[AkhirZaman.org] Seorang pria bernama Simoni membawa uang kepada para rasul di dalam kisah Para Rasul 8, mencoba membeli kuasa spiritual. Petrus, yang senantiasa berterus terang, menjawab, “ Kau dan uangmu akan membusuk di neraka jika kau pikir bisa membeli karunia Allah!” Kita tidak pasti dengan nasib Simon, tetapi ia tanpa sadar meminjamkan namanya pada sejarah gereja. Suatu praktik yang tragis muncul pada Abad Pertengahan—membeli kedudukan dan posisi gerejawi—dan praktik itu disebut simony.
Simony begitu mewabah pada abad kesebelas sehingga raja Jerman yang berusia 22 tahun, Henry III, menangisi gereja. Pada tanggal 20 Desember 1046, ia memanggil suatu sinode di Sutri, 40 kilometer jauhnya dari Roma, untuk membicarakan masalah ini. Paus Gregorius VI mengetuai dewan ini. Namun Gregorius juga satu di antara para simony yang terburuk, karena ia juga “membeli” kedudukan sebagi paus. Ketika Henry mengingatkan para anggota gereja akan perlunya integritas dan kemurnian di kalangan para pemimpin Tuhan, Paus Gregorius mengucapkan kata-kata yang luar biasa ini kepada sinode: Saya, Gregorius, uskup, hamba dari hamba-hamba Tuhan, dengan ini memutuskan agar diri saya disingkirkan dari jabatan Paus Gereja Roma yang Kudus, dikarenakan banyaknya kesalahan di mana dosa-dosa simonies menyusup ke dalam dan mengotori pemilihan saya.”
Ia bertanya, “Apakah itu berkenan bagi Anda semua?” Hamba-hamba Tuhan yang berkumpul menjawab dengan serempak: “Keinginanmu adalah keinginan kami juga: oleh karena itu biarlah demikian.” Gregorius turun dari takhtanya, membuka jubah kepausannya, berlutut, memohon pengampunan, dan melarikan diri dari negeri itu.
Namun, sekarang timbul masalah baru: Tidak seorang pun dari uskup-uskup yang berkumpul itu yang bersih dari simony. Mereka semua telah membeli kedudukan mereka. Setelah mencari di seluruh negeri, seorang yang jujur bernama Suidger, uskup Bamberg, di pilih menjadi paus, tetapi ia hidup kurang dari setahun. Dua paus berikutnya juga meninggal dengan cepat. Lalu Bruno di temukan, seorang pria tampan, berpendidikan tinggi dengan karakter tak bercela dan ketulusan hati. Saat dipanggil ke Roma, ia tiba dengan kaki telanjang, berpakaian sebagai musafir dan meratap. Orang-orang menyanyikan lagu pujian dan menobatkannya sebagai Paus Leo IX pada tanggal 12 Februari 1049. ia memberantas simony sepanjang pemerintahannya, menyiapkan jalan untuk reformasi .
Ketika Simon melihat, bahwa pemberian Roh Kudus terjadi oleh karena rasul-rasul itu menumpangkan tangannya, ia menawarkan uang kepada mereka, serta berkata: “Berikanlah juga kepadaku kuasa itu . . .” Tetapi Petrus berkata kepadanya: “Binasalah kiranya uangmu itu bersama dengan engkau, karena engkau menyangka bahwa engkau dapat membeli karunia Allah dengan uang . . .Jadi bertobatlah dari kejahatanmu ini dan berdoalah kepada Tuhan supaya Ia mengampuni niat hatimu ini” ( Kisah Para Rasul 8:18-20,22 ).
Robert J. Morgan,
365 Kisah Dan Inspirasi Yang Menakjubkan Tentang Orang-Orang Kudus, Martir, Dan Pahlawan
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