Karlovic downs another Aussie in second round

Croatia's Ivo Karlovic casts a long shadow in the late eveningsun as he serves during his second round match against Australia's PaulBaccanello at the Wimbledon (news- websites) Tennis Championships in London, June 25, 2003. Karlovic won the match6-4 7-6 5-7 6-2. REUTERS/Russell Boyce

Lofty Croatian Ivo Karlovic claimed a second Australianscalp at Wimbledon on Wednesday but his 6-4, 7-6, 5-7, 6-2 defeat of PaulBaccanello sparked rather less furore.

The 2.08-metre qualifier, who made Wimbledon history bydispatching defending champion Lleyton Hewitt in the first round on Monday,earned the applause of a tightly packed crowd squashed on to benches round courtnumber 14.

His earlier triumph had taken centre stage on CentreCourt in front of the royal box and been beamed to screens round the world.

On Wednesday spectators had to balance on dustbins behindthe hand-scoreboard for a glimpse of the giant-killer.

But Karlovic, apparently unfazed, used much the sametactics against Baccanello, also a qualifier ranked 204 in the world, as he hadagainst the number one seed.

He thumped down 29 aces in the two hour 35 minute matchand had his opponent squawking in frustration as serve upon unreturnable servepinged skywards off Baccanello's racket frame.

Karlovic, whose sudden fame - and unexpected wage packet- allowed him to move this week to a swanky hotel, began the match with an aceand won the first set with an ace.

Baccanello, buoyed by raucous support from a handful ofcompatriots yelling "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie," managed to find a waythrough the barrage only in the third set when the Croatian, who says hisbiggest problem is moving and bending on court, began to tire.

But he found a second wind in the fourth, earning athird-round spot in his first grand slam tournament.

Hewitt was the first defending Wimbledon champion sincetennis went professional in 1968 to lose in the first round.

Karlovic now moves to a meeting with 43rd-ranked MaxMirnyi of Belarus in the third round.

In other second round matches overnight, Andy Roddickdefeated Briton's Greg Rusedski in a bad-tempered centre-court showdown, winning7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/1), 7-5 win in just over two hours.

Men's fourth seed, Roger Federer, overcame Austria'sStefan Koubek 7-5, 6-1, 6-1 and American Todd Martin beat three times formerFrench Open champion Brazillian Gustavo Kuerten 7-6, 6-4, 6-4.

In the women's draw, Lindsay Davenport eased into thethird round of Wimbledon, by overcoming spirited Italian Rita Grande in straightsets, 6-3, 6-1.

The 28-year-old Grande began confidently, moving muchmore quickly around the court than her opponent, who's been blighted by injuryin recent months.

But the three-times grand slam winner demonstrated whyshe remains the world number five, hitting 36 precision winners in the 52-minutematch.

Venus Williams, also swept into the third round, with a6-4, 6-1 victory over Slovenian Katarina Srebotnik.

Genevieve Gorder, designer on the cable TV show -- Trading SpacesCroatian

Nenad,
Here's another Croatian American who's making a splash in NY and on TV.
Genevieve Gorder, designer on the cable TV show -- Trading Spaces -- is the 
daughter of the cousin of NFCA VP Ed Andrus from Philadelphia. 
Ed's mother's Croatian maiden name is Domovic.
Genevieve is an offspring of the Croatian family Domovic.

We hope to have Genenieve attend a special NFCA event in NY soon.
More later,
Steve Rukavina

Genevieve Gorder on fame, design and 'Trading Spaces'
Rosalind Bentley 
Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN)

Published May 2, 2002

The guy behind the counter at Theatre Antiques on Lyndale Avenue just north of Lake Street gave the tall, green-eyed blonde that I-know-I-know-you look. He whispered to a co-worker, who tried to place her.

The woman walked up to the counter, purchase in hand. In a whisper befitting someone at a Sunday church service, Jim Thomas asked, "Are you . . . ?"

"Yes," said Genevieve Gorder, one of the stars of "Trading Spaces," a cult hit on the TLC cable network.

"I knew it was you!" Thomas said. "We watch the show all the time!"

It's become a familiar exchange for the 27-year-old Minneapolis native since she joined the show nearly two years ago. "Spaces" faithful know Gorder as the perennially barefoot designer with a distinctive, full-throttle chuckle and a penchant for distinguishing her rooms with black-and-white photography.

And, occasionally, moss.

Get what you pay for 

Based on the British hit "Changing Rooms," "Spaces' " has a simple premise: Two neighbors trade house keys and in 48 hours, with a budget of $1,000 and under the direction of a designer, each redecorates a room in the other's home. You don't get to pick your designer (there are six, each with an individual style), you have to sign a release letting them do whatever they want to your room, and if you don't like the result, too bad.

