A Glimpse of Spirituality 靈修一瞥134 (Luke 路10:1-9)           

 

The seventy-two disciples were sent to towns and villages but were warned by Jesus that they would be like as “lambs in the midst of wolves.” What should they do to deal with this hard time? The hidden idea behind Jesus’ instruction is that his disciples were sent as walking witnesses and hence they were not to depend on anything or anybody except on divine providence.

 

In fact, the work of the seventy-two was not a human project, and hence they needed strength from God who gave them the power to proclaim the good news with their lives. Moreover, there was also a radical requirement that the disciples should give up even the necessities of life so as to be both a living act of faith in God and walking signs to those who saw them. Their detachment from material goods would enable them to uphold the absolute priority of preaching the good news. They did not need all these things because God would take care of them through the people to whom they were to preach. The spirit of detachment would also help them to trust more deeply in divine providence. Their life-style should help witness their message: “The kingdom of God has come near to you.”

 

However, fearing rejection from people is one of the main emotional concerns of missionaries. So Jesus consoled them by saying that their peace would return to them. What is this peace? The term “peace” (eirēnē) denotes the inner peace and blessing of mind that no external thing can compare. Thus, what Jesus emphasized is that all rejections from people would not take away the peace of the disciples because this peace streams from God’s blessing.

 

As faithful Christians, we will attract others to the church, just as a rose attracts people by its beauty and fragrance. The basic element that makes this beauty and fragrance is not thousands of words, but rather, the heroic witness to God that the modern world needs the most.

 

七十二門徒被派往各城各地去，耶穌預先警告他們，他們會像“羔羊往狼群中”。那麼，他們該如何面對這艱難時期呢？

耶穌教導背後主題，是讓門徒被派遣作活見證，因此除了天主恩賜以外，他們不能依賴任何人事物。

事實上，七十二門徒的工作不是來自人類計劃，因此必需天主力量，天主賦予他們用生命宣揚福音的能力；此外還有根本要求，即門徒甚至要放棄生活必需，好能成為對天主信仰的活見證，又為世界作為天主恩寵的標記。他們脫離物質財富的享受，目的是使他們能堅持宣講福音的絕對優先。他們不要所有生活必需品，因為天主會透過四周聽道的人來細心照顧。“放下一切”這精神也將幫助他們更深信天主恩寵。因此，門徒簡樸生活方式有助於見證他們所傳的福音：“天主的國已經臨近你們了。”

然而，害怕被人拒絕是傳教士主要情緒擔憂之一。耶穌安慰他們說：“那裡如有和平之子，你們的和平就要停留在他身上；否則，仍歸於你們。”

這和平是什麼？“和平”（eirēnē）表示內心的平靜和心靈的祝福，這是任何外在事物都無法比擬的。因此，耶穌強調：人的一切拒絕都不會奪去門徒的內在平安，因這平安源自天主祝福。

忠貞信徒自然吸引他人加入教會，就像玫瑰以其美麗芬芳吸引眼球一樣。構成基督徒生活見證的美麗芬芳，基本要素不是成千上萬的文字，而是現代世界最需要的：對天主的英豪見證。