If God recalls me tonight, I will be caught unprepared.
I should have written this blog yesterday. Now I'm writing it but it will be the shortest blog.
I am not complaining but my hands are full. Jesus teaches me to stay alert, to keep watch over my soul. I know I know. But there are always so many things to take care of. Taking care of my soul becomes lower in priority. It is not as urgent as the things which I MUST handle at the moment.
Dear Lord, save me. Amen.
Sunday, 27 November 2011
Sunday, 20 November 2011
Good News and Bad
Thank God, my younger brother was discharged from the hospital yesterday, Saturday. The doctors said there was nothing more the hospital could do. Five further consultations have been arranged in the next few weeks to monitor his situation. In the meantime, he has to keep his cholesterol level within limits.
My brother was an electrical engineer. True to his colours, he manages to contain the damages and minimizes the troubles his illness causes. The previous Saturday when he was released from the hospital "on holiday", he bought a netbook computer together with a 3G wireless router. From his hospital bed, he would be able to make video calls to our parents and to me. However, the damage has been done. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) shows extensive blood clogs in his brain. Sometimes, not only does he lose some memories, but he also displays minor symptoms of mental retardation. On the other hand, my parents are old and on medication. My father always mixes up the pills which he and mum have to take both in the mornings and in the evenings. My younger brother could not hide his worries. He requested another holiday last week to attend to the medication problem. The best arrangement at the moment is to persuade my parents to move to Tuen Mun, to live near us so that we don't have to travel across the territory from west to east to cater for their daily needs. My brother joins me to persuade my parents. But moving back to Tuen Mun is an uprooting venture. My parents don't like the idea but they show signs of concession. Erminia has started looking for flats here in Tuen Mun with nearly identical designs with that of theirs in Chai Wan, hoping that they would suffer the least convenience.
This Saturday, I was shaken by a bad news. Five of us attended on the same day a Psychology Test conducted by Fr. George Zee, S. J. to help us discern our vocation as permanent deacons. We successfully became aspirants and began our deacon formation. Three of us enrolled immediately in the theology course while Fred did the same one year later. We study together and build up quite a deep bond. We admire each other, Cosmas for his righteousness and Titan for his resourcefulness and me, knowledge of the Bible. BB Joe, our senior, was the first to quit. He wrote a polite resignation letter to hide his bitterness. Fred could not complete his Year One course due to his day time work. The remaining three of us become more emotionally attached. During the summer, Cosmas was elevated a Candidate. Titan and I were happy about it. After nearly two and a half year, we began to see the first sign of success. We are patient because we know that the vocation would not be an easy path. When Titan told me that he would be meeting the Vicar General who is also the Formation Director of the deacons, I congratulated him, expecting to see him elevated. In the evening, I was shaken to read his email, informing Cosmas and me that the Director asked him to leave the formation programme, citing the reason that the Spiritual Director of Titan did not recommend his staying in the formation programme any more. The VG felt obliged to respect his recommendation. My faith in the hierarchy was shaken.
If there be any unsatisfactory performance on the part of Titan, shouldn't he be advised of the defects and given help to improve on them? There are perhaps many more reasons about which Titan has not told me or Titan himself has not be told. I have to tell myself that nothing could have happened without God's consent. His will is behind every event that happens and His arrangement is always the best for us. Titan is talented in his own way. A pre-Vatican II Catholic, he knows a lot of Latin hymns. He is a Chinese Literature/History panel-chair in the Salesian School. His Chinese language is impeccable and very often able to point out the typographical errors that plague the Diocesan publications and handouts from the professors etc. He has been very resourceful and he knows where his strength lies: history. As a Salesian, Titan, I am sure, is spiritually mature enough to cope with all the repercussions of this expulsion. On the other hand, I am not so sure about myself.
In the morning, Fr. Martin brought to our attention those who are currently most in need in Tung Chung and Tin Shui Wai --- the hawkers. From a recent TV documentary, we can catch sight of the plights of this group of people. Nobody is willing to become a hawker unless forced upon by the situation. However, unemployment bites both the body and the soul. Losing a job, a person loses his dignity as well. Becoming a hawker is the only way out if you don't have the cheek to beg for Comprehensive Social Security Allowance from the Social Welfare Department.
Fr. Martin told us to reflect on our spending habits. It is truly convenient to be able to buy everything in one go in a supermarket. However, supermarket chains is a monopoly which is squeezing the survival space of some needy people. Let us be aware that our spending habit, our love of convenience is indirectly killing off some poor people in our society. If we do not make appropriate adjustments to our habit, we will become the cursed group on the left hand side of the King on the Judgment Day (Matthew 25:41).
Fr. Michael Yeung, another Vicar General, came to our parish to celebrate our Feast Day. His homily was not theological. He made good use of the occasion to help us count the blessings we have received from God in these 38 years. He also made use of the occasion of the Rite of Confirmation to help us meditate the life of Christ to discover when he acted like a king. He warned us of the two extremes which most people easily fall into when they think about the Kingdom of God. On one extreme, people fold their hands and do nothing to wait for the breaking-in of the Kingdom of God. On the other extreme, people work so hard as to force the hand of God to realize the Kingdom of God on earth. Both of them are wrong. For Fr. Michael Yeung, the Kingdom of God is now, this moment. Open our heart to embrace the will of the Father, like Jesus. The Kingdom of God is God's business. He will actualize it through us. He encouraged the recipients of Confirmation to lead a Christ-like life, always seeking the will of the Father.
Dear Lord, I pray for the recovery of my brother. I pray for the vocation of Titan. May he continue to serve You and receive Your grace. Amen.
My brother was an electrical engineer. True to his colours, he manages to contain the damages and minimizes the troubles his illness causes. The previous Saturday when he was released from the hospital "on holiday", he bought a netbook computer together with a 3G wireless router. From his hospital bed, he would be able to make video calls to our parents and to me. However, the damage has been done. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) shows extensive blood clogs in his brain. Sometimes, not only does he lose some memories, but he also displays minor symptoms of mental retardation. On the other hand, my parents are old and on medication. My father always mixes up the pills which he and mum have to take both in the mornings and in the evenings. My younger brother could not hide his worries. He requested another holiday last week to attend to the medication problem. The best arrangement at the moment is to persuade my parents to move to Tuen Mun, to live near us so that we don't have to travel across the territory from west to east to cater for their daily needs. My brother joins me to persuade my parents. But moving back to Tuen Mun is an uprooting venture. My parents don't like the idea but they show signs of concession. Erminia has started looking for flats here in Tuen Mun with nearly identical designs with that of theirs in Chai Wan, hoping that they would suffer the least convenience.
This Saturday, I was shaken by a bad news. Five of us attended on the same day a Psychology Test conducted by Fr. George Zee, S. J. to help us discern our vocation as permanent deacons. We successfully became aspirants and began our deacon formation. Three of us enrolled immediately in the theology course while Fred did the same one year later. We study together and build up quite a deep bond. We admire each other, Cosmas for his righteousness and Titan for his resourcefulness and me, knowledge of the Bible. BB Joe, our senior, was the first to quit. He wrote a polite resignation letter to hide his bitterness. Fred could not complete his Year One course due to his day time work. The remaining three of us become more emotionally attached. During the summer, Cosmas was elevated a Candidate. Titan and I were happy about it. After nearly two and a half year, we began to see the first sign of success. We are patient because we know that the vocation would not be an easy path. When Titan told me that he would be meeting the Vicar General who is also the Formation Director of the deacons, I congratulated him, expecting to see him elevated. In the evening, I was shaken to read his email, informing Cosmas and me that the Director asked him to leave the formation programme, citing the reason that the Spiritual Director of Titan did not recommend his staying in the formation programme any more. The VG felt obliged to respect his recommendation. My faith in the hierarchy was shaken.
