惟喜愛耶和華的律法,晝夜思想,這人便為有福。
(詩篇1︰2)

The Year of Living Biblically – one man’s humble quest to follow the bible – as literally as possible.
Raised in a secular family but increasingly interested in the relevance of faith in our modern world, A.J. Jacobs decides to dive in headfirst and attempt to obey the Bible as literally as possible for one full year. He vows to follow the Ten Commandments. To be fruitful and multiply. To love his neighbor. But also to obey the hundreds of less publicized rules: to avoid wearing clothes made of mixed fibers; to play a ten-string harp; to stone adulterers.
The resulting spiritual journey is at once funny and profound, reverent and irreverent, personal and universal and will make you see history’s most influential book with new eyes.

一個傻佬的「living bible」挑戰。起初拿起本書看,其實是抱著看笑話書的心態(因為他實在寫得好搞笑,幾乎每頁紙都有5個gag),不過看著看著,自己卻有意想不到的體會和感動。
我們說自己相信聖經,相信上帝,但其實我們信什麼聖經,信聖經的什麼,又怎樣信聖經?
怎麼本來應該是同一個神,同一本聖經,同一個福音,但經過千年的歷史文化語言的磨蝕,會變成今天這許多不同教派?為什麼聖經裡面這麼多條規例,我們今天會有些跟,有些唔跟?
而當所有人都真心相信自己所理解的版本是「真相」,我又怎知道我是否選擇對了?
別說選擇不選擇,我甚至連聖經亦未有重頭至尾翻閱過,憑什麼說我知道?
看罷這本書,笑過了,駭然過了,感動過了。把書合上,感覺自己從來太膚淺,太狹窄。我們都把歷史看得太輕,把傳統看得太輕,把宗教看得太輕,把聖經看得太輕,把這個上帝看得太輕。
今天正午,在Thornhill圖書館門口看見一對猶太裔老夫婦。看見那名穿著西裝、頭帶圓帽子、鬍子又捲又長的老先生,微彎著腰一步一步的走,我忽然生出了一股前所未有的尊重與親切感。
對,不管以什麼角度、什麼層面去理解、或以什麼方式去應用與實踐,上帝與祂的文字都是應該沉重的。至少,人在自稱信徒之前,也應該先莊嚴地、重頭到尾細讀一遍。
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書本及作者介紹連結︰http://ajjacobs.com

