主題：聽牧者的聲音
我生性魯鈍，後知後覺。與其他人比較，起步總是慢一些、遲一些！例如，回應執事聖召和為家母洗禮等。說得冠冕堂皇點，是小心謹慎，沒有足夠的把握，不會採取行動。說得實在點，是怕失敗，不敢冒險！且看，我不怕沉悶，總是做一些重複乏味的，但肯定有成果的事，例如編寫電腦程式，卻甚少花時間在美化畫面和優化運作時間上！耶穌基督曾警告在末世時期，「將有假默西亞和假先知興起，行異跡和奇事，如果可能的話，他們連被選者都要欺騙。」（谷13:22）所以，無論是小心謹慎也好，還是怕失敗也好，我總要找出一些準則，憑著這些準則來判斷是牧者的聲音而跟隨他（若10:4），還是假先知的聲音而拒絕它。
綜觀這十個月來的社會動盪和新型肺炎疫情，偽資訊和謠言滿天飛，令人產生末世已近的感覺。很多KOL和有影響力的人也曾發放了不少假消息，應驗了耶穌基督的警告！我發覺這些偽資訊有一個共同特點，就是非常直覺，非常容易明白，不需要真憑實據的支持！「那些暴徒有外國勢力撐腰」、「別具用心的老師透過通識教育毒害青年人的心智」、「病毒是人造的」、「WHO收受利益，粉飾太平」…但願真相/真理可以如此簡單，如此容易明白，天意不再這樣難料！
當然我們不明白的，並不保證一定是天主的聲音！但有一點是正面的，是天主與眾不同的特點！在舊約，天主直呼不少人物的名字來召喚他們：亞巴郎、梅瑟、撒慕爾…新約中最戲劇化的，要數耶穌基督從墳墓中，呼喚拉匝祿出來（若11:43）！還有瑪利亞瑪達肋納。今天的福音，記載主耶穌要「按著名字呼喚自己的羊，並引領出來。」（10:3）假設我都是蒙恩得救的人，的確是主的羊。祂會以我們的名字呼喚我們，這一點是正面的。但問題出現了：我們每個人都擁有不祇一個名字，天主以哪一個名字呼喚我們呢？可能出於迷信，為了保護我們，兒時父母祇呼喊我們「豬仔、牛仔」的「乳名」、還有同輩之間互相嘲諷「鋼牙佬、金魚佬」的「花名」、身份證明文件上的名字、出版時用的如「金庸」的「筆名」和社會上人們流傳如「689」的「渾名」…哪一個纔是我們的真實名字呢？可能不是上述任何一個！我相信這個名字，必定是天主用以專門呼喚我們用的（當然不祇在我們彌留時纔用），祇有天主纔知道，而且我們是懂得回應的！天主按名字呼喚我們，真是非常奇妙的一回事！
第三，「祂會走在羊前面，羊也跟隨祂，因為認得祂的聲音。」（10:4）主耶穌在前面，為我們蒙召的人開闢了返回天父家鄉的前途。福音記載了祂吩咐我們愛仇人，希望我們跟著做；祂寬恕釘死祂的人，希望我們也跟著做。倘若我們真的按福音的記載跟著做，我相信我們不會偏離祂太遠了！
各位兄弟姊妹，「天主為愛祂的人所預備的，是眼所未見，耳所未聞，人心所未想到的。」（格前2:9，依64:3）聖保祿宗祿也同意天主是令人意料之外的天主。願天主賜下智慧，讓我們認得祂的聲音，跟隨祂賦予生命的呼召，「可以進，可以出，可以找著草場。」（若10:9）辨明到適合自己的聖召，並放膽跟隨祂。不要落後，免得主要捨下其他人，回頭來尋找你！
我們怎樣認得祂的聲音，而不是自己幻聽，或者假先知的謊言呢？我知道祂的聲音是充滿生命力，並賜予生命的。正如祂說：「我來，是為叫他們獲得生命，且獲得更豐富的生命。」（10:10）耶穌基督不祇空談，祂有如天主創生萬物時一樣，一聲號令，便恢復了拉匝祿的生命（11:43）。注意，我們認得的，是祂的聲音，而不是祂高尚、高超、令人莫名其妙的道理。正如聖詠所說：「不是語，也不是言，是聽不到的語言…沒有一物可避免它的熱燄。」（詠19:4，7）是非筆墨所能形容的。我們又回到第一點了！
天主保祐！
2017年講道
圖片鳴謝：Good Shepherd Catholic Community
Fourth Easter Sunday (Vocation Sunday), Year A
Theme: Hear The Shepherd's Voice
I'm dumb and slow. Comparing with the others, I always take my first step slower and later than most people, for example, my decision to become a permanent deacon and my mother's baptism. On an optimistic stroke, I'm prudent and do not act unless I'm 100% certain. In reality, failures and risk-takings are aversive to me! Look, I'm not afraid of boredom. Most of the time, I perform repetitive and bland tasks which definitely yield results. For example, I write computer programmes but spend little time embellishing the layout or optimizing the efficiency! Jesus Christ has warned that when the end comes, "False messiahs and false prophets will arise and will perform signs and wonders in order to mislead, if that were possible, the elect." (Mark 13:22) Thus, whether I'm prudent or afraid of failures, I need to work out some criteria which enable me to judge whether it is the shepherd's voice so that I may follow (John 10:4), or it is false prophets' so that I would reject.
