Pope names Quebec cardinal head of Congregation for Bishops

By Cindy Wooden
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI has named Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet of Quebec to be the new prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, the office that helps the pope choose bishops for Latin-rite dioceses around the world.

Cardinal Ouellet, 66, will succeed Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, 76, who has headed the congregation since 2000.

The appointment was announced at the Vatican June 30. In addition to serving as prefect of the congregation, Cardinal Ouellet also will be president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, which promotes cooperation between the various offices of the Vatican and the Latin American bishops' council.

Cardinal Ouellet welcomed his appointment to one of the Vatican's most powerful posts "with gratitude, but also with a sense of fear," at a June 30 news conference at the headquarters of the Archdiocese of Quebec.

In that role, he will head the office that advises the pope in choosing the world's bishops.

"The holy father has to be very informed, with clarity, with authenticity in order to make a good decision. So it is a difficult task," said Cardinal Ouellet, the primate of Canada and the first North American cardinal to be put in charge of the bishops congregation.

The cardinal said that while he views the appointment as "a mark of great confidence," he feels fear because his new post presents him with a "difficult" and "huge" responsibility.

The cardinal, stressing the importance of the prefect, said bishops play a key role in the life of the church and have to be clever, prudent and patient in working with the rest of the church community. He said he would help bishops be good bishops while respecting their individual styles and personalities.

Ouellet said he expects to officially take over as prefect of the Congregation of Bishops at the end of August or the beginning of September.

Cardinal Ouellet is no stranger to Rome or the Roman Curia, but he also has the direct pastoral experience of leading a large archdiocese.

Basilian Father Thomas Rosica, founder and CEO of Canada's Salt and Light Television, said, "The Curia is only as effective as the seasoned shepherds who lead the various departments" and "the Congregation for Bishops, in particular, must embody what it strives to do: prepare shepherds and pastors to the universal church.

"Under the leadership of Cardinal Ouellet, I believe that the Congregation for Bishops will do great work in a very challenging time," Father Rosica said in an e-mail interview with Catholic News Service.

Cardinal Ouellet had studied in Rome and returned to the city to teach in 1996. A year later, he was appointed chair of dogmatic theology at the John Paul II Institute for Studies on Marriage and the Family.

In 2001, he was named a bishop and appointed secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. He also served on the Commission for Religious Relations With the Jews.

In 2002 Pope John Paul II named him archbishop of Quebec and in 2003 he made him a cardinal.

He was one of only two cardinals chosen to deliver major speeches to the two-day World Meeting of Priests that preceded the closing of the Year for Priests with Pope Benedict in early June.

He spoke to the priests June 10 about an "unprecedented wave of challenges against the church and the priesthood following the revelation of scandals whose gravity we must recognize and sincerely work to repair."

"But beyond the necessary purification our sins require, we must also recognize that at the present moment there is open opposition to our service to the truth and there are attacks from both outside and inside that aim to divide the church. We pray together for the unity of the church and for the sanctification of priests, these heralds of the good news of salvation," he said.

Cardinal Ouellet has a reputation as an inspiring theologian whose teaching is close to that of Pope Benedict.

The pope named him a member of the Synod of Bishops on the Eucharist in 2005 and he was elected to head the commission that drafted the synod's final message. In 2008, he hosted the International Eucharistic Congress in Quebec.

Born June 8, 1944, in La Motte, Quebec, he earned a degree in theology from the University of Montreal in 1968 and was ordained a priest for the Montreal Archdiocese. He joined the Sulpician order in 1972 and was sent to Rome to study philosophy at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas.

He taught at seminaries in Colombia and Montreal before earning his doctorate in dogmatic theology from Rome's Pontifical Gregorian University in 1983.

He later served as rector of seminaries in Manizales, Colombia, in Montreal and in Edmonton, before returning to Rome to teach.

Cardinal Ouellet speaks French, English, Italian, German and Spanish.

- - -

Contributing to this story was Adeshina Emmanuel in Washington.

