Let’s begin Anew with Christ. Because we have the spirit of God who's capable of discerning, helping us and making us like Christ

Every child knows exactly that they need to obey the parent's order or commitments, whatever rules, policy. but as you know, not all of us follow those expectations, policies or orders. we tend to defile it. I don't know about you, but when my parents told me not to take the motorcycle out, oh, I just love the idea of taking it. riding on the street enjoy the thrill it gave me/ my uncle told me don't use that gun to shoot squirrels. Every time he went away on a business trip, I would take three of my cousins out to the field. We have a large Big Field. We began to shoot Birds, squirrels, you name it. How about fruits? our parents told us don't ever steal anything from your neighbors. you name it, mango, jackfruit, papayas, all sorts of tropical fruits. delicious, pleasing to the eyes, and must be tasty to eat. and I got them all. It's a bunch of kids. rally early in the morning, four o'clock, climb over the fans with the big bag. We Haul them all to the soccer field. We enjoy it immensely. fascinating isn't it? Have you ever done anything like that? don't lie to me. you probably did. We tend to go against whatever we are told not to do. It sounds like Adam and Eve syndrome. God told them exactly what not to do, what to do, and they just right off the bat disobey him. listen to The Serpent instead. because the Temptation was so strong, it could not resist.

Now let's take a look at our Lord. He even asked more than just keeping the Commandments. How hard could that be? twice as hard. not to kill is already hard, it's very hard to really do that in the middle of the war, in the middle of a very difficult harsh life in the Middle East. they fought for living, they were known as Warriors. Now our Lord is saying: not only you should not take life, you have to love your enemies, you have to pray for your enemies. if they strike you on one chick, you turn the other one. Good God, how hard could that be? adultery is bad, violation of the sixth commandment. it's already hard to keep that. Otherwise, we should not have broken marriages and Families. but now the good Lord is saying if you objectify another human being, if you Harbor lust in your heart, you commit adultery. wow... if you called your brother a fool, you are liable to judgment. all of this my dear brothers and sisters, what does he mean to communicate?

What does it mean to communicate is actually telling you and I, it is not only staying off, not doing anything harmful to the other person, not committing the actual deed, but the idea of thinking about it, objectifying other people for our own need, that is evil in itself. and that place we often call Heart. The heart is not just an organ in the human body, it's actually the internal very sacred core that makes who we are. the place where we conceive the spirit of God, the place where we meditate, the place where God wants to dwell, the place where we actually plan. and therefore ready for action. The good Lord is saying: you need a new heart. the stony heart, the stony heart that is being fossilized in a way by the sins of this world, needed to replace. and our Lord had done to that when he entered human flesh, when he took on human life, when he assumed human presence, he has given to us a new heart. and that new heart also contends the very Spirit of life.

that I was Saint Paul today mentioned in the second reading: the spirit has been poured into our heart so that we could love and imitate Christ from now on. So my dear brothers and sisters, our Lord is asking us to shift, to shift our mentality, to shift our way of seeing, to shift our way of viewing one another, viewing God and viewing ourselves. Let's begin with others. We often objectify those who hurt us as enemies. but our Lord is saying look upon them not as enemies but brothers and sisters infested by sins, tempted by sins and evil in this world. don't look at your brothers and sisters in the family who hurt you as someone you have to even score with. don't look at them in that way, your heavenly father looks thou upon you not the objects of condemnation, or punishment, who looks upon you as a prodigal son and daughter, made a mistake listen to the Temptation, listen to The Serpent, and therefore, committed that act of disobedience.

no my dear brothers and sister, that shift of mentality, that shift of perception, has to take place if we truly live out our Christian vocation. we've got to see other people, not second class citizens or third class citizens. I felt so bad in the past 10 years when a few instances I was treated as such. they asked me, even as a priest, do you speak English? or they asked me: wow you learn English very well for a non-native speaker. as if I don't have the capacity to make it possible. or many times in the restaurant, ignore completely and only the white people get served first. Sometimes the skin or history in origin is a problem. no, it's not that our Lord is asking us to look upon one another so that racism should not be a problem. So that Community with diversity is not a problem, so that enemies are no longer enemies, but brothers and sisters need extended care, love, and forgiveness.

