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    • 被處死於煽動罪名下的政治犯耶穌?

      這幾天再次翻看《馬可福音》,專注在耶穌受難的事跡時,也發現耶穌被處死的政治性一面。馬來西亞政府這兩個月裡以煽動法令逮捕了許多「政治犯」,這也讓我在閱讀馬可福音時一直湧出了無奈的感觸,不禁地問:耶穌也是被政權處死的政治犯? 關於拿撒勒人耶穌的歷史,有一點可以很確定的:耶穌是在企圖煽動羅馬政府的罪名下被處死,這可以輕易從耶穌被處死的方式看出:被釘死在十字架。這是羅馬政權如何處置那些企圖推翻和反抗羅馬政府的一種殘酷方式,作為嚴厲的警告。 四福音如何記載耶穌的受難和被處死的經過,這是非常重要的,我認為不是為了傳福音的用途,而是「重新」記載和推翻這段歷史。我相信耶穌在這罪名下被羅馬政權判死的「事實」對當時早期的基督教來說是件蠻「尷尬」的事:他們的創辦人因試圖推翻政府而被處死。那些跟隨他的人也肯定被羅馬認為是一群反政府的政治組織。 我們要嘗試想像對當時住在猶太的大眾來說,當時的他們並沒有我們現在手上的福音書可以參考。他們對耶穌那段被處死的歷史只能按照當時所看見的處刑方式:被釘十字架。就如今天當我們看到某些人被判死刑,大概猜到這位囚犯的可能罪名。十字架對當時的猶太人來說是帶有明顯的政治意涵,因為猶太的律法傳統裡是沒有釘十字架這種刑罰。 對於當時的基督教來說,最要緊的乃是重新詮釋這個歷史事跡,即「耶穌死於政治犯」這事實。馬可福音作為最早的福音書記載,可以看得出馬可在敘事耶穌受難受死的過程所企圖重新推翻這段歷史的主流詮釋:耶穌並不是個企圖推翻羅馬的政治犯。 可能有些人也會跟我有這樣的疑問:耶穌死後那段幾十年的時間,為何沒有一個耶穌的跟隨者,甚至耶穌本身的門徒記載耶穌的事跡,直到大約六七十年後的馬可寫了第一本的福音書?若從當時可能的政治情況去理解的話,也許任何一個嘗試推翻這事實(耶穌是政治叛徒)的記載將會面對羅馬政權的對付,恐怕與耶穌同樣的下場。相信馬可福音的記載主要是為了當時的基督徒內部群體,而非傳福音的用途。 我們可以再想像一點:當時被羅馬統治的猶太人中,也有一群反抗者(耶穌的門徒中也有一個),除了耶和華上帝,他們堅決不服從於任何權柄,因此他們採取政治性的抗爭,試圖用暴力對抗羅馬政權。當時被處死於十字架的幾乎都是這些反抗者,十字架暗示著這些反抗羅馬政權者的最終下場。所以,當時的基督徒若重述耶穌之死時所可能想到的畫面:與那些反抗羅馬者的下場一樣。 那麼,耶穌的哪個行為或言語給他帶來了這項煽動罪名?這裡我們必須清楚一點:煽動罪名是政治性的,也就是說對政府和國家帶來安全穩定問題,比如煽動人民對抗政府(我不清楚馬來西亞總警長以煽動法令所逮捕的上百個「煽動者」是否真的帶給國家安全問題)。按照路加福音的記載,他們把耶穌帶到羅馬高官彼拉多面前,就告他說:「我們見這人誘惑國民,禁止納稅給凱撒,並說自己是基督,是王。」當來到彼拉多面前,這些祭司長需要找出有關政治性的罪名來控告耶穌,因此耶穌被控告:誘惑人民禁止納稅給羅馬政府,並宣告他是「基督」,即彌賽亞(對當時的猶太人來說,彌賽亞是即將來到的王,帶領猶太人脫離羅馬的統治,打倒羅馬政權)。耶穌十字架上的罪名牌子:猶太人的王。 若你有留意耶穌被審問的過程邏輯細節,(跟我們的總警長和政府很相似),你會發現那些猶太領袖對耶穌的控告罪名是不一致的。