END

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Pope announces formation of pontifical council for new evangelization

By Cindy Wooden
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI announced he is establishing a pontifical council for new evangelization to find ways "to re-propose the perennial truth of the Gospel" in regions where secularism is smothering church practice.

Leading an evening prayer service June 28 at Rome's Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, Pope Benedict said there are areas of the globe that have been known as Christian for centuries, but where in the past few centuries "the process of secularization has produced a serious crisis" in people's sense of what it means to be Christian and to belong to the church.

"I have decided to create a new organism, in the form of a pontifical council, with the principal task of promoting a renewed evangelization in the countries where the first proclamation of faith has already resounded and where there are churches of ancient foundation present, but which are living through a progressive secularization of society and a kind of 'eclipse of the sense of God,'" he said.

The challenge, he said, is to find ways to help people rediscover the value of faith.

The pope did not say what the formal name of the pontifical council would be and he did not announce who would head it, although in the weeks leading to the announcement, Vatican commentators suggested it would be Italian Archbishop Rino Fisichella, currently president of the Pontifical Academy for Life.

Pope Benedict made the announcement at the basilica built over what is believed to be the tomb of St. Paul, who dedicated "his entire existence and his hard work for the kingdom of God," the pope said.

The Pontifical Council for Health Care Ministry, established by Pope John Paul II in 1985, was the last pontifical council created.

The pope's evening prayer service marked the vigil of the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, the Vatican's patron saints and the symbols of the church's unity and its universality, he said.

Saying he wanted to focus the evening service on the universal aspect of the church, Pope Benedict recalled how Pope John Paul II repeatedly used the phrase "new evangelization" to describe the need for a new commitment to spreading the Gospel message in countries evangelized centuries ago and the need to find new ways to preach the Gospel that correspond both to the truth and to the needs of modern men and women.

The pope said the social and religious challenges of the modern world cannot be met by human strength and ingenuity alone. In fact, he said, he and other church leaders often feel like the disciples of Jesus faced with a hungry crowd but having only a few fish and a couple loaves of bread to divide among them.

"Jesus showed them that with faith in God nothing is impossible and that a few loaves of bread and fish, blessed and shared, could satisfy everyone," he said.

"But there wasn't -- and there isn't -- only hunger for material food: There is a deeper hunger, which only God can satisfy," the pope said.

Men and women today want "an authentic and full life, they need truth, profound freedom, unconditional love. Even in the deserts of the secularized world, the human soul thirsts for God," he said.

Welcoming a delegation from the Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople, the pope said the task of new evangelization also is tied to the commitment to working for Christian unity.

"May the intercession of Sts. Peter and Paul obtain for the whole church an ardent faith and apostolic courage to announce to the world the truth we all need, the truth that is God," the pope prayed.

END


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Pope says God can be understood through harmony of faith, reason

By Sarah Delaney
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Christians can come to an understanding of God and his plan through reason that is enlightened by faith, Pope Benedict XVI said as he explained the works of St. Thomas Aquinas.

At the weekly general audience June 23 at the Paul VI audience hall, the pope said the 13th-century saint and doctor of the church showed in his writings how the intellect and faith come together to bring Christians closer to the mystery of God.

The pope, continuing his weekly lessons on the teachings of theologians from the Middle Ages, praised St. Thomas' monumental unfinished work, the "Summa Theologica." He said that in it St. Thomas posed questions that are relevant today. Through methods of inquiry inspired by ancient Greek philosophers, the pope said, he was able to "arrive at precise and lucid conclusions about the truth of faith that are accessible to all of us."

Pope Benedict said St. Thomas had taught that man's free will and thought must be "illuminated by prayer, enlightened from above."

He said that, according to St. Thomas, moral nature lies in the "free will of man to perform acts of good, integrating reason, will and passion," but to which must be added "the grace of God through the virtue and gifts of the Holy Spirit."

To those who doubt faith because it cannot be explained through the senses, St. Thomas answered that human intelligence cannot know everything, and that faith and acknowledgment of the mystery of God were necessary, Pope Benedict explained.

