聖雷孟 （St. Raymond of Pennafort ，1175-1275 ）
慶日： 1月 7日
主保：教會法編撰者
1175 年，聖雷孟誕生於西班牙的巴塞隆納附近；由於他是西班牙的貴族成員之一，因此從小便接受了極完備的教育，且很早就對聖母懷有一份溫柔的愛與崇敬。聖人20歲時，已是一位名聞遐邇的哲學教師，他在 30歲時同時取得了教會法與民法的博士學位。然而，他卻拋開一切世俗的光榮，毅然地在 41歲時加入了「道明會」。
當時的教宗額我略九世非常賞識他，將聖人召喚至羅馬為他工作，並成為教宗的個人告解神師。他在羅馬的主要工作是：彙整過去教會 歷史中，所有教宗與大公會議的典章律例，這巨大的工程在聖人接手前已進行了 80個年頭。最後，聖人編出了一套五本名為《教會律例大全－ Corpus decretalium》的教會法典彙編。 1917年新的教會法典彙編出版前，這部「教會律例大全」是最好的教會法典參考。稍早，他也曾寫過一部助人善行告解的著作，名為《個案大全－ Summa de casibus poenitentiae，那不僅是一部條列罪與補贖的著作，還更是討論教會道理與法律的書籍，是聽告神師必備的工具書之一。
60 歲時，聖人被教宗指定為Aragon首都Tarragona 的總主教，但他並不喜歡如此的 尊榮，後來藉病重之名，二年後辭去了主教的職務。然而，聖人卻無福享受平靜的生活，因為隔年即被自己的同會弟兄選為道明會的總會長。於是，聖人只好努力地 工作，徒步拜訪所有的道明會士，且修訂會憲，允許總會長於任內辭去職務。新會憲通過的那一年，聖人時年 65歲，他也順利地辭去了總會長的職務。
生命的最後 35年，聖人致力於對抗異端邪說與勸說摩爾人（Moors）皈依的工作。他為人極其謙和，且非常親近天主；他常做克苦，其良善與仁慈也常為天主贏得罪人們的靈魂。聖人與 Aragon的國王James 、St. Peter Nolasco一起創建了「Our Lady of Ransom 」修會，該修會致力於從摩爾人的手中救回被俘的可憐基督徒。
James 國王本是位秉性良善的人，可惜，他卻常隨自己的偏情私欲而行。一次，聖人與他一同前往瑪約卡島（the Island of Majorca）宣講耶穌基督，但King James卻立了壞榜樣，因為王在該島上與一位婦女有著苟且的關係，聖人命令王遣走那婦女，王雖口頭答應，卻未信守承諾，於是聖人便離開了那座島。 王盛怒，便下令：凡載送聖人回巴塞隆納的船 長，都應受嚴厲的懲罰。聖人只好全心信賴上主，於是他將自己的上衣平鋪在海面上，將其中的一端綁上木柴做帆，劃了十字聖號之後，便腳踏自己的上衣，一路航 行了六小時，最後安抵巴塞隆納。國王被此神蹟所感動，於是對自己的行為深感愧疚，並且認真地追隨聖人的教導。最後，聖人一百足歲之時，天主才讓聖雷孟完全 地從人世間退休。
「你們的純潔和虔誠要求應得的報酬；因為你們為天主所悅納，願你們的純潔由於不斷的打擊，而愈加純潔，直到完美的境界。如果你們一而再，再而三地受天主的利劍打擊，應視其為圓滿的喜樂、是天主愛你們的標記。
天主的利劍內外鋒利：外有戰爭，內有恐懼；天主再再地磨練你們，是因為狡猾的惡神常以詭計和陰謀擾亂你們的內心。這一切的攻守，你們已有相當的體驗，否則便不會獲致內心如此美好的平靜與安寧。…
切望慈愛與和平的天主親自使你們心靈安寧，並加速你們現世的旅程。也願祂將你們暫放在祂的身旁，遠離他人的騷擾，直到把你們安置在圓滿的光榮中為止。在那裡，你們將永遠安居在平安的光榮中，和安全的帳幕中，安祥地享用無盡的富裕。」
（節選自一月七日《誦讀日課》──聖雷孟司鐸書信集選讀 ）
January 7- St. Raymond of Penyafort (1175-1275)
Since Raymond lived into his hundredth year, he had a chance to do many things. As a member of the Spanish nobility, he had the resources and the education to get a good start in life.
By the time he was 20, he was teaching philosophy. In his early 30s he earned a doctorate in both canon and civil law. At 41 he became a Dominican. Pope Gregory IX called him to Rome to work for him and to be his confessor. One of the things the pope asked him to do was to gather together all the decrees of popes and councils that had been made in 80 years since a similar collection by Gratian. Raymond compiled five books called the Decretals. They were looked upon as one of the best organized collections of Church law until the 1917 codification of canon law.
Earlier, Raymond had written for confessors a book of cases. It was called Summa de casibus poenitentiae. More than just a list of sins and penances, it discussed pertinent doctrines and laws of the Church that pertained to the problem or case brought to the confessor.
At the age of 60, Raymond was appointed archbishop of Tarragona, the capital of Aragon. He didn't like the honor at all and ended up getting sick and resigning in two years.
He didn't get to enjoy his peace long, however, because when he was 63 he was elected by his fellow Dominicans to be the head of the whole Order, the successor of St. Dominic. Raymond worked hard, visited on foot all the Dominicans, reorganized their constitutions and managed to put through a provision that a master general be allowed to resign. When the new constitutions were accepted, Raymond, then 65, resigned.
He still had 35 years to oppose heresy and work for the conversion of the Moors in Spain. He convinced St. Thomas Aquinas to write his work Against the Gentiles.
In his100th year the Lord let Raymond retire.
Comment:
Raymond was a lawyer, a canonist. Legalism is one of the things that the Church tried to rid herself of at Vatican II. It is too great a preoccupation with the letter of the law to the neglect of the spirit and purpose of the law. The law can become an end in itself, so that the value the law was intended to promote is overlooked. But we must guard against going to the opposite extreme and seeing law as useless or something to be lightly regarded. Laws ideally state those things that are for the best interests of everyone and make sure the rights of all are safeguarded. From Raymond, we can learn a respect for law as a means of serving the common good.
Quote:
"He who hates the law is without wisdom,/and is tossed about like a boat in a storm" (Sirach 33:2).
