路加是一本祈禱默想的福音，一本以慈悲為主題的福音。
耶穌受難是一個不爭的事實。聖經以外的歷史書也有記載。福音的作者從各種各樣的材料中，選擇了一些他覺得重要的細節，譜寫出一篇「耶穌基督的受難曲」。今天我們聽的，是路加版的「受難曲」。路加邀請基督徒，默想天父的慈悲，如何在耶穌基督的受難中表達出來；天主的愛，如何在耶穌基督的受難中實現。
教宗方濟各為慈悲禧年編寫的禱文，列舉了很多耶穌基督以慈悲的眼神，感動罪人悔改的例子，例如：召叫瑪竇、稅吏匝凱、罪婦、在伯多祿三次否認他之後，十字架上的右盜等等，這些例子，都是出於路加的記載。所以這本在丙年所誦讀和默想的福音，為基督徒的靈修和成長，是非常有益的。
今天，讓我們來默想其中的一個片段。耶穌被捕的時候，有門徒拔劍拒捕，並砍下大司祭僕人的耳朵。所有福音都記載了，是不爭的事實。但接著來如何處理，就各有不同了。若望清楚記載是伯多祿拔劍削了大司祭僕人瑪耳曷的右耳。其他三本對觀福音沒有寫是伯多祿，因為他仍在世。若望寫的時候，伯多祿已死了大約三十年。所以，福音上的記載，難免會有所出入。且看路加如何把故事發展下去。當其他福音沒有關懷那些來捉拿耶穌的人的時候，祗有路加記載耶穌治好了那來逮捕他的人。
試想一想，你是瑪耳曷，縱使你是同情耶穌的人，你不得不奉命行事。當然，你可以在後方吶喊助威，不必跑在前面，首當其衝被伯多祿砍到。或者你有上進心，又或者你在混亂中被其他人推到前面。耶穌並不計較，耶穌治療你皮肉的傷，也治療你心靈的傷，相信日後你一定成為了教會的一份子，你的名字，留傳千古。
另一方面，想像你是伯多祿，你拔劍拒捕，並且傷人。為甚麼呢？是出於恐懼，出於自保。你可能出於忠心，想保護師父；你也有可能不願看見三年來放棄一切來跟隨耶穌所創的一番事業，毀於一旦。耶穌並不計較，治療了你所傷害的人，減輕了你傷害無辜者之罪。
相信大家對油蔴地碧街七十一便利店事件，亦略有所聞。三十八歲的店主於三月八日星期二被刺傷，在醫院救治，延至三月十四日星期一不治，遺下寡婦和個多月大的孤兒。三十二歲加拿大籍的越南疑凶，由意圖謀殺改控為謀殺。三月十六日起，七十一便利店發起捐助，八小時內已籌得一百六十萬！香港人的愛心和慈悲，令人讚嘆。請問在座之中，有沒有為受傷然後不治的店主，及他的孤兒寡婦祈禱呢？有。好，執事再挑戰大家，各位有沒有為疑凶祈禱呢？
基督徒的慈悲，不應停留在捐錢給孤兒寡婦上。這樣做是非常好，但非基督徒也一樣會做，而且絕不遜色，甚至比基督徒做得更好。基督徒就是跟隨耶穌基督的榜樣去生活的人。在今天的福音裡，耶穌治療傷害祂的人、耶穌憐憫並堅強因害怕而否認他的伯多祿、耶穌求天父寬恕釘他的羅馬兵，耶穌接納悔改的右盜…所以，基督徒的慈悲，就在於為傷害你的人祈禱，寬恕一切傷害你的人。這樣做，我們纔算得上是基督徒。在耶穌基督的眼中，那疑凶是個可憐的人。所謂「一失足成千古恨」，相信這事件，會改寫他的一生。香港沒有死刑，終身監禁亦有出獄的一天。幾十年之後的世界，恐怕他不但感到陌生，而且已沒有能力適應。請為這個錯手殺人的凶徒祈禱吧！
天主保祐
Palm Sunday (Year C)
Theme: To pray for those who hurt you
Luke is a prayerful, meditative gospel. Mercy is its theme.