In writing about the apostles, the pope said, St. Thomas said that man cannot live and learn without the experience of others. The saint taught that wise, noble and rich people listened to the apostles even though they were poor and simple because their words had been inspired by Jesus Christ, the pope said.

St. Thomas taught that "the soul unites with God and becomes a sprout of eternal life," the pope said.

He said St. Thomas placed great importance on the sacraments, especially the Eucharist.

"Brothers and sisters," said the pope, "let us love this sacrament, nourishing ourselves with the body and blood of the Lord, to be everlastingly fed by divine grace."

The Eucharist shows the "the great mystery of incarnation" and the faith that God appeared to man, in the body of Jesus Christ, "as one of us," the pope said.


END


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Early evidence of devotion to apostles found in Rome catacombs

By Cindy Wooden
Catholic News Service

ROME (CNS) -- In the basement of an Italian insurance company's modern office building, Vatican archaeologists -- armed with lasers -- discovered important historical evidence about the development of Christian devotion to the apostles.

At Rome's Catacombs of St. Thecla, in the burial chamber of a Roman noblewoman, they have discovered what they said are the oldest existing paintings of Sts. Peter, Paul, Andrew and John.

Technicians working for the Pontifical Commission for Sacred Archaeology discovered the painting of St. Paul in June 2009 just as the Year of St. Paul was ending.

Barbara Mazzei, who was in charge of the restoration work, said June 22 that she and her team members knew there were more images under the crust of calcium carbonate, but excitement over the discovery of St. Paul in the year dedicated to him led them to announce the discovery even before the rest of the work was completed.

Presenting the complete restoration of the burial chamber to reporters a year later, Msgr. Giovanni Carru said that the catacombs "are an eloquent witness of Christianity in its origins."

Into the fourth century, Christians in Italy tried to bury their dead near the tomb of a martyr. The walls of the tombs of the wealthy were decorated with Christian symbols, biblical scenes and references to the martyr.

At the Catacombs of St. Thecla, the noblewoman's burial chamber -- now referred to as the Cubicle of the Apostles -- dates from late in the fourth century. The arch over the vestibule features a fresco of a group of figures the Vatican experts described as "The College of the Apostles."

The ceiling of the burial chamber itself features the most typical icon found in the catacombs -- Christ the Good Shepherd -- but the four corners of the ceiling are decorated with medallions featuring the four apostles, said Mazzei.

Fabrizio Bisconti, the commission's archaeological superintendent, said that in the decorations of the catacombs one can see "the genesis, the seeds of Christian iconography," with designs from the very simple fish as a symbol of Christ to the resurrection image of Christ raising Lazarus from the dead.

The discovery of so much attention to the apostles in the Catacombs of St. Thecla documents the fact that widespread devotion to the apostles began earlier than what most church historians believed, he said.

"This is the time when the veneration of the apostles was just being born and developed," he said, and the art in the catacombs no longer presented just the martyrs or biblical scenes.

The burial chamber also features frescoes of Daniel in the lion's den, the Three Wise Men bringing gifts to Jesus, Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac and a very large wall painting of the noblewoman herself -- jeweled, veiled and with "an important hairstyle," a symbol of status in ancient Rome, he said.

Mazzei said that when restorers first went into the burial chamber in 2008, all the walls were white -- completely covered under the crust of calcium carbonate that ranged from a millimeter thick to 4-5 centimeters deep. The Vatican, however, had watercolors and diary descriptions from the 1800s testifying that there were paintings on the walls.

In the past, she said, restorers would use tiny scalpels and brushes to remove the white crust, but some of the paint always came away with it. Restorers were left trying to find the right balance between removing enough to see a faint image of a catacomb fresco and destroying it.

Then along came the laser, Mazzei said.

After attending an art restoration conference and listening to presentations on how lasers were being used on frescoes in buildings above ground, she said she suggested to the Vatican that they gather a team of experts to see how lasers would work in the extremely humid catacombs where almost no air circulates.

