什么人可以施圣礼?
Who can administer the sacraments?
作者: R.C. Sproul 译者: Virginia Yip
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“我们的主基督在福音中所设立的圣礼只有两个,即洗礼和圣餐:它们除由合乎圣经按立的牧师施行以外,任何人不得施行。” (注一)
There be only two sacraments ordained by
Christ our Lord in the Gospel; that is to say, baptism, and the Supper of the
Lord: neither of which may be dispensed by any, but by a minister of the Word
lawfully ordained.[1]
以上这句话的下半句:“它们除由合乎圣经按立的牧师施行以外,任何人不得施行”,尤其成为当代基督徒经常争议的点。早在十九世纪60年代和70年代,许多年轻人起来反对传统权威和权威架构,他们建立起他们的地下教会,教会中废弃一切循常规按立的圣职人员。他们会围绕在游泳池旁,由演艺界明星帕特·布恩(Pat Boone)或者由别的什么知名人士为信徒施洗。当时教会的领袖都被他们这种做法弄得目瞪口呆,无不摇头叹息,并宣称这些圣礼的施行是单单属于正规授权施圣礼者--例如被按立的牧师--的权限范围的。他们之所以会随便让一个普通人来施行圣礼,其实乃反映出他们对圣礼这件事看的很随意,觉得这些教会的圣礼并非什么神圣不可侵犯的事,用不着劳烦正式被按立的圣职人员。The final clause of section 4 is frequently disputed
among Christians: neither of which may be dispensed by any, but by a minister
of the Word lawfully ordained. In the so-called Jesus movement of the 1960s and
1970s, young people reacted against traditional authority structures and
created an underground church that dispensed with regularly ordained clergy.
People gathered around swimming pools and were baptized by Pat Boone or other
celebrities. Church officials were unnerved by these practices and claimed that
the sacraments are only to be administered by duly authorized individuals, such
as ordained clergy. Over against that was an informal view of the matter that saw
little need for ordained clergy.
与之同时,教会又加上受到了了灵恩运动的冲击。灵恩运动讲的是信徒可以领受特殊的属灵恩赐,足以让他们从事圣工。大部分新约圣经中有关“圣灵的恩赐”(希腊文 Charismata)乃来自保罗写给哥林多教会的书信。在哥林多教会,那些领受了圣灵恩赐的人,挑战那些按照常规被分别出来从事圣工的传道者,而保罗写给哥林多教会的两封书信都在处理他们教会当中因此产生的内部矛盾。Added to that was the impact of the charismatic
movement, in which people supposedly receive special gifts from the Holy Spirit
that empower them for ministry. Most of the New Testament information that we
have about the gifts of the Spirit (Greek charismata) comes from Paul’s letters
to the Corinthian church. In Corinth, people who received gifts from the Spirit
challenged the authority of those who had been, under normal circumstances, set
apart and consecrated for ministry. Paul’s two epistles to the Corinthian
community deal with that internal disruption.
后来,到了第一世纪末了,罗马的主教革利免也写了一封书信给住在哥林多的信徒群体,因为他们当中的问题在保罗离世后越发变得严重了,因为哥林多的教会那时简直就是落到了一种个人灵性与教会组织上的大混乱中。革利免告戒哥林多的信徒,要他们回去再好好看看使徒保罗给他们的书信,并要他们重视保罗的教导。在第一世纪末,教会所争论的问题就是,到底按常被按立的教会圣职人员与自称有灵恩的信徒领袖之间有没有什么区别。
At the end of the first century, Clement,
bishop of Rome, wrote an epistle to the Corinthian community because the crisis
had actually worsened after the death of the Apostle Paul. The Corinthian
church was in a state of spiritual and ecclesiastical chaos. Clement told the
Christians at Corinth to go back and heed the teaching of the Apostle Paul. At
the end of the first century, the debate had to do with regular ministers of
the church as distinguished from charismatic leaders.