There have been some doozies. Rooms painted black. A bedroom made to look like a railroad Pullman Car. Until designer Hilda Santo-Tomas glued hay all over a family's living room walls, Gorder created what was arguably one of the most audacious designs: She covered a bedroom wall in moss and built nightstands out of chicken wire.

"Spaces" has become the most popular show on TLC network, perhaps because it's more a "reality" game show than it is a decorating show. Viewers want to see the "reveal," the last minutes of the show when the host ushers the eyes-shut-tight homeowners back to their house and tells them, "Open your eyes and see your new room!" 

Reactions range from "I love it!" to "Wow!" "Wow" as in, Wow, it's going to take us way more than 48 hours to repaint and repair this mess.

The owners of Gorder's mossified bedroom were in the "Wow!" group.

"That moss wall was hot," Gorder said recently over lunch in Uptown. "I just don't think they got it."

Kismet 

Although not trained as an interior designer, Gorder did have some do-it-yourself credentials, thanks to her parents. As a young couple, they didn't have money for contractors to rehab the south Minneapolis Victorians they lived in, so they did the work themselves. By the time she was a student at Clara Barton Open School, Gorder knew how to strip wood, paint behind radiators and take down wallpaper.

Still, it seemed more likely that she might become a classical musician or international aid worker than a television personality. Throughout her school years and into college, Gorder played the violin. She and her two younger brothers were required by their parents to learn at least one foreign language. They were encouraged to travel.

Gorder's mother, Diana Drake, said she and her husband wanted the kids to know something about the world. On a summer break while she was attending South High School, Gorder was an exchange student in Barcelona, Spain, an experience that influenced her decision to major in international affairs at Lewis and Clark College in Oregon.

In her sophomore year of college, just for grins, she took a graphic design class. Until then, Gorder hadn't been inclined to the visual arts. Smitten by the class, she switched majors -- a dicey but fortuitous move.

On the strength of a collage she made in that design class, Gorder landed an internship with MTV at age 19. She was soon offered a job there and, with her parents' blessing, quit college and moved to New York. After earning a design degree from the School of Visual Arts there, she was hired by the New York offices of Minneapolis-based graphic design firm Duffy Inc.

Duffy CEO Joe Duffy hired her and remembers not only her work, but also her "spike of energy." She'd just finished heading up the redesign of an FAO Schwarz project when she got a call from Ross Productions in Tennessee. Ross was going to do an American version of the show "Changing Rooms," and she'd been recommended for an audition.

"To this day I have no idea how they got my name," Gorder said. "I was like, 'Yeah, I'll come for the audition, but I'm not moving to Tennessee.' "

She also had her doubts as to how her training as a graphic designer would work in interior design.

"I just didn't associate interior design with cool," Gorder said. "I was thinking it was all Christopher Lowell, 'Let's make this Arabian Nights!' "

In a matter of a couple months, she and five other designers were filming the first episodes. None of them had to move to Tennessee.

"I remember thinking while I was doing the first one in Atlanta, 'What have I gotten myself into, this is so not for me,' " Gorder said.

But as time went on, she became more comfortable with the cameras and the tremendous amount of work it takes to pull a room together in two days.

"Ninety percent of the homeowners say, 'Make it look like Pottery Barn,' " she said. "But it has to be dramatic or people won't want to watch."

Drama's great, but what if the homeowner doesn't like what she's done?

"You can't take it personally," Gorder said. "Whether people like it or not, I always go back in so I can find out what did and didn't work for them. If the room looks bad, I look bad and I want to feel good about the room every time."

Los Angeles resident Paul Hogan and his girlfriend, Sonja Teri, worked with Gorder on a recent episode. Unlike some of the show's designers, Gorder was open to at least some of their ideas for changing their neighbor's living room, they said.

"She was just really fun to work with, not stuck up or pretentious at all," Hogan said. "She had us doing the whole show barefoot, just like her."

Gen and Bob 

" 'You guys are gon' be celebrities,' " Gorder remembers one Ross executive drawling early on. "I was like, 'Yeah, right, me and Bob Vila.' "

What a difference a season makes.

The show is so popular in Texas that when it is filmed there, crowds stand outside the homes for hours with placards and cameras. A late-night run for potato chips at her neighborhood market can turn into an autograph-signing. The number of unofficial fan Web sites is staggering. As Gorder walked through Uptown on a recent trip home, two teenage girls appeared on the brink of hyperventilation as she walked past them.

Gorder takes this in stride. It's flattering. Her mother worries, though. While Drake is happy about her daughter's success, she's concerned about its speed and the fickleness of television.