"We went slowly and basically set up an experimental laboratory" in the catacombs, she said.

The restoration project was just as painstaking as the scalpel-and-brush method because it involved firing the laser pinpoint by pinpoint across the surface of the cubicle, "but the result is totally different," Mazzei said.

She said the two-year project to restore the tiny cubicle cost only about $72,000 because many of the consultants donated their time and the laser company gave the Vatican a steep discount.

Bisconti said the Vatican has no plans to open the Catacombs of St. Thecla to the public, although the pontifical commission occasionally gives permission for groups to visit as long as they are willing to pay a licensed guide and escort.

END


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Paus Minta Kelompok Bersenjata Abaikan Kekerasan

Oleh Gerard O'Connell,
Koresponden Khusus di Roma


KOTA VATIKAN (UCAN) -- Pesan Tahun Baru dari Paus Benediktus XVI berisi himbauan penuh kasih kepada kelompok-kelompok bersenjata di seluruh dunia untuk mengabaikan kekerasan.

"Kepada setiap orang dan setiap kelompok, saya katakan: hentikan, renungkan, dan abaikan jalan kekerasan," kata Paus.

"Sekarang ini, langkah ini mungkin tampaknya tidak mungkin, namun jika Anda memiliki keberanian untuk melakukannya, Allah akan membantu Anda dan Anda akan merasakan betapa bahagianya kedamaian itu di dalam hati Anda. Kebahagiaan yang mungkin telah lama Anda lupakan."

Asia merupakan tempat sejumlah peristiwa kekerasan, seperti konflik-konflik dengan Taliban di Afghanistan dan Pakistan, kekerasan dan penculikan yang terus terjadi di Filipina selatan, dan hampir setiap hari terjadi pemboman di selatan Thailand.

Paus menyampaikan himbauannya untuk perdamaian itu pada 1 Januari tengah hari setelah merayakan Misa untuk perdamaian di Basilika St. Petrus.

Gereja Katolik merayakan Hari Tahun Baru sebagai “Hari Perdamaian Dunia” sejak tradisi ini dimulai oleh Paus Paulus VI tahun 1967. Umat Katolik di dunia diminta untuk memikirkan apa yang dapat mereka sumbangkan bagi perdamaian dunia pada hari khusus ini.

Dalam kotbahnya, Paus mendesak masyarakat dunia untuk wajah pribadi lain dengan penuh penghormatan, “tanpa mempedulikan warna kulit, kebangsaan, bahasa, dan agamanya" dan melihat di sana seorang pribadi “yang bukan pesaing atau musuh,” tetapi “saudara dalam keluarga manusia.”

Paus juga memaafkan perempuan yang menyerangnya pada Malam Natal dan mengutus sekretaris pribadinya untuk menyampaikan pesan itu kepada perempuan itu secara pribadi. Perempuan itu, Susanna Maiolo, 25, sedang dalam perawatan di sebuah pusat medis yang dirahasiakan. Perempuan itu dibawa ke pusat yang berada di Subiaco, selatan Roma, segera setelah ditangkap di Basilika St. Petrus. Maiolo, yang dikatakan memiliki sejarah gangguan psikologis, meloncati petugas keamanan dan mendorong Paus sehingga Paus jatuh ke tanah. ***
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Pesan Seda: Jaga NKRI

Kupang, KOMPAS - Dalam pertemuan terakhir, Juli 2009 di Jakarta, Frans Seda memberikan pesan khusus kepada Gubernur Nusa Tenggara Timur Frans Lebu Raya, yakni jangan mudah terprovokasi isu yang ingin memecah belas Negara Kesatuan Republik Indonesia. Warga NTT harus ikut menjaga keutuhan NKRI.

Gubernur NTT mengutarakan hal itu, Jumat (1/1) di Kupang, NTT. Frans Seda memesankan pula agar Undang-Undang Dasar (UUD) 1945 dan Pancasila terus dijaga di kawasan timur Indonesia.