在旧约,圣灵的恩赐往往是为了让人去完成某一项特殊任务才在某一个特殊的时刻临时赐下给某些人的。我们在旧约中读到,耶和华的灵降在耶利米或者以西结等人的身上。他们都是上帝特别分别出来,为要执行他们先知的灵恩职分的。以色列的君王是由祭司来膏立的,用油膏立乃象征了圣灵的膏立,他们被膏立乃表明上帝要他们以敬虔的方式执行他们为王的职分。在此之前,上帝兴起士师,如参孙和基甸,他们都是被膏立、拥有灵恩的领袖,为要成为当时架构较为松散的以色列各支派联邦的领袖,尤其为要带领他们对付他们的仇敌非利士人。摩西也是一个满有灵恩的领袖,在他身上有来自圣灵的特殊恩赐。上帝又膏立亚伦,让他成为祭司,并设立他后裔中一切的男丁继承他成为祭司。整个利未支派都是被上帝特别分别出来担任祭祀的职分,而这种的设立乃是旧约圣工架构的一个常态。
In the Old Testament, the gift of the Holy
Spirit was given to people for special tasks at particular times. We read that
the Spirit of the Lord came on Jeremiah or on Ezekiel. They were set apart by
God for the special charismatic office of the prophet. The kings of Israel were
anointed by the priest, as a sign of their anointing by the Spirit, to exercise
their office in a godly manner. Before that, God raised up judges like Samson
and Gideon as anointed, charismatically gifted leaders to provide some
leadership to the loose federation of the tribes of Israel and especially to
lead them against an enemy like the Philistines. Moses was also a charismatic
leader who was endowed by the Holy Spirit with special gifts. God then anointed
Aaron as the high priest and instituted his male descendants as the priesthood.
The entire tribe of Levi was set apart for priestly duties and became part of
the regular order of the Old Testament ministry.
在新约,基督徒信仰群体中具有属灵恩赐的领袖是使徒。他们乃是与旧约的先知平起平坐的。圣灵的能力临到他们,他们就成为上帝启示的代理人。当使徒保罗建立起一间教会后,他总是会按常规给教会指示,要他们选出长老,分别为圣,治理教会。我们在保罗写给提摩太和提多的书信中看到,保罗非常仔细地勾画出担任圣职的标准和要求。长老和执事就成为了教会常规性的圣职,而这些常规性的圣职人员乃担负起牧养照顾羊群的职责。
In the New Testament, the charismatically
endowed leaders of the Christian community were the Apostles. They were on the
same level as the Old Testament prophets. The power of the Holy Spirit came on
them, and they became agents of revelation. When the Apostle Paul established a
church, he customarily instructed his assistants to set apart elders who were
called to the office of ministry. We find this in his epistles to Timothy and
Titus, where he delineates the standards for office. The elders and deacons
became the regular officers of the church, and the ordinary ministers were
given the responsibility to care for the spiritual needs of the flock.
于是,他们的事工就不再依靠特殊的灵恩了。在旧约,圣灵只会将其能力局部地降在一个圣约团体中。但到了五旬节,祂降到了每一个聚会者的身上。之后更是降到了外邦信徒身上。使徒们见此情景得出的结论就是,所有的信徒,无论是犹太人还是外邦人,在基督的身体上所占据的地位和身份都是一样。圣灵现在不再是局部地而是全部地降下能力给整个教会,使每个人都能参与在基督的事工中。这也就是为什么路德要坚持信徒皆祭司的观点。路德说,福音事工是主托付给整个教会的,而不仅仅是某些少数人的。然而,路德也同时明白新约圣经有设立常规性的教会圣职职分,为的是要执行圣道和圣礼的职分以及为会友的灵性需要提供照料。
Their ministry was no longer dependent on
a special charismatic gift. In the Old Testament, the Holy Spirit endowed with
power only part of the covenant community. At Pentecost, He fell upon everyone
assembled, and later He came on the gentile converts. The inference drawn by
the Apostles was that all believers, Jew and gentile alike, had the same full
membership and status in the New Testament body of Christ. The Holy Spirit has
now empowered the entire church to participate in the ministry of Christ. That
was why Luther held his view of the priesthood of all believers. Luther said
that the ministry of the gospel was entrusted to the whole church, not just to
a few people. But Luther also understood that the New Testament established
regular church offices for the ministry of the Word and sacrament and for the
spiritual care of the people.