"This is a great experience for her and she can take this anywhere," Drake said. "But the show has an almost fanatical following. People will walk up to her, literally crying, 'It's Genevieve, it's Genevieve.' So she's starting to deal with the gradual loss of her privacy."

Still, Gorder is enjoying a life that has become somewhat charmed. Marriage and kids will happen eventually, she said. Her parents' mandate was always "check out some of your dreams before you settle down, so there are no regrets." Which is exactly what Gorder has been doing. When she's not filming, she's visiting her old host family in Barcelona or going to Morocco or some other far-flung place. On the side, she designs the occasional room, although for a budget more than $1,000. (She's reprised the moss wall five times.) She's started Double G Designs, which produces"Sex-in-the-City"-esque greeting cards, and she's been approached about designing a line of jeans. And she's retained an agent as other entertainment offers have begun trickling in. Movies? Other TV shows? Gorder won't be specific, but says that in a dream world she'd host her own travel show. Not now, though.

She'd be a fool to stop changing rooms, she said, because like her moss wall, "Right now, this show is hot!" 


Move over Martha - Another Croatian Sensation 

Thought you'd be interested in this. Click on the link below and see my cousin, Genevieve Gorder in the top picture, being portrayed as a contender to "Martha"! WOW! Another Croatian Sensation!

Edward A Andrus
 eaandrus@comcast.net  

http://www.nydailynews.com/city_life/story/93660p-84965c.html 

Croatian Folklore Costumes from the Posavina

Dear Mr. Bach,

I'm not sure how I can post this in the letters section, so I'm sending this request directly to you. I would like to sale 2 dresses that are traditional Croatian Folklore Costumes from the Posavina region. Both dresses are equivalent to the US size 10-12. 

The multicolored floral printed dress is 54 inches long and the sleeves are 14 inches long. The beige detailed dress is 50 inches long and has sleeves that are 13 inches in length. Both are about 50 years old. 

If anyone would like to purchase either one or both, please contact Maria at suzcozg@yahoo.com 

Thank you, 

Maria

Op-ed

I made an exception, but for the future, everybody that gets published has togive me his/hers full name.

Thank you,

Nenad Bach

Editor in Chief

Finally Truth, as mistruths are often reported

The Washington Times
Slavophobia
June 9, 2003 
Section: LETTERS 

Page: A20 

THE WASHINGTON TIMES 
I am a 22-year-old university student studying to become a documentarian, and it was inspiring to see such an underrepresented subject as the discrimination against and hatred of Slavic people being explored in The Washington Times ("Acute Slavophobia," Commentary, June 1). 

Jeffrey Kuhner is obviously a journalist of integrity and has a deep passion for revealing the truth. This is a rarity in his profession, as mistruths are often reported over and over by those who work more like sheep than journalists. 
If Mr. Kuhner would like to explore the subject further, he could also research the Bleiburg massacre of 1945, in which an estimated 250,000 Croatian refugees, soldiers and civilians were slaughtered by Tito's Yugoslav partisans. Croatians are a (conveniently) forgotten nation when it comes to such subjects. 
I cannot thank Mr. Kuhner enough for his bravery and dignity. He brings to your newspaper a voice that fights to reveal the truth, in turn giving back a light of hope to those nations that have been unfairly affected by this problem for over half a century. 
BRENDA BRKUSIC 
Orange, Calif. 


All content Š 2003-, by News World Communications, Inc.; 3600 New York Avenue, NE; Washington, DC 20002.

(Also Sent To The Editor But Not Published)

For further reading, may I suggest some books on the subject:
Croatia: Myth and Reality, by Michael McAdems (Online at http://mirror.veus.hr/myth/ )
Anatomy of Deceit, by Dr. Jerry Blaskovich. 
Serbia's Secret War, by Philip Cohen 
In Tito's Death Marches and Prison Camps, by Joseph Hecimovic
Operation Slaughterhouse, by John Prcela
The Croatian Holocaust, by John Prcela
Bleiburg 1945-1995: An International Symposium, by Ante Beljo
Yu-Genocide, by Ante Beljo
Croatia: A Nation Forged in War, by Marcus Tanner

