「是美國在政治、歷史、和藝術上希望達到的永恆和完美的王國」、「活現著消費者想成為一個比自己更大的身份的一部份的心態」、「美化了的美國歷史」、「是福地」、「是樂土」、「美善永遠得勝，邪惡永遠失敗」 – 大學教授珍尼花波特用上述詞句形容迪士尼樂園，說它成功之處，在於能滿足人靈深處對永恆和完美的渴求。換言之，迪士尼樂園售賣給入場者一個宗教美夢。事實上，上述報導指出，不只迪士尼樂園售賣宗教美夢，很多電影都用同樣手法去吸引觀眾。(看有關新聞報導。)
這報導帶給我兩點感受：第一，上述迪士尼樂園和類似的電影能成功地「售賣宗教美夢」，正好證明人對永恆和完美的渴求是多麽強烈。難怪聖奧斯定說：「我心不能安息，直至安息在祢內」(《懺悔錄》)。第二，世上芸芸宗教，歷代以來有增無減，這現象正好進一步證實，人不断地尋求和開發更多途徑，去滿足自己對永恆和完美的渴求。這渴求是那麽強烈和需要滿足，人甚至樂於陶醉在迪士尼和電影所提供的虚幻的永恆和完美中。
然而，人所開發和建立的各種不同形式的宗教，是否都像迪士尼樂園般，只是在售賣著「宗教美夢」呢？同樣地，所有參加各種宗教組織或用各種宗教形式、禮儀、理想、和標準去生活的人，是否像迪士尼樂園的入場者般，只是用時間和金錢去購買一個自我陶醉的美夢呢？‧這是每一個有宗教信仰的人都應反覆思量的問題。
作為一個決定了用自己的一生去跟隨主耶穌，和為天主教信仰作見證的人，我要承認，如果我所相信和奉為自己做人的真正意義和價值的這一套信仰和價值觀，只是一個自我陶醉的美夢 -- 一個像迪士尼樂園的入場者用時間和金錢去換取的，虛假和暫時的美夢 -- 那麽我這個信仰和做人的方式便是既可笑又可悲的。
那麽，我基於甚麽原因而堅信不移呢？為甚麼我那麽肯定我所信所做的，並不是一場迪士尼樂園的美夢呢？如果很多宗教，甚至全部宗教，都可能是在「售賣美夢」，甚麽原因讓我相信天主教信仰是千真萬確的呢？
其實答案很簡單，而且只有一個，是信基督的人才能這樣答的，因為所有不信基督的宗教都沒有這信念和教導。答案就是：我所信的神的真實性是無可置疑的，因為祂曾降生成人，活在歷史、時間、和空間之中，將做人的意義，生命的終向，和得救所需的一切真理，用人的語言啟示了給人類。他的啟示清楚記載和存留在聖經和聖傳中；他的出現，他的所言所行，在他出現之前，已奇蹟地藉以色列的先知和歷史，準確地預告出來。換言之，聖經為他作證，歷史也為他作證，他的真實性是無可推諉的；他親自建立並從宗徒傳流下來的教會，也不是在「售賣美夢」！
The heavens declare the glory of God; the sky proclaims its builder's craft (Psalm 19:2). elodocuments is an English/Chinese bi-lingual blog that shares based on the Catholic faith.高天陳述天主的光榮，穹蒼宣揚祂手的化工(詠19:2)。elodocuments 是個用中英語分享天主教信仰的網誌。
Thursday, January 21, 2016
Friday, January 15, 2016
When The Word of God Is Proclaimed...
On the first day of the seventh month, therefore, Ezra the priest brought the law before the assembly, which consisted of men, women, and those children old enough to understand. Standing at one end of the open place that was before the Water Gate, he read out of the book from daybreak till midday, in the presence of the men, the women, and those children old enough to understand; and all the people listened attentively to the book of the law...Ezra opened the scroll so that all the people might see it (for he was standing higher up than any of the people); and, as he opened it, all the people rose. Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God, and all the people, their hands raised high, answered, "Amen, amen!" Then they bowed down and prostrated themselves before the LORD, their faces to the ground...Ezra read plainly from the book of the law of God, interpreting it so that all could understand what was read. Then (Nehemiah, that is, His Excellency, and) Ezra the priest-scribe (and the Levites who were instructing the people) said to all the people: "Today is holy to the LORD your God. Do not be sad, and do not weep"-for all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law.(Neh 8:2-10)
The people who attended the Jubilee of Mercy Canada Chinese Catholic Conference a few weeks ago will find striking resemblances between the message of the scriptural passage above and the Conference experience.
There was a strong sense of community and spiritual renewal in the post-exilic era of Ezra and Nehemiah. After many years of political subjugation, social deprivation, and national humiliation under the rule of the Babylonians, the Jews, who had been given an opportunity to return to their homeland to live as a nation again by King Cyrus of Persia, would once again rediscover their national identity and unbreakable bond as God’s chosen people dedicated to observing the Torah as the basic rule of life. Who can fail to heed the touching scene in the passage when Ezra, standing in an open place before the Water Gate, read out the book of the law to his fellow Jews, who “bowed down and prostrated themselves before the Lord” and “were weeping as they heard the words of the law” (Neh 8:6, 9)?