在他們首先審問耶穌時所用的罪名是宗教性的「褻瀆上帝」(耶穌說他是上帝的兒子),而當來到彼拉多面前時卻用政治性罪名(誘惑人民不納稅給凱撒)。 那些想把耶穌置於死地的宗教領袖,其最終目的是想辦法將耶穌弄上政治刑罰,用政治性而非宗教性罪名將耶穌除去。在猶太的律法裡,宗教性罪名的死刑方式:用石頭丟死罪犯,比如那些犯姦淫或說了褻瀆耶和華的話的罪犯(相信這對馬來西亞人將會不陌生,尤其最近爭議性的伊斯蘭刑事法)。馬可的敘事方式企圖淡化了耶穌是政治犯的描述,而明顯看得出他將重點轉移到「那些想陷害耶穌的猶太宗教領袖」,這尤其可以從「彼拉多找不出耶穌有罪」看出來。彼拉多說:「流這義人的血,罪不在我,你們承當吧。」 眾人都回答說:「他的血歸到我們和我們的子孫身上。」(相信這段記載也可能間接地帶來「猶太人上幾世紀中被屠殺」的噩運) 我個人認為:馬可所關心的主要是將耶穌之死的最終責任帶回到那群猶太領袖身上,而不是羅馬政權。你不難發現馬可記載中許多關於「那班人想要陷害耶穌,套耶穌的言論來抓他的把柄」的暗示。耶穌所傳揚和活出的天國福音,嚴重地挑戰和打擊了那群猶太領袖的利益,群眾越擁戴和聽從耶穌,他們越覺得自身的地位受威脅。 馬可也企圖在耶穌受死的故事最後中帶出這樣的意圖:那些猶太領袖嘲笑將死的耶穌,而羅馬的百夫長卻看見「這真是上帝的兒子」。透過馬可的記載,至少對當時在羅馬的基督教來說是種安慰和鼓勵,耶穌的死,不是因為政治罪名,連彼拉多都認為耶穌是無罪的而企圖救他,而真正的推手是猶太領袖。 比起猶太領袖,福音書的記載似乎較少談到耶穌對羅馬政權的看法,也許有人會問:耶穌是否贊同反抗羅馬政權?而彼拉多正是要弄清楚這個問題。 當耶穌被帶到彼拉多面前審訊時,彼拉多嘗試從政治角度去審問耶穌。「你是猶太人的王嗎?」耶穌的回答是清楚和關鍵性的。「我的國不屬這世界;我的國若屬這世界,我的臣僕必要爭戰,使我不至於被交給猶太人。只是我的國不屬這世界。」彼拉多應該是明白這話的涵義,因此他才會繼續問道:「這樣,你是王嗎?」彼拉多明白耶穌的回答並不是否認他是王,而是否認他的國度是來自這世界的國度。耶穌所體現的國度不像是羅馬的國度,不像這世界的其他任何國度;耶穌的國度乃是一種超越羅馬的國度,超越一切世俗政權的國度。 這樣的國度治理方式已回答了為何耶穌被拒絕和最終被害。雖然耶穌國度的政治被拒絕,甚至被不公義的政治而打壓,然而上帝是信實和公義的。上帝叫耶穌從死裡復活,正是這個復活的意義,讓委身於基督國度的跟隨者能夠有能力去活出天國的生命。我們需要思考一點:若耶穌是按照世俗國度的方式,他是不會被拒絕和受難。面對暴力的侵害,耶穌選擇了受苦;面對敵人的攻擊,耶穌選擇了寬恕。這看似不合理不受世界歡迎的方式,是我們的救主耶穌基督已向我們展示的生命。 若基督因著他所體現的天國方式而被拒絕和受逼迫,那麼,我們不難了解,當教會選擇忠於這位基督時,他必然發現自己因著基督而受逼迫和被攻擊。這正是耶穌所宣揚的天國福音:「為義受逼迫的人有福了,因為天國是他們的。」當我們發現今天的教會活在安逸和免受逼迫拒絕時,這是否值得我們好好再次反思:教會是否正活出基督天國的福音? 在那之前的巴勒斯坦只有兩種猶太人:一種心態上臣服羅馬,一種想著推翻羅馬。但那位來自加利利的耶穌,卻帶出了裂天而降的第三種聲音:超越羅馬,而超越羅馬,非屬世的道路。