(Original Article Below)
Acute Slavophobia

By Jeffrey T. Kuhner

It is commonly believed the scourge of racism has been eradicated in the West. Indeed, significant advances have been made in how Western societies treat historically discriminated minorities such as blacks, Hispanics and women. Yet there is one ethnic group that continues to be the victim of widespread discrimination and even hatred: the Slavs. 
For example, this subtle but nevertheless real prejudice against the Slavs can be seen in academia. Although the Holocaust and the evils of fascism have been condemned by most scholars, the crimes of communism remain largely ignored. Marxism-Leninism produced the greatest system of mass murder in history, resulting in the deaths of more than 100 million people — a considerable percentage of whom were Eastern European Slavs. 
During the 1930s, communist dictator Josef Stalin systematically starved to death 7 million Ukrainians in one of the most murderous genocides of the 20th century. Yet the suffering of Ukraine under Stalin's totalitarian empire has been largely forgotten. The same is true of the other victims of the Marxist project such as the Russians, Poles, Croats, Slovaks and Serbs who in total lost millions of people to state-sanctioned murder. 
Leon Trotsky, one of the leaders of the Bolshevik Revolution, once stated that the "Slavs are a historyless people." This comment is not only false, but more importantly, it reflects the deep-seated racism of many in the West's political class who continue to view Eastern Europe as a primitive backwater that is not part of European civilization. 
A clear example of this hostility toward the Slavs was the creation of Yugoslavia following the end of the First World War. The establishment of a greater South Slav state violated U.S. President Woodrow Wilson's principle of national self-determination. Forged by Western powers to serve as a bulwark against Germany and Austria, Yugoslavia was a Serb-dominated, multinational empire that abrogated the national aspirations of its subject peoples — Slovenes, Croats, Macedonians, Bosnian Muslims, Albanians and Montenegrins. 
Subsequently, while Western leaders as diverse as Franklin Roosevelt, Pierre Trudeau and the first George Bush championed the right to self-determination for peoples in India, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America, they were reluctant to grant the same rights to the enslaved nations of Yugoslavia and the Soviet Union. As late as August 1991, on the eve of Ukraine's historic vote for independence, Mr. Bush warned Ukrainians of the dangers of "suicidal nationalism." 
As Yugoslavia began to fall apart in the 1990s, the West at first refused to grant diplomatic recognition to the breakaway republics of Slovenia and Croatia, then watched passively as Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic waged ethnic cleansing campaigns against the Croats, Bosnian Muslims and Kosovar Albanians. It took the death of nearly 250,000 people and the displacement of 2 million civilians before NATO finally decided to intervene to stop Mr. Milosevic's genocidal rampage. 
This contrasts sharply with the eagerness of Western governments to recognize the independence of India in 1947; the myriad African nations in the 1960s; Bangladesh in 1971; the Baltic States and East Timor during the 1990s. Apparently, Ukrainians, Belorussians, Croats and Bosnians are not as worthy of statehood as other non-Slavic peoples. 
Modern-day Slavophobia can also be seen in the recent indictments issued by the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). Its chief prosecutor, Carla Del Ponte, is seeking to prosecute leading Croatian generals on trumped-up charges that would be laughed out of any Western courtroom. 
Take the case of Gen. Ante Gotovina. He led the 1995 military operation that ended the Croat-Serb war. The general is being prosecuted not for having committed or ordered war crimes, but for failing to have prevented isolated atrocities by individual soldiers during the three-day offensive. This is the equivalent to holding Gen. Wesley Clark legally responsible for the deaths of civilians during NATO's 1999 bombing campaign against Serbia. 
The ICTY is determined to indict leading Croatian generals in order not to appear biased against the Serbs. This means innocent Croats are being sacrificed for the sake of a policy of ethnic balance. Not only is this an unacceptable manner to run a court, but worse, it reflects the Western dismissal of the rights of individuals in the Balkans. Are individual Croats mere cattle that can be exchanged in order to propagate the myth that the ICTY is evenhanded? 
A similar indictment against Gen. Clark — or any American — would rightly be unacceptable to Washington. It would demand that the charges be dropped immediately. But in the case of Gen. Gotovina, the State Department is insisting that Croatia hand him over to the tribunal. Ironically, even Serbian human-rights activists have stated that the general is innocent.Gen. Gotovina is obviously the victim of a racist judicial witch hunt. Too bad he is a Croatian. Otherwise, Western leaders might actually care. 

Jeffrey T. Kuhner is an assistant national editor at The Washington Times. 

John and Anne Zdunic Endowment at the University of Toronto

Recently there was an article in the University of Toronto's Libraries Newsletter concerning an endowment established by John and Anne Zdunic. The Zdunic family's generous gift of $150,000 will allow the library to build an internationally renowned collection of research material related to Croatia that will be used by students and scholars for generations to come. 
John Zdunic had already made an important donation which helped to substantially increase the number of books acquired about Croatia, in Croatian and other languages. He also helped find people with Croatian collections who might be interested in donating their books and contributing to the creation of a first class Croatian collection in Canada. As a result, the U of T Library now stands with Harvard, University of Washington and University of Michigan, among the top four North American libraries acquiring Croatian materials.
This new donation creates an endowment, which will support the development of the Croatian collection on a permanent basis. The Library has already been able to subscribe to 22 new scholarly journals and current newspapers. Some are dailies that enable users to keep up to date with events in Croatia. In addition, a major historical collection in microfilm has been acquired. The Croatian collection is used by both graduate and undergradute students in the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures.

