa yobuOthodoki bamaGrike abangaphezu kwama-25 000 abathe ngcembe bezama ukuya kufikelela kumfanekiso wonqulo oyokoyoko kamama kaYesu.

Intwazana elula nengumlwelwe, ebonakala isezintlungwini yaye ixhelekile, ikhasa ngaloo madolo ayo ophayo. Kufuphi nayo, ixhegokazi elidinwe liyimfe elisuka kummandla okude welo lizwe, lirhuq’ iinyawo kunzima nokuhamba. Indoda esele iliqina ibile ilithontsi njengoko izama ukudlula kolo gxudululu lwabantu. Ingulowo uxhinele phambili kumfanekiso kaMariya ukuze nje awuncamise aze aqubude kuwo.

Ngokungathandabuzekiyo, la makholwa anenzondelelo akufuna ngokunyanisekileyo ukunqula uThixo. Noko ke, mangaphi kuwo aqondayo ukuba ukunqula imifanekiso yonqulo kwaqala ngaphambili lee kwexesha lobuKristu?

Ukuxhaphaka Kwemifanekiso Yonqulo

Kunqulo lobuOthodoki, imifanekiso yonqulo ifumaneka kuyo yonke indawo. Kwizindlu zecawa, umfanekiso wonqulo kaYesu, kaMariya nezinye “iingcwele” ugqalwa njengobalulekileyo. Amakholwa adla ngokubonisa imbeko kule mifanekiso yonqulo ngokuyincamisa, ngesiqhumiso nokukhanyisa amakhandlela. Ngaphezu koko, phantse zonke izindlu zamaOthodoki zinendawo ethile yokubeka le mifanekiso yonqulo, apho kuthandazwa khona. Akunto ingaqhelekanga ngamaKristu angamaOthodoki ukuthi xa enqula imifanekiso yonqulo, anxulumana noThixo. Amaninzi akholelwa kwelokuba imifanekiso yonqulo ibabalwe nguThixo yaye inamandla angummangaliso.

Kusenokwenzeka ukuba la makholwa aya kumangaliswa kukufumanisa ukuba amaKristu enkulungwane yokuqala ayekuthiyile ukusebenzisa imifanekiso yonqulo. Incwadi ethi Byzantium ithi: “AmaKristu okuqala, ngokufana nonqulo lobuYuda awayekuthiyile ukunqula izithixo, ayekujonga ngeliso elibi nakuphi na ukubonisa intlonelo kwimifanekiso yabantu abangcwele.” Le ncwadi ikwathi: “Ukususela kwiNkulungwane Yesihlanu, imifanekiso yonqulo okanye eqingqiweyo . . . yayisiya ixhaphaka xa abantu benqula nabanye okanye bebodwa.” Ukuba oku akuveli kumaKristu enkulungwane yokuqala, kwavela phi ukusetyenziswa kwemifanekiso yonqulo?

Imvelaphi Yayo

Umphengululi uVitalij Ivanovich Petrenko wabhala esithi: “Ukusetyenziswa kwemifanekiso eqingqiweyo namasiko ayo kwaqala ngaphambi kwexesha lamaKristu yaye ‘kuvela kubuhedeni.’” Ababhali-mbali abaninzi bayavuma ukuba, imvelaphi yokunqula imifanekiso ifumaneka kunqulo lwamaBhabhiloni, lwamaYiputa nolwamaGrike amandulo. Ngokomzekelo, kwiGrisi yamandulo, xa kunqulwa kwakusetyenziswa imifanekiso eqingqiweyo. Abantu babekholelwa ukuba le mifanekiso yayinamandla kaThixo. Babecinga ukuba eminye yale mifanekiso yonqulo yayingenziwanga ngezandla kodwa yayivela ezulwini. Ebudeni bemisitho ekhethekileyo, imifanekiso enjalo eqingqiweyo yayithatyathwa kuhanjwe nayo esixekweni, kuze kubingelelwe kuyo. UPetrenko wathi: “Umfanekiso oqingqiweyo wawugqalwa ngamakholwa njengothixo, nangona kuye kwenziwa amalinge . . . ukwenza umahluko phakathi kothixo nomfanekiso wakhe oqingqiweyo.”