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12 August 2011
Isaac Goh 加恩

Hauerwas對基督徒大學生的勸勉

Go With God
An open letter to young Christians on their way to college
文章資料來源:http://www.firstthings.com/article/2010/10/go-with-god


上述文章是美國的當代神學家兼大學教授Stanley Hauerwas給予現代年輕基督徒大學生的一些勸勉。Hauerwas教授的這番忠告,有別於一般平常我們所聽到對於基督徒大學生的忠告。也是身為大學裡的教授的Hauerwas,是非常清楚當今基督徒大學生的不足,以及需要專注的事項。基本來說,Hauerwas的這些話更像是另一股力量,補助了教會給予基督徒大學生的靈性上支持。當然,基督徒大學生的靈性方面是首要和不可忽略的,但是Hauerwas也看到還有一些方面是現代基督徒大學生需要去追求的,以至於他們可以為上帝做美好的見證。


一般上,教會對於基督徒大學生的要求,乃在於靈性上和德性上:就是要確保自己成為敬虔和有好品德的基督徒大學生。因此,他們不可忽略靈性的操練和校園生活上活出美好的道德品行。Hauerwas認為這是不足夠的,因為基督徒大學生是不同於其他非基督徒,基督徒大學生的學生身份乃是上帝的呼召(To be a student is a calling)。因此,作為大學生就是本身的目的,而不僅是是為了將來工作和事業上的呼召。他所給予的建議,乃是要求基督徒大學生成為一個徹底的大學生和知識分子,因此他們正是被上帝呼召為此目的,他們正是被上帝呼召在知識和專業領域來事奉上帝。所以,基督徒大學生必須為本身的思想裝備好各種重要的知識、學問、思考技巧、以及有素質的社交群體。作為基督徒知識分子,也意味著透過所認識到的現代世界的各種知識和學問,在信心和上帝話語的光照下,去重新詮釋和理解這個上帝所創造的世界。最基本的方法,就是廣泛的閱讀、學習和思考。

以下是一些從文章裡摘錄的要點:




基督教信仰的三大層面:宗教儀式上、道德上,以及知性上(Ritualistic, moral, and intellectual)
“The Christian religion,” wrote Robert Louis Wilken, “is inescapably ritualistic (one is received into the Church by a solemn washing with water), uncompromisingly moral (‘be ye perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect,’ said Jesus), and unapologetically intellectual (be ready to give a ‘reason for the hope that is in you,’ in the words of 1 Peter). Like all the major religions of the world, Christianity is more than a set of devotional practices and a moral code: it is also a way of thinking about God, about human beings, about the world and history.”
成為基督徒大學生就是上帝的呼召(而不僅是為了將來的前途事業而已)。你們這幾年求學的任務主要就是“學習”(盡量的學習)。
The Christian fact is very straightforward: To be a student is a calling. Your parents are setting up accounts to pay the bills, or you are scraping together your own resources and taking out loans, or a scholarship is making college possible. Whatever the practical source, the end result is the same. You are privileged to enter a time—four years!—during which your main job is to listen to lectures, attend seminars, go to labs, and read books.
基督徒大學生與教會的關係:成為基督身體的一份子,服事基督的教會。如何?哪方面?就是在思想(思考上):作為基督徒知識分子。
Christ’s call on you as a student is a calling to meet the needs of the Church, both for its own life and the life of the world. The Resurrection of Jesus, Wilken suggests, is not only the central fact of Christian worship but also the ground of all Christian thinking “about God, about human beings, about the world and history.” Somebody needs to do that thinking—and that means you. ……It takes an educated mind to do the Church’s work of thinking about and interpreting the world in light of Christ. Physics, sociology, French literary theory: All these and more—in fact, everything you study in college—is bathed in the light of Christ. It takes the eyes of faith to see that light, and it takes an educated mind to understand and articulate it.
基督徒大學生作為知識分子,隨時預備向人講解基督信仰裡的福音和真理。"有人問你們心中盼望的緣由、就要常作準備、以溫柔敬畏的心回答各人."(彼前3:15)。因此,基督徒大學生也需要在神學思想上的裝備。

There’s another dimension to the call of intellectual work. In the First Letter of Peter we read, “Always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who calls you to account for the hope that is in you” (3:15). In fact, the contemporary American secular university is largely a place of unbelief. Thus, the Church has a job to do: to explain why belief in the risen Lord actually makes sense. You can, however, offer the reasonable defense Peter asks for. You may at least make someone think twice before he rejects the risen Lord. But remember: You are about to become a student—not a pastor, a social worker, or a spiritual director. Whatever you end up doing with your life, now is the time when you develop the intellectual skills the Church needs for the sake of building up the Body of Christ. Your Christian calling as a student does not require you to become a theologian…. But there is a wider sense of being a theologian, one that simply means thinking about what you are learning in light of Christ. This does not happen by making everything fit into Church doctrine or biblical preaching—that’s theology in the strict, official sense. Instead, to become a Christian scholar is more a matter of intention and desire, of bearing witness to Christ in the contemporary world of science, literature, and so forth.
基督徒大學生需要不同知識領域的朋友,好好選擇和結交有素質的朋友(別過於浪費時間於無聊的朋友閒談)。最好的朋友就是“書”(成為作者的好朋友)。廣泛的閱讀讓你的視野得以擴張出去,產生更大的可能性和創造力。
You can’t do this on your own. You’ll need friends who major in physics and biology as well as in economics, psychology, philosophy, literature, and every other discipline. These friends can be teachers and fellow students, of course, but, for the most part, our intellectual friendships are channeled through books. C.S. Lewis has remained popular with Christian students for many good reasons, not the least of which is that he makes himself available to his readers as a trusted friend in Christ. That’s true for many other authors too. Get to know them.
主動尋找有素質的老師(即使他們不是基督徒),與老師接觸和交流,請教你的老師的引導。從老師身上捉住可以學習和追求的方面

