在亞洲的教會——一種巴特式的默想/侯活士(Stanley Hauerwas)
侯活士(Stanley Hauerwas)
撮要
本文是作者在 2018 年 5 月 22 日至 6 月 2 日,於日本京都舉行的第五屆東北亞洲復和基督教論壇上的發言稿。文章一開始反思作者一貫的神學主張 — 教會必須抵抗基督教王國心態的持續影響力,以恢復福音的激進性 — 對亞洲眾教會的相關性,因為基督教王國的策略對她們而言雖然並非切實可行的選項,但她們畢竟正在不斷摸索如何使基督信仰在社會制度中得以生存。有見於民族主義在亞洲多國崛起蔓延,對東方的教會來說,如何在聖靈裡彼此合一是眼前的最大挑戰、亦是機遇;對此必須要有嚴謹的神學理解。透過對中國教會史上兩位領導人物 — 丁光訓和王明道 — 的比較研究,作者提出巴特的「誠實的無知」作為默想的對象。作者結論,身處歐美的基督徒必須先具備耐性和謙卑等美德,方能着手思考「亞洲的基督徒要怎樣才能夠成為基督徒?」這個問題。儘管如此,作者也提出了一個獻議:首要的焦點是怎樣將基督徒塑造成能夠「在這個遭受戰爭撕裂的世界和平生活」的一羣子民。最後,作者借用殷諾夫所謂「尋常的美德」來探討在一些本來毫無共通性的羣族之間,產生出和平共存的可能性;這些德性正好也應該重塑亞洲眾教會成為上帝國度的耐性的見證人。
ABSTRACT
This article is the keynote speech delivered by the author at The Fifth Annual Christian Forum for Reconciliation in Northeast Asia, held in Kyoto, Japan, from May 22 to June 2, 2018. It begins with a reflection on the author’s longstanding view that the church must recover the radical character of the Gospel against the continuing power of the Christendom mentality, and on the relevance of such a theological stance to the churches in Asia for whom the “Christendom strategy” may not be a realistic option but who are nonetheless in the process of finding ways to institutionalize the Christian faith. In view of the rising nationalism in many Asian countries, the genuine challenge and opportunity for churches in the East is the unity in the Spirit, about which a robust theological understanding is called for. Using a case study of two historical figures of Chinese Christian leaders, Ding Guangxun and Wang Mingdao, the author engages with and mediates on Karl Barth’s concept of “honest ignorance”, which leads him to conclude that Christians in America or Europe need the virtues of patience and humility in thinking through what it might mean for Christians in Asia to be Christian. Having said that, the author suggests that a primary focus should be the formation of a people capable of “living peaceably in a war torn world”. For which he turns to the “ordinary virtues” as proposed by Michael Ignatieff which make peace possible between peoples that otherwise share nothing in common, and should reshape the churches in Asia into patient witness to God’s kingdom.
原載於《建道學刊》51期(2019年1月),頁 147-166。
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