I believe “Miracle” is the first experience of many people who enter into “faith”. When a person speaks of his miracles, he regards them as incredible though they may sound ridiculous to others! The miracle that Fr. Albert became a father happened in the late part of his twelfth year during World War II. The German troops did not invade France yet and his kid brother was still alive.
Fr. Albert said: “I acted as {Altar Boy}. Once in Mass, Father stood on the altar, and I sat below. Suddenly I seemed to hear a sound that God invited me to be a father. Two days later, I was in the church of “the Society of St. Francis Xavier”. God continued to tell me to preach Gospels in China and to learn from St. Francis Xavier.
“It is not that you select me but that I select you and assign you to bear fruits and to bear enduring fruits.” (《Gospel of John》十五 16) (?).
Fr. Albert said: “That was the turning point of my life! I clearly understood what I would do in my life thereafter. At that time, I was still a naughty boy. I just stood beside the father as his little assistant. I did never imagine that I would be invited to be a father. I told my dream to the “father”. And then I wrote a letter to my parents saying that I would go home. I also mentioned that I had something to tell them.”
“One day before Christmas, I went home by train. The school was within three hours of distance from my home by train. On the train, I felt clearly the sound of God. On arriving at home, my parents were waiting for me at home. My mother asked whether I fell ill as soon as she opened the door. What happened? Was I discharged? I said I wanted to be a father to preach in China. My mother was moved and burst out crying. They did expect that the first boy in the family could act as a father. But they did not tell me. My mother asked why I chose China. I said that was god’s decree. I decided my whole life in a short time. I became a father after my graduation.”
I asked: “Did you never doubt it? Maybe you just heard auditory hallucination. (?)”
Fr. Albert said: “I never doubt it at all as Buddhists hear Buddha’s words. I never doubt why Buddha comes to rescue me.”
I hear and I believe! It is so simple! The base of faith is “trust”! But people are not so obedient. People always regard themselves as the masters. They love “doubt” more than they love “God”. I am such a doubtful person as they are. More than twenty years of studying the science and engineering have trained me to get the spirit of doubt. How could I believe the illusory miracle before the practical experiments? I am not so obedient. Not until I was twenty-nine years old did I for the first time meet the “Holy Mother”---a formless “Buddha” who instructed me to practice moral teachings. The more stories I tell of the Holy Mother, the more they sound like incredible fairy tales. But they really happened to me as the miracles happened to Fr. Albert. The happenings changed my whole life!
My family has worshipped King Ming Shan---a folk Royal Highness. When my father went from his hometown to Kaohsiung to make a living, he welcomed the Royal Highness to worship. I have no special affection for the god. I only knew no matter how busy my father was, he came home to burn incense to worship the god. Maybe thanks to the god, my father built up from nothing! All the family members lived in harmony!
In seventies, “LOTTOKIG Lottery” was popular and worked in coordination with “National Lottery”. People seemed to go insane and just waited for the time to draw the winning numbers of the lottery. It was another kind of gambling. My parents were addicted to “LOTTOKIG Lottery”. They dreamed to become rich overnight. My father always said if he got the grand prize, he could use part of the prize to set scholarship in his hometown to help the moneyless children. My father’s great wish was to repay his hometown. But the meaning of his faith had subtle change. Before the time to draw the winning numbers of the lottery, he devoutly and respectfully worshipped Royal Highness, with a wish that God might answer his seemingly impossible beautiful dream. The power of human beings was limited. They turned to gods for help. Such “gods’ answers” were popular in those days. There were many of such answers of gods in the newspaper advertisements. But unfortunately there were more losers than winners. People who lost their money took their spite out on the gods. We could see by the rivers, in the bushes, and in piles of trash etc., many gods which were thrown away or even beheaded.
At that time, I was busy preparing for the joint entrance examinations. I still remember that the government concerned decided to stop “National Lottery” because the islanders were lost in the gambling. The last one lottery caused greater sensation! Three days before drawing the winning numbers, my father said the god “Third Prince” in a temple had the good number. My father wanted to buy the number. But the number was too hot to sell. No group head dared to sell it. He heard some unknown person monopolized the number all over Taiwan! Later on, it turned out to be “god’s number”! Surprising! Something the mysterious and unknown existed in the ghosts world. My father sighed that he did know the right number existed, but he was not blissful to get the grand prize. Two years later, my family had a very bad “cash mutual group”. My parents went bankrupt and sold our house. From then on, King Ming Shan began to follow our family and moved around. I began to doubt the spirituality of King Ming Shan. My father was very devout to Him, and He betrayed us!
I am proud by nature. In childhood, I was familiar with books and poems. I could talk beautifully. I was selected into “Talent Class” as the winner of mayor prize. I went on to the best school in southern Taiwan. I acted as the editor-in-chief of the school publication in my sophomore year. I had special privilege over my schoolmates---“legal cutting class”. I was full of myself as if my eyes were on my head. I arrogantly said I played all the games that college students did! And so I rejected college entrance examinations. I talked beautifully. In fact, I did not work hard. I was flunked and I was a retained student!
Several years later, I re-read my books. I told my family I wanted to take the entrance examinations to college. My parents supported me. But I knew they were still worried! But to their surprise, I was admitted to a national university. One day, I happened to find a red paper in the drawer of the Buddha table. There were my name and the date of my birth on it. That was my fleeting time. I saw my father prayed to have good luck for me. The red paper had “the question of my luck” on it. The answer was “to no purpose”. I thought nothing of it. I got mad why they believed the cheating tricks of the swindlers. My parents were worried because I had rejected the college entrance examinations. And they could not offer any help. So they turned to fortune-tellers for help. He knew the bad prediction and he was afraid it might affect my emotions. They kept me in the dark bout it. Anyway, they prayed I could go on to the ideal college!
Ignorance! Superstition! In one word, people should not believe anything that science can not prove. I proudly consider Buddha and Jesus to be the best commercial spokesmen. They told the biggest lie in the world! And the followers deceive themselves as well as others. If only people believe the lies, they seem to live better lives and feel easier and more relieved and more comfortable. I can’t agree more if we say religions are nothings but “placebo of soul”. (We do not go too far if we say religions are nothings but “placebo of soul”.)
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