主題：喜從何來？
今天是「喜樂主日」，禮儀的顏色由紫色轉為玫瑰紅色，它既標誌著將臨期第二階段的開始，即紀念救主在二千年前的誕生。救主的誕生帶來喜樂，所以我們以玫瑰紅色表達出對這份喜樂的期望。
與上一個主日的福音一樣，今天福音的主角仍然是若翰洗者。他是上主派來為耶穌基督作証的先鋒，幫助群眾作好心靈的準備，迎接默西亞，救主的來臨。他教訓群眾悔改，放下世俗的憂慮，心神轉向天主。他的教訓，今天仍然合用。另一方面，耶路撒冷的宗教領袖，一直監視著他的舉動，恐怕出了亂子，給羅馬殖民地政府一個藉口，大開殺戒。今天的福音，記載了他們對若翰洗者的查詢。
被派的人分兩類，司祭和肋未人負責耶路撒冷聖殿的祭獻工作，祭獻是猶太教宗教生活的中心。但在耶穌時代，有些團體不滿司祭的貪污腐敗，便反對聖殿祭獻，離開耶路撒冷，走進曠野，另起爐灶。梅瑟是肋未支派的人，是他定下祭獻的法律。他從埃及解放了以色列人，梅瑟可以說是第一個默西亞。後來猶大國亡國充軍到巴比倫，波斯王居魯士征服了巴比倫，解放了猶大，讓他們回國重建聖殿。依撒意亞先知稱居魯士為「受傅者」即「默西亞」（依45:1）。若翰的父親也是一個司祭（路1:5），所以若翰非常明白司祭們的來意。若他是默西亞，他會否好像梅瑟和居魯士一樣，支持聖殿的祭獻呢？因此，當司祭問他「你是誰」的時候，若翰直截了當地否認自己是默西亞（若1:19-20）。大家可記得若翰的衣著嗎？種種跡像顯示，若翰極有可能反對聖殿祭獻。因此，司祭繼續詢問。
當以色列的君王帶領人民崇拜巴耳，離棄了天主的時候，天主派厄里亞先知撥亂反正。首先是宣佈三年的旱災，然後在加爾默耳山挑戰四百五十位巴耳的先知，祭神求雨。結果厄里亞勝出，以色列暫時恢復了對天主的崇拜，恢復了向天主的祭祀。因此，司祭問若翰是否厄里亞，看他是否支持聖殿的祭獻。若翰又否認了。（1:21）即是說，若翰仍然有可能反對聖殿的祭獻。
法利塞人在各地的會堂工作，負責管理教義和其他宗教行為，他們看守和保存教義和傳統的正確性，有如「道德警察」。例如，雖然梅瑟法律要求遵守安息日，但如何遵守，搬多重的東西，走多遠的路，就由傳統所規定。這些都是法利塞人的任務。他們問若翰，既然不反對，又不贊成聖殿祭獻，為甚麼施洗，好像那些脫離聖殿崇拜，避往曠野的團體一樣呢？法利塞人想鑒定若翰的施洗有沒有違反他們的傳統，看看若翰見否與他們同一陣營。若翰告訴他們，他以水施洗，與法利塞人沒有分別，他們可以放心。若翰再進一步為耶穌基督作見証（若1:26-27），希望他們可以與耶穌基督一起，革新猶太人的宗教生活。可惜若翰的苦心白費了。將來批評耶穌最激烈的，就是法利塞人！當然其中也有支持耶穌的法利塞人。
從今天的福音，我們推測到司祭、肋未人和法利塞人，沒有因若翰的作証而喜樂。他們祗關心若翰是否反對聖殿的祭祀，是否那些與耶路撒冷作對的非建制派，是否羅馬政府派來的滋事份子，製造口實給羅馬政府出兵鎮壓等等…他們生活在利益和權力鬥爭之中，每天的生活充滿壓力，心中再沒有空間留給天主。事實上，所有的權貴都不想改變現況，他們絕不歡迎默西亞來解放，因為默西亞的出現會令他們蒙受金錢及權勢上的損失，且看大黑落德如何下令屠殺剛出生的猶太人君王。所以，若翰所宣講的悔改，放下世俗的利益，轉面投靠天主，為他們並不中聽！
另一方面，平民百姓受盡欺壓剝削，生活是艱苦的，同樣是充滿壓力的。若翰的宣講就蠻有意義了。他們需要默西亞解放他們，脫離官府和商人的剝削，他們渴望厄里亞為他們重建一個公義的社會，留給他們的下一代！他們希望預言中的「那位先知」，可以使他們安居樂業，所有夢想成真！他們註定會失望！因為他們與宗教權貴一樣，局限了天主要做的事！
天主為我們所準備的，豈祗是脫離剝削，安居樂業呢？保祿宗徒說：「天主為愛祂的人所準備的，是眼所未見，耳所未聞，人心所未想到的。」（格前2:9）的確，與我們同在的天主是創造天地的天主，一切都掌握在祂的手中。當我們在尋找天主的過程，以為到了山窮水盡的時候，天主會為我們開闢一條新的道路，讓我們接近祂。
於是司祭繼續問若翰是否「那位先知」。這位無名先知是誰？就是梅瑟曾預言在他以後，天主要興起一位像梅瑟一樣的先知（申18:15），即是說，如果若翰就是那位先知，相信他會像梅瑟一樣，支持聖殿的祭獻。可惜，若翰又否認了，司祭和肋未人聽不到他們想聽到的答案。最後，惟有由若翰自己說自己是誰。若翰的答案：「曠野裡的聲音」，聽來沒有反對聖殿祭獻，司祭們便完成了自己的任務。
各位兄弟姊妹，不要把天主局限在我們的框架中。祂超越萬有，是我們一切幸福喜樂的源頭。距離聖誕節祗有一個星期，讓我們繼續默想天主為我們所預備了的恩寵吧！
天主保祐！
Third Advent Sunday (Gaudete Sunday), Year B
Theme: Whence comes the Joy?