Wimbledon, CroatianDestiny 

Karlovic Makes history at Wimbledon 2003

Ivo Karlovic of Croatiaranked number 203 made a history today. 

A qualifier serves to defending Champion LleytonHewitt during their Men's Singles, First Round match on the Centre Court, on thefirst day of the All England Lawn Tennis Championships at Wimbledon , MondayJune 23, 2003. Karlovic defeated the defending champion 1-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3,6-4. (AP Photo/Dave Caulkin)
AP - Jun 23 10:37 AM

Qualifier Ivo Karlovic createdthe biggest Wimbledon upset

Qualifier Ivo Karlovic has created one of the biggest Wimbledonupsets of all time to defeat defending champion Lleyton Hewitt on Centre Court.

 Ivo Karlovic Makes History at Wimbledon 2003 - Rankednumber 203 he defeates a defending champion - - - - - Ivo Karlovic had 18 aces and 41 service winners

Out of the blue: Ivo Karlovic (l) knocked out number one seed Lleyton Hewitt

The 6ft 10ins Croat, ranked 203 in the world, stormed back froma set behind to secure an incredible 1-6, 7-6, 6-3, 6-4 win over the Australian.Hewitt is the first defending male champion to lose in the first round sinceManuel Santana in 1967. Only three weeks ago Karlovic had been beaten by BritonAlex Bogdanovic in a Challenger tournament in Surbiton. But once he found hisrange with his booming serve and sleek volleys he managed to secure a remarkablewin.

Budimo kao Bog u kojeg vjerujemo: jedno irazlicitost. Budimo Ljubav. 
Prof. dr. sc. Marijan Jurcevic, op.

DUHOVI

Da li smo mi u životu doživjeli svoje Duhove, kao što su to doživjeli prvi Isusovi sljedbenici? Oni su progovarali jezikom ljubavi i vjere. Svi su se razumjeli i našli u zajedništvu vjere. Zahvatio ih je JEDAN DUH. 

Na krizmi smo primili Duha Svetog, ali je cudno da smo toga malo svjesni i da smo mu se malo predali. Isus je obecao svojim sljedbenicima poslati Duha koji ce ih preporoditi. Za naše spasenje, našu vjecnost potrebno je ovu ljudsku narav preporoditi, oduhoviti. Naša duševnost jest otvorenost koja može primiti Boga i njegovog Duha. U nama ili ce biti Duh dobrote ili ce vladati duh zla. Bez Božjeg Duha ne možemo razumjeti božansku ljubav i dobrotu, jer bez duha ostajemo u jednoj dimenziji. Bez Božjeg Duha u kršcanstvu se ne može razumjeti ništa. Što su sakramenti bez Duha? Duh je ona stvarnost koja nas povezuje s dva svijeta, svijetom tijela i božanskim svijetom. Zato ga možemo više doživjeti nego li protumaciti.

Da bi shvatili Duha Božjeg i njegovu prisutnost u nama potrebno je postati svjestan svoje duhovnosti i duševnosti. Ako u sebi ne doživljavamo duševnost nemoguce je shvatiti božansku duhovnost. A cijela religioznost sažima se u vjerovanje u duhovnog Boga i u posjedovanje vlastite duhovnosti. 

Blagdan Duhova prvenstveno nas vraca nama samima da postanemo svjesni svoje božanske dimenzije. Naš duh je božanska dimenzija koja nas uosobljuje, koja nas izvlaci iz objekata i cini subjektima. Mi smo osobe po svojoj duhovnosti. Mi smo jedno u svojoj tjelesnosti i svojoj duhovnosti. 

Bog prepoznaje Boga, recenica je duhovnih ucitelja. Tako je isto i s Duhom. Duh prima Duha, duh prepoznaje Duha. Naš duh prepoznaje Božji Duh. Sva ljudska djela, ako bi ostala u dimenziji stvari (materijalnosti), ne prenose nas u onostranost. U onostranost, u Transcedenciju se prelazi samo s duhom i kroz duh. Covjek je duh i tijelo. Tijelo je hram njegovog duha. Covjeka najviše prepoznajemo po njegovoj ‘duši’. Po njoj ga najviše cijenimo i ljubimo. Nitko ne bi volio da ga se cijeni i ljubi samo po tijelu. Naš duh nas cini da smo ono što jesmo: živa slika Božja. 

