406. 每個人就個體而言, 都是當愛的鄰舍, 然而要按他擁有之良善的性質如何(以不同的方式)來愛他
人並非為自己而生, 而是為了他人; 也就是, 活著並非僅僅為了自己, 而是為了別人。否則, 社會無法被組合在一起, 並且其中不會有任何良善。
有個通常的說法, 每個人都是他自己的鄰舍。(關於義的教导告诉我們當如何理解這一點。)這表示每個人當為自己獲取必需品, 例如食物,衣服,住處, 以及生活在社會中需要的其它東西。他不僅要為自己獲取這些, 還要為需要他供養的人; 不僅為現在, 還要為將來。除非一個人為自己提供這些生活必需品, 就進不了行義的境界, 因為他什麼都沒有。
然而, 人如何成為自己的鄰舍, 可從以下的比方看清楚:每個人當為自己的肉體提供食物; 這是首先要考慮的, 目的在於有健康的頭腦在一個健康的身體裡。每個人還要為他的頭腦提供食物, 就是建立智力與判斷力的東西; 為了使他得以服務他的同胞,社區,國家,教會, 因而服事主。任何追求這個目標之人永遠會為自己妥善供應以上需求。
從這些觀點可清楚看出, 從時間的立場來看, 在先的是什麼; 從目的這一立場來看, 什麼在先。目的為先的, 才是真正的總目標。
這種情形就好比某人蓋房子:先要打地基, 但地基的目的在於建房, 房子的目的在於居住。任何人把視自己為鄰舍作為首先的和最主要的目標, 就像某人視打地基而非居住為目標。然而, 在房屋中居住才是主要和終極的總目標, 而房屋及其地基只不過是通往目標的手段而已。
406. All Individual Members of Humankind Are the Neighbor We Are to Love, but [in Different Ways] Depending on the Type of Goodness They Have
We are not born for our own sake; we are born for the sake of others. That is, we are not born to live for ourselves alone; we are born to live for others. Otherwise society would not be cohesive and there would be no good in it.
There is a common saying that we are all neighbor to ourselves. The body of teaching on goodwill, however, shows how we should understand this. We are all supposed to provide ourselves with the necessities of life, such as food, clothing, a place to live, and many other things that are required by the civic life in which we participate. And we provide these things not only for ourselves but also for our loved ones, not only for the present but also for the future. If we do not provide ourselves with the necessities of life, we are in no state to practice goodwill, because we lack everything.
How we are to be neighbors to ourselves, however, can be shown through the following analogy: We should all provide our bodies with food. This has to come first, but the goal is to have a sound mind in a sound body. We also ought to provide our mind with its food, that is, things that build intelligence and judgment; but the goal is to be in a state in which we can serve our fellow citizens, our community, our country, the church, and therefore the Lord. People who pursue this goal are providing well for themselves to eternity.
These points make clear what is primary from the standpoint of time and what is primary from the standpoint of purpose. What is primary from the standpoint of purpose is the true overall goal.
This situation is like people building a house. They have to lay the foundation first, but the foundation is for the house, and the house is for living in. People who hold being neighbors to themselves as their first and foremost objective are like people whose main purpose is building the foundation rather than living in the house. Yet living in the house is the primary and ultimate purpose overall; the house and its foundation are only a means to an end.
406. 1 III. Every person taken singly is the neighbour who is to be loved, but he should be loved according to the quality of his good.
Man was not born for his own sake, but for the sake of others; that is, so that he should not live for himself alone, but for others. Otherwise no society could hold together, nor could there be any good in it. The common saying goes, that each person is his own neighbour; but the doctrine of charity teaches us how we ought to understand this. It means that each person should procure for himself the necessities of life, such as food, clothing, somewhere to live and many other things demanded by the society in which he lives. These he should procure not only for himself, but for his people; and not only for the present, but also for the future. For unless a person provides himself with the necessities of life, he is not in a position to exercise charity, being in want of everything.
In what way, however, each person ought to be his own neighbour can be seen from this analogy. Everyone ought to provide his body with food; this is the first consideration, but for the purpose of having a healthy mind in a healthy body. Everyone ought also to provide his mind with the food it needs, such things as fall within the domain of intelligence and judgment, but in order that he may as a result be in a position to be of service to his fellow citizen, his community, country, the church and so the Lord. Anyone who does this provides well for himself for ever. This shows plainly what is first in time, and what is first in purpose; and it is this which all else has in view. This is also like someone building a house: first he lays the foundations, but the purpose of the foundations is the building of a house, and the purpose of the house is to be somewhere to live. Anyone who thinks being his own neighbour comes first or takes the leading position is like someone who regards the foundations as the purpose rather than having somewhere to live; when in fact this is the first and last purpose in building, and the house with its foundations is only a means to this end.
