「光」象徵「真理」嗎？ Does Light Symbolize Truth?

【福傳系列（二）】
「光」象徵「真理」嗎？（瑪5:13-16）

現代人通常用「燈」，用「光」來象徵「真理」。為甚麼今天的《瑪竇福音》卻說是「善行」（瑪5:16）呢？誰對，誰錯呢？

要知道在【聖經】裡，達味是第一個使用「真理」這個詞彙的人。他祈禱感謝天主時說：「我主上主，惟有祢是天主！祢的話是真理，是祢向祢僕人應許了這些恩惠」（撒下7:28）。「真理」就是「上主的話」，是無可厚非的；但這樣論述，容易把「真理」理性化和抽象化，以至「真理」祇在頭腦裡，不在肺腑中！例如，達味這樣說：「祢的言語是我步履前的靈燈，是我路途上的光明」（詠119:105），他運用「光」來象徵「真理」。

感謝天主父派遣聖子降生成人，矯正我們在認識「真理」時容易犯的謬誤。若望宗徒寫福音時，志在重新演繹《梅瑟五書》。在《梅瑟五書》之中，天主的第一句說話就是「有光」（創1:3）。於是若望開宗明義地說，「聖言」就是天主，在「聖言」之內有生命，這生命是人的「光」（若1:1-4）。當若望講論天主子降生成人的奧跡時，他說：「於是，聖言成了血肉…我們見了祂的光榮，正如父獨生者的光榮，滿溢恩寵和真理」（1:14）。到耶穌受難前與十二宗徒吃「逾越節晚餐」時，祂更直截了當地說：「我就是道路、真理、生命，除非經過我，誰也不能到父那裡去」（14:6）。倘若我們承認「上主的話」是真理，我們也必須承認降生成人的「聖言」是「真理」！ 但更重要的，這「聖言」，是有血有肉的耶穌基督，祂以自己的生命演繹出「真理」的意義，就是「愛」；不是一般世俗的「愛」，而是為了對方的益處，不惜犧牲自己的愛，正如母親對子女的愛一樣。所以，當比拉多面對「真理」時問「甚麼是真理？」（18:38a），真是有眼無珠，選擇了視而不見（依6:9）！

倘若我們對「真理」尚有半點疑惑，或者覺得實踐「真理」有困難時，瑪竇宗徒的記載，絕對有幫助！他說：「照樣，你們的光也當在人前照耀，好使他們看見你們的善行，光榮你們在天之父」（瑪5:16）。可見不需要殉道，即使是微末的「善行」，也足以實踐真理，讓人歸光榮於天父。令人歸光榮於天父，這不就是「福傳」了嗎？

親愛的讀者，原來傳福音是出於對身邊的人的愛、是善行、是實踐真理、是歸光榮於在天大父的使命。你關心愛護你身邊的人，記掛他們靈性生命的死活嗎？
天主保祐！

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生命恩泉
圖片鳴謝：creator.nightcafe.studio

[Evangelization Series II]
Does Light Symbolize Truth? (Matthew 5:13-16)

Modern people usually symbolize truth with lamp or light. Then why does the Matthew passage today symbolize “good deeds” (Matthew 5:16) instead? Who is right, who is wrong?

In the Bible, David was the first person to use the term “truth”. When he prayed to thank God, he said, “Since You, LORD God, are truly God and Your words are truth and You have made this generous promise to Your servant” (2 Samuel 7:28). To say that “the words of the Lord” is “truth” is not wrong. But saying so would easily made truth rational and abstract so much so that it remains in our heads and not in our hearts! For example, David says, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light for my path” (Psalms 119:105). He made use of “light” to symbolize “truth”.

We thank God the Father to send His Son to incarnate, to take flesh to correct us from fallacies when we try to know the “truth”. When John, the Evangelist, wrote the gospel, he tried to write a treatise on the Torah in which the first words of God is “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3). Thus, John starts writing that the Word was God; and there was life in the Word; and this life was the light of the human race etc. (John 1:1-4). When John narrates the mystery of Incarnation, he says, “And the Word became flesh … we saw His glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth” (1:14). When Jesus ate the Last Supper with the Twelve before His Passion, He spoke directly, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (14:6). If we profess that the Word of the Lord is truth, we must also confess that the incarnated Word is truth!

But more importantly, this Word is the human person of Jesus Christ. He interprets the meaning of “truth” with His own life: love. Not the secular love with which we are familiar but “agape”, the love which drives us to sacrifice ourselves for the sake of the others, such as the way mothers love their children. Thus, when Pontius Pilate asked “What is truth?” (18:38a) in front of the Truth in person, he chose to be blind and not to see (Isaiah 6:9)!

If there remains any doubt about “truth”, or feeling difficult to put “truth” into practice, Matthew’s narrative absolutely helps! He says, “Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father” (Matthew 5:16). We may confidently conclude that to die a martyrdom is not necessary. Even a negligible “good deed” is good enough to practise truth and make people glorify our heavenly Father. Isn’t making others glorify God evangelization?

Beloved brethren. Evangelization begins with our love and care of people around us. It is a good deed, a practice of truth, giving glory to our heavenly Father and it is a mission. Do you love the people around you? Do you care about the life and death of their spiritual life?
God bless!