Duh se ne prepoznaje izvan naše duševnosti, izvan nas. Mjesto prebivanja i mjesto prepoznavanja Duha Božjeg jest u nama samima. Put je ovaj: spoznaja svojeg duha, njegova otvorenost prema Božjem Duhu i dolazak (poslanje) Duha Svetog u nas. 

Duhove slavimo ne kao dogadaj koji se dogodio, nego kao blagdan vlastitog doživljaja i primanja Duha. Nismo mi religija necega što se nakada dogodilo, nego vjerovanje da se sad sve dogada. Sad se dogada Isusova prisutnost u svijetu koja nas sve vodi k vlastitom uskrsnuci koje se dogada po Duhu Svetom. 

Cijela kršcanska religioznost dogada se snagom Duha. Duh stavlja Isusa u ljudsku narav, Duh ga vodi i preobražava, Duh ga jaca u muci, Duh ga uskrisuje. Duh je osovina našeg vjerovanja. Duh sveti je Ljubav Božja. Pa kad kažemo da je srž kršcanskog vjerovanja vjerovanje u Duha, to znaci isto kao da kažemo da je ta srž vjerovanje u Vjecnu i potpunu Ljubav. Duh daje smisao svemu postojanju. Ljubav je osmišljenje svega što egzistira. 

Bez Duha nema istinske ljubavi i prijateljstva, nema bratstva. Duh je sjedinio prve ucenike. Oni su ‘progovorili’ jezikom ljubavi i zajedništva. Ipak da bi mi primili Duha potrebno je imati unutarnju otvorenost. Mi smo bica od duhovnog i materijalnog sastava, pa je tako potrebno izvjesno ‘uštimavanje’ ako želimo biti duhovniji i ‘uzvišeniji’. Sv. Ivan ce naglasiti da ‘svjetovnost i duhovnost’ nisu kompatibilni. Kad je covjek totalno obuzet svijetom zatvoren je za Duha Božjeg. Tko se otvara prema Duhu taj prihvaca svoju unutarnju promjenu. Ne može se primiti Duha i ostati isti. Tamo gdje je Duh tamo se sve mijenja. Duh donosi novu kvalitetu življenja i osjecanja. Duh Božji stvara novo lice u ljudima i cijelom svijetu. Možda je cijeli put Isusov bio da nas pripravi za primitak Duha Božjeg? Možda smo još u preduhovskom vremenu? Svi obredi, sve molitve, cijela religioznost imaju za cilj uvesti nas u iskustvo Duha Božjeg. Dok ne budemo uvedeni u Duh ostat cemo ‘vani’, u svijetu. Sami sa svojim mocima ne možemo ‘skociti’ u Boga, ali mi smo kao slike Božje obdareni mogucnošcu primitka Duha. 

Duh je ljubav, Duh stvara zajedništvo, Duh veže prijatelje. Duh je punina i vjecnost. Tko primi Duha primio je Boga i ušao u vjecnost. 

fr. Marijan Jurcevic, o.p.



TROJSTVO – BOG 

"Isus kaže: "Otac i ja, mi smo jedno", i "Tko vidi mene vidi Oca" (Iv 10,10; 14,9). 

Oni su jedno bice. 

Bog Isusa Krista je Jedan Jedini Bog! 

Božanska trojstvenost je u srži kršcanskog vjerovanja u jednog Boga. Vjerovanje u jednog i trojedinog Boga je ono što razlikuje kršcanstvo od drugih monoteistickih (jednobožackih) religija (Islam, Židovstva). Odmah treba upozoriti da je govor o Bogu analoški (usporedno) – nešto što je slicnog unutar svjetskom dogadanju – a ne filozofskom izricaju i filozofskim tvrdnjama. Sam izraz Trojstvo nije biblijski izraz nego je nastao u povijesti Crkve (tri stoljeca se kuhala vjeroispovijest u Trojstvo). Evandelja govore o Bogu koji se objavljuje kao Otac, kao Sin i kao Duh Božji. Takoder je dobro biti svjestan da je nemoguce reci pravo ime za Boga. Izricaj je nemoguc jer su naši pojmovi nastali iz stvari, a Bog sve nadilazi. Zato se u SZ izbjegavalo imenovati Boga jer bi ga se time 'suzilo' na razinu stvari i pojmova. Za ljudsko poimanje Bog trajno ostaje misterij (nešto znamo, a vecinu ne znamo – naslucivanje tajne). Kad mistici govore o Bogu oni govore o svojem doživljaju Boga, dok teolozi (nauka) polaze od svojeg umnog shvacanja i razumijevanja - polazeci od svijeta. Zato se pitamo da li je istina trojstva uopce shvatljiva razumu? Koliko god razumom nalazili prikladnosti, ipak je istina Boga vjerska istina. 