Footnotes:
1. This passage is closely modelled on HD 97-98.
406. III. EVERY MAN INDIVIDUALLY IS THE NEIGHBOR WHO IS TO BE LOVED, BUT ACCORDING TO THE QUALITY OF HIS GOOD.
Man is born not for the sake of himself but for the sake of others; that is, he is born not to live for himself alone but for others; otherwise there could be no cohesive society, nor any good therein. It is a common saying that every man is a neighbor to himself; but the doctrine of charity teaches how this is to be understood, namely, that everyone should provide for himself the necessaries of life, as food, clothing, a dwelling, and other things which are necessarily required in the social life in which he is, and this not only for himself, but also for his family, nor for the present alone, but also for the future. For unless a man acquires for himself the necessaries of life, he is not in a condition to exercise charity, since he is in want of everything. But how every man ought to be a neighbor to himself may be seen from the following comparison: Every man ought to provide his body with food; this must be first, but the end should be that he may have a sound mind in a sound body; and every man ought to provide his mind with food, namely, with such things as pertain to intelligence and judgment; but the end should be that he may thereby be in a state to serve his fellow-citizens, society, his country, the church, and thus the Lord. He who does this provides well for himself to eternity. From this it is plain what is first in time, and what is first in end, and that the first in end is that to which all things look. It is also like building a house; first the foundation must be laid; but the foundation must be for the house, and the house for a dwellingplace. He who believes himself to be a neighbor to himself in the first place or primarily, is like one who regards the foundation, not the dwelling, as the end; and yet the dwelling is itself the first and the last end, and the house with its foundation is only a means to the end.
406. III. EVERY MAN INDIVIDUALLY IS THE NEIGHBOR WHO OUGHT TO BE LOVED, BUT ACCORDING TO THE QUALITY OF HIS GOOD.
Man is not born for himself, but for the sake of others; that is, he is not born to live for himself alone, but for others; otherwise there would be no such thing as social community, in which any good could exist. It is a common saying that every man is neighbor to himself; but the doctrine of charity teaches how this is to be understood. It is obvious, of course, that every one must provide himself with the necessaries of life, as food, clothing, a dwelling, and the many other things which his civil life demands. He must do this not only for himself, but also for his family, and not only for the present, but also for the future; for if anyone does not procure for himself the necessaries of life, being in want of all things, he is not in a position to exercise charity.
In what way, however, a man ought to be neighbor to himself may appear from the following considerations. Every man ought to provide food and clothing for his body. This must be the first object of his care, but with the end in view that there may be a sound mind in a sound body. He must also provide proper food for his mind, that is, such things as pertain to intelligence and judgment; again with the end in view that he may thereby be in a position to serve his fellow citizen, the society of which he is a part, his country, the Church, and thus the Lord. He who does this provides for his welfare to eternity.
From this, we may perceive what is first in time, and what is first in end. What is first in end is the object to which all things have reference. For example, when a man builds a house he first lays the foundation, but the end in view is a house for habitation. He who believes that he is neighbor to himself in the first place or primarily, is like a man who regards the foundation as the end, and not habitation in the house; whereas habitation in the house is the first and ultimate end in view, while the house with its foundation is only a means to that end.
406. Quod Omnis homo in singulari sit Proximus, qui amandus est, sed secundum 1 quale boni ejus.
Homo non natus est propter 2 se, sed propter alios; hoc est, ut non vivat sibi soli, sed aliis, alioquin non foret aliqua cohaerens Societas, et in illa aliquod bonum. In communi sermone est, quod quisque sibi proximus sit, sed Doctrina Charitatis docet, quomodo hoc 3 intelligendum est; nempe, quisque sibi prospiciet necessitates vitae, ut victum, amictum, habitationem, et plura, quae in vita civili, in qua est, necessario requiruntur; et haec non modo pro se, sed etiam pro suis, nec modo pro tempore praesenti, sed etiam pro venturo, nam nisi quis sibi comparat necessitates vitae, non est in statu exercendi Charitatem, in omnium enim inopia est. Quomodo autem quisque sibi Proximus esse debet, constare potest ex hoc simili; quisque providere debet corpus suum victu; hoc 4 primum erit, sed ob finem, ut Mens sana sit in Corpore sano; et quisque providere debet Mentem suo victu, nempe talibus quae sunt intelligentiae et judicii, sed ob finem ut ille inde sit in statu serviendi concivi, societati, patriae, Ecclesiae, et sic Domino; qui hoc facit, ille providet sibi bene in aeternum; inde patet, quid primum tempore, et quid primum fine, et quod primum fine sit id quod omnia spectant. Hoc quoque est, sicut qui construit Domum, primo ponet fundamentum, sed fundamentum erit pro domo, et domus pro habitatione; qui credit sibi Proximum esse primo loco seu primario, is similis est ei qui spectat fundamentum ut finem, non habitationem, cum tamen habitatio est ipse finis primus et ultimus, ac Domus cum fundamento est modo medium ad finem.
Footnotes: