「恨不能在這一天，妳也知道有關妳平安的事；但這事如今在妳眼前是隱藏的。」（路19:42）
隱藏的，看不見的事物，不一定是隱形的，有可能是我們漠視了那些事物的存在！你有沒有找自己的近視眼鏡的經歷呢？
縱使我們如何周密地安排，萬無一失；但意外始終是意外，我們總會忽略了一些事物，導致意外發生。這就是有名的「梅菲定律」：任何可能出錯的事，必定會發生！這定律的存在，証明了人類認知的局限性。
可是，耶穌所說，將要發生在耶路撒冷的事件，並不是一宗意外。「冰封三尺，非一日之寒。」發生在聖城耶路撒冷的災難，又豈是一個人的責任、或者是一年半載的時間可以醞釀出來的呢？她的毀滅，總有蛛絲馬跡可尋吧！可惜，耶路撒冷的居民，尤其是當中的權貴，選擇堅持己見，漠視了這些訊息，沒有妥當處理。這是「自取滅亡」！
耶穌當然渴望居住在耶路撒冷的人，認清形勢，放下民族主義的狹隘思想，不應堅持由默西亞領導人民推翻羅馬帝國的殖民統治。同樣，耶穌當然渴望我們認清自己的罪過和不足，放下貪婪、驕傲、憤怒、迷色、嫉妒和懶惰等傾向，對它們不要視若無睹，反而認真地處理好它們。雖然這樣修德行善，並不保証我們會一帆風順。但即使橫禍飛來，我們也可以兀立天地之間，問心無愧！這就是耶穌基督的末世言論的重點所在：時時醒寤！個人的醒寤已經這樣艱難，何況一個地方政府，一個國家政權哩！當統治者偏聽，當臣僕揣摩在位者的好惡時，一個城市，一個國家，不出四十年，便會覆亡！耶路撒冷就是一個好例子。
天父啊！請給政府官員們雪亮的眼睛，靈敏的身朵，與及一顆父母愛子之心。讓人民可以安居樂業。亞孟。
Beyond Murphy's Law
"Would that even today you knew the things that make for peace! But now they are hid from your eyes." (Luke 19:42)
What is hidden or cannot be seen may not necessarily be invisible. Probably we ignore the existence of those things. Have you ever been looking for your own glasses?
Even if we have made an airtight perfect plan, accidents still happen. We will always overlook something which leads to disasters. This is the infamous Murphy's Law: whatever could go wrong, will go wrong! The existence of this very law proves the limitations of human knowledge.
But what Jesus had spoken about what would happen to Jerusalem was not an accident. "Rome was not built in one day!" How could a single person be responsible for the disaster that fell upon the Holy City, or that the disaster took a few months to brew? There must have been some clues to her destruction for some time. Unfortunately, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, especially those in power chose to insist on their opinions, ignored those signals and did not handle them properly. This destruction was self-inflicted.
Of course Jesus wanted the inhabitants of Jerusalem to discern the situation clearly, to put away their narrow nationalism, not to stubbornly expect a Messiah to lead the people to overthrow the colonial Roman rule. Similarly, Jesus desires us to know our sins and inadequacy, to put away those tendencies such as greed, pride, wrath, lust, envy and sloth. Do not ignore them but handle them seriously and properly. Although cultivating virtues does not necessarily lead to a trouble-free life, when disaster strikes, we will be able to stand tall without the slightest regret. This is the key point of the eschatology of Jesus Christ: be alert! Personal alert is already difficult, not to mention a city or a state. When the head of a state prefers listening selectively and when the subjects work hard to guess his likes and dislikes, a city or a state will fall within forty years. Jerusalem was a prime example.
Heavenly Father! Give the government officials clear sights, sharp hearings and a parental heart so that the citizens may lead a stable life and find job satisfaction. Amen.
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