值此特殊慈悲禧年前夕，讓我們默想天父的慈悲。
可是，作為當事人的癱子就別有一番滋味了。病發的時候，總免不了要問，為甚麼是我？為甚麼不幸的事會發生在我身上？倘若找不到一個令自己滿意的解釋，自然會埋怨。或者埋怨自己不小心，不照顧好自己的身體；或者找其他人埋怨─上司、同事、主診醫生甚至天主。倘若病情沒有好轉，恐怕難逃「抑鬱」的厄運了…
天父的慈悲，在耶穌身上表露無遺。耶穌首先處理好癱子與天主的關係。無論是因為主動地犯罪所引起的內咎，抑或是被動的不幸所引起的怨天尤人；無論癱子是渴望與天主修和，抑或已放棄了獲得寬恕的希望；耶穌仍以慈悲的眼神，邀請他打開自己的心，接受天主的慈愛。
朋友，如果您是癱子，您願意從此快快樂樂地繼續癱下去嗎？您會接受繼續癱下去的命運嗎？
天父，感謝祢主動寬恕了我。我願意踏出第一步，從新振作。亞孟。
首先，作為旁觀者，出於好奇，我們自然會問，癱子犯了甚麼罪，需要天主的寬恕呢？是他在作惡時變成癱子嗎？或是天主在懲罰他從前所犯的罪，或是他父母所犯的罪呢？其實，這些問題都問錯了。在若望福音所記載，耶穌治好胎生瞎子的故事中，已經清楚教訓了我們不要隨便把疾病看成為罪罰（若9:3）。
生命恩泉
The Mercy of God (Luke 5:17-26)
On the eve of Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy, let us meditate the mercy of the Father.
However, the paralyzed man would beg to differ. When he became paralyzed, inevitably he would complain, “Why me?” Why did such unfortunate things happen to him? If he could not come up with a satisfactory explanation, he would blame himself for being careless, for not taking good care of his health; or blame someone else --- the boss, colleagues, the doctors or even God. If he could not see any improvement in the condition, he would be doomed to depression ...
Jesus shows us the Father's mercy. He told the initiative to handle the relationship between the paralyzed man and God. Whether the paralyzed man felt guilty for his sins or grumbled for misfortunes that befell him; whether he desired reconciliation with God or had given up hope of receiving forgiveness, Jesus still fixed his merciful gaze on him, inviting him to open up his heart to receive God’s mercy.
My friend, if you were the paralyzed man, would you be willing to remain paralyzed happily ever after? Would you accept a fate to remain paralyzed for the rest of your life?
Heavenly Father, I thank you for forgiving me. I am willing to put forth the first step, come out of my depression. Amen.
First of all, as an onlooker, out of curiosity, I would naturally ask what sins had the paralyzed man committed which needed the forgiveness of God? Did he become paralyzed while committing sins? Or did God punish him for previous sins, or for the sins of his parents? Indeed, we have asked the wrong kind of questions. According to the gospel of John, in the story of the healing of a born blind, Jesus made it clear that we should not see sickness as a kind of punishment. (John 9:3)
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