Isus objavljuje Boga kao Oca, kao Sina, kao Duha. Da li je iskustvo Boga kao Stvoritelja usmjerilo shvacanje na Boga Oca, a iskustvo Isusa prema Bogu Sinu, te iskustvo Duha svetoga kao Boga Duha? Izgleda, bez objave Isusa Krista da je Bog ljubav, teško bi mogli doci do ovoga zakljucka. Ipak, kod nekih drugih razvijenih religija, pa cak i u helenskom judaizmu, nalazimo neke indikacije pluralnosti u jednome Bogu. Da li se iz samoga covjeka, koji je na sliku Božju, može naslutiti trojstvena tajna Boga? Na to upucuje sv. Augustin. 

U svakom slucaju trojstveni govor nije neki mitski nego misterijski govor. Puninu se sadržaja Božjeg ispovijeda s trojstvom. Nema dvojbe da je to vjerski govor koji ima veliko znacenje i veliki poziv onima koji vjeruju u Jednog i Trojedinog Boga. Ostaje se vjerno monoteizmu i otvara se k pluralnosti. Izbjegava se ispovijedati Boga monarhisticki, ali i politeisticki. 

Sveti Augustin, izbjegavajuci platonisticki (grcki filozofski) govor o Bogu, pokušava protumaciti život u Bogu pomocu pojmova iz metafiziike i psihologije (mens, notitia, amor ili memoria, inteligentia, voluntas): um, pojam, ljubav ili sjecanje, shvacanje, volja. Za njega je covjek odsjaj Božji zato se u njemu može nazreti nešto od unutarnje Božje tajne. Covjek je jedini u svemiru slika Božja. Tako je Božja istina istovremeno i covjekova istina. Ona nam objavljuje i tajnu covjeka. Zato se kaže da covjek teži da bude onakav kakav je Bog u kojeg vjeruje. Trojstvo objavljuje Boga kao život, kao osobu, kao ljubav. Nije Bog neka slijepa sila, nego blaga ljubav. Trojstveni Bog je živi Bog. Bog koji je 'zajednica', trajno se daruje i trajno stvara. On je u svim bicima i razlicit od svega stvorenoga. Bog je u covjeku i razlikuje se od covjeka. On je kao otac, kao majka, kao dijete. 

Trojstvo poziva ljude da budu kao Bog. Da budu jedno i mnoštvo. Jedinstvo ne smije ugušiti osobnost i posebnost. Kao što je u Bogu – Otac, Sin i Duh. Jedno su i razliciti su. 

Istina trojstva podloga je shvacanja osobnosti i demokraticnosti. Svi su ljudi sinovi Božji. Ne samo neki. Svi su ljudi vrijedni iako su razliciti. Božanski je u razlicitosti vidjeti jedinstvo. Nažalost, vrlo cesto se nudi jedinstvo bez razlicitosti. Razlicitost ne smije radati protivnosti nego rasplamsavati ljubav. Ljubav je moguca samo u razlicitosti. Ljubav je moguca u drugome. 

Radi Boga koji je zajednica kršcanstvu je zajedništvo u sadržaju vjerovanja u Boga. Tko ne prihvaca zajedništvo (i razlicitosti) ne može biti ispovjedalac u Boga Isusa Krista. 

Covjek je pozvan da bude kao Bog; da bude otac po Bogu, da bude Sin po Isusu Kristu, da bude duh po Bogu Duhu. Tek kad je sve troje u jednoj osobi ostvaruje se potpunost i vjecnost. 

Budimo kao Bog u kojeg vjerujemo: jedno i razlicitost. Budimo Ljubav. 

Fr. Marijan Jurcevic, o.p.

LJUBITE JEDNI DRUGE KAO ŠTO SAM JA VAS LJUBIO 

Prof. dr. sc. Marijan Jurcevic, op.

(Iv 15, 9-17) 

6. USKRSNA NEDJELJA 

Ljubiti? Da. Ali što to sve znaci? Svi nekoga ljubimo. Da li to znaci ostvarivanje Isusovog zahtjeva i zahtjeva same ljudske naravi? I u ovome se pokazuje stanje naše ljudske naravi. Ceznemo za ljubavlju i s mukom ju ostvarujemo. Covjecanstvu najviše nedostaje ljubavi. S druge strane kad ne bi nedostajalo ljubavi ne bi nam ništa nedostajalo. Radi manjka ljubavi nedostaju nam i druge stvari. Materijalija u svijetu ima dovoljno, ali zato što nema ljubavi, nema ni kruha ni hrane za sve ljude. 

