主題：做好基本功，應付試探
人生活總有大大小小不同的目標。要達到目標必須克服重重障礙。其中有些障礙，不是阻止你，而是吸引你改變方向，徧離目標的，我們稱之為誘惑。
美國心理學家馬斯諾在幫助商界研究如何激發員工士氣時，發展出一套「需要金字塔」理論。提出人為了生存，必須按等級次序，先後滿足生理、安全、人際關係、尊嚴榮譽與及自我實現的需要。針對不同人的處境和需要，便可以鼓舞、激發他們的士氣，為公司賺錢。這套理論在西方國家，獲得廣泛應用。應用這套理論，可以讓我們更深入認識耶穌所遇到的試探的性質。
在三部對觀福音之中，一如聖誕故事一樣，祗有瑪竇和路加詳細記載耶穌受試探的內容。馬爾谷祗寫了一句，說耶穌受洗後，聖神催促他進入曠野，受魔鬼的試探達四十天之久。試探內容沒有交代。至於瑪竇和路加，記載了相同的三個試探，但次序上有所出入。瑪竇寫給猶太信徒，他把耶穌四十日在曠野克服三個試探的勝利，補償以色列人四十年在曠野中的三次失敗。路加沒有猶太人的包袱，所寫的福音適合普世人類閱讀，所以在次序上比較合理。耶穌所受試探的次序，符合「需要金字塔」的等級次序。把變石頭為餅充飢，為滿足最低層，最基本的生理需要。若得不到滿足，生命不保，遑論滿足上層的其他需要呢？獲得權勢和榮華，就可以享受第二層的安定生活，第三層的交遊廣闊和第四層的受人擁戴。最後，從聖殿頂躍下，便可把天主子的身份和能力實現，滿足最頂層自我實現的需要。其實，四十天所受的，又何止三個試探呢？這三個祗是較有代表性，對我們的信仰有幫助的試探而已。耶穌受試探時，又沒有其他人在場。所以，一定是耶穌挑選了其中三個有代表性的試探，教導他的門徒。
既然人生在世，總不能擺脫需要，而需要與誘惑又是如影隨形，即是說，誘惑是無可避免的。那麼，我們可以怎樣對待誘惑呢？
但福音不是說，是聖神催促耶穌進入曠野，受魔鬼的試探嗎？即是說，有時，受魔鬼試探是天主的旨意了。對，雖然唸天主經時，我們祈求天父不要讓我們陷於誘惑，但若是天主的旨意，要我們經歷誘惑的磨練，我們就應跟隨耶穌所立下的榜樣了。孟子說得好：「天將降大任於斯人也，必先苦其心志、勞其筋骨、餓其體膚，空乏其身，行拂亂其所為。」等等。試想想，這樣辛苦，又有誰會自願享受這些磨難呢？但不經過這些磨練，就不能履行天父的旨意，不能成就大任。所以，擺脫這些磨難反而成為試探，成了誘惑。那麼，耶穌三退魔誘的榜樣，給了我們甚麼啟示呢？
非常簡單，首先是基本功。且看耶穌每次答覆魔鬼，祗是說：「經上記載…」注意，在魔鬼面前搖晃聖經是不能驅魔的。耶穌祗是引用聖經的教訓，來辨別甚麼是誘惑，甚麼是應該做的事。且看，耶穌雖然今次拒絕把石頭變餅，但他不是曾經增餅，解決五千人的饑餓問題嗎？但當群眾要求耶穌從十字架上跳下來時，他不是有如今次一樣，拒絕跳下嗎？可見耶穌熟識聖經的教訓，能辨別甚麼是誘惑，甚麼是應該做的事。所以，平時勤讀聖經，是非常重要的基本功。有了讀聖經的基礎，就能幫助我們抗拒誘惑。給大家一個溫馨提示，耶穌三退魔誘的經文，全部出自申命紀。
不過要小心，魔鬼比我們凡人更熟識聖經。君不見牠引用聖詠來試探耶穌嗎？耶穌是天主子，當然不受誘惑，但我們是凡人，又何來擊敗魔鬼的本領呢？有。就是信靠天父。請問耶穌到曠野做甚麼？看風景？做研究，搜集石頭樣本？不對。是守齋。守齋令我們饑餓，饑餓令我們軟弱。在軟弱時，我們可以選擇信靠天父，我們也可以選擇憑自己的能力，滿足自己的需要。耶穌選擇了信靠天父。這就是我們所應該學習的地方。所以教會學習耶穌基督的榜樣，在禮儀年中劃出四旬期，在這四十天內，跟隨耶穌守齋克己的榜樣，操練自己，信靠天父，對抗誘惑。
各位兄弟姊妹，讓我們善用這四旬期的機會，守齋讀經，做好基本功，好能成就天降的大任。
每個人都有自己的需要，有需要就有受誘惑的機會。西諺有云：「每個人都有一個價格。」當你已經有足夠的金錢，惡人就不能用金錢引誘你，收買你去做壞事。但如果發現你單身，或者婚姻有危機，就可以用美色換取你服務，或者用你親人的人身安全，要脅你效忠組織，做出埋沒良心的事等等。這些固然是電影的一般橋段，但在日常生活中，卻真實地，不斷地發生在我們身上。除非我們不再有任何需要，到了那一天，我們便不會再受誘惑。否則，需要與誘惑，便會如影隨形，同時出現。
誘惑不是犯罪，而是犯罪的機會，與犯罪祗有一線之隔。向誘惑屈服，或作出不適當的抵抗，便會掉進犯罪的陷阱。教會傳統的智慧，是勸人遠離試探，遠離犯罪的機會。即是說，明知是色情片，就不要下載、明知自己的財政出現困難，就不要過澳門、明知自己對藍絲帶有徧見，就避免到旺角人群聚集與警察對峙的地方等。
天主保祐。
First Week of Lent (Year C)
Theme: Build up a good foundation to resist temptation
There are many targets in life, whether large or small. And in order to achieve them, we need to overcome many obstacles. Some of them do not obstruct us but distract us to deviate from our target. We call them "temptations".