Now how about God? How about God? also needed to be seen differently. In the old days, in the Old Testament, God could be a very different God that we know today. an avenging God, a warrior, a punishing father. if you misbehave, he would punish you. death, ultimately the harsh sentence. but yet it occurred. Well, who could blame them? if they see the center of death passed by and killed all first-born sons of Egyptians who could not blame? who could blame them? if they witnessed God really destroy all those who worship a golden calf dancing around after they fled Egypt. who blamed them that Moses himself single-handedly slaughtered many, many lives, because they committed that act of idolatry. God was seen as the punishing, wrathful father.

but in Jesus Christ he manifested that God is actually not true. That God is actually not true, he's more. He's more, he's very merciful like a good father. Welcomes after The Prodigal Son returns. He is good, as Jesus our lord forgiving the woman caught in adultery. no, he's a merciful god. dare to walk among men and save them, Dare To Die for them on the cross, and ask for forgiveness when needed. that God needed to be seen as such. Only then, can we have mercy toward others, only then can we come to him and dialogue with him. instead with a police officer but a father who listens and cares.

Finally we got to see ourselves differently. Regarding seeing ourselves differently, we should be able to see ourselves as a sinner, we should see ourselves in that way so that we acknowledge our position before God. so that we notify the disease that Adam and Eve passed on, Adam and Eve did not admit their guilt. it was a serpent, it was the woman, it was the one they put here for me, it was the one that you created, and ultimately, God takes the blame. no one took responsibility for their actions.

Now before God, we could humbly say we have done wrong, we have seen you wrongfully, we have judged our brothers and sisters wrongfully. Now I'm here to ask for your forgiveness and mercy. and I ask you to receive me, to see me, to see us. We ask God in that way, so that my brothers and sister, we grow compassionately in the way God wants us to. if we see ourselves in that fashion - a sinner who needs a heavenly father and who also needs brothers and sisters to finish the race. Basically, what our law is saying ,the gospel today, that we have to do more as Christians. We have to step up and do more. by doing more, meaning we see God differently by way of seeing others differently, and seeing ourselves differently in that way we begin to imitate Christ in forgiving our enemies and accepting our brothers and sisters. and forgiving ourselves in that way we no longer objectify others in our heart, lust after them. but look after them for their goodness, for their needs. we no longer wanted to hurt the other person, no longer wanted to judge them.

So my friends today is a day we could begin Anew with Christ. Because that heart has been replaced, the new heart has been given. because we have the spirit of God who's capable of discerning, helping us and making us like Christ.

耶穌賜給了我們一顆全新的愛心來取代那顆頑固的石心。讓我們協同基督重新前進，求聖神幫我們，使我們更肖似基督

每個孩子都知道要聽父母的話，但我們無法期望孩子們總是遵守父母的教訓。 孩子們都有傾向叛逆的行為。在我年輕的時候，我的父母不准我騎摩托車，但我卻愛享受那騎摩托車在街上的刺激感。我的叔叔ㄧ再叮臨我不要拿槍來射松鼠。 但每次他出差時，我都會與我的堂兄弟們到後院開槍打獵。包括鳥、松鼠，以及所有的小動物。 至於水果呢？ 父母親告訴我絕對不可偷鄰居的東西。但我們的鄰居種了各種熱帶水果。芒果，菠蘿蜜，木瓜，應有盡有。看起來賞心悅目也非常好吃。 我們這一群孩子， 一大早四點鐘就背著布包，爬過籬笆，將水果裝滿了布袋，拿到足球場上大家一起享用。 真過癮，這是不是很令人羨慕？ 你是否做過同樣的事呢？ 別騙我。叛逆的本性使我們做一些不該做的事，這就是所謂的的亞當夏娃綜合症。 雖然天主確切地告訴他們什麼事不該做。他們聽到後就立刻違背了天主的旨意反而聽信了蛇的謊言。謊言的誘惑是如此的強大，令他們無法抗拒。

讓我們看看主耶穌對我們的要求。主耶穌不但要我們遵守誡命，祂的要求更高。 誡命要求『不可殺人！』。當時中東地區在戰爭中求生存。 為生存而戰的人是國家的勇士。要他們不殺人已經很難了，但耶穌的要求不只是『不可殺人！』當愛你們的仇人，為迫害你們的人祈禱。 如果有人打你左臉，就轉過臉來讓他打右臉“。 天哪，這是多麼的難？誡命『不可姦淫！』也是很難做到。 如果不犯姦淫是容易的事，我們就不會有這麼多破碎的婚姻和家庭了。 仁慈的主說，如果你不尊重一個人，以情慾的眼光來看他，就是犯了姦淫。 主又說，“誰若向自己的弟兄說『傻子』，就要受議會的裁判”。 在這裡，主的訊息到底是什麼呢？