”Beliau berpesan agar NTT dijaga baik-baik pula. Bangun kesejahteraan rakyat melalui peningkatan infrastruktur, sumber daya manusia, ekonomi kerakyatan, kesehatan, dan kerja sama antarkelompok masyarakat,” kata Lebu Raya lagi.

Kepercayaan diri

Uskup Agung Ende Monsinyur (Mgr) Vincentius Sensi Potokota mengakui, kepergian Frans Seda adalah kehilangan besar untuk bangsa Indonesia, terutama warga NTT. Seda memberikan makna dalam, khususnya dalam menumbuhkan rasa percaya diri bagi warga Flores dan NTT.

”Dari NTT ada figur Frans Seda, tokoh bangsa yang mengukir banyak prestasi nasional. Ia dapat menjalankan tugas negara dengan baik dari rezim ke rezim. Frans Seda adalah tokoh fenomenal,” kata Sensi.

Sensi mengakui, Seda adalah ikon. Kehadiran dan perannya di Indonesia yang besar, dia berasal dari kalangan Katolik, mencerminkan pemberian putra terbaik dari gereja untuk bangsa.

”Dia juga menyumbangkan nilai-nilai Kristiani lewat tugas kenegaraan yang dijalankan. Frans Seda memberikan inspirasi bagi pimpinan umat. Dia sering memberikan dukungan dari ketokohan dan keteladanannya sebagai pemimpin,” katanya lagi.

Secara terpisah, Uskup Maumere Mgr Gerulfus Cherubim Pareira menyatakan, rasa pengabdian Frans Seda pada bangsa dan negara sangat tinggi.

”Yang saya tidak lupa, pernah ada sorotan tajam diarahkan padanya, ketika menjabat sebagai menteri apa saja yang diperbuatnya untuk NTT? Saya salut pada jawaban Frans Seda, yakni dirinya menjadi menteri bukan saja untuk mengurus NTT, tetapi untuk kepentingan yang lebih luas, membangun bangsa dan negara ini,” ungkap Cherubim.

Gervatius Portasius Seda, keponakan Frans Seda, menuturkan, secara adat, almarhum adalah tokoh dengan gelar Koro Ria, Panglima Adat. Sebernarnya masyarakat Lekebai, tempat kelahiran Frans Seda, menghendaki almarhum dimakamkan di makam leluhur. Akan tetapi, Frans Seda pernah berpesan, lokasi pemakamannya diserahkan kepada istri dan anak-anaknya.

Untuk mengenang Frans Seda, warga Lekebai menggelar misa arwah di Gereja Maria Imakulata, Lekebai, pada Jumat petang dan Sabtu pagi, yang disesuaikan dengan misa arwah di Jakarta. ”Kalau di Jakarta misa pukul 10.00 di Katedral, di Lekebai digelar pukul 11.00,” kata Gervatius.

Gubernur NTT menggelar misa arwah bersama warga di Kupang, 6 Januari 2010, pula. Selain bagi Frans Seda, misa itu untuk mendoakan almarhum KH Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur). Keduanya memiliki peran besar bagi Indonesia. (kor/sem)
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SBY: Frans Seda Tokoh 3 Zaman

*Tokoh Kepercayaan Lima Presiden

Jakarta,KOMPAS - Presiden Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono menyebutkan, almarhum Franciscus Xaverius Seda, dikenal sebagai Frans Seda, sebagai tokoh tiga zaman. Hal ini dikatakan Presiden seusai melayat di rumah duka Frans, Jumat (1/1) petang.

Frans Seda, mantan Menteri Keuangan dan Ekonom Senior, meninggal dunia, Kamis pukul 05.00, pada usia 83 tahun karena sakit. Jenazah akan dimakamkan Sabtu ini di Pemakaman San Diego Hills, Karawang, Jawa Barat, dan diberangkatkan dari Gereja Katedral Jakarta pukul 13.00. Uskup Agung Jakarta Julius Kardinal Darmaatmadja akan memimpin misa requeim.