If there be any unsatisfactory performance on the part of Titan, shouldn't he be advised of the defects and given help to improve on them? There are perhaps many more reasons about which Titan has not told me or Titan himself has not be told. I have to tell myself that nothing could have happened without God's consent. His will is behind every event that happens and His arrangement is always the best for us. Titan is talented in his own way. A pre-Vatican II Catholic, he knows a lot of Latin hymns. He is a Chinese Literature/History panel-chair in the Salesian School. His Chinese language is impeccable and very often able to point out the typographical errors that plague the Diocesan publications and handouts from the professors etc. He has been very resourceful and he knows where his strength lies: history. As a Salesian, Titan, I am sure, is spiritually mature enough to cope with all the repercussions of this expulsion. On the other hand, I am not so sure about myself.
In the morning, Fr. Martin brought to our attention those who are currently most in need in Tung Chung and Tin Shui Wai --- the hawkers. From a recent TV documentary, we can catch sight of the plights of this group of people. Nobody is willing to become a hawker unless forced upon by the situation. However, unemployment bites both the body and the soul. Losing a job, a person loses his dignity as well. Becoming a hawker is the only way out if you don't have the cheek to beg for Comprehensive Social Security Allowance from the Social Welfare Department.
Fr. Martin told us to reflect on our spending habits. It is truly convenient to be able to buy everything in one go in a supermarket. However, supermarket chains is a monopoly which is squeezing the survival space of some needy people. Let us be aware that our spending habit, our love of convenience is indirectly killing off some poor people in our society. If we do not make appropriate adjustments to our habit, we will become the cursed group on the left hand side of the King on the Judgment Day (Matthew 25:41).
Fr. Michael Yeung, another Vicar General, came to our parish to celebrate our Feast Day. His homily was not theological. He made good use of the occasion to help us count the blessings we have received from God in these 38 years. He also made use of the occasion of the Rite of Confirmation to help us meditate the life of Christ to discover when he acted like a king. He warned us of the two extremes which most people easily fall into when they think about the Kingdom of God. On one extreme, people fold their hands and do nothing to wait for the breaking-in of the Kingdom of God. On the other extreme, people work so hard as to force the hand of God to realize the Kingdom of God on earth. Both of them are wrong. For Fr. Michael Yeung, the Kingdom of God is now, this moment. Open our heart to embrace the will of the Father, like Jesus. The Kingdom of God is God's business. He will actualize it through us. He encouraged the recipients of Confirmation to lead a Christ-like life, always seeking the will of the Father.
Dear Lord, I pray for the recovery of my brother. I pray for the vocation of Titan. May he continue to serve You and receive Your grace. Amen.
Sunday, 13 November 2011
How talented are you?
In my undergrad days, Personality was a compulsory course in Psychology. Part of the course dealt with a topic called "The Chinese Personality". It centred around a textbook of the same title edited by a Professor Li from Taiwan. At that time, we were very much fascinated and were not capable of criticizing its flaws. In hindsight, the methodology and theoretical basis were weak. At most, you can only draw some very vague generalizations of the attitudes of most Chinese of a particular age-group in a particular region. Even such a humble aspiration is full of pitfalls. What was true in the 1970's is no longer true today!
Does it mean that it is impossible to make any general comment on the behaviours of a certain people compared with others? But daily observations do confirm that Chinese immigrants are more hard working than the indigenous people and they do advance quickly in foreign societies. Chinese are not physically stronger. Nor are there any evidence of their superior intelligence. The social structure of a foreign society definitely does not favour them. So, how do we explain such successful phenomena without appealing to their personality?
As a Hong Kong Chinese, I suppose I am qualified to say something about the Chinese way of thinking as I understand it. Today, I want to focus on one particular aspect of Chinese culture: the way they deal with talents.
Every culture glorifies heroes and heroes are outstanding and talented. Unfortunately, different generations value and glorify different talents. In Tang Dynasty, poets were highly prized. Today, very few poets are able to survive the high living standards in Hong Kong. You do better if you are a computer wizard like Bill Gates or Steve Jobs. Therefore, if you have the "wrong" type of talents, you are unfortunate, to say the least.
But Bill Gates and Steve Jobs were not only gifted. They were path-breakers. They went all the way out to make things happen. Not so for the Chinese. Even if you have the right kind of talents, you need somebody who is able to discover your talents. A Chinese idiom expresses it well: 世有伯樂然後有千里馬 In this world, you need a Pak Lok to discover a wonder horse. Woe to many whose talents are doomed not to be discovered and they die with bitterness. To console their bitterness, Confucius tells them to remain unagitated because they will be called a gentleman 人不知而不慍，不亦君子乎？ Many Chinese suffer their frustrations and wait patiently to be discovered.
As a Catholic, we believe that God knows us all and gives us talents to serve. Today, the gospel reading (Matthew 25:14-30) tells us to make full use of our God-given talents because when we return to God, we need to settle account with Him. If we do well with our talents, we can enter into the joy of our master (Matthew 25:21b, 23b). If we "bury" our talents, God will cast us into the outer darkness, there men will weep and gnash their teeth (Matthew 25:30).
So, the next question is what God wants us to do with these talents. The answer is immediately given in the Parable of Sheep and Goats that follows (Matthew 25:31-46). God wants us to feed the hungry, drink the thirsty, shelter the homeless, clothe the naked, tender the sick and visit the imprisoned. It should be noted that the Lord will not judge whether we are baptized or not, whether we go to church regularly or not. Rather, he will award us for doing the six actions which do not require special talents, just a compassionate heart. He will not cast us into the outer darkness for being slow in extending our helping hands to the needy. Better late than never. Moreover, he will give us many chances to make up what you have missed. You will be punished only if your hearts are so hardened that you do not even stop to buy a flag on the street from an enthusiastic student on Saturdays. Perhaps I am over-optimistic but it is my belief that God does not want to see us cast into the outer darkness. All in all, we do not need much talents to attain eternal life. Of course, being successful in this world is a different story.
Last Monday evening, my younger brother collapsed in his bath. He suffered a minor stroke and was hospitalized. God is very merciful to us. The limbs of my younger brother are not affected. He only loses some of his memories, his favourite Tang poems and he speaks more slowly than he used to do. Sometimes when he speaks, he cannot find the phrases he needs ... There is one more problem. He has difficulty swallowing the food. He loses his appetite. This is the worst and it worries us.
My younger brother retired early and remains single to take care of our aging parents who are now in their eighties; and release me to build up my family. We know that our happiness hinges on his sacrifice. He was an electrical engineer. He is independent, effective, systematic and resilient. On his sick bed, he reads and reads the pamphlets to rebuild his language. His attitude is very encouraging. May God have mercy on us to restore his health. In the meantime, Erminia and I will do whatever we can to repay him. It is our duty, not only our affection.