For the last ten months of social unrest and pandemic, we have been bombarded by a lot of misinformation and rumours. We feel that the end is literally near. Many KOL and influential people have spread a lot of fake news, thus fulfilling Jesus Christ's warning! I discover that they share a common characteristic. These fake news and rumours are very intuitive, easy to understand and do not need any evidence to support! "Foreign influences support those thugs"; "Teachers with ulterior motives poison the minds of students through Liberal Studies"; "Covid-19 was manufactured" and "WHO is bribed to white wash the pandemic" etc. How I wish that the truth were so simple, so easy to understand and God's will were fathomable!
Alas, the God I believe in is a God of surprises! A ninety-year-old Sarah gave birth to Isaac for a hundred-year-old Abraham; An eighty-year-old Moses was summoned in a burning bush to lead the Israelites to the Red Sea to engage in a mortal combat with Pharaoh; a shepherd boy picked up a smooth stone from the wade to defeat a giant; a gentile widow supported Elijah for three years during a drought; God invited a young girl who wanted to serve Him in celibacy to become the mother of the Saviour; after His triumphant entry into Jerusalem Jesus did not chase out the Romans, but merchants in the Temple and finally died on the cross … There are many other surprises that God did, but if these were to be described individually, I don't think the whole world would contain the books that would be written! No wonder Zechariah did not believe that his wife would be able to give birth to John the Baptist; Elijah would be extremely disappointed to know that 7000 men in Israel had never bent their knees to Baal; Saul did not want David to overshadow him; Moses rejected God's call five times and Sarah laughed in her heart! Isaiah had written well, "Who has directed the spirit of the Lord, or instructed Him as His counsellor?" (Isaiah 40:13) Thus, things which we can easily understand definitely do not come from God! From the start and even throughout the whole process of God's call, we surely do not understand and need to pray and discern continually. This soul searching journey is treacherous if not painful. This is the first characteristic, a negative characteristic.
Of course, not understandable does not guarantee that it is God's voice! Luckily we have a positive characteristic now! In the Old Testament, God called out directly the names of many people: Abraham, Moses and Samuel etc. The most dramatic call in the New Testament is Jesus Christ called Lazarus out of his tomb (John 11:43)! There is Mary Magdalene as well. The gospel passage today says that Lord Jesus shall "calls His own sheep by name and leads them out" (10:3) Assuming that we are the elected and are genuinely lambs of God. He would call us by name. This is certain and positive. But a question follows: each one of us possesses more than one name. By which name shall God call us? Perhaps out of superstition, in order to protect us, our parents called us lac-names such as "Piggy, Oxie"; our peers teased each other with nicknames such as "Steel Teeth, Peeping Tom"; our official names on identity documents; pseudonyms of authors and names such as "689" given to politicians etc. Which one is our genuine name? Probably none of the above! I believe that this name must be the one which God calls us exclusively (of course not only when we are taking our last breath). Only God knows and to which we respond! God calls us by name. How amazing it is!
Thirdly, "He walks ahead of them and the sheep follow Him because they recognize His voice" (10:4) Lord Jesus walks ahead of us the elected to break the path which leads home to the Father. The gospel says He tells us to love our enemies and wish that we follow. He forgave those who had nailed Him to the cross and wish that we follow. If we follow the gospel, I believe that we would not stray too far off!
Brethren! "What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love him." (1 Corinthians 2:9, Isaiah 64:3) St. Paul also agrees that God is a God of surprises. May God grant us wisdom so that we may recognize His voice and follow His life-giving call, so that we "will come in and go out and find pasture," (John 10:9) discern the appropriate call and follow Him bravely. Don't fall behind lest He left others behind, turn back to fetch you!
How do we know that it is His voice, not our hallucinations or the lies of false prophets? I know that His voice is full of life and is life-giving. Just as He says, "I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly." (10:10) Jesus Christ does not give empty talks. Just as God who created everything with a command, Jesus commanded and Lazarus came back to life (11:43). Notice that we recognize His voice and not the noble, transcendental and unfathomable truth. The Psalmist says well, "There is no speech, no words … nothing escapes its heat." (Psalm 19:4, 7) It is beyond description. We have come back to the first point!
God bless!
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