Yohanes Temaluru dari keluarga Seda menyatakan, pemakaman akan berlangsung dalam upacara militer yang dipimpin Menteri Perhubungan Freddy Numberi. Misa tutup peti pukul 07.00. Jenazah Frans Seda juga akan diberikan penghormatan terakhir di Universitas Katolik Atma Jaya, Jakarta.

Pemikir kritis

Presiden Yudhoyono menyatakan pula, ”Kita mengenal beliau tokoh tiga zaman. Beliau pernah menjadi menteri Bung Karno dan menteri di berbagai portofolio pada masa Pak Harto. Juga pada era reformasi, berkontribusi dalam pengembangan demokrasi dan pengembangan era baru ini.”

Menurut Presiden, Frans Seda adalah tokoh dan pemikir yang kritis, tetapi juga memberikan solusi untuk kepentingan pembangunan. Presiden berbelasungkawa atas wafatnya Frans Seda.

”Atas nama negara, pemerintah, dan pribadi, saya menyampaikan belasungkawa yang sedalam-dalamnya atas meninggalnya tokoh bangsa. Semoga diterima di sisi Yang Maha Esa,” kata Presiden.

Presiden menambahkan, semua yang masih menjadi cita- cita Frans Seda adalah tanggung jawab semua pihak untuk mewujudkannya demi menuju masa depan yang lebih baik.

Secara terpisah, mantan Presiden Megawati Soekarnoputri mengakui ada nasihat dari Frans Seda yang selalu diingatnya. ”Om Frans selalu bilang, saya enggak boleh menyerah,” ungkap Ketua Umum Partai Demokrasi Indonesia Perjuangan (PDI-P) itu.
Megawati tiba di rumah duka di Pondok Indah, Jakarta Selatan, Jumat sekitar pukul 19.00. Ia mengaku merasa kehilangan Frans Seda, yang saat ini juga menjadi sesepuh PDI-P.

Megawati mengaku bertemu terakhir kali dengan Frans Seda saat Rapat Kerja Nasional PDI-P tahun lalu. Frans Seda masih bersemangat memberikan masukan bagi partai. Ia masih memiliki ingatan cukup tajam.

Selain Presiden dan Megawati, beberapa tokoh juga melayat di rumah duka. Mereka antara lain Wakil Presiden Boediono, mantan Wakil Presiden Try Sutrisno, Pimpinan Kompas Gramedia Jakob Oetama, dan Menteri Perdagangan Mari Elka Pangestu.

Try menyebut Frans Seda sebagai sosok yang selalu memikirkan ekonomi kerakyatan.
Boediono kepada Johanna Maria Pattinaja, istri Frans Seda, berujar, ”Negara merasa kehilangan, terutama atas jasa di bidang ekonomi. Tabah, ya, Bu.”

Menurut Wapres, Frans Seda adalah ekonom nasionalis yang mengedepankan kepentingan bangsa dan negara di atas kelompok dalam menjalankan tugas dan peran. Ia meminta semua komponen bangsa mencontoh hal itu untuk maju.

Mantan Wapres M Jusuf Kalla, yang sedang di Australia, Jumat, menyatakan duka mendalam atas berpulangnya Frans Seda. Frans Seda dikenalnya gigih dalam memperjuangkan kepentingan bangsa, khususnya pembangunan di wilayah timur Indonesia. ”Semangat hidup dan semangat memikirkan bangsa ini luar biasa. Kadang kala semangatnya itu berlebihan untuk orang seusia dia,” kata Kalla.

Kalla mengisahkan suatu peristiwa dua tahun silam. Dengan menggunakan kursi roda, Frans Seda mengunjunginya di Istana Wapres. Frans Seda bicara soal utang Pemerintah Indonesia yang terlalu besar dan menawarkan diri untuk membicarakan soal itu dengan koleganya di Dana Moneter Internasional (IMF) dan Bank Dunia.
”Saya bilang, kolega Bapak di sana tentu sudah pensiun. Jadi, Bapak istirahat saja, jaga kesehatan dengan baik,” kata Kalla waktu itu.

