基要派的誘惑

The Seduction of Fundamentalism
基要派的誘惑
(author and source unknown)
翻譯：抽刀斷水

Many members of fundamentalist religions were first seduced into it because it appeared to them to be a comforting religion. It promised to the person who felt lost in a society that is not perfect that, yes, there are simple answers to complex problems.

很多基要派基督教的教徒都是先被引誘加入的，因為它表面看來是一個具安慰性的宗教。它向人承諾，當人在不完美的社會中感到失落，對於這些複雜的難題，是會有一些簡單答案的。

Many people find it hard to cope. They see that the universe is not only complex but it is dangerous. There are diseases and death, floods and hurricanes, earthquakes and catastrophes. The poor frightened human, able to understand the danger but neither able to accept it nor do anything about it, finds that the presence of the Supreme Boss is extremely desirable—especially if the Boss can be manipulated by magical signs and incantations.

很多人難以適應社會，他們視這世界既複雜且危險，世界有很多疾病及死亡、洪水及風暴、地震及災難。那些可憐又受驚的人類，雖然能明白這些危險，但卻接受不了，又不能做些甚麼，於是一位至高無上的主宰的存在，是十分切合期望的，尤其是當這位主宰可運用預言及魔法。

But it will ultimately occur to the fundamentalist that anyone or anything which denies the existence of the Boss threatens the safety, even the very survival, of the believer. The infidel must be brought into the fold or, at least, prevented from acting contrary to the values of the fundamentalist.

但是終有一天，基要派信徒會認為，任何否認主宰存在的人或事物，都會危害信徒的安全。必須要把不信者帶進羊圈，或至少防止他們與基要派信徒的價值觀對立起來。

It is at this time that the fundamentalist is in the greatest danger of gradually becoming part of a religion of violence. The first promise of fundamentalism has disappeared. It has become a religion that turns its members into irrational followers whose hatred for much of this world is now the most basic part of their personality. Little did these converts realize that they were in danger of becoming believers who religiously violate the basic standards of the religion.

這個時候，基要派信徒是最危險的，他們會漸漸地成為這個暴力性宗教的其中一部分。基要派最初的承諾消失了，它成功把信徒改變成不理性的跟隨者，憎恨世上大部分事物，這已成為他們性格最基本的部分。這些被改變的人很少會意識到自己正在危機當中，成為虔誠地違反這個宗教基本標準的信徒。

Day by day, the scripture has become the fundamentalist’s only source of knowledge because it is the very word of the Boss. By definition, the bible must be literally true. “The Boss said it, I believe it, that settles it.”

日復一日，聖經成為基要派信徒唯一的知識來源，因為它是主宰真實的說話。根據定義，聖經一定是字面上無誤的。「主宰說的，我信，那就是了。」

The Boss must be understandable, so the believers create a being that looks like them and talks like them. The Boss even has many of the same limitations that they have. Then they define the Boss as omnipotent which also brings the dream of their own omnipotence a step closer.

主宰一定理解我們的，所以信徒會創造一個個體，跟他們長相相似，說話相似，甚至有很多跟他們一樣的限制。然後，他們把主宰定義為全能的，以便可更近一步邁向他們自己全能的夢想。

The world of the scripture is not without its hazards, though. It is filled with demons, witches and evil spirits. The fundamentalists feel that they are in direct contact with these magical beings, possibly even under attack by them. These evil creatures are more real to them than, say, the existence of an old dinosaur fossil is to us. But the Boss will protect them.

聖經的世界裡不是沒有危險的，裡面充滿惡魔、女巫及邪靈。基要派信徒感到他們正與這些魔體直接接觸，甚至正受牠們攻擊。比較起例如恐龍化石的存在，那些魔體對他們來說更為真實，但是主宰是會保護他們的。

Because it often contradicts scripture, secular knowledge is rejected as unreliable and even false. Therefore, anything or anybody who denies the literal truth of the scripture is working for the devil. In fundamentalism there is a three-track road to knowledge: (1) faith (2) the scripture and (3) direct communication with the Boss. Fundamentalists do not have opinions, rather they have revelations. Anything which conflicts with the revelation, since it did not come from the Boss must, therefore, have come from Satan.

非宗教的知識常常與聖經有矛盾，所以信徒會認為是不可靠、甚至是錯誤而拒絕接受，因此拒絕聖經字面無誤的任何人或事物，都是正在為魔鬼工作的。在基要派中，有一條三線道路獲得知識：(1) 信心；(2) 聖經；(3) 與主宰直接溝通。基要派信徒沒有個人意見，只有啟示。任何事物如與啟示有衝突，由於那都不是從主宰而來的，因此那一定是從撒但而來。

Finally, even thinking about one’s own values becomes blasphemy because thinking requires questioning of a personal revelation from the Boss. Reality has disappeared. The Boss protects the fundamentalist but, at the same time, the fundamentalist protects the Boss. Anything which threatens the Boss’s universe must be destroyed.

最後，信徒就算思考一下自己的價值，已算是褻瀆了主宰，因為思考需要質疑由主宰而來的個人啟示。在這個時候，真實已消失了。主宰保護信徒，同時信徒亦保護主宰，所有能威脅到主宰世界的所有事物都要被消滅。

When the believer has reached this level, logic is Satanic because it is not based on scripture and knowledge is evil because it leads to questioning. Now, everyone must think and act as the fundamentalist does because that’s the way the Boss wants it to be. Now you understand why these people can kill in the name of the Boss.

當信徒到達這個階段時，會認為邏輯是屬撒但的，因為那不是由聖經而來；知識是邪惡的，因為會導致質疑。這時，所有人一定要與基要派信徒的思想與行為一樣，因為那是主宰所希望的。現在你明白為甚麼那些人會以神之名殺人了。

中文譯本於2004/8/16 完成，並原載於離教者之家（http://exchristian.hk），歡迎轉載，唯請註明出處和保留全文，及只能作非牟利用途。