應一位台灣網友的邀請，我代買了這本書，順便在轉寄前先看完它。 他們的愛情故事有著香港自上世紀五十年代起的歷史背景，看起來節奏明快又刺激，我作為讀者感覺好像在玩RPG遊戲般，他們每每遇見不同困難，卻又有不同人士協助，得以解決所有問題。雖然有不同的宗教背景，但與他們合作的機構和人士當中，不少也有基督教的背景，也反映他們的包容胸襟（或者現實上當時香港殖民地時代也很難排除有教會背景的慈善機構），這點我認為值得一些對基督教反感的朋友學習的。 看完全書，我感覺（主要是女方角度）杜學魁並非有意橫刀奪愛，葉錫恩跟前夫之間早已出現不少問題，由宗教上的專橫與不協調，到女方完全感受不到對個人的關愛與尊重，以現代標準來看，她算是十分容忍的了。 而杜學魁是很君子、也對葉錫恩很關懷（可能他對所有人都很關懷），女方也欣賞他的慷慨善良、富正義感、工作魄力和熱誠，還有一段很長時間的思想交流討論，也吸引著女方。前題亦是杜學魁需要進入了那間教會，做起詩歌班領唱的角色，跟負責彈琴的葉錫恩一起有長時間相處，才有這些機會。 所以，在我看來，假如希望一位所愛的教徒離開這個宗教，游說者似乎也需要投入那教徒的教會之中，即使擁有著非教徒的身份，仍能在當中與目標一起過「教會生活」，那就更有機會互相了解對方的思想。 而有些情況，似乎就真的無法影響到對方了，好像葉錫恩的前夫，從小到大都沉溺在基要派狹獈思想，又不准女方多說話及反對他，一切都等候神的指示，類似這種人一輩子都沒有機會清醒。 在葉錫恩與前夫離婚之後，杜學魁與葉錫恩長期是心靈和工作夥伴，對香港的教育、慈善、反貪付出了很多，作出很大貢獻。而他很久才提出要與葉錫恩結婚，是由於他一直認為愛情並不需要一紙證書（葉錫恩也［被逼／被洗腦地？］認同），而之後結婚是由於年紀漸大，在退休後到處旅行時，辦理手續會較為方便，而低調的簽字儀式，從字裡行間都感覺到葉錫恩內心的喜悅。 杜葉錫恩也在書中介紹了成長於基要派家庭的Edmund Gosse及其描述自己離教心理變化的Father and Son一書，有空會再看看。 該書有意思的段落： 關於殖民主義與傳教士 P79: He could be cynical too, and when he learned that I was hoping to be a missionary, he pulled no punches and said, without malice, 'Oh, I know you missionaries. You go to a backward country to preach and do good works, and the traders follow to take the land from the people.' I was rather shocked, because I had no such intention, but in face he was right. That is exactly what happened time after time, whether or not the missionaries were aware of it. Mr Walker's words repeatedly returned to me in later life, when I became a missionary and read history as seen from the viewpoint of the native peoples of the colonies. 離教之路是自然的，但也不是必然 P73: Those who succumb (fundamentalism) will sooner or later be disillusioned, just as I was. Or if they are not disillusioned, they may develop the feeling that God has given them special powers, made them special people. 杜學魁啟發葉錫恩幾個教義的質疑 P99: Like Andrew, I also had queries about the doctrine of original sin. Why would God put an apple and a serpent into the Garden of Eden to tempt Eve, and when she and Adam ate that apple, make this a reason for damning the whole of mankind, to the extent that he had to send his own son to die in atonement for their sins? Moreover, if only Christians had the chance of being redeemed, what about those who had never heard of Jesus and must therefore be denied God's forgiveness? The only answer anyone ever gave me on this point was: "Shall not the judge of all the earth do right?" In which case, of course, hearing the message and believing in Jesus would not be necessary if everything was to be left in God's hands. Like Andrew, I found it all illogical. If I remember correctly, Jesus had said that the reward would go to those who did good for others by caring for the poor and the sick, visiting those in prison and performing other deeds of kindness. To those who merely claimed rewards for abstract beliefs God would say, "I never knew you." | |
我很震驚，因為我本來沒有這個意思，但表面上他是對的。 無論傳教士是否意識到，這確實是一次又一次發生的事情。 什麼天國的車票，什麼要認識主，都只不過是一群去從人民手中奪取土地的爪牙。 | |
看來外國人反基的也不少，在那個時代沒有互聯網，而教會就好像壟斷了訊息鏈，所以都是各有各做而已。 |