Dear Lord, I entrust my younger brother into thy hand. May he re-discover his faith in You. Grant him health, spiritual as well as physical. Amen.
Does it mean that it is impossible to make any general comment on the behaviours of a certain people compared with others? But daily observations do confirm that Chinese immigrants are more hard working than the indigenous people and they do advance quickly in foreign societies. Chinese are not physically stronger. Nor are there any evidence of their superior intelligence. The social structure of a foreign society definitely does not favour them. So, how do we explain such successful phenomena without appealing to their personality?
As a Hong Kong Chinese, I suppose I am qualified to say something about the Chinese way of thinking as I understand it. Today, I want to focus on one particular aspect of Chinese culture: the way they deal with talents.
Every culture glorifies heroes and heroes are outstanding and talented. Unfortunately, different generations value and glorify different talents. In Tang Dynasty, poets were highly prized. Today, very few poets are able to survive the high living standards in Hong Kong. You do better if you are a computer wizard like Bill Gates or Steve Jobs. Therefore, if you have the "wrong" type of talents, you are unfortunate, to say the least.
But Bill Gates and Steve Jobs were not only gifted. They were path-breakers. They went all the way out to make things happen. Not so for the Chinese. Even if you have the right kind of talents, you need somebody who is able to discover your talents. A Chinese idiom expresses it well: 世有伯樂然後有千里馬 In this world, you need a Pak Lok to discover a wonder horse. Woe to many whose talents are doomed not to be discovered and they die with bitterness. To console their bitterness, Confucius tells them to remain unagitated because they will be called a gentleman 人不知而不慍，不亦君子乎？ Many Chinese suffer their frustrations and wait patiently to be discovered.
As a Catholic, we believe that God knows us all and gives us talents to serve. Today, the gospel reading (Matthew 25:14-30) tells us to make full use of our God-given talents because when we return to God, we need to settle account with Him. If we do well with our talents, we can enter into the joy of our master (Matthew 25:21b, 23b). If we "bury" our talents, God will cast us into the outer darkness, there men will weep and gnash their teeth (Matthew 25:30).
So, the next question is what God wants us to do with these talents. The answer is immediately given in the Parable of Sheep and Goats that follows (Matthew 25:31-46). God wants us to feed the hungry, drink the thirsty, shelter the homeless, clothe the naked, tender the sick and visit the imprisoned. It should be noted that the Lord will not judge whether we are baptized or not, whether we go to church regularly or not. Rather, he will award us for doing the six actions which do not require special talents, just a compassionate heart. He will not cast us into the outer darkness for being slow in extending our helping hands to the needy. Better late than never. Moreover, he will give us many chances to make up what you have missed. You will be punished only if your hearts are so hardened that you do not even stop to buy a flag on the street from an enthusiastic student on Saturdays. Perhaps I am over-optimistic but it is my belief that God does not want to see us cast into the outer darkness. All in all, we do not need much talents to attain eternal life. Of course, being successful in this world is a different story.
Last Monday evening, my younger brother collapsed in his bath. He suffered a minor stroke and was hospitalized. God is very merciful to us. The limbs of my younger brother are not affected. He only loses some of his memories, his favourite Tang poems and he speaks more slowly than he used to do. Sometimes when he speaks, he cannot find the phrases he needs ... There is one more problem. He has difficulty swallowing the food. He loses his appetite. This is the worst and it worries us.
My younger brother retired early and remains single to take care of our aging parents who are now in their eighties; and release me to build up my family. We know that our happiness hinges on his sacrifice. He was an electrical engineer. He is independent, effective, systematic and resilient. On his sick bed, he reads and reads the pamphlets to rebuild his language. His attitude is very encouraging. May God have mercy on us to restore his health. In the meantime, Erminia and I will do whatever we can to repay him. It is our duty, not only our affection.
Dear Lord, I entrust my younger brother into thy hand. May he re-discover his faith in You. Grant him health, spiritual as well as physical. Amen.
Sunday, 6 November 2011
Were the Wise Maidens Selfish?
We are approaching the end of the liturgical year which finishes at the Feast of Christ the King. It is only two weeks away. Therefore, the scripture readings in the Mass remind us again and again the importance of staying alert because nobody knows when the end comes, his personal end and the end of the world. Let us not be caught with our pants down.
The gospel reading today is the Parable of 10 Bridesmaids found in the gospel of Matthew only. The setting was a Jewish wedding scene. Wedding must have been the greatest and happiest event for a Jew. Therefore, there was nothing better than the wedding to symbolize the Kingdom of Heaven. This is how the parable begins.
Then the kingdom of heaven shall be compared to ten maidens who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom (Matthew 25:1).
The Kingdom of Heaven is the major message Jesus proclaimed in his earthly ministry. At that time, Judah was no longer an independent nation. It was conquered by the Roman Empire and became its colony. Of course the Jews desired independence. Therefore, they were eager to hear what Jesus could offer to tell them about the upcoming Kingdom. They expected to hear something about the restoration of the Jewish state. But Jesus had a much bigger vision to tell them --- the Kingdom of Heaven. This idea was brilliant but intangible. Its contents were too difficult to grasp because it is something so unearthly. Therefore, Jesus employs parables to explain this vision which is so difficult to visualize. This time, Jesus wants to tell them that the Kingdom of Heaven will appear at the least expected moment. Therefore, stay alert and prepared for it will suddenly appear at the most unexpected moment.
Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour (Matthew 25:13).
This parable is situated after Jesus had explained the end of the world to his disciples and before two more parables about the end of the world. Therefore, there is no doubt that the Kingdom of Heaven refers to the end of the world. However, I think it is also possible to think of it as our personal demise. At the end of the day, when we die, we leave this world. Isn't it the end of the world to us? On the personal level, "the day or the hour" may refer to our death. Nowadays, many people, even young people die a sudden death. Therefore, Jesus' advice is pragmatic. Stay prudent like the five wise bridesmaids for you do not know when you will meet your death which may sudden come when you least expect it. Of course, this interpretation is flawed because there are ten bridesmaids which means the story is about a community. It is not intended to be personal. But there is still personal relevance because each one of us has to face the end as a group and as an individual.
Then all those maidens rose and trimmed their lamps.
And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'
But the wise replied, 'Perhaps there will not be enough for us and for you; go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.' (Matthew 25:7-9)
As a group, should we not support each other? As good Christians, should we not extend our charity and help the needy? Does it mean when the end of the world comes, we may relax our Christian ethics and care only of ourselves and ignore the plight of the others? Therefore, the reply of the wise bridesmaids sounds really selfish, though prudent.
On a second thought, we can easily see that there are things which we have to do ourselves and cannot delegate them to the others. As teachers, we prepare our students to sit for examinations but we cannot do the examination papers for them. We discourage them from copying homework because it is part of their trainings. Like athletes, they must do it themselves otherwise they will gain/learn nothing. This is blatant cheating! Unfortunately, we are living in a world of technological wonders which numb our sense of honesty. Medical technologies have opened up many such opportunities for cheating. From plastic surgeries to duping in sports, they are called enhancements. From surrogacy in child-bearing to tailor-made babies, they are called treatments etc. No wonder we easily overlook the importance of our participation and our responsibilities.
