133.7月4日划向深處－白孟德神父（Fr. Charles Belmonte Lopez）語錄-譯者:林豪

Getting in over our heads in the life of prayer. “Put out into the deep…” (Lk 5:4) That was the admonition that Jesus gave to his disciples. It sounds so easy. But it takes courage.

在祈禱的生活中，深植我們腦海的是：「划到深處去…」（路5：4）這是主耶穌對門徒的勸戒。這聽起來很簡單，但是需要勇氣。

The oceans, with their unfathomed depths can be dangerous – as the recent news headlines remind us. When we speak of the “ocean” of God’s mercy – even deeper, even stronger – we must speak with awe.

深不可測的海洋為他們而言，可能是危險的—正如最近的頭條新聞（泰坦號爆炸事件）提醒我們的一樣。當我們談到「天主慈悲的海洋」—甚至更深、更為強大—我們必須懷著敬畏之心談論之。

Dive into the ocean – any ocean – and you take a risk; you might be lost at sea. So, most of us stay close to shore. Only the saints took the headlong plunge.

潛入海洋—無論是任何海洋—你都必須冒險；你可能會在海上迷路。所以，我們大多數的人都寧可待在岸上。只有聖人們願意大膽投入。

My father, a strong swimmer, taught all his children not to “put out into the deep.” For a recreational swimmer at the beach, he told us repeatedly, “there’s no reason to go out over your head!”

我的父親是一位游泳健將，他教所有的孩子不要「深入深海」。對於海灘上戲水的泳者，他反覆告訴我們：「沒有理由去冒險！」

At the beach, that is good advice. But maybe not in the life of prayer, because the oceans of God’s mercy will never turn deadly. Any ocean should be regarded with awe. But the “fear of God” is a pure sort of awe, not tainted by anything like the fear of drowning or of shark attacks. The exhortation to “put out into the deep” goes hand-in-hand with the frequent admonition to “be not afraid.”

留在海灘上，這是很好的建議。但是，在祈禱的生活中也許不是這樣，因為在「天主慈悲的海洋」中，永遠不會是致命的。應該要敬畏任何一處海洋。但是「敬畏天主」是一種純粹的敬畏，不會被溺水或是被鯊魚襲擊的恐懼所渲染。「划向深處」的勸誡，經常與「不要害怕」的忠告相得益彰。

Beach goers cling to the shore, clustered in a tiny strip of shallow water. Even the yachts and fishing boats are fairly close to land. Beyond them stretch the miles of open water. Only the serious seafarers, who know the oceans well, go out so far.

海灘上的遊客緊貼著岸邊，聚集在一小片淺水區。甚至遊艇和漁船也都與陸地非常接近。離開此處，是綿延不盡的開闊水域。只有熟悉海洋的專業海員，才能深入其中。

It is relatively easy to try your hand in the life of prayer. To give God an hour every Sunday, without follow-up, can be refreshing – like a quick dip in the ocean. But a serious effort to know God, to be committed to him, is a much greater challenge. You can get lost. In fact, if you rise to the challenge, you will get lost…in God. And that – let’s be honest – frightens us.

在祈禱的生活中，嘗試著隨時合掌祈禱，這是相對容易的。每個星期天只奉獻給天主一個小時，之後卻沒有後續的行動；作一些轉變可能會令人耳目一新—就像在大海中快速暢遊一樣。但是，認真努力地認識天主，委順於祂，是一項更大的挑戰，而你可能會迷失。事實上，如果你迎接挑戰，你會在天主內會失去方向…—坦言之，這會讓我們感到害怕。

As I stand on the shore, letting the waves lap over my toes – but no more! – I find myself thinking about the Sunday Mass as a quick dip; something that refreshes us and restores our energy. Or we can think of it as an immense event connected to the rest of our life, with power behind our comprehension, that sweeps us away and makes us soar up to God’s heart. Give me the latter, please.

當我站在岸邊，讓海浪輕拍著我的腳趾—然而，僅此而已！—我發現到，自己認為周日彌撒，是一個快速地沾點而已，為讓我們神清氣爽，並恢復能量的事務。或者，我們可以把它看作是，一個與我們餘生息息相關的宏大事業，在我們瞭解背後所擁有的力量，它掃除了我們，使我們翱翔到天主的心中。請你告訴我，你選擇後者。

“The more we are prepared for Mass, the more grace we will take away from the Mass. And remember: the grace available in the Mass is infinite – it’s all the grace of heaven. The only limit is our capacity to receive it.” Scott Hahn

「我們為彌撒做周全地準備，我們從彌撒中獲得的恩典也就越多。要記住：彌撒中的恩典是無限的—這都是來自天堂的恩典。唯一的限制，是我們接收它的能力。」（史考特·韓）