When Pope Francis wrote the prayer for the Jubilee of Mercy, he listed many examples in which Jesus Christ touched the sinners with his merciful gaze to move them into repentance. E.g. the call of Matthew, Zacchaeus the chief tax-collector, the sinful woman, after Peter's third denial and the good thief on the cross etc. These examples are taken from Luke. Therefore, this gospel for Year C which we read and meditate is good for the spirituality and growth of Christians.
Today, let us meditate on one of the many sections. While a band of Temple officers and others tried to arrest Jesus, one of the disciples drew a sword to resist and cut off the ear of a slave of the High Priest. All gospels agree on this fact but the Evangelists handled what happened next in different manners. John explicitly wrote that Peter drew the sword and cut off the right ear of Malchus, a slave of the High Priest. The Synoptic gospels did not say that it was Peter because he was still alive. When John wrote his gospel, Peter was already dead for about three decades. Therefore, it is inevitable that there are differences in the gospel narratives. Let us see how Luke developed the story. While all other gospels did not care about what happened to those who came to arrest Jesus, only Luke told us that Jesus healed the man who came to arrest him.
Imagine you were Malchus. Even if you were sympathetic to Jesus, you had no choice but to carry out orders. Of course, you could have stayed behind to yell war cries and did not need to go to the forefront to be struck by Peter. Or perhaps you were ambitious, or even you were pushed ahead by others in the chaos. Jesus did not care. He healed the wounds in your body as well as your soul. To be sure, you must have become a member of the Church in the future and your name would be mentioned in ages to come.
On the other hand, imagine you were Peter. You drew the sword to resist and assaulted somebody. Why? You must have acted out of fear to protect yourself. Perhaps you were loyal to your master. Or perhaps you did not want the career which you had built up by forsaking everything to follow the Messiah to be vapourized instantly. Jesus did not care. He healed the one you had injured, to lessen your guilt of doing harm to an innocent person.
I am sure all of you must have heard what had happened in the 7-11 convenient store at Pitt Road, Yaumati. On March 8, the 38-year-old shop owner was stabbed and hospitalized. He died subsequently on March 14, leaving behind a widow and a one-month-old baby. The 32-year-old Canadian Vietnamese suspect was charged from attempted murder to murder. On March 16, the 7-11 chains started a donation campaign. Within 8 hours, 1.6 million were received. The charity and mercy of Hong Kong people are truly amazing and praiseworthy. Let me ask you, have you prayed for the injured but later deceased shop owner and his widow and orphan? You have. Good. Let me challenge you. Have you prayed for the suspect?
Christian mercy should not stop short at donation for the widow and orphan. Doing so is already very good but even non-Christians do the same, and even more generous than Christians. Christians are people who follow the example of Jesus. In the gospel today, Jesus healed someone who hurt him. He showed mercy and strengthened Peter who denied him out of fear. He prayed to the Father to forgive the Roman soldiers who crucified him. He accepted the repentant thief on the cross ... Therefore, Christian mercy is to pray for those who hurt you, to forgive all who do you harm. Only then are we true Christians. In the eyes of Jesus, the suspect is pitiful. Take one false step and you are finished. This incident would definitely change his whole life. There is no capital punishment in Hong Kong. Even prisoners serving life-sentence would come out of prison one day. By the time he came out several decades later, he would find the world alien and would not find the ability to adapt to it. Please pray for this accidental murderer.
The Passion of Jesus was an incontestable fact. Extra-biblical sources also testify to it. The Evangelists selected materials from all sorts of things which they considered significant to write up the "Passion of Christ". Today, we hear the Passion according to Luke who invites all Christians to meditate how the mercy of the Father was made manifest in the Passion of Jesus Christ, how God's love materialized in Jesus' Passion.
God bless.
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