这些圣礼 “除由合乎圣经按立的牧师施行以外,任何人不得施行。” 当复活的主把大使命托付下来时,祂对使徒们,即首批的圣职人员,说: “所以你们要往普天下去是万民作我的门徒,奉父、子、圣灵的名为他们施洗” (太二十八19)。在哥林多前书十一章20-23节那里,保罗陈明,他所领受的有关设立主餐的事宜是他亲自从主那里领受的。他在哥林多前书四章1节那里说:“人应当以我们为基督的执事,为神奥秘事的管家。”在这里 “神奥秘事的管家” 这句话尤其关键。希伯来书五章4节告诉我们: “这大祭司的尊荣没有人自取,唯要蒙神所召,像亚伦一样。” 我在这里看到一个原则,就是从事教会事工的人,是由上帝所呼召的人所担任的,以及没有人有权擅自把这样的圣职拿来归给自己。而这些职分所附带的条件,就是要尽做上帝奥秘事管家的责任。就如在旧约时代,祭司是上帝奥秘事的管家,在新约,同样的职责则由教会的牧者来担任了。
Neither sacrament may be dispensed by any,
but by a minister of the Word lawfully ordained. When the resurrected Jesus
gave the Great Commission, He told the Apostles, the first Christian ministers,
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19). In 1
Corinthians 11:20–23, Paul states that he received from the Lord the words of
institution for the Lord’s Supper. He says in 1 Corinthians 4:1, “This is how
one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of
God.” The phrase “stewards of the mysteries of God” is critical. Hebrews 5:4
tells us, “No one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God,
just as Aaron was.” We see here a ministry in the church that is instituted by
the call of God, and that no one has the right to take it for himself. Included
in this ministry is the responsibility of being stewards of the mysteries of
God. Just as Old Testament priests were “stewards” of God’s mysteries, so that
task is also carried out by New Testament ministers.
“管家” 这个词在希腊文是 oikonomia.
英文中 “economy” (注二) 这个词,就是从这个希腊文的词演变过来的,这个词是将 oikos,即 “家” 与nomos,即 “法则、规矩” 这两个词连接在一起的。 所以,oikonomia 直译就是 “家规”/ “理家” 的意思。因此, “管家” 在圣经中的意思,就是指一个负责管理一个家庭中各样事物的仆人。而当我们说到基督徒的管家观念时,我们指的是我们如何管理好上帝托付给我们各样资源的责任。
The word stewardship translates the Greek
word oikonomia. Our English word economy derives from that word. It combines
the word oikos, meaning “house,” and the word nomos, meaning “law.” So
oikonomia means “house rule” or “house law.” Thus, a steward in the biblical
sense is a servant who is responsible for managing the affairs of the
household. When we speak of Christian stewardship, we are referring to our
responsibility to manage the resources that God has entrusted to us.
圣经告诉我们,上帝把管理祂神圣奥秘之事的管家职分交给了圣职人员,当保罗提到 “上帝奥秘事的管家” 一词时,收信的教会立即会明白这些是即包括“圣礼之事的管家”。虽然我们不能把新约中对 “奥秘” 一词的用法与 “圣礼” 完全划上等号,但我们依然不能忽略在教会圣经翻译史上,拉丁文的 “圣礼”
sacrementum 一词,乃是教会用来直接翻译希腊文的 “奥秘” mystērion 一词。牧师在教会中的职务之一,就是要确保圣礼的正确施行。
The Scriptures teach that God gives to
ministers the management or stewardship of the sacred mysteries. When Paul
refers to “stewards of the mysteries of God,” the church understands that to
include being “stewards of the sacraments.” Though we must not make an identity
between the New Testament use of the word mystery and our word sacrament, there
remains a historic link between the words as the Latin sacramentum was used by
the church to translate the Greek mystērion. One of the pastor’s
responsibilities in the life of the church is to oversee the sacraments.