Living in a country of immigrants and multiculturalism, the Chinese Catholic community in Canada has had its fair share of “identity crisis”. Confronted with totally different living conditions, weathers, languages, social and cultural values, many of us are struggling to find a new equilibrium in a foreign land that will allow us to continue to live in peace and comfort again. It is a lengthy and difficult adjustment that affects not only the social aspect of our lives but also our spiritual relationship with God and with one another.
Like the Jewish community that gathered before Ezra, Nehemiah, and their elders at the Water Gate to hear the book of the law proclaimed “from daybreak till midday” (Neh 8:3), more than 1,200 Chinese Catholic faithful from across the country gathered before Archbishop Savio Hon and the clerics and religious of the community at the first ever Canada Chinese Catholic Conference on January 2, 2016 to experience a day of worship and spiritual renewal. Like the post-exilic Jews who rediscovered their unity and national identity as the chosen people of God after living in hardship and disarray for many years, there was something extraordinary and powerful about the Conference experience that somehow reminded the participants of their unbreakable bond as a Chinese Catholic community, and of their communion as many parts in the one Body of Christ that St. Paul referred to in 1 Corinthians 12. His Excellency, Archbishop Hon alluded to the same Pauline concept when he pointed out to 450 guests present in the post-Conference banquet, including clergy, religious, and laity, that more than a loose cluster of parishes and faith communities, the Chinese Catholic faithful in Canada were “a family” due to our common ancestral roots and our unity in “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Eph. 4:5).
When the book containing the word of God is opened up and proclaimed, the universe stands still and things inexplicably happen (cf. Rev. 8:1, Is. 55:11). Whether it was Ezra reading out the book of the law to his people at the Water Gate, or Jesus reciting from the prophet Isaiah in a synagogue in Nazareth (cf. Lk 4:14-21), or Archbishop Savio Hon expounding from the Scriptures on the mercy of God at the Conference in Toronto, the proclamation of the word of God always promises to pierce the human hearts (cf. Heb 4:12) and bring down all barriers.
The people who attended the Jubilee of Mercy Canada Chinese Catholic Conference a few weeks ago will find striking resemblances between the message of the scriptural passage above and the Conference experience.
There was a strong sense of community and spiritual renewal in the post-exilic era of Ezra and Nehemiah. After many years of political subjugation, social deprivation, and national humiliation under the rule of the Babylonians, the Jews, who had been given an opportunity to return to their homeland to live as a nation again by King Cyrus of Persia, would once again rediscover their national identity and unbreakable bond as God’s chosen people dedicated to observing the Torah as the basic rule of life. Who can fail to heed the touching scene in the passage when Ezra, standing in an open place before the Water Gate, read out the book of the law to his fellow Jews, who “bowed down and prostrated themselves before the Lord” and “were weeping as they heard the words of the law” (Neh 8:6, 9)?
Living in a country of immigrants and multiculturalism, the Chinese Catholic community in Canada has had its fair share of “identity crisis”. Confronted with totally different living conditions, weathers, languages, social and cultural values, many of us are struggling to find a new equilibrium in a foreign land that will allow us to continue to live in peace and comfort again. It is a lengthy and difficult adjustment that affects not only the social aspect of our lives but also our spiritual relationship with God and with one another.
Like the Jewish community that gathered before Ezra, Nehemiah, and their elders at the Water Gate to hear the book of the law proclaimed “from daybreak till midday” (Neh 8:3), more than 1,200 Chinese Catholic faithful from across the country gathered before Archbishop Savio Hon and the clerics and religious of the community at the first ever Canada Chinese Catholic Conference on January 2, 2016 to experience a day of worship and spiritual renewal. Like the post-exilic Jews who rediscovered their unity and national identity as the chosen people of God after living in hardship and disarray for many years, there was something extraordinary and powerful about the Conference experience that somehow reminded the participants of their unbreakable bond as a Chinese Catholic community, and of their communion as many parts in the one Body of Christ that St. Paul referred to in 1 Corinthians 12. His Excellency, Archbishop Hon alluded to the same Pauline concept when he pointed out to 450 guests present in the post-Conference banquet, including clergy, religious, and laity, that more than a loose cluster of parishes and faith communities, the Chinese Catholic faithful in Canada were “a family” due to our common ancestral roots and our unity in “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Eph. 4:5).
When the book containing the word of God is opened up and proclaimed, the universe stands still and things inexplicably happen (cf. Rev. 8:1, Is. 55:11). Whether it was Ezra reading out the book of the law to his people at the Water Gate, or Jesus reciting from the prophet Isaiah in a synagogue in Nazareth (cf. Lk 4:14-21), or Archbishop Savio Hon expounding from the Scriptures on the mercy of God at the Conference in Toronto, the proclamation of the word of God always promises to pierce the human hearts (cf. Heb 4:12) and bring down all barriers.
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