我必不留下你們為孤兒 I Will Not Leave You Orphans

【福傳系列（一）】
我必不留下你們為孤兒 （若19:25-27）

除了亞當之外，所有人都有母親，有些人還有不只一個！除了物質上的母親外，我們還有法律上的，和靈性上的母親。可能你會問，為甚麼我們須要關心靈性上的母親呢？是須要的，因為這是人性的基本需求！有母親呵護和教養的人，與因為種種原因而喪失了母愛的人比較，他們之間的自我形象、性格、學習能力、辦事能力、親和力以及社交能力的差別，高下立見。失去母愛的人的痛苦，恐怕祇有一闕『世上祇有媽媽好』，纔能充份傳意！

今天的福音記載了耶穌在十字架上向聖母瑪利亞「託孤」的事蹟。祂稱呼瑪利亞為「女人」，並非沒有禮貎，而是在這莊嚴的時刻，天主子以「踏碎古蛇頭顱者」身份，向生祂的女人（創3:15）說話。祂固然是「妳的兒子」（若19:26），但保祿宗徒教導我們，教會是「基督的奧體」（格前12:12-13）。所以，基督之母，也就是「教會之母」了！做兒子的，孝愛母親是天經地義的事（出20:12）。所以作為基督的信徒，也應當孝愛這位「教會之母」，享受她的教養！

天主子離開了這個世界，返回天上，坐在聖父的右邊。祂在最後晚餐時曾向我們許諾：「我必不留下你們為孤兒，我要回到你們這裡來」（若14:18）。耶穌如何兌現祂的承諾呢？就在十字架上，基督把未來的教會，託付給聖母瑪利亞照顧，直到祂光榮再來之日。耶穌在升天前召集了120人（宗1:15）。聖神降臨前，聖母已經立刻開始擔起母親的任務，與眾人「同心合意地專務祈禱」（1:14）。正如耶穌基督因聖神降孕，由童貞瑪利亞誕生。所以，聖神亦在五旬節，藉童貞瑪利亞，誕生了「基督的奧體」，當日便有三千人藉水和聖神的洗禮，加入了教會（2:41）。如今聖母已蒙召升天，教會深信她在天上，「仍繼續盡行對基督肢體的母親職分，在被救者的靈魂中，分擔產生和發展超性生命的工作」（聖教宗保祿六世手諭《天主子民的信經》，1968年）。

親愛的讀者，今天是「教會之母」紀念日，我們慶祝自己不是孤兒，不再孤獨，因為天主子在十字架上，拜託聖母瑪利亞，「使得救的人加入會眾」（宗2:47）。世上還有許多「孤兒」，需要我們伸出援手。請關顧他們靈性生命的生死。亞孟。 天主保祐！

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生命恩泉
圖片鳴謝：creator.nightcafe.studio/studio

[Evangelization Series I]
I Will Not Leave You Orphans (John 19:25-27)

All human beings except Adam have mothers. Some even have more than one! Besides physical mothers, we have legal mothers as well as spiritual mothers. You may wonder why we need to care about spiritual mothers. It is necessary because this is a basic need of being human! In contrast to people who have mothers to care and to raise up, those who have lost motherly love for various reasons have lower self-esteem, personality, learning skills, problem solving skills, affinity and social skills etc. Their pains can only be sufficiently conveyed by a popular song “On Earth Only Mothers Are Good”!

The gospel passage today tells us how, while hanging on the cross, Jesus entrusted the Church to the care of Our Lady. The Son of God called her “woman” not out of disrespect, but at this solemn moment spoke in the capacity of the woman’s offspring who strikes at the Serpent’s head (Genesis 3:15). He is of course “your son” (John 19:26), but St. Paul teaches us that the Church is the Mystical Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12-13). Thus, the Mother of Christ is also the Mother of the Church! It is God’s will that we should honour our mothers (Exodus 20:12). As followers of Christ, we should also honour this Mother of the Church and enjoy her loving care and raising up!

The Son of God has left this world, returned to heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. But during the Last Supper, He pledged, “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you” (John 14:18). How would Jesus honour His pledge? On the cross, He entrusted the future Church to the care of Our Lady until He returns gloriously on the Last Day. Before His ascension, Jesus gathered 120 disciples (Acts 1:15). Before the Descent of the Holy Spirit, Our Lady had already taken up her motherly role to devote with one accord to prayer with all of them (1:14). Just as Jesus Christ “was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary”, on Pentecost, the Mystical Body of Christ was born of the Blessed Virgin Mary. On that day, 3000 persons were baptized and added to the Church (2:41). Now that Our Lady was assumed body and soul into heaven, the Church firmly believes that “The Blessed Mother of God, the New Eve, Mother of the Church, continues in heaven her maternal role with regard to Christ’s members, cooperating with the birth and growth of divine life in the souls of the redeemed” (Credo of the People of God, #15, by Pope Paul VI, June 30, 1968).

Beloved brethren, today is the memorial of the Mother of the Church. We celebrate that we are not orphans and alone because the Son of God had asked the Blessed Virgin Mary while He was being crucified to help add “to their number those who were being saved” (Acts 2:47). There are still many “orphans” on earth who need our helping hands. Please extend our helping hand to care for the life and death of their spiritual life. Amen.
God bless!