This is especially true for your relationships with your teachers. You are not likely to become buddies with your teachers. They tend to be intimidating. But you can become intellectual friends, and this will most likely happen if you’ve read some of the same books. This is even true for science professors. You’re unlikely to engage a physics professor in an interesting conversation about subatomic particles. As a freshman you don’t know enough. Books are touchstones, common points of reference. They are the water in which our minds swim.
當然,呼召成為基督徒大學生卻非簡單之事,你也許會面對各種誘惑、試探、掙扎,以及批評的攻擊。但你必須堅持你本身的呼召,這是成為知識分子難以避免的事。
Fulfilling your calling as a Christian student won’t be easy. It’s not easy for anyone who is serious about the intellectual life, Christian or not. Many schools have no particular expectations. Moreover, there is no guarantee that you will be encouraged to read. Some classes, even in the humanities, are based on textbooks that chop up classic texts into little snippets. You cannot become friends with an author by reading half a dozen pages. Finally, and perhaps worse because insidious, there is a strange anti-intellectualism abroad in academia. Some professors have convinced themselves that all knowledge is just political power dressed up in fancy language, or that books and ideas are simply ideological weapons in the quest for domination. Christians, of all people, should recognize that what is known and how it is known produce and reproduce power relations that are unjust, but this does not mean all questions of truth must be abandoned. As I said, it won’t be easy.
不要受本身的主修領域限制你的學習,盡量做更廣泛和跨領域的閱讀。
Eventually, you will no longer be a freshman, and American undergraduate education will force you to begin to specialize. This will present dangers as well as opportunities. You will be tempted to choose a major that will give you a sense of coherence. But be careful your major does not narrow you in the wrong way. Continue reading broadly. It may seem that the more you know about less and less, the smarter you’ve become; after all, you now know so much more about psychology! But, in truth, the more you know about less and less should teach you humility.
了解本身主修的科系的歷史,使你知道這個學科領域的發展演變過程。對本科歷史的認識,能夠讓你獲得到不同的洞察,促使更多可能的新發現。不要只是成為你本科的大學生,你是被呼召成為基督徒大學生,因此你要追求更大的學習範圍。

To combat a tendency toward the complacency that comes from mastering a discipline, it is particularly important that you gain historical insight into the practice of your discipline. To go back and read Isaac Newton can be a bit of a shock, because he interwove his scientific analysis with theological arguments. You shouldn’t take this as a mandate for doing the same thing in the twenty-first century. It should, however, make you realize that modern science has profound metaphysical and theological dimensions that have to be cordoned off, perhaps for good reasons. Or perhaps not. The point is that knowing the history of your discipline will, inevitably, broaden the kinds of questions you ask and force you to read to be an intellectual rather than just a specialist. I emphasize broadening your major with historical questions and challenges to set categories because your calling is to be a Christian student, not a physics student or an English student. Again, I do not want to make every Christian in the university into a theologian, but it is important for you to interrogate theologically what you are learning.
不要忘記持守本身堅固和節制的靈性操練:禱告讀經、敬拜、團契等。只有好靈性的基督徒大學生才可能意識到作為大學生是上帝的呼召,並願意堅持走下去。在道德品德上不輕易妥協,有智慧的結交朋友。
Only a man or woman who has undergone a long period of spiritual discipline can reliably pray in the solitude of a hermitage. You’re young. You need the regular discipline of worship, Bible reading, and Christian fellowship. Don’t neglect them in college. Also, don’t underestimate the moral temptations of the contemporary college scene. We cannot help but be influenced by the behavior of our friends, so choose wisely. 


*** Stanley Hauerwas是當今美國著名的神學家,也是Duke Divinity School的神學系教授。



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