The American psychologist, Maslow, developed a theory of a hierarchy of needs when he helped business corporations find ways to motivate the employees. He opines that for men to live, they have to satisfy their needs according to a hierarchy. Firstly they need to meet their physiological needs, then needs of security, of belonging, of esteems and lastly the need of self-actualization. Taking into consideration of their situations and needs, bosses can motivate their employees and stir up their morale to make money for their companies. This theory has been widely and successfully applied in western countries. With this theory, we may understand better the nature of temptations that Jesus met.
Among the Synoptic gospels, like the Nativity story, only Matthew and Luke mention the contents of the temptation Jesus had gone through. Mark simply says that after his baptism, the Holy Spirit immediately drove Jesus into the wilderness for forty days to be tempted by Satan. Mark does not mention the contents of temptation. The three temptations which Matthew and Luke mention are identical but in different sequence. Matthew wrote for Jewish believers. He made use of the victory of Jesus' overcoming temptations in the forty days to compensate for the three Israelite failures in their 40-year wandering in the wilderness. Luke did not have the Jewish burden. His readership is universal and the sequence is more reasonable. The sequence of temptations fits the hierarchy of needs. In turning stones into bread to satiate hunger is to meet the lowest, the most fundamental physiological needs. Had these needs not met, one would not have survived and how can one meet higher needs in the hierarchy? With authority and glory, one can enjoy a secure life of level two, an extensive social network of level three and esteem of level four. Lastly, jumping off from the top of the Jerusalem Temple, Jesus could actualize his power and status as the Son of God, satisfying the need of self-actualization. In fact, there must have been more than three temptations within the forty days. These three are typical and conducive to our faith. When Jesus underwent temptations, there was nobody around. Thus, Jesus must have chosen these three to instruct his disciples.
As we live, we cannot shake off needs. Needs and temptations go hand in hand. That is to say, temptation is unavoidable. Then, how shall we deal with temptations?
But don't the gospels say that the Holy Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan? That is to say, sometimes it is God's will to allow Satan to tempt us. Truly, although we pray in the Lord's Prayer not to lead us into temptation, if it is God's will for us to undergo temptation exercises, we should follow the example set down by Jesus. Mencius says well, "When heaven decrees a major mission for a man, his will is to be drilled, his bones and joints laboured, his belly hungered, his body emptied and his acts scrabbled etc." Just think about it, who would willingly enjoy such sufferings? But not undergoing such sufferings, one cannot do the Father's will, cannot accomplish the major mission. Thus trying to shake off these sufferings turns out to be a temptation per se. Then what does Jesus' example of overcoming temptation reveal to us?
Simply put "fundamental exercises". Look at each of Jesus's answers to Satan. He simply said, "It is written ..." Beware, waving the Bible in front of Satan does not drive it away! Jesus only makes use of the teachings of the Bible to discern what temptation is and what the right thing to do is. Look, although Jesus did not turn stone into bread his time, had he not multiplied bread to solve the problem of 5000 hungry souls? When the crowd challenged him to jump down from the cross, did he refuse to jump like this time? So Jesus knew the teachings of the Bible so well that he is able to discern what temptation is and what the right thing to do is. Thus, daily Bible study is a very important fundamental exercise. On this solid foundation, we can resist temptation. Let me tell you a little tip. All the passages which Jesus used to fend off Satan came from Deuteronomy.
But beware, Satan knows the Bible more thoroughly than anyone of us. Don't you see how Satan made use of the Psalms to test Jesus? Jesus is the Son of God. Of course he could resist the temptation. But we are mere mortals. Where can we come up with the ability to defeat Satan? There is. Trust in the Father. Tell me, what was Jesus doing in the wilderness? Sightseeing? Researching, gathering stone samples? Wrong. He was fasting. Fasting makes us hungry and hunger makes us feeble. When we are weak, we can choose to trust in our heavenly Father, or we can choose to make use of our own ability to satisfy our needs. Jesus chose trusting in his heavenly Father. This is what we should learn from Jesus. Thus the Church follows the example of Jesus Christ, apportions a Lent Season in the liturgical year. Within these forty days, we follow Jesus' example of fasting, renouncing ourselves, drilling us to trust in the Father and resisting temptations.
Brethren, let us make good use of the Lent Season to fast and to study the Bible. Build up a good foundation so as to accomplish the major mission which heaven decrees.
Every human being has needs and needs give room to temptation. As the idiom goes, "Everybody has a price." When you have enough money, bad people cannot buy you with money to do bad things. But if you are single or your marriage has cracks, they will entice your lust in exchange for your service; or they will threaten you with the personal safety of your loved ones so that you will remain loyal and do things against your conscience. These sound like movie plots but in our daily life, these things actually and continually happen around us. Unless we no longer have any needs, we will always be tempted. Needs and temptations always go hand in hand.
Temptation is not a sin. It is an opportunity to commit sins. There is a thin line between temptation and sin. If we succumb to temptation or put up inappropriate resistance, we will fall into the trap of committing sins. Traditional Church teaching tells us to stay away from temptation. That is to say, if you know it is a pornographic video, do not download it. If you know that you are in financial troubles, do not go to Macau. If you know you have prejudice against the ‘blue ribbons', avoid going to Mongkok where crowds are facing off the police etc.
God bless.
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