Lijecenje covjecanstva Isus izvodi kroz ljubav. On je donosilac i glasnik ljubavi. Samo ljubav može preporoditi covjekovo srce. Covjek covjeka treba kao brata, a poslije se izrodi u neprijatelja. Neprijateljstvo je ocito covjeku neprirodno i protiv samoga njega. To je posljedica nekog iskonskog promašaja unutar covjecanstva. Svi smo inficirani razdvojenošcu u sebi, bolešcu bratstva i prijateljstva, mukom humanog rada, pa i problematikom unutar braka. Sve bi ovo trebalo biti harmonicno, i svi za tim ceznu, a ipak ne uspijevaju. Covjek toga treba postati svjestan. 

Ljubav je božanski dar koji je ponuden svakom covjeku, a na nama je da li ga prihvacamo ili se blokiramo. Koliko god ljudi žudili za ljubavlju ipak se straše ljubavi. Osobito se straše ljubavi koja se predaje drugima. Isus uci svoje ucenike ljubavi koja se prenosi na druge. To je ljubav predavanja i umiranja za druge. 

Ljubav kakvu daje Isus jest stvarnost koja nadmašuje granice medu ljudima, ideologijama, pa i religijama. Ljubavi je protivna svaka suprotstavljenost, osobito iskljucivost. 

Isusova ljubav nije neki sentiment. Ona je dinamika, ili receno tehnickim rjecnikom, ljubav je božanska energija koja unosi u ljude i svemir harmoniju i ispunjenje. 

Uza sve što se opredijele za isti cilj, taj cilj ipak ostaje neostvariv ako medu ljudima nema ljubavi. Tako je u svijetu, tako je i u kršcanstvu, odnosno Crkvi. Bez ljubavi, osobito je neostvariv kršcanski cilj. Nema preobraženja svijeta bez unutarnje i istinske ljubavi. Ljubav je božanska vatra koja preobražava ljudske duše. 

Više puta i na više nacina Isus upozorava svoje sljedbenike da je bit njegova života i njegove poruke ljubav. To se vidi iz svakog Isusovog cina. Tko je imao ili tražio ljubav taj je razumio Isusovu poruku. Tko je povjerovao ljubavi taj je pošao za Isusom. Zato bi se moglo reci da je dogma Isusovog propovijedanja ljubav. To osobito istice apostol Ivan. 

Ima nešto što je bitno za razumijevanje ljubavi kakvu naviješta Isus. To je ljubav koja ukljucuje žrtvovanje i predanje. Ljubav koja iskljucuje predanje više je ljubav samoga sebe nego li život za druge. Isusovo životno dogadanje jest dogadanje ljubavi. On nije trebao govoriti da navijesti ljubav, makar je to cinio, nego je ljubio i njegova ljubav je bila prepoznatljiva. Evo metodologije kako naviještati Isusov put spasenja. Istinski ljubiti. 

Isus objavljuje i naviješta novo lice Božje i ljudsko. Bog je Bog ljubav, a covjek je slika Božja po ljubavi. Samo covjek koji ljubi pokazuje se kao slika Božja. Iz toga poslije teku “dobra djela”. Bez srca ljubavi nema dobrih djela. 

Cesto puta unutar kršcanskih zajednica nastaju razmirice i razilaženja radi nesporazuma o sporednim stvarima i time se zaboravlja na bitnost. Ljubav je iznad svih neslaganja. Ovoga bi trebale postati svjesne sve Crkve, ako žele ostati Kristove Crkve. 

Uskrsli Krist se “ukazuje” i doživljava samo u zajednicama koje se okupljaju u ljubavi. Razlicitost zajednica nije protivnost kršcanstvu, ali jest nedostatak ljubavi. Kad nema ljubavi tada se zajednice ne dopunjavaju nego suprotstavljaju. U zajednicama koje nisu prožete ljubavlju kao da se uskrsnuce nije ni dogodilo. 

Ljubav oslobada od svake sputanosti. Ona je osloboditeljica. Ljubav se nicega ne straši. Nitko joj ne može uskratiti da se daruje. Sjetimo se samo primjera jednog sv. Pavla ili jednog sv. Augustina. Veliki Augustin kad je bio prosvijecen ljubavlju nadmašio je tada sva svoja dotadašnja razmišljanja. Doživio je unutarnju slobodu i kraj svojim lutanjima. 

Jedna jedina Isusova zapovijed jest: “ljubite jedni druge!” U ovoj zapovijedi ispunjeni su svi proroci i svi zakoni. 

Fr. Marijan Jurcevic, o.p.