Zathubeleza njani iingcamango nezenzo ezinjalo kubuKristu? Lo mphengululi uthi, kwiinkulungwane emva kokufa kwabapostile bakaKristu, ingakumbi eYiputa, “iinkolelo zamaKristu zaxutywa ‘neenkolelo zobuhedeni’—ezivela kwizenzo neenkolelo zamaYiputa, zamaGrike, zamaYuda, zabantu baseMpuma nabaseRoma ezazisenziwa kunye nobuKristu.” Ngenxa yoko, “amagcisa angamaKristu amkela inkqubo [yezinye iinkonzo] aze asebenzisa imiqondiso yabahedeni, ngoku eyisebenzisa ngendlela entsha, nangona ayengayikhuseli ekungcolisweni ziimpembelelo zabahedeni.”

Kungekudala imifanekiso yonqulo yabalaseliswa xa abantu benqula njengeqela okanye bebodwa. Kwincwadi ethi The Age of Faith, umbhali-mbali uWill Durant uchaza indlela okwenzeka ngayo oku esithi: “Njengoko inani leengcwele ezazinqulwa lisanda, kwafuneka kubekho indlela yokuzichaza nokuzikhumbula; kwenziwa imifanekiso emininzi yazo nekaMariya; yaye kuKristu akuzange kwenziwe umfanekiso Wakhe nje kuphela kodwa nomnqamlezo Wakhe waba yinto ehlonelwayo—yaye kwabo bangoovuma-zonke, oku kwaba likhubalo. Ngenxa yamandla okwemvelo okuzakhela umfanekiso-ngqondweni ngezinto, abantu baqalisa ukuzigqala ezi zinto zabantu abangcwele, imifanekiso eqingqiweyo njengezinto ezifanele kukunqulwa, abantu baqubuda kuzo, bazincamisa, balumeka amakhandlela yaye beqhumisa phambi kwazo, bazihombisa ngeentyatyambo, baza balindela ukuba zibenzele imimangaliso ngomlingo . . . Abefundisi nebhunga leCawa ngokuphindaphindiweyo babecacisa ukuba le mifanekiso eqingqiweyo yayingezozithixo, kodwa yayizizikhumbuzo nje zazo; abantu babengakhathalele ukwenza umahluko onjalo.”

Namhlanje, inkoliso yabo basebenzisa imifanekiso yonqulo ngokufanayo bathi imifanekiso eqingqiweyo zizinto nje ezihlonelwayo—kungekhona izinto ezinqulwayo. Basenokuthi imizobo yonqulo yamkelekile—yaye ikwaluncedo—ekunquleni uThixo. Mhlawumbi uvakalelwa ngendlela efanayo. Kodwa umbuzo ngulo, UThixo uvakalelwa njani ngako oku? Ngaba ukubonakalisa intlonelo kwimifanekiso yonqulo kuyafana nokuyinqula? Ngaba izenzo ezinjalo zisenokuba neengozi ezifihlakeleyo?

[Ibhokisi/Umfanekiso okwiphepha 4]

Yintoni Umfanekiso Wonqulo?

Ngokungafaniyo nomfanekiso oqingqiweyo esetyenziswa kakhulu kunqulo lwamaRoma Katolika, imifanekiso yonqulo yona inobude nobubanzi bomfanekiso kaKristu, kaMariya, “weengcwele,” weengelosi, nabanye abantu nezinye iziganeko ezichazwe eBhayibhileni, okanye iziganeko kwimbali yeCawa yamaOthodoki. Ngokuqhelekileyo, zizotywe kwiibhodi ezinokuphathwa.

Ngokutsho kweCawa yobuOthodoki, “kwiMifanekiso yonqulo yeeNgcwele, oko kuzotyiweyo akufani nje nabantu abaqhelekileyo.” Kwakhona, imifanekiso yonqulo “ibonakala ibanzi ngasemva”—ayicutheki ngasemva njengoko ibiya kuba njalo eminye. Ngokuqhelekileyo “akukho zithunzi, izinto ezibonisa imini nobusuku.” Kwakhona kukho inkolelo yokuba iplanga nepeyinti yomfanekiso wonqulo ‘inokuzaliswa bubukho bukaThixo.’

[Umfanekiso okwiphepha 4]

Ukusetyenziswa kwemifanekiso eqingqiweyo kuvela kunqulo lobuhedeni

[Inkcazelo Ngomfanekiso okwiphepha 3]

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