Why are the bridesmaids called wise? In Matthew, "wise" appears for the first time in chapter 7 (forget about the Magi in chapter 2 which some translations render "wise men").
Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock (Matthew 7:24)
Christ is the bridegroom and all of us are the bridesmaids. The bridesmaids are wise because they have prepared well. They listen and do what Jesus has challenged us to do in Matthew 5-7. They have made good use of all the opportunities and potentials God has given them.
Indeed, the whole parable should be read together with chapter 7. There you will find the foolish bridesmaids who hears these words of mine and does not do them (Matthew 7:26). You will also find the famous "Lord, Lord" and "I do not know you" segments (Matthew 7:21-22, 25:11).
But doesn't Matthew 7:7 says that God will always answer our prayers, our needs?
Read more carefully what the foolish bridesmaids did when they returned and found the door shut. They didn't knock! How careful Matthew wrote his gospel!
So, how shall we knock? This is a good question for all of us to meditate. Share with us what God has revealed to you.
Dear Lord, I am wayward and timid. Boost my confidence so that I will be brave enough to put my foot out. Amen.
The gospel reading today is the Parable of 10 Bridesmaids found in the gospel of Matthew only. The setting was a Jewish wedding scene. Wedding must have been the greatest and happiest event for a Jew. Therefore, there was nothing better than the wedding to symbolize the Kingdom of Heaven. This is how the parable begins.
Then the kingdom of heaven shall be compared to ten maidens who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom (Matthew 25:1).
The Kingdom of Heaven is the major message Jesus proclaimed in his earthly ministry. At that time, Judah was no longer an independent nation. It was conquered by the Roman Empire and became its colony. Of course the Jews desired independence. Therefore, they were eager to hear what Jesus could offer to tell them about the upcoming Kingdom. They expected to hear something about the restoration of the Jewish state. But Jesus had a much bigger vision to tell them --- the Kingdom of Heaven. This idea was brilliant but intangible. Its contents were too difficult to grasp because it is something so unearthly. Therefore, Jesus employs parables to explain this vision which is so difficult to visualize. This time, Jesus wants to tell them that the Kingdom of Heaven will appear at the least expected moment. Therefore, stay alert and prepared for it will suddenly appear at the most unexpected moment.
Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour (Matthew 25:13).
This parable is situated after Jesus had explained the end of the world to his disciples and before two more parables about the end of the world. Therefore, there is no doubt that the Kingdom of Heaven refers to the end of the world. However, I think it is also possible to think of it as our personal demise. At the end of the day, when we die, we leave this world. Isn't it the end of the world to us? On the personal level, "the day or the hour" may refer to our death. Nowadays, many people, even young people die a sudden death. Therefore, Jesus' advice is pragmatic. Stay prudent like the five wise bridesmaids for you do not know when you will meet your death which may sudden come when you least expect it. Of course, this interpretation is flawed because there are ten bridesmaids which means the story is about a community. It is not intended to be personal. But there is still personal relevance because each one of us has to face the end as a group and as an individual.
Then all those maidens rose and trimmed their lamps.
And the foolish said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.'
But the wise replied, 'Perhaps there will not be enough for us and for you; go rather to the dealers and buy for yourselves.' (Matthew 25:7-9)
As a group, should we not support each other? As good Christians, should we not extend our charity and help the needy? Does it mean when the end of the world comes, we may relax our Christian ethics and care only of ourselves and ignore the plight of the others? Therefore, the reply of the wise bridesmaids sounds really selfish, though prudent.
On a second thought, we can easily see that there are things which we have to do ourselves and cannot delegate them to the others. As teachers, we prepare our students to sit for examinations but we cannot do the examination papers for them. We discourage them from copying homework because it is part of their trainings. Like athletes, they must do it themselves otherwise they will gain/learn nothing. This is blatant cheating! Unfortunately, we are living in a world of technological wonders which numb our sense of honesty. Medical technologies have opened up many such opportunities for cheating. From plastic surgeries to duping in sports, they are called enhancements. From surrogacy in child-bearing to tailor-made babies, they are called treatments etc. No wonder we easily overlook the importance of our participation and our responsibilities.
Why are the bridesmaids called wise? In Matthew, "wise" appears for the first time in chapter 7 (forget about the Magi in chapter 2 which some translations render "wise men").
Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock (Matthew 7:24)
Christ is the bridegroom and all of us are the bridesmaids. The bridesmaids are wise because they have prepared well. They listen and do what Jesus has challenged us to do in Matthew 5-7. They have made good use of all the opportunities and potentials God has given them.
Indeed, the whole parable should be read together with chapter 7. There you will find the foolish bridesmaids who hears these words of mine and does not do them (Matthew 7:26). You will also find the famous "Lord, Lord" and "I do not know you" segments (Matthew 7:21-22, 25:11).
But doesn't Matthew 7:7 says that God will always answer our prayers, our needs?
Read more carefully what the foolish bridesmaids did when they returned and found the door shut. They didn't knock! How careful Matthew wrote his gospel!
So, how shall we knock? This is a good question for all of us to meditate. Share with us what God has revealed to you.
Dear Lord, I am wayward and timid. Boost my confidence so that I will be brave enough to put my foot out. Amen.
Sunday, 30 October 2011
Authentic Humility
This morning, Fr. Martin Ip delivered a beautiful sermon with an instructive story about true humility. I will try my best to translate his story into English. In this way, many more people, English speaking people in particular, will be able to benefit from it.
The story took place in ancient China. A mandarin was posted in a county for a number of years and he had earned praises from all the people living there. Many would say that he was truly a "parents-like official", a mandarin who looked after his people like his children. People there could quote many examples.
One day, he was travelling on the main street of the county in a sedan carried by two coolies. The sedan suddenly stopped because one of the wheels of an ox-drawn cart in front was caught in a muddy depression on the street. The wheel refused to let loose despite the effort of two bystanders who tried to help. Seeing this, the mandarin ordered the two coolies to join the effort. Still, there was no progress. The mandarin came out of the sedan, rolled up his sleeves and joined the pulling. At last, the wheel was free and all the bystanders gave the mud-stained mandarin a huge round of applause. He disregarded his silk mantle and went all the way out to clear up the mess. He was truly a "parents-like official".
The other day, the mandarin was riding a horse along the river. He spotted an old man looking around. The mandarin understood and descended from his horse, put the old man on his animal, waded and led the horse across the river. When they reached the opposite bank, all the bystanders put their thumbs up. The mandarin threw away his dignity to help an old man cross the river. He was really humble.
Some time later, the Emperor heard about all these and summoned the mandarin into the palace. Everybody congratulated the mandarin, expecting to see him rewarded and promoted. Instead, the mandarin was demoted to the far off border to be a sentry. Why?
The Emperor decreed that road maintenance and bridge building were the duties of a mandarin. He failed to discharge his duties properly, thus causing so much inconvenience but earning a lot of praises for himself. He should be demoted. How wise the Emperor was!
Jesus said, "whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted." (Matthew 23:12)
To be authentic, humility should never be self-directed, should not be practised for the sake of earning praises from the others. Otherwise, this kind of humility is self-defeating.
Cultural differences make evangelization to Chinese difficult. Genesis 2:24a is one such example.
Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh (Genesis 2:24).
Jesus told a man to abandon his parents to join a woman. For a Chinese, this is blatant impiety towards one's parents. If this verse is not handled sensibly, many a Chinese refuses to become a Christian. Similar examples can be found in the gospel reading today. Many Protestants like to quote this to attack the reverence Catholics pay to the clergy, calling them Pope (Papa), godfather and Holy Father etc., not knowing that such an attack also drives many Chinese away as well.
But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brethren.
And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.
Neither be called masters, for you have one master, the Christ (Matthew 24:8-10).
As I have mentioned before, Heaven, Earth, Emperor, Parents and Teachers are the five elements that make up what we are. We are taught to pay respect, reverence and piety to them. Apprentices/Disciples call their masters "Teacher-Father 師父". We can always hear on their lips "Being our teacher of just one day is our teacher for life 一日為師，終身為師." If we learn other skills from other teachers, we are guilty of "cheating our teachers and annihilating our ancestors 欺師滅祖" etc.
There were two archer stories in Mencius, one of the Four-Book which was a compulsory syllabus for all students. In the first story, a disciple murdered his master because he thought that he had learned all his master's skills. His master was the only person better than him on earth. The second story was told to show that the first master was guilty for his own demise because he had not chosen his disciples carefully. In the second story, an archer was sent to capture his enemy who happened to be the teacher of his teacher. On that day, his grand-teacher was sick and could not take up his bow. The archer was in a dilemma. On one hand, he did not want to harm his grand-teacher with the skill he passed on to him. On the other hand, he was performing the king's task and had to discharge his mission faithfully. In the end, the archer took four arrows, removed the heads, shot and hit his grand-teacher. Then the archer turned around and left. His grand-teacher was unharmed. Mencius might be guilty of idealizing the incident because there was an independent report in 左傳‧襄公十四年 that the archer pierced the arm of his grand-teacher with his arrow. No matter what, the second story surely sank deeply into the minds of all students. The lesson is: Thou shalt not betray thy teacher.
逢蒙學射於羿，盡羿之道，思天下惟羿為愈己，於是殺羿。孟子曰：「是亦羿有罪焉。」公明儀曰：「宜若無罪焉？」曰：「薄乎雲爾，惡得無罪？鄭人使子濯孺子侵衛，衛使庾公之斯追之。子濯孺子曰：『今日我疾作，不可以執弓，吾死矣夫！』問其仆曰：『追我者誰也？』其仆曰：『庾公之斯也。』曰：『吾生矣。』其仆曰：『庾公之斯，衛之善射者也，夫子曰「吾生」，何謂也？』曰：『庾公之斯學射於尹公之他，尹公之他學射於我。夫尹公之他，端人也，其取友必端矣。』庾公之斯至，曰：『夫子何為不執弓？』曰：『今日我疾作，不可以執弓。』曰：『小人學射於尹公之他，尹公之他學射於夫子。我不忍以夫子之道，反害夫子。雖然，今日之事，君事也，我不敢廢。』抽矢叩輪，去其金、發乘矢而後反。」【孟子‧離婁下】
Of course, it is understandable for Christians to respect Christ as their sole teacher and master. So do Chinese. But unfortunately, before they follow Christ, they have already followed some other teachers who have taught them to read, to write and to live like a Chinese. So, how can we abandon them and do not call them rabbi or teacher! Chinese respect Confucius for political reasons and Chinese are also very capable of deity-making. Therefore, it is unimaginable for them to call Confucius their brother! Chinese are also very skillful in building their social networks. In doing so, they do not hesitate to call the benefactors/seniors by various father-titles such as 仲父、義父、乾爹、契爺 etc. Neither do they hesitate to add one more father and call the Father of Jesus their Heavenly Father.
Building bridges is not the exclusive duty of mandarins. Chinese Christians also have the duty to build bridges meshing Chinese culture and Christianity. To save mankind, the Son of God took human flesh and incarnated. To be authentic followers of Christ, we should also put our efforts in incarnating the messages of the Gospel in the Chinese soil, divinizing the Chinese culture rather than arrogantly condemning it.
Dear Lord, in You we find our true humanity. May we lead an authentically humble life. Amen.
The story took place in ancient China. A mandarin was posted in a county for a number of years and he had earned praises from all the people living there. Many would say that he was truly a "parents-like official", a mandarin who looked after his people like his children. People there could quote many examples.
One day, he was travelling on the main street of the county in a sedan carried by two coolies. The sedan suddenly stopped because one of the wheels of an ox-drawn cart in front was caught in a muddy depression on the street. The wheel refused to let loose despite the effort of two bystanders who tried to help. Seeing this, the mandarin ordered the two coolies to join the effort. Still, there was no progress. The mandarin came out of the sedan, rolled up his sleeves and joined the pulling. At last, the wheel was free and all the bystanders gave the mud-stained mandarin a huge round of applause. He disregarded his silk mantle and went all the way out to clear up the mess. He was truly a "parents-like official".
The other day, the mandarin was riding a horse along the river. He spotted an old man looking around. The mandarin understood and descended from his horse, put the old man on his animal, waded and led the horse across the river. When they reached the opposite bank, all the bystanders put their thumbs up. The mandarin threw away his dignity to help an old man cross the river. He was really humble.
Some time later, the Emperor heard about all these and summoned the mandarin into the palace. Everybody congratulated the mandarin, expecting to see him rewarded and promoted. Instead, the mandarin was demoted to the far off border to be a sentry. Why?
The Emperor decreed that road maintenance and bridge building were the duties of a mandarin. He failed to discharge his duties properly, thus causing so much inconvenience but earning a lot of praises for himself. He should be demoted. How wise the Emperor was!
Jesus said, "whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted." (Matthew 23:12)
To be authentic, humility should never be self-directed, should not be practised for the sake of earning praises from the others. Otherwise, this kind of humility is self-defeating.
Cultural differences make evangelization to Chinese difficult. Genesis 2:24a is one such example.
Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh (Genesis 2:24).
Jesus told a man to abandon his parents to join a woman. For a Chinese, this is blatant impiety towards one's parents. If this verse is not handled sensibly, many a Chinese refuses to become a Christian. Similar examples can be found in the gospel reading today. Many Protestants like to quote this to attack the reverence Catholics pay to the clergy, calling them Pope (Papa), godfather and Holy Father etc., not knowing that such an attack also drives many Chinese away as well.
But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brethren.
And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.
Neither be called masters, for you have one master, the Christ (Matthew 24:8-10).
As I have mentioned before, Heaven, Earth, Emperor, Parents and Teachers are the five elements that make up what we are. We are taught to pay respect, reverence and piety to them. Apprentices/Disciples call their masters "Teacher-Father 師父". We can always hear on their lips "Being our teacher of just one day is our teacher for life 一日為師，終身為師." If we learn other skills from other teachers, we are guilty of "cheating our teachers and annihilating our ancestors 欺師滅祖" etc.