Today is Gaudete Sunday. The liturgical colour is rose-coloured instead of purple. It marks the beginning of the second stage of Advent Season to celebrate the birth of the Saviour two millennia ago. The birth of the Saviour brings joy. We put on rose-coloured vestments to express this expectation of joy.
Two groups of people were sent. Priests and Levites were ministers of sacrificial works in the Temple. Offering sacrifice was the core of Jewish religious life. But in Jesus' time, some communities were unhappy about the corruption of priests. They opposed Temple sacrifice and left Jerusalem. They ventured into the wilderness to establish their own cults. Moses was a Levite. He set down the sacrificial laws. He liberated the Israelites from Egypt. Moses could be deemed the first Messiah. Later, when Judah was conquered and exiled to Babylon, Cyrus, the Persian king conquered Babylon in turn and set Judah free to return home to rebuild the Temple. Isaiah calls him "the Anointed", i.e. the Messiah (Isaiah 45:1). John's father was a priest (Luke 1:5). Thus John knew very well the intention of the priests. If he were the Messiah, would he, like Moses and Cyrus, support Temple sacrifices? Thus, when the priests asked him who he was, John directly denied that he was the Messiah (John 1:19-20). Do you remember John's clothing? Signs indicated that he would oppose Temple sacrifice. Thus, the priests interrogated further.
When the Israelite king led the people to worship Baal and abandoned the Lord, Yahweh sent Elijah to restore order. Firstly, there was a drought of three years. Then on Mount Carmel, Elijah challenged 450 Baal prophets to offer sacrifice to respective gods to beg for rain. In the end, Elijah won. Yahwehism was temporarily restored in Israel. The sacrifice to Yahweh was restored. Thus, when the priests asked if John was Elijah, they wanted to find out if he supported Temple sacrifice. John denied once more. (1:21) That is to say, it was probable that John opposed Temple sacrifice.
The Pharisees worked in local synagogues. They were responsible for managing doctrines and religious behaviours. They ensured the orthodoxy of teachings and traditions and their orthopraxis, like "morality policemen". For example, although Mosaic Law stipulated the observance of the Sabbath, how to observe, how much weight was allowed to carry, how far a person was allowed to walk etc. were handed down by traditions. This was the turf of the Pharisees. They asked John, if he did not support Temple sacrifice or object, why he baptized like those runaway communities in the wilderness. The Pharisees wanted to assess if John's baptism had violated traditions and whether John was on their side. John told them that he baptized with water like them. They could rest assured. John further bore witness to Jesus Christ (John 1:26-27), hoping that they would work with Jesus to regenerate the religious life of the Jews. John could not be more wrong. In the future, the Pharisees would criticize Jesus the most, of course with a handful of exceptions.
From the gospel passage today, we may deduce that the priests, Levites and Pharisees would not rejoice in the witness John bore. They only cared if John opposed Temple sacrifice, if he would be an anti-establishmentalist who opposed Jerusalem, if he was a trouble-maker sent by the Romans to create an excuse for the Roman government to send in troops to suppress them etc. They were living in power struggles and their daily life was under high tensions. There was no room for God in their hearts. In fact, no authority wanted to change the status quo. They rejected Messiah/liberators because they would suffer financial and power losses when a Messiah emerged. See how Herod the Great massacred the newly born King of the Jews. Thus, John's teaching on repentance, to put down secular interests and turn to God would only land on deaf ears!
On the other hand, ordinary people suffered oppressions and exploitations. Life was difficult and under pressure. The teaching of John seemed to be relevant. They needed a Messiah to liberate them from the collusion of government officials and businessmen. They desired to leave behind for the posterity a fair society rebuilt by Elijah. They hoped that "the Prophet" would make their dreams come true, that they might lead a stable and prosperous life. They were doomed to disappointment! It is because, like the religious authorities, they confined what God could do!
Does God prepare for us a society free from exploitation, where people could lead a stable and prosperous life? St. Paul says, "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him." (1 Corinthians 2:9) Indeed, the Creator of heaven and earth stays with us. He holds everything in His hand. When, in the course of seeking God, we come to a dead-end, God shall open up a new path for us to come close to Him.
Like the previous Sunday, the hero of the gospel reading today is John the Baptist. God sent him to be the forerunner of Christ to bear him witness. He prepared the hearts of the people to receive the Messiah, the Saviour. He taught the people to repent, to put down secular worries and turn their hearts to God. His teachings are still relevant today. On the other hand, the religious authority from Jerusalem watched over him anxiously lest any unrest would give the colonial Roman government an excuse to butcher the people. Today's reading is a record of their interrogation of John the Baptist.
Then they continued to ask John if he was "the Prophet". Who was this anonymous Prophet? He was the one whom Moses prophesized God would raise up one day a prophet like unto Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15). That is to say, if John were that Prophet, he would support Temple sacrifice like Moses. Unfortunately, John denied again. The priests and Levites could not get the answer they wanted to hear. Lastly, they demanded John to speak for himself who he was. John's answer, "a voice in the wilderness" did not seem to oppose Temple sacrifice. The priests had accomplished their mission.
Brethren, don't shut God up inside a box. He who surpasses the Creation is the source of all our happiness and joy. There is about one week to go before Christmas. Let us continue to meditate what graces God has prepared for us!
God bless!
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