这本书跟着我走南闯北,光太平洋就横渡了三次,但是我一直都没有耐心和毅力坚持读完 。上个月下决心读(读的时候,发现好几个地方书页都还没切边,拿了剪刀现裁开:),到今天收尾了,记一点心得。
前四篇是福音书,《马太福音》,《马可福音》,《路加福音》和《约翰福音》,讲耶稣在世传教和十字架殉难的故事。四个福音讲的故事大同小异,我自己觉得《路加福音》讲得最生动。
读四个《福音书》,有些故事读着亲切,不时会想起三毛。《素人渔夫》里写她跟荷西想赚点外快,去海边抓鱼卖鱼。沙漠军团的炊事兵嫌鱼太少,不买,三毛一本正经劝他:“耶稣的五个饼,两条鱼,喂饱了五千多个人,这你怎么说?” 《亲爱的婆婆大人》里,她跟丈夫荷西到马德里探亲。荷西不够体贴,忽略了三毛独立承担家务的不公平做法,她无奈之余用精神胜利法把丈夫比作彼得,“鸡已快叫了,你已不认主三次了,你怎么还不出去痛哭。彼得啊!彼得啊!” 哈哈!原来三毛还是我的《圣经》启蒙人呢。
最近看了一个电影叫 The Pope’s Exorcist (《教廷驱魔人》),开头一幕赫然就是照搬《新约》里耶稣驱鬼的故事,连台词都一模一样。 被鬼附身的男子躺在床上,大叫 “我是军团! (“I am Legion.”)” 神父用了激将法,激鬼离开男子转附在刚牵进房间的猪身上。邪灵一转移上身,另一个神父马上开抢打死了猪。可怜的猪!在《新约》 的 “军团” 故事里,猪死得更多,有两千多头。耶稣把附在 “军团” 的邪灵转到猪身上后,原本在山坡上安静吃草的猪群像发疯一样冲下坡,扑通扑通掉进湖里都淹死了。顺带说一下,电影《教廷驱魔人》我后来弃剧了,罗素克劳 (Russell Crowe) 的演技在线,但剧情太拉垮。
《新约》里有很多好玩的小故事。
《约翰福音》(19:16-24) 里,耶稣被钉在十字架以前还有一出混乱。罗马长官彼拉多写了一张条子,让人贴在耶稣的十字架上。上面写着:“耶稣,拿撒勒人,犹太王”。祭司长说,“不要写 ‘犹太王’,而要写:‘此人说,我是犹太王’。” 彼拉多不理他,“我写什么就是什么。” (“I will not change what I have written.”) 哈哈,怎么觉得读出了《史记》细节的喜感?一边是咬文嚼字的祭司长好为人师,一边是你算老几我说了算的野蛮武夫,秀才遇到兵,有理说不清。
《使徒行传》 (Acts 8:12-21)里,有一个行贿不成的闹剧。彼得和约翰来到撒玛利亚,为那里的信徒祷告。他们把手放到信徒身上,信徒便接受了圣灵。有一个叫西蒙的江湖术士在旁边看见了羡慕,拿出钱来给彼得和约翰说,“快教教我怎么做吧,我也想有传播圣灵的能力。” 彼得气了大骂:“你和你的钱都见鬼去吧!有几个臭钱就了不起了!上帝的礼物是你这种人可以得到的吗?” (“You and your money should both be destroyed! You thought that you could buy God’s gift with money.”) 彼得这么上纲上线的, 我倒有点同情西蒙了。不知者不为罪嘛,西蒙不过是会错了意,以为大家都是走江湖混饭吃的,想出钱买点新花样,不料被骂个狗头喷血。
《加拉太书》(Galatians 2:8-16) 里,保罗指责彼得虚伪。彼得刚到安提阿时跟非犹太人吃饭交往。有犹太人来了以后,彼得就不再跟那些非犹太人一起吃饭了,因为他害怕犹太人会批评他。彼得前后言行不一,保罗当面指出这是虚伪。想象保罗义正词严的样子,真是一个倔老头。
《使徒行传》写使徒司提反被乱石砸死,非常惨烈。 “They took him out of the city and threw rocks at him until he was dead.” 他最后跪下来,大声喊道,“主啊,不要为此怪罪他们!” 说完,他就死了。保罗就站在旁边,目睹了这一切。当时保罗还不叫保罗,叫扫罗,他力主迫害耶稣使徒。(见《使徒行传》Acts 7:51-8:1)
《使徒行传》是记录众使徒为传教四处奔走,跟孔子周游列国有点像。所有的使徒中,最勤勉和贡献最大的是保罗,就是那个从迫害者扫罗转为跟随者和宣传者的保罗。看看保罗自述吃过多少苦头,“我有五次被犹太人鞭打三十九下,三次被棍打,一次几乎被石头砸死,三次遭遇船毁,其中一次在水里呆过一天一夜。我在多次的旅行中,遇到过洪水,盗贼,我自己的同胞(犹太人)和非犹太人的威胁,我在城市,乡村,海上和假兄弟中间都经历过危险。我辛勤劳碌,数次无眠,忍受饥渴,缺乏食物,寒冷,衣不蔽体。” (见《哥林多后书》11:23-33)这些遭遇够得上孟子说的 “苦其心志,劳其筋骨,饿其体肤,空乏其身,行拂乱其所为” 了吧。
保罗写的书信收录成《罗马人书》,《哥林多前后书》,《加拉太书》,《以弗所书》,《腓立比书》,《歌罗西书》,《帖撒罗尼迦前后书》,《提摩太前后书》,《提多书》,占了《新约》五分之一的篇幅。信里谆谆教导,鼓励教区教友不要失了信心和希望。想想写信人颠沛流离的旅程,还有时不时的牢狱之苦,更觉得保罗了不起。其中有很多金玉良言。
割礼与否是犹太人和耶稣的争论点之一。当年,神与亚伯拉罕定约,用割礼作记号,但是彼得和保罗遵从耶稣,认为信仰比割礼更重要。 “When a person is in Christ Jesus, it is not important if he is circumcised or not. The important thing is faith - the kind of faith that works through love.” (见《加拉太书》Galatians 5:1-11 )保罗对割礼的抨击极为猛烈。他甚至说,鼓吹割礼的人如此聒噪,是不是要阉割才能令他们闭嘴!(“I wish those people who are bothering you would add castration [to their circumcision.]”)(见《加拉太书》Galatians 5:12-23)这么简单粗暴,戾气有点重啊。
