真理就是愛 Truth is Love

復活期第六主日（甲年）
主題：真理就是愛

今天的福音，給我們一個機會，默想「真理」和「愛」的關係。
耶穌說：「如果你們愛我，就要遵守我的命令。」（若14:15）耶穌的命令是甚麼？有很多人誤會了「全心、全靈、全意愛天主」和「愛人如己」是耶穌的教訓，耶穌的命令。對不起！這些不是耶穌基督的教訓。
話說有法學士挑戰耶穌，要祂從梅瑟所頒佈的613條法律中，找出最大的誡命。耶穌基督不慌不忙地，分別引述了記載在【申命紀】及【肋未紀】中上述的法律。所以，這些都是舊約時代梅瑟的教訓，在耶穌出生前1250年的事了。當然，耶穌基督把舊約的教訓完善了。例如，肋未紀中的「愛近人如愛你自己」的誡命，祗涵蓋同胞，不包括外人。但耶穌曾講述「慈善撒瑪黎雅人」的比喻，把這「愛人如己」的誡命，恢復到不分種族國籍，天主的本意。

那麼，甚麼是耶穌的命令呢？耶穌在最後晚餐為門徒洗腳後說：「我給你們一條新命令：你們該彼此相愛；如同我愛了你們，你們也該照樣彼此相愛。」（13:34）這命令與梅瑟的誡命相比，有何超越之處呢？「彼此相愛」和「愛人如己」不是一樣嗎？的確是一樣。然而，它的超越之處，是在於「如同我愛了你們」。耶穌怎樣愛了我們呢？祂為了救贖我們，死在十字架上。祂愛我們愛到痛。如今，耶穌命令我們───注意，不是邀請，而是命令！───為了大眾的益處，基督徒要愛到痛，要慷慨地犧牲！

「愛到痛」違反人性的自然傾向，是合理的嗎？
為甚麼要求我們遵守祂的命令之後，耶穌基督應許賜下聖神呢？聖神如何幫助我們遵守祂的命令呢？
有一次，孔子向他的學生子由解釋，在沒有真理的指導之下，美德會變成弊病。他說：「好仁不好學，其蔽也愚。」【論語‧陽貨】仁愛是美德，但不學習真理，結果好心做壞事，害己害人，愚不可及！的確，怪獸家長溺愛子女，反而窒息了子女的健康成長，便是一個現代貼身的例子。孔子還列舉其他五種德行，在沒有真理指導下所犯的錯處。為了保障門徒不會犯錯，耶穌許下聖神，真理之神，保証我們「愛到痛」的行動是真實的愛，而不是害己害人的愚昧。

榮休教宗本篤十六世在2009年發表了他任內的第三份通諭【在真理中實踐愛德】，指出愛德必須按真理行事。基督宗教的核心教訓是愛德，而愛德幫助人作出全人的發展。人是按天主的肖像所造，內心充滿著對真實的愛的渴望，因為天主是愛。可惜人性被原罪敗壞了，以致所作所為，建造了一個貶低人性尊嚴，窒息人性發展的制度。且看今天的社會，地產發展商得到政府的幫助，不但把樓價托高到青年人無法負擔，更把單位越建越細，祗能容納一個人居住，而不能一個家庭居住。試問下一代還有成家立室，生存發展的空間嗎？二千年前，聖子降生成人，以耶穌基督的身份受難復活，給予門徒新生命和力量，以真理和愛，把貶抑人性尊嚴的制度，改革為幫助人性發展的制度。

本篤十六世指出，真理必須以愛去表達；沒有出於愛的行動，真理祗是空談。另一方面，真理幫助我們明白甚麼是真實的愛；沒有真理，愛祗淪為一種感覺，流於操控對方的自私行為。明白真理幫助我們放下執著，讓彼此可以溝通交談，從而合作建造一些符合人性尊嚴，符合天主旨意，讓人性得以充份發展的關係和制度。

雖然天主聖神被稱為「真理之神」（若14:17），但祂所做的一切，處處表達出真實的愛。
首先，是天主聖神發揮祂的能力，庇蔭童貞瑪利亞，讓她懷孕天主子（路1:35）。跟著，耶穌在約旦河受洗時，天主聖神降臨到祂身上，為祂傅油，確立祂為默西亞，開始祂救世的工程；洗禮後，聖神催促耶穌進入曠野，與撒殫作初步的交鋒，訓練祂應對未來三年的挑戰。耶穌復活升天後，聖神降臨在門徒身上，不但能說各國語說，讓世人聽到得救的福音；更在擘餅禮中降臨，祝聖麵餅和葡萄酒成為耶穌基督所留下的聖體聖血，滋養信徒的生命。聖神感動信徒的愛心，把全部財物捐歸公用，幫助貧窮的弟兄；聖神賜予信徒熱心和勇氣，不惜殉道，為耶穌基督的福音作証。如此種種，可見天主聖神，不單是真理之神，更是愛德之神。

各位兄弟姊妹，為了避免犯孔子所說的「好仁不好學，其蔽也愚」的錯誤，讓我們祈求聖神的光照，讓我們明白真理，領會天主的旨意；更求天主聖神炙熱我們冰冷的心，熱愛真理，愛主愛人，不怕犧牲，無懼「愛到痛」，讓眾人得到全人的發展，讓天主的肖像恢復光芒。
天主保祐！
2014 Reflection

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Sixth Easter Sunday (Year A)
Theme: Truth is Love

The gospel passage today gives us an opportunity to meditate the relation between Truth and Love. Jesus says, "If you love me, you will keep my commandments." (John 14:15) What are the commandments of Jesus? Many people think that "Love our God with all our heart, with all our soul and with all our strength" and "Love your neighbour as yourself" are the teachings, the commandments of Jesus. Sorry, they are not!

