2018-02-17

【Aiden in English】

        Sometimes I think the passing zodiacs of like a food chain in an ecosystem: this year, it’s the dog eating the chicken.

        Speaking of eating, the annual service of the Lunar New Year at China Grace Christian Church was nice, as usual. This year was somewhat different since a blizzard decided to come and ruin the party. Regardless, that didn’t stop a delicious dinner and an entertaining performance from taking place in the warm, cozy indoors. The food was amazing, and so was the performance. There were a few miracles dropped into tonight as well. A grandma, Mrs. Qiao, was celebrating her 95^th birthday, incredibly, and perhaps most spectacular of all, she had a beautiful voice and seemed to be bursting with energy. It’s now a tradition for her to sing What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong every year, and it’s probably the only staple in the program. Everything else is unique and fresh, rarely containing reruns.

        From a nice topic to a more serious one, a blizzard was sent our way. Although there was a debate on whether to move the celebration, much thought by moving up the program we would miss most of the snow. What we didn’t expect was for the snowflakes to be the size of ping-pong balls and the accumulation to be so fast. By the time the show was over, there must be a good three inches on the ground already. Worst of all, the snow would melt a bit, resulting in terrible traction for wheels. The problems continued. There was extremely low visibility, as well as the snow-covered windows. At one point, the car struggled to get over a hill, and it really was a terrifying experience.

        Here’s an interesting point I was thinking on the way back though. Yes, we made it back home alive and safe, minimal damage suffered. A Christian at that moment would think that his/her safe journey was due to the hand of God. If you look at the world as a whole, all Christians have one thing in common: they’re alive. In this case, God has done no wrong, regardless of their social standings. However, in the countless, horrible moments on this earth, among the millions who believe yet perish, what is their say?

        Return back to the blizzard. God is not all-powerful. He cannot change the natural laws of science. Those people who continue to say that the unknown for science is the work of God. That is somewhat a flawed mindset. You cannot state what is not known to be the work of an omniscient being. When science continues to advance and explain why we are here, those certain believers go on to push back what God can do. If science exponentially grows as we see it do now, in a thousand years or so, God may no longer have definable powers. 

        Yet there most likely still will be a God (assuming it’s not a cult). It will entirely be a personal faith, one that metaphorically stands beside you during times of need. Perhaps a bit of luck here and there won’t hurt, but that God will give the motivation and strength to get past tougher tests. It’s what’s nice about local churches: they are the place where people can connect with their personal faith and achieve self-confidence. For me, it’s a place to spend New Year’s with family and friends who believe in God.

【红霞译文】

        有时我觉得交替出现的十二生肖如同生态系统中的食物链： 2018年与其说玉犬送金鸡，不如说是狗吃掉了鸡。

        提起吃，神州教会春节联欢聚餐跟往年丰盛的筵席没啥两样，唯独不同的倒是暴风雪如期而至，成心要跟晚会过意不去。尽管天公不作美，但温暖舒适的大厅不乏珍馐美馔及娱乐表演，大家吃得香乐得欢，间或高潮迭起，今天恰逢乔奶奶诞辰九十五岁，庆生场面令人难以忘怀，也许最值得感慨的应首推她美妙动听仿佛充满活力的音喉，如今老人家拿手好戏即演唱路易斯·阿姆斯特朗的代表作《多么美妙的世界》，这首歌大概是神州基督教会唯一一个保留曲目，其它节目多为专场编排，难得反复重演。

        话题由轻松的一面转到较为严肃的另一面，也就是说暴风雪已向我们这一带逼近。到底要不要更改庆祝活动，大家迟疑不决，但多数人倾向早开始早结束以避免大雪围困。我们万万没有想到乒乓球大小的雪花铺天盖地，很快堆积成片，等到演出结束，地面上积雪已达3英寸（7.6厘米）之厚，更为恶劣的还有雪会稍微融化，结果给轮胎带来莫大阻力。境况继续朝不利方向发展，眼下能见度又特别低，而且雪落在车窗上把视线挡个瓷实，再加上一度间汽车爬坡吃力，委实叫人担惊受怕。

        回家的路上我禁不住思索这样有趣的问题。没错，我们在经历小小波折之后安全到家，基督徒会触景生情，把平安无事归功于上帝援助之手，如果你放眼世界，所有基督徒均有共识：他们活着，在这种情况下，甭管社会地位如何，上帝无可挑剔。然而，世间天灾人祸时有发生，那些虔诚但身临绝境的信徒又作何感想呢？

        再扯回到暴风雪，上帝并非万能，祂无法改变科学意义上的自然规律，有人把未知事物视为上帝创造，这种说道未免太牵强附会，你没法讲清全知的神祗功力所在。当科学深入发展，诠释我们生存的依据便昭然若揭，某些信徒情愿回到上帝显灵的时代，如果科学依旧像我们今天所目睹的速度不断呈指数增长，那么顶多需要一千年左右，也许上帝不再神力无限。

        不过很有可能上帝照样存在（假设与邪教无关），这完全取决于个人信仰，需要的时候祂会默默陪伴着你，藉之你或多或少沾点运气，但上帝确实给予激情平添心力，帮你度过考试难关，这就是当地教堂魅力所在：那是蒙受恩典的教徒交流信仰实现自我的殿堂；对我而言，那是我与敬拜上帝的家人和朋友共度新春佳节的地方。

Crosslinks(相关博文):

2017 CNY Gala @ CGCC(2017年神州基督教会春晚联欢)

2015 CNY Celebrated w/ Yo-Yo @ CGCC(2015年神州教会抖空竹)

2012: 电子时代的百家饭(iParty)

2011: 压岁钱(Lucky Money)

2010: 愿望排行榜(Wish List)

2009: 阿鲁巴—开心之岛(One Happy Island, Aruba)