主的訊息是：如果僅僅是為了避免犯罪而不傷害人，是無法滿全天主誡命的。只要你依自己的需要來取決與人相處的方式，就是犯了天主誡命，是邪惡的。 我們的心不只是一個器官，它是神聖的，它定義了我們。心是我們生命的的中心，聖神成長的的地方，天主的居所，與天主交談的場所。我們在心中做計劃也採取行動。 主吿訴我們：你需要一顆嶄新的心。所以我們必須更新這顆被世俗罪惡硬化的石心。 當主耶穌降生成人，取了人的生命時，祂給了我們一顆嶄新的心，一顆充滿了新生命和神聖的心。

今天讀經二聖保祿宗徒說：聖神已經澆灌在我們心中，使我們可以愛基督，效法基督。 親愛的兄弟姐妹們，主要我們改變心態，用新的態度來對待別人。改變我們看待所有 事物的心態。我們要改變我們彼此、和看待自己的方式。對於那些傷害我們的人，主說：不要將他們視為敵人。他們是被世俗的邪惡和誘惑所侵蝕。兄弟姐妹，不要以仇恨的眼光看他們來與他們計較。我們從來不是天父譴責或懲罰的對象。雖然我們在受到試探時犯錯，聽信謊言，做了背逆的行為，對天父而言，我們永遠是尋求悔改的兒女。

親愛的兄弟姐妹，如果我們要活出基督徒的生命，必需改變我們的心態。，平等地對待所有的人，在我們的眼中沒有二等或三等公民。 在過去 10 年中，有幾次人們以次等公民的態度對待我，使我非常地難過。 雖然我是神父，他們還是問我：你懂得英語嗎？ 或是：哇，對於一個英語非母語人來說，你的英語講得很好。 聽起來好像我沒有能力來學好英文。 好多次在餐廳裡，服務人員對我視若無睹。等到所有的白人都招呼過後才來招呼我。 在這個國家，膚色或種族文化是歧視的癥結。 但這不是主耶穌今天要我們互相對待的方式。如果以主耶穌的態度來對待此事，多種族就不會有問題，多元化的社區也不是問題，人與人之間再也沒有敵人，只有兄弟姐妹和更多的關懷，愛，與寬恕。

那麼天主呢？ 我們也 要以不同的方式來看待天主。 舊約中的天主與我們今天對天主的認知有很大的差別。 舊約中的天主是復仇的天主，懲罰的父親。 如果你犯了罪，他懲罰你。 最嚴厲的判決就是死。 在舊約中有許多死刑的判決。 難怪以色列子民認為天主是嚴厲的判官。他們看到死亡的神殺死了埃及人所有的長子。在逃離埃及後親眼看到了天主毀滅了所有崇拜金牛犢舞蹈的人。也目睹了摩西殺了所有崇拜偶像的以民。 舊約的天主是懲罰的、憤怒的父親。

但在耶穌基督身上表現出來的天主是不一樣的。 天主不是一個懲罰的、憤怒的父親，祂是一個非常仁慈的好父親。 祂盼望浪子回頭， 寬恕通奸的女人，一位仁慈的神。 祂降生成人為拯救我們被釘死在十字架上，並在需要的時候為我們所犯的罪請求天主的寬恕。 我們必須要認識這位愛與仁慈的天主，才能學習祂的憐憫，來到祂面前與祂對話。 天主不是一個警察，祂是一位傾聽和關愛我們的慈父。

最後，也讓我們以不同的方式來看自己，明認我們是個罪人。承認自己在天主前卑微的地位。 看清楚從亞當和夏娃傳下來的原罪—堅持不認罪，反而用蛇和女人做藉口。“都是祢放在園裡的蛇”，“是祢創造的女人”。他們找藉口不願意為自己的行為負責，最後耶穌就擔負了這個罪債。

讓我們謙卑祈求：“天主我錯了，看錯了祢，看錯了我的弟兄姊妹們。 求祢寬恕我。請祢接受我。 兄弟姐妹們，天主祈望我們的祈禱。讓我們在心裡充滿了愛心來成長。 我這個罪人需要天父，也需要兄弟姐妹們的幫助來共同完成這朝聖的旅途。 今天的福音告訴我們，除了遵守誡命外，基督徒要做更多的事。 我們必須站出來證明我們的確是以全新的態度來看待天主，他人，和自己。我們身體力行地效法基督，接納我們的兄弟姐妹，寬恕敵人，也原諒自己。我們不再利用他人來滿足自己的慾望，用心體會與他人的感覺。我們依照他們的福利來照顧他們，滿足他們的需要，不再傷害，不再評判。

朋友們，耶穌賜給了我們一顆全新的愛心來取代那顆頑固的石心。讓我們協同基督重新前進，求聖神幫我們，使我們更肖似基督。