是非自有公论,公道自在人心。 “(The non-Jews don’t have the law. But when they freely do things that the law commands without even knowing the law, then they are the law for themselves. This is true even they don’t have the law.)”(见《罗马人书》Romans 2:8-18)
施比受更有福。“Jesus said: you will be happier when you give than you receive.” (见《使徒行传》Acts 20:31-21:5)
爱人如爱己。在《福音书》里,耶稣反复教导了这一点。《马可福音》(Mark 12:28-36) 说得清楚, “The second most important command is this: ‘You must love other people the same as you love yourself.’” 在《路加福音》(Luke 6:26-35) 里说: “Do for other peope what you want them to do for you.” 这个跟《论语》里的 “己所不欲,勿施于人” 很接近了。
沁香的芬芳吸引人,感化人,比说教和高压都有效。 “God uses us to spread his knowledge everywhere like a sweet-smelling perfume… We are the sweet smell of Christ among people who are being saved and among people who are lost.” (见《哥林多后书》2:14-3:5 )桃李不言,下自成蹊。汪曾祺也用菌香久久不散去来比喻事物的影响长存, “菌子没有了,空气里还有菌子的香气。”
不倡导禁欲。 “It is better to marry than to burn with sexual desire.” (见《哥林多后书》6:20-7:11)
人不能生而平等,但可以信而平等。 “There is only one God. He will make Jews right with him by their faith. And he will also make non-Jews people right with him through their faith.”(《罗马人书》Romans 3:29-4:7)
保罗阐述了信仰和法律的辩证关系,说两者并不总是对立,也可以统一。 “So do we destroy the law by following the way of faith? No! Faith causes us to be what the law truly wants. ” (《罗马人书》Romans 3:29-4:7)
乐观主义。“Why are we happy with troubles? Because we know these troubles make us more patient. And this patience is proof that we are strong. And this proof gives us hope.”(《罗马人书》Romans 4:24-5:9)
信念比文字更有力。 “You yourselves are our letter. That letter is written on your hearts. It is known and read by all people.” 见《哥林多后书》Corinthians 2:14-3:5)
上帝的爱无限。 “I pray that you can understand how wide and how long and how high and how deep that love is.”(见《以弗所书》Ephesians 3:15-4:8) 这句话让我想起睡前故事书《猜猜我有多爱你》Guess How Much I Love You,是不是这里得的灵感?
“不以物喜,不以己悲”,保罗是这么解释的, “I have learned to be satisfied with the things I have and with everything that happens. I know how to live when I am poor. And I know how to live when I have plenty. I have learned the secret of being happy at any time in everything that happens. I have learned to be happy when I have enough to eat and I don’t have enough to eat. I have learned to be happy when I have all the things I need and when I don’t have the things I need.”(见《腓立比书》Philippianss 4:8-18)语言朴素无华,非常感人。相比之下,颜回的“一箪食,一豆羹” 有点穷乐呵。
耶稣真言,永世不灭。他坚定预言: “The whole world, earth and sky, will be destroyed; but the words I have said will never be destroyed!” (见《马可福音》(Mark 13:25-37)和《路加福音》 (Luke 21:33-22:4) )山可以无陵,江水可以枯竭,唯有耶稣不朽。
张爱玲读《圣经》,感叹以色列是一个了不起的民族。我也有同感。而且,读一遍不够,值得一读再读。