106.6月7日自由及意志－白孟德神父（Fr. Charles Belmonte Lopez）語錄-譯者:林豪

“Some people barricade themselves behind their freedom. ‘My freedom! My freedom!’ they cry. They have their freedom, but they don’t use it. They look at it, they set it up, a clay idol for their petty minds to worship. Is this freedom? What use is this treasure to them, if there is no commitment guiding their whole life?

「這些人徒然把自己的自由作了自己的屏障，「我的自由啊！我的自由啊！」他們吶喊著。他們有自由，但卻沒有運用，他們眼睜睜地看著它，把它看成粘土造成的偶像，而去祟拜它。但這是自由嗎？這樣的財富有何用處？

“They are left aimless, with no clear path to guide their footsteps on this earth. You and I have met such people. They then let themselves be carried away by childish vanity, by selfish conceit, by sensuality.

如果，終生無所委身，那豈不是違反人的尊嚴和高貴？他們喪失了目標，在世上再沒有清晰的途徑，可導其前行。我們都曾遇見過這樣的人，他們被幼稚的虛榮自我所欺騙，和感官的享樂所迷惑了。

“Their freedom turns out to be barren, or produces fruits which even humanly speaking are ridiculous. A person who does not choose, with complete freedom, an upright code of conduct, sooner or later ends up being manipulated by others. He will lead a lazy, parasitic existence, at the mercy of what others decide. He will let himself be blown to and fro by any wind whatsoever, and it will always be others who make up his mind for him.

他們的自由不會結果實，即使結果也不過是荒謬的東西。一個人擁有完全的自由，但卻沒有選擇正直的操守，遲早都會被人操縱。他過的會是懶散，一如寄生蟲般的生活，任人擺佈。他會搖擺不定，事事沒有主見。

“These are waterless clouds, carried hither and thither by the winds, autumn trees that bear no fruit, doubly dead and rootless, even though they may try to disguise their lack of character, courage, and honesty behind a smokescreen of constant chatter and excuses.” St Josemaría

『他們像無水的浮雲，隨風飄盪；又像晚秋，不結果實。死了又死，該連根拔出的樹木。』（猶12）雖然這些人常會滔滔不絕，不斷地找藉口，去掩飾自己缺乏性格、勇氣和誠實等弱點。」(聖施禮華，天主之友，29)

We give more glory to God by offering him our best talents as a holocaust, than by making vain use of them. As with the sacrifice of Abel, God is pleased when we offer him the best that we have, what we value most. Nothing is too great to give him.

我們將自己最好的才能奉獻給天主作為全燔祭，而不是毫無用處的，從而將更多的光榮歸於天主。就像亞伯爾的祭獻一樣，當我們把自己所擁有最好的，我們最珍視的奉獻給天主時，天主會悅納的。沒有什麼是不能奉獻給祂的。

Since our will is the most personal of our possessions, we ask the Holy Spirit to teach us to put our will totally at God’s disposal. This is the best way of exercising our freedom. Our Lord, because he was the Son of God, did not think it beneath him to take the form of a slave; and we too will try to give ourselves unconditionally into the hands of our Father God.

因為我們的意志，是我們極私人的財產，我們祈求聖神教導我們，將我們的意志完全交託給天主。這是運用我們自由的最佳方式。我主，因為祂是聖子，「卻使自己空虛，取了奴僕的形體」(斐2:7)；我們也將一切努力的成果，毫無條件地將自己交託在天父的手中。