虽然,关于圣礼是否必须由正式按立的牧师来施行一事,我们不能说圣经给了我们大量且直接明确、叫人无可反驳的证据,但根据以上引述的圣经证据,我们似乎可以很合理的得出结论:只有被按立的圣职人员才有施行圣礼的权柄。除了圣经一切有关教会监督的观念、长老的职责等各方面的教导外,主的教会在历史发展中也得出同样合宜的结论,就是主的圣礼是十分神圣的,以至于人们必须慎重对待之,不得用草率或轻慢的态度和方式处理圣礼。这一点,在我们思想到保罗对不按理(用不合适的方式)领受主餐之人的告诫时,尤其明显了。
Though the biblical evidence is not
overwhelming, it seems best to conclude that only ordained people have the
authority to administer the sacraments. In addition to biblical references and
the biblical concept of what it means to be a bishop, and the responsibilities
of eldership as set forth in the New Testament, the church, in her own
development, rightly came to the conclusion that the sacraments are so holy that
they must be guarded from frivolous or cavalier usage. That becomes
particularly clear when we consider the warning not to partake of the Lord’s
Supper unworthily.
保罗在哥林多前书十一章30节警告那些不按理吃喝主餐的人说:这就是为什么 “你们中间有好些软弱的与患病的,死的也不少。” 新约学者 Oscar
Cullmann 注意到,这一节经文是整本新约圣经中被人最忽略的一节。他认为保罗对哥林多教会的信徒说话的意思就是: “你们当中有人病了,甚至病死了,都是跟你们没有分辨领受主的身体乃是一件神圣的事这件事有直接的关系。” 对此事所需要的分辨力,跟对其他事情所需要的分辨力一样,都是取决教会如何看待怎样才能更有效保护信徒这件事上——保护他们免受因对圣餐不适当的施行而造成的负面影响。所以,圣礼必须由那些被正式分别出来担任教会圣职的人员来负责,并非谁都能施行圣礼的。而维护圣礼的职责,也是交在了圣职人员的手里。当然,这不表示圣礼就从此不会被误用/滥用,但是不这么做的后果会更严重。
Paul warns about eating and drinking
unworthily in 1 Corinthians 11:30: “That is why many of you are weak and ill,
and some have died.” The New Testament scholar Oscar Cullmann observed that
this is one of the most neglected verses in the entire New Testament. He
suggested that Paul was saying to the Corinthians, “Some of you people have
fallen ill, even unto death, directly as a result of your failure to discern
the Lord’s body in this most holy event.” This need for discernment, along with
other concerns, lay behind the church’s decision to protect the people from the
negative effects of mishandling the sacraments. Therefore, the sacraments must
be administered by those who have been set apart for the task of ministry in
the church. Not just anyone can administer the sacraments. The responsibility
to guard the sacraments is put into the hands of the clergy. That is no
guarantee that there will not be abuses, but the situation could otherwise be
much worse.
路德在他第一次施圣餐时,吓得不能动弹。洗礼也是一件极其严肃的事,其严肃程度远远超过可以随便在谁家的游泳池(译注:或浴室)里来举行。洗礼应该在教会的监督和规范下举行。我们的信仰告白也延续历史历代教会施行圣礼的传统,它说圣礼必须有那些拥有圣职权柄、按照规矩合宜地被按立成为上帝话语的教导者来施行才对。 (注三)
Luther was paralyzed by fear when he
sought to administer the Lord’s Supper for the first time. Baptism is too
important to do at a party in someone’s swimming pool. It belongs under the
rule and supervision of the church. The confession, following the church
practice through the ages, says that the sacraments are to be administered by
those who are in positions of ordained authority, the lawfully ordained
ministers of the Word.[2]
———
注一:《威斯敏斯特信仰告白》二十七章4段。
注二:译注:Economy 中文直译是“经济”,但英文的意思有“家政、家务协调分配管理”的意思。
注三:这段节录选自司布尔的 Truths We Confess 一书的 584-587 页。(译注:原稿网络版发表于https://www.ligonier.org/learn/qas/who-can-administer-the-sacraments) 中文翻译为译者用来教学用。
Virginia Yip 叶老师敬拜课程
Virginia Yip 叶老师敬拜课程