It so happened that a teacher of the Law challenged Jesus, asking him to name the greatest commandment among the 613 Mosaic laws. Without hesitation, Jesus quoted the two laws from Deuteronomy and Leviticus. Thus, these were the teachings of Moses, more than 1250 years before Christ was born. Of course, Jesus came to fulfil the teachings of the Old Testament. For example, the "Love your neighbour as yourself" commandment from Leviticus applies to one's countrymen only. Gentiles were not included. But when Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan, he restored God's original intention in the commandment, namely, to include people of all nationalities and ethnicities.

So, what is Jesus' commandment? After washing his disciples' feet at the Last Supper, Jesus told them, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved you, that you also love one another." (13:34) Comparing this with Mosaic laws, how does it surpass Moses' commandments? Are not "loving one another" and "loving your neighbour as yourself" the same? Indeed, they are. However, Jesus' commandment surpasses Mosaic laws in "even as I have loved you". How did Jesus love us? In order to redeem us, he died on the cross. He loved us until it hurt. Now, Jesus commands us --- note that it was not an invitation but a commandment! --- for the benefits of the people, Christians should love until it hurts, should generously sacrifice!

Love until it hurts goes against natural human inclination. Is it reasonable?
Why did Jesus Christ promise to give us the Holy Spirit after he demanded our keeping his commandments? How does the Holy Spirit help us keep his commandments?
Once, Confucius explained to his disciple Yeou that without the guidance of Truth, virtues could turn into vices. He said, "Amare humanitatem sine amore discendi, hujus vitium, inscitia." (Analect 17:8) Charity is a virtue. But if we do not study truth, we end up doing evil with good intention, hurting ourselves and others. How stupid it is! Truly, that monster parents spoil their children, choking their healthy developments is a modern typical example. Confucius further elaborated five other virtues and their vices when a person was not guided by the truth. In order to prevent his disciples from making this mistake, Jesus promised to send the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth to guarantee that loving others until it hurts is genuine and is not a stupidity that hurts everybody.

In 2009, the then Pope Benedict XVI issued his third encyclical, Caritas in Veritate to tell us that charity must be practiced in truth. The core teaching of Christianity is charity which helps people develop holistically. Men were created in the image of God. Their hearts are filled with the desire for genuine love because God is love. Regrettably, human nature was damaged by the Original Sin so that their efforts turned out to be building institutions that humiliate human dignity and smother human development. Take a look at the Hong Kong society today. Supported by the government, developers not only push up house prices beyond the ability of young people to afford, but also build tiny units only suitable for single persons to live, but cannot accommodate a family. How can our next generation get married, live and develop? Two thousand years ago, the Son of God incarnated in the person of Jesus Christ to die and to rise again so as to give his followers new life and strength to reform with truth and charity, the dehumanizing institutions into ones which are conducive to human development.

Pope Benedict XVI points out that truth must be expressed in charity. Without charitable actions, truth is empty talk. On the other hand, truth helps us understand what genuine love is. Without truth, love is only a feeling, a selfish behaviour which manipulates the other party. Understanding truth helps us let go so that we can communicate and engage in dialogue. Thus we can cooperate to build up relations and institutions which honour human dignity, follow God's will and allow human nature to develop fully.

Though the Holy Spirit is called "the Spirit of truth" (John 14:17), whatever He does shows that He is genuine love.
First of all, the Holy Spirit used His power to overshadow the BVM so that she was pregnant with the Son of God (Luke 1:35). When Jesus was baptized in River Jordan, the Holy Spirit came down to anoint him the Messiah to begin his salvation mission. After baptism, the Holy Spirit urged Jesus into the wilderness to preliminarily engage with Satan, training him to deal with challenges in the coming three years. After his ascension, the Holy Spirit came down upon the disciples. Not only were they able to speak different languages so that different peoples might hear the gospel of salvation, but the Holy Spirit also came upon the liturgy of breaking bread, turning bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ to nourish the life of the disciples. The Holy Spirit also moved the hearts of the disciples so that they handed over all their property for public use to help the needy brethren. The Holy Spirit also gave the disciples courage and fervent hearts to bear witness to Jesus' gospel even unto martyrdom. From all these, we can see that the Holy Spirit is not only the Spirit of Truth, but is also the Spirit of Love.

Brethren, in order to avoid making the mistake mentioned by Confucius, i.e. It is stupid to desire charity but learn not the truth. Let us pray for the illumination of the Holy Spirit so that we may know the truth and understand the will of God. Furthermore, we should pray to the Holy Spirit to heat up our icy hearts so that we may desire the truth, love God and men and are not afraid to sacrifice, to love until it hurts so that all men may fully develop, and that the image of God may shine forth again.
God bless!