There were two archer stories in Mencius, one of the Four-Book which was a compulsory syllabus for all students. In the first story, a disciple murdered his master because he thought that he had learned all his master's skills. His master was the only person better than him on earth. The second story was told to show that the first master was guilty for his own demise because he had not chosen his disciples carefully. In the second story, an archer was sent to capture his enemy who happened to be the teacher of his teacher. On that day, his grand-teacher was sick and could not take up his bow. The archer was in a dilemma. On one hand, he did not want to harm his grand-teacher with the skill he passed on to him. On the other hand, he was performing the king's task and had to discharge his mission faithfully. In the end, the archer took four arrows, removed the heads, shot and hit his grand-teacher. Then the archer turned around and left. His grand-teacher was unharmed. Mencius might be guilty of idealizing the incident because there was an independent report in 左傳‧襄公十四年 that the archer pierced the arm of his grand-teacher with his arrow. No matter what, the second story surely sank deeply into the minds of all students. The lesson is: Thou shalt not betray thy teacher.
逢蒙學射於羿，盡羿之道，思天下惟羿為愈己，於是殺羿。孟子曰：「是亦羿有罪焉。」公明儀曰：「宜若無罪焉？」曰：「薄乎雲爾，惡得無罪？鄭人使子濯孺子侵衛，衛使庾公之斯追之。子濯孺子曰：『今日我疾作，不可以執弓，吾死矣夫！』問其仆曰：『追我者誰也？』其仆曰：『庾公之斯也。』曰：『吾生矣。』其仆曰：『庾公之斯，衛之善射者也，夫子曰「吾生」，何謂也？』曰：『庾公之斯學射於尹公之他，尹公之他學射於我。夫尹公之他，端人也，其取友必端矣。』庾公之斯至，曰：『夫子何為不執弓？』曰：『今日我疾作，不可以執弓。』曰：『小人學射於尹公之他，尹公之他學射於夫子。我不忍以夫子之道，反害夫子。雖然，今日之事，君事也，我不敢廢。』抽矢叩輪，去其金、發乘矢而後反。」【孟子‧離婁下】
Of course, it is understandable for Christians to respect Christ as their sole teacher and master. So do Chinese. But unfortunately, before they follow Christ, they have already followed some other teachers who have taught them to read, to write and to live like a Chinese. So, how can we abandon them and do not call them rabbi or teacher! Chinese respect Confucius for political reasons and Chinese are also very capable of deity-making. Therefore, it is unimaginable for them to call Confucius their brother! Chinese are also very skillful in building their social networks. In doing so, they do not hesitate to call the benefactors/seniors by various father-titles such as 仲父、義父、乾爹、契爺 etc. Neither do they hesitate to add one more father and call the Father of Jesus their Heavenly Father.
Building bridges is not the exclusive duty of mandarins. Chinese Christians also have the duty to build bridges meshing Chinese culture and Christianity. To save mankind, the Son of God took human flesh and incarnated. To be authentic followers of Christ, we should also put our efforts in incarnating the messages of the Gospel in the Chinese soil, divinizing the Chinese culture rather than arrogantly condemning it.
Dear Lord, in You we find our true humanity. May we lead an authentically humble life. Amen.
Sunday, 23 October 2011
Spiritualization of Love
Before I start, I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge my indebtedness to Fr. Lanfranco Fedrigotti, SDB, who has been very patient in lending his ears to my mumbling.
Though I studied science in the secondary school, I gradually discover that I am fascinated with languages. The study of the Bible opens up new terrains for me: Hebrew, Greek and Latin. Four weeks ago (26th Ordinary Sunday, Year A), the reading of the Parable of Two Sons in Matthew brought up the thorny issue of translating the Bible. The translators face the problem of finding the best possible rendering of the text when there are different manuscripts to choose from. Today, the reading of the Greatest Commandment raises another issue. The same story appears in the three Synoptic Gospels in different ways. Mark and Matthew agree much. The Lucan version is a beautiful literary invention in which the Parable of the Good Samaritan is included. Therefore, today, I will focus on the first two Gospels.
The basic plot is the same. A teacher of the Law challenged Jesus to name the greatest commandment among the 613 Jewish laws. Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18 to answer him. Of course, the teacher of the Law refused to be silenced. This brought about the beautiful story of the Good Samaritan in Luke. Today, I would like to deal with the first part of the answer from Deuteronomy. I will list the text in Hebrew, Greek, Latin and English respectively.
diliges Dominum Deum tuum ex toto corde tuo et ex tota anima tua et ex tota fortitudine tua. (Vulgate)
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole strength.(Deuteronomy 6:5)
So far, so good. Let's read the Matthew version.
Ἀγαπήσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ καρδίᾳ σου καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ ψυχῇ σου καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ διανοίᾳ σου. (GNT)
diliges Dominum Deum tuum ex toto corde tuo et in tota anima tua et in tota mente tua. (Vulgate)
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. (Matthew 22:37b, KJV)
Immediately, we spot a difference. Where has the "strength" gone? It was replaced by "mind". Can "mind" replace "strength"?
We agree that Mark was written before Matthew. So, let us turn to Mark to see what was being written.
καὶ ἀγαπήσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου ἐξ ὅλης τῆς καρδίας σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς ψυχῆς σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς διανοίας σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς ἰσχύος σου.(GNT)
et diliges Dominum Deum tuum ex toto corde tuo et ex tota anima tua et ex tota mente tua et ex tota virtute tua hoc est primum mandatum (Vulgate)
And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment (Mark 12:30, KJV)
There are 4 elements in Mark, not three! Was Mark guilty of adding extra things into the Law, into the Scripture? Yes he did but, I would defend that the society has long changed and Mark was not writing to the Jews, but the Gentiles. For the Jews, the three elements: heart, soul and strength were enough to describe the whole person. For Gentiles under the influence of the Greek civilization, they needed four: heart, soul, mind and strength. For a similar "sin" of putting words into Jesus' mouth, see the unthinkable position of women divorcing their husbands in Mark 10:12.
When we turn to the word "strength", we see that Mark (ἰσχύος, virtute, strength) was actually using a word different from that in Deuteronomy (δυνάμεώς, fortitudine, strength). Mark's is more ethical (ability, courage and might etc.) while the Deuteronomy's more physical, if I am allowed to make such a differentiation. No matter what, time has changed and the usage of the same word changes as well. In time, the same idea might need newer words to describe.
The situation of Matthew, that he had replaced "strength" with "mind", is more difficult to explain because there are so many different ways to look at the situation.
What did Jesus actually say? This is the most crucial question which unfortunately we can only rely on the credibility of the Evangelists. Between Mark and Matthew, whom should we trust? Given that Luke also reports 4 elements (Luke 10:27), should we reject Matthew? Impossible! After all, Matthew was an apostle but Mark and Luke were only second generation disciples. That is also why Matthew is placed before Mark in the canon even though nearly all modern Biblical scholars agree to the priority of Mark.
Moreover, Matthew has an extra support. As Jews, Jesus and Matthew must have been reciting everyday the Shema Israel (Deuteronomy 6:4-5). Therefore, there must be only three elements instead of four. The problem is: Did Jesus say "mind" or "strength"? Unfortunately, we have no way to decide the truthfulness of Possibility#3.
Possibility#2 is a bold assertion. As far as we understand, heart, soul and mind are all psychological/spiritual aspects in modern terms, while strength is more physical/material. While we traditionally interpret the 3 elements (heart, soul and strength) to represent the whole person, both flesh and spirit in the Old Testament theology; the anthropology behind the Matthew version is rather spiritual. He has already spiritualized the Law of Moses in the 3 chapters of Beatitude (chapters 5 to 7). It would be highly likely that Matthew was doing the same here, advocating a theology which John later immortalized in the verse: God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship (and love Him) in spirit and truth (John 4:24).
As a working hypothesis, I propose that Matthew has spiritualized the greatest commandment by replacing "strength" with "mind". Under the influence of Greek civilization and Gnostic ideas, Christians were beginning to approach God in a more spiritual way. Ethically, blessed are the poor in spirit. Anger is as serious a sin as murder. So is lust as adultery etc.
Let's turn to Possibility#1. It makes two assumptions:
Thank God. Jesus is truly human and truly divine. He has made humanity divine and opens up the possibility of our becoming divine too, our divinization. In the same Matthew, we read of loving God materially by serving the needy, the least of these brothers (Matthew 25:31-46). So, Matthew has both spiritualized and materialized the love of God.
Dear Lord, how should I approach You? You have shown me the way. You have taught me to meet you in our needy brothers. See You and serve You there. Amen.
Though I studied science in the secondary school, I gradually discover that I am fascinated with languages. The study of the Bible opens up new terrains for me: Hebrew, Greek and Latin. Four weeks ago (26th Ordinary Sunday, Year A), the reading of the Parable of Two Sons in Matthew brought up the thorny issue of translating the Bible. The translators face the problem of finding the best possible rendering of the text when there are different manuscripts to choose from. Today, the reading of the Greatest Commandment raises another issue. The same story appears in the three Synoptic Gospels in different ways. Mark and Matthew agree much. The Lucan version is a beautiful literary invention in which the Parable of the Good Samaritan is included. Therefore, today, I will focus on the first two Gospels.
The basic plot is the same. A teacher of the Law challenged Jesus to name the greatest commandment among the 613 Jewish laws. Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18 to answer him. Of course, the teacher of the Law refused to be silenced. This brought about the beautiful story of the Good Samaritan in Luke. Today, I would like to deal with the first part of the answer from Deuteronomy. I will list the text in Hebrew, Greek, Latin and English respectively.
וְאָהַבְתָּ, אֵת יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ, בְּכָל-לְבָבְךָ וּבְכָל-נַפְשְׁךָ, וּבְכָל-מְאֹדֶךָ
καὶ ἀγαπήσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου ἐξ ὅλης τῆς καρδίας σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς ψυχῆς σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς δυνάμεώς σου. (LXX)diliges Dominum Deum tuum ex toto corde tuo et ex tota anima tua et ex tota fortitudine tua. (Vulgate)
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole strength.(Deuteronomy 6:5)
So far, so good. Let's read the Matthew version.
Ἀγαπήσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ καρδίᾳ σου καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ ψυχῇ σου καὶ ἐν ὅλῃ τῇ διανοίᾳ σου. (GNT)
diliges Dominum Deum tuum ex toto corde tuo et in tota anima tua et in tota mente tua. (Vulgate)
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. (Matthew 22:37b, KJV)
Immediately, we spot a difference. Where has the "strength" gone? It was replaced by "mind". Can "mind" replace "strength"?
We agree that Mark was written before Matthew. So, let us turn to Mark to see what was being written.
καὶ ἀγαπήσεις κύριον τὸν θεόν σου ἐξ ὅλης τῆς καρδίας σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς ψυχῆς σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς διανοίας σου καὶ ἐξ ὅλης τῆς ἰσχύος σου.(GNT)
et diliges Dominum Deum tuum ex toto corde tuo et ex tota anima tua et ex tota mente tua et ex tota virtute tua hoc est primum mandatum (Vulgate)
And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment (Mark 12:30, KJV)
There are 4 elements in Mark, not three! Was Mark guilty of adding extra things into the Law, into the Scripture? Yes he did but, I would defend that the society has long changed and Mark was not writing to the Jews, but the Gentiles. For the Jews, the three elements: heart, soul and strength were enough to describe the whole person. For Gentiles under the influence of the Greek civilization, they needed four: heart, soul, mind and strength. For a similar "sin" of putting words into Jesus' mouth, see the unthinkable position of women divorcing their husbands in Mark 10:12.
When we turn to the word "strength", we see that Mark (ἰσχύος, virtute, strength) was actually using a word different from that in Deuteronomy (δυνάμεώς, fortitudine, strength). Mark's is more ethical (ability, courage and might etc.) while the Deuteronomy's more physical, if I am allowed to make such a differentiation. No matter what, time has changed and the usage of the same word changes as well. In time, the same idea might need newer words to describe.
The situation of Matthew, that he had replaced "strength" with "mind", is more difficult to explain because there are so many different ways to look at the situation.
- Matthew dropped "strength" and retained "mind" in the gospel of Mark.
- Matthew held an anthropology different from the ancient Israelites.
- Matthew reported correctly what Jesus had said.
What did Jesus actually say? This is the most crucial question which unfortunately we can only rely on the credibility of the Evangelists. Between Mark and Matthew, whom should we trust? Given that Luke also reports 4 elements (Luke 10:27), should we reject Matthew? Impossible! After all, Matthew was an apostle but Mark and Luke were only second generation disciples. That is also why Matthew is placed before Mark in the canon even though nearly all modern Biblical scholars agree to the priority of Mark.
Moreover, Matthew has an extra support. As Jews, Jesus and Matthew must have been reciting everyday the Shema Israel (Deuteronomy 6:4-5). Therefore, there must be only three elements instead of four. The problem is: Did Jesus say "mind" or "strength"? Unfortunately, we have no way to decide the truthfulness of Possibility#3.
Possibility#2 is a bold assertion. As far as we understand, heart, soul and mind are all psychological/spiritual aspects in modern terms, while strength is more physical/material. While we traditionally interpret the 3 elements (heart, soul and strength) to represent the whole person, both flesh and spirit in the Old Testament theology; the anthropology behind the Matthew version is rather spiritual. He has already spiritualized the Law of Moses in the 3 chapters of Beatitude (chapters 5 to 7). It would be highly likely that Matthew was doing the same here, advocating a theology which John later immortalized in the verse: God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship (and love Him) in spirit and truth (John 4:24).
As a working hypothesis, I propose that Matthew has spiritualized the greatest commandment by replacing "strength" with "mind". Under the influence of Greek civilization and Gnostic ideas, Christians were beginning to approach God in a more spiritual way. Ethically, blessed are the poor in spirit. Anger is as serious a sin as murder. So is lust as adultery etc.
Let's turn to Possibility#1. It makes two assumptions:
- Matthew based on Mark to write up his own gospel, and
- Matthew wanted to keep the number of elements to three for his Jewish readers.
Thank God. Jesus is truly human and truly divine. He has made humanity divine and opens up the possibility of our becoming divine too, our divinization. In the same Matthew, we read of loving God materially by serving the needy, the least of these brothers (Matthew 25:31-46). So, Matthew has both spiritualized and materialized the love of God.
Dear Lord, how should I approach You? You have shown me the way. You have taught me to meet you in our needy brothers. See You and serve You there. Amen.
Tuesday, 18 October 2011
Last Meeting with Ms. TM
We intended to explore my relationship with Erminia. However, I steered the discussion away without much effort. Perhaps it would be too emotional, and Ms. M knew that it would be too painful for me to come out from my comfort zone. I quickly came to the topic of seeking father figures in my life.
My father had to work for about 12 hours a day in the shop. He did not have time to talk with me. Therefore, I have been seeking father figures to fill up the void throughout my subsequent life. I paid respect to teachers, especially male teachers. As a result, the late Mr. Chow Ti, the biology panel of Choi Hung was my godfather of Baptism and Mr. Joseph Lau, only 7 years my senior and my S2 class teacher, was my godfather of Confirmation in the year 1970. I follow another characteristic of my father --- long term acquaintance. I kept in contact with Mr. Chow until he passed away and up till today, Mr. Joseph Lau and I are more like friends than godfather and godson. Our age difference becomes insignificant as we advance in the years.
I looked up to my senior colleagues in La Salle. I mentioned two in particular: YK and CYH. YK had been my intellectual mentor, except for the Bible. It was he who introduced me to computer programming and it was cracking locked software that brought about my diabetics which, combined with the upbringing from my domineering mother, prevented me from taking up senior posts. It was also he whose abuse of authority had so disgusted me that I quit La Salle. All things are related indeed. But I hold no grudge against YK. Perhaps he had a very noble intention to streamline the teaching qualities of the La Salle teachers who had previously been notoriously idiosyncratic. So, recently when we met in the 30th anniversary of graduation of the 1981 Class, we shook hands and asked after each other's station of life. He had retired.
When it came to CYH, I highlighted his support for me ever since the eruption of my diabetics. I showed Ms. M the Waterman fountain pen CYH introduced me to use. I explained how CYH made up opportunities for me to "help" him fix his software problems etc. Of course, how could I miss out his romance with Ms. Chui, how they dated each other for decades and got married only after their retirement and migration to Canada. I remained in my comfort zone when I talked about the others. Ms. M did not smoke me out of my lair.
Ms. M asked me to describe my relationship with Erminia. I summarily stated categorically that at the moment, it has never been better. In the early years of marriage, I had taken things for granted and concentrated on cracking locked computer programmes. Poor Erminia was literally a computer widow. Most of the time, she only saw my back. To a certain extent, my diabetics brings us closer emotionally. I pay more attention to her health, her exhaustion in taking care of two little boys and a big one. Me! Now that the children have grown up, except for Symphorian, we can share more time together.
Ms. M then turned the subject to temptation. Has there ever been time I am attracted to other females? Are there females who project their love to me because I have always been tender and helpful? Frankly speaking, some ladies did shed their tears when I announced that I was getting married and I was leaving La Salle. But the world continues to move on with or without me.
I paused to search my memory for an appropriate answer to the question Ms. M put forth. Then I came up with a new discovery. My diabetics is truly a blessing in disguise. It prevents me from being unfaithful to Erminia. I just cannot afford extra marital affairs physically as well as financially. If I were not sick, I really could not tell whether I would fall into the temptation. God has protected me with diabetics. It brings reconciliation between my mother and me. It shields me from the intrusion of other females.
In the end, Ms. M gave me some feedback. From her observations, she does not find me to be as rational as I claim. She can see the restrained emotional side of me. It is there. Only that I do not allow myself to be overwhelmed by it. My upbringing makes me diffident. Therefore, I only allow myself to do things which I surely will not fail. I am not brave enough to come out of my comfort zone. That doesn't help to boost my confidence. At the moment, new opportunities and relations are opening up to me. She encourages me to try them out so that I can become more confident and be a better servant of God. She wishes me a fruitful career as a deacon. I thanked her, shook hands and left her office.
Dear Lord, I have faith, but not enough. Help me believe more. Amen.
My father had to work for about 12 hours a day in the shop. He did not have time to talk with me. Therefore, I have been seeking father figures to fill up the void throughout my subsequent life. I paid respect to teachers, especially male teachers. As a result, the late Mr. Chow Ti, the biology panel of Choi Hung was my godfather of Baptism and Mr. Joseph Lau, only 7 years my senior and my S2 class teacher, was my godfather of Confirmation in the year 1970. I follow another characteristic of my father --- long term acquaintance. I kept in contact with Mr. Chow until he passed away and up till today, Mr. Joseph Lau and I are more like friends than godfather and godson. Our age difference becomes insignificant as we advance in the years.
I looked up to my senior colleagues in La Salle. I mentioned two in particular: YK and CYH. YK had been my intellectual mentor, except for the Bible. It was he who introduced me to computer programming and it was cracking locked software that brought about my diabetics which, combined with the upbringing from my domineering mother, prevented me from taking up senior posts. It was also he whose abuse of authority had so disgusted me that I quit La Salle. All things are related indeed. But I hold no grudge against YK. Perhaps he had a very noble intention to streamline the teaching qualities of the La Salle teachers who had previously been notoriously idiosyncratic. So, recently when we met in the 30th anniversary of graduation of the 1981 Class, we shook hands and asked after each other's station of life. He had retired.
When it came to CYH, I highlighted his support for me ever since the eruption of my diabetics. I showed Ms. M the Waterman fountain pen CYH introduced me to use. I explained how CYH made up opportunities for me to "help" him fix his software problems etc. Of course, how could I miss out his romance with Ms. Chui, how they dated each other for decades and got married only after their retirement and migration to Canada. I remained in my comfort zone when I talked about the others. Ms. M did not smoke me out of my lair.
Ms. M asked me to describe my relationship with Erminia. I summarily stated categorically that at the moment, it has never been better. In the early years of marriage, I had taken things for granted and concentrated on cracking locked computer programmes. Poor Erminia was literally a computer widow. Most of the time, she only saw my back. To a certain extent, my diabetics brings us closer emotionally. I pay more attention to her health, her exhaustion in taking care of two little boys and a big one. Me! Now that the children have grown up, except for Symphorian, we can share more time together.
Ms. M then turned the subject to temptation. Has there ever been time I am attracted to other females? Are there females who project their love to me because I have always been tender and helpful? Frankly speaking, some ladies did shed their tears when I announced that I was getting married and I was leaving La Salle. But the world continues to move on with or without me.
I paused to search my memory for an appropriate answer to the question Ms. M put forth. Then I came up with a new discovery. My diabetics is truly a blessing in disguise. It prevents me from being unfaithful to Erminia. I just cannot afford extra marital affairs physically as well as financially. If I were not sick, I really could not tell whether I would fall into the temptation. God has protected me with diabetics. It brings reconciliation between my mother and me. It shields me from the intrusion of other females.
In the end, Ms. M gave me some feedback. From her observations, she does not find me to be as rational as I claim. She can see the restrained emotional side of me. It is there. Only that I do not allow myself to be overwhelmed by it. My upbringing makes me diffident. Therefore, I only allow myself to do things which I surely will not fail. I am not brave enough to come out of my comfort zone. That doesn't help to boost my confidence. At the moment, new opportunities and relations are opening up to me. She encourages me to try them out so that I can become more confident and be a better servant of God. She wishes me a fruitful career as a deacon. I thanked her, shook hands and left her office.
Dear Lord, I have faith, but not enough. Help me believe more. Amen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)