Pendiri ”Kompas”

Selain di bidang kenegaraan, Frans Seda turut berperan dalam kelahiran harian Kompas, 28 Juni 1965, bersama PK Ojong dan Jakob Oetama. Jakob menyebutkan, almarhum merupakan sosok yang tidak pernah membosankan untuk diajak berdiskusi.

”Orangnya tegas, pandai. Saya kenal lama. Pak Frans juga salah satu pendiri Kompas yang selalu menulis tentang keresahan di negeri ini,” ujar Jakob Oetama.

Jakob mengakui terakhir bertemu Frans Seda sekitar setengah tahun lalu saat ia berkunjung ke Kompas. ”Itu hanya sebentar. Beliau sudah sulit bicara,” ujarnya.
Sebagai pejabat negara, Jakob menambahkan, Frans Seda adalah sosok yang tak pernah membedakan daerah satu dengan yang lain. ”Beliau selalu memerhatikan semua daerah, infrastruktur yang rusak diperbaiki, dan tidak ada diskriminasi,” katanya.

Lima presiden

Frans Seda meninggalkan seorang istri dan dua anak, Francisia Saveria Sika Seda dan Yoanesa Maria Yosefa Seda. Frans Seda yang dilahirkan dari pasangan Paulus Setu Seda dan Sipi Soa Seda, 4 Oktober 1926, di Lekebai, Desa Bhera, Kecamatan Mego, Kabupaten Sikka, Flores, sekitar 30 kilometer sebelah barat Kota Maumere, pernah menjadi Menteri Perkebunan (1966), Menteri Pertanian (1966), Menteri Keuangan (1967), dan Menteri Perhubungan (1968).

Selain itu, ia juga menjabat Penasihat Ekonomi untuk tiga presiden, yaitu BJ Habibie, KH Abdurrahman Wahid, dan Megawati. Artinya, Frans Seda pernah membantu lima presiden di negeri ini.

Guru besar Sekolah Tinggi Filsafat Driyarkara, Franz Magnis-Suseno, yang juga melayat ke rumah duka, mengatakan, Frans Seda adalah tokoh bangsa yang nasionalis, melintasi batas agama. ”Umat Katolik banyak belajar dari beliau. Ia juga menjadi orang kepercayaan presiden pertama sampai kelima,” katanya.

Magnis mengaku sering bertemu Frans Seda. ”Kita memerlukan orang nasionalis seperti Pak Frans Seda,” ujarnya.

Yohanes Temaluru menceritakan, November lalu, Frans Seda sempat dirawat di Rumah Sakit Pondok Indah karena tenggorokannya sakit sehingga tidak bisa menelan makanan. ”Kira-kira dua minggu di RS, kemudian pulang dan menjalani fisioterapi seperti biasanya. Saat Natal lalu, beliau sempat merayakan bersama keluarga,” katanya.

Yohanes mengakui, sakit yang diderita Frans Seda akibat usia yang kian tua. Ketika Presiden Republik Indonesia (1999-2001) KH Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur), yang juga teman dekat almarhum, wafat, Frans Seda tak diperbolehkan melihat televisi.
”Kami khawatir Pak Frans Seda akan meminta diantar melayat Gus Dur. Padahal, kondisi kesehatan tidak memungkinkan. Jadi, sampai akhir hayatnya, beliau tak tahu kabar Gus Dur meninggal,” ungkap Yohanes.

Mantan Ketua Mahkamah Konstitusi Jimly Asshiddiqie mengutarakan, Frans Seda sebagai tokoh yang pluralis, fleksibel, dan terbuka. Begitu pula mantan Menteri Agama Tarmizi Taher menilai Frans Seda merupakan sosok yang bisa berkomunikasi dengan semua orang tanpa melihat dari mana asalnya. ”Beliau menginginkan umat beragama menjadi satu,” katanya.

Mari Pangestu juga mengaku sangat mengagumi Frans Seda.
(sie/dis/day/Kompas.com/ ryo/ham/sem)

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