I want steamed buns, more steamed buns
Steamed buns are transliterated from the English mentor. Although this translation is a bit funny, it can be used to reduce the authoritative feeling of mentor and make it more approachable.
In fact, the true meaning of mentor is a life master. He not only teaches Kung Fu, but also teaches the principles of life. His life is an example for me to follow! His enthusiasm makes people around him follow him! Many people can learn from his life experience! To me, he will be like the big brother in the village. Although he is not as great as the national hero, you just want to be like him.
The Chinese term "noble person" has a similar meaning to steamed buns. But "noble people" refer to people with a specific status. They try to attract you, but they can only see you from a distance and are not easy to get close to. Looking back, I see that there are many "noble people" along the way, but I miss Mantou even more who was both a teacher and a friend. Without them, I can't imagine where I am today? You might become the kind of person you hate!
Embark on the road of faith without looking back
The first steamed bun in my life was Brother Hong who introduced me to faith. He is a new student at Holy Light Theological Seminary and was sent to Pingtung Liukuacuo Church for internship. He was a year or two older than me. He had not yet joined the army after graduating from high school, and was studying at Holy Light Theological Seminary, which is equivalent to a university. Her body and height are about the same as mine; her fair and clean face is always full of smiles.
It was the summer vacation between the second year of high school and the third year of high school. There were five or six classmates in the same class who were studying in the church. The day Brother Hong came, we were reading desperately. He and another intern, wearing a suit and tie, spent half an hour walking from the train station to the church at noon in Pingtung, when the temperature was nearly 40 degrees Celsius.
The pastor invited several of us to participate in the youth fellowship that evening. I was reluctant to do so, but out of etiquette, I agreed. The party that day was really lively. Many junior students from the same village were present. We were the oldest. Although we had never attended, no one dared to speak about anything we did. As a result, there was a big fight on and off the stage!
Brother Hong is speaking on the stage, and we are replying in the audience. He will say one sentence, and we will reply a few sentences. After the reply, there will be a burst of laughter! I really can’t remember the content of the party now. I only know that the whole party turned into a “Spring Festival Gala”! That was supposed to be a serious sermon! Brother Hong couldn't figure out why this happened. It seemed like he was selling cantaloupe, but why did it turn into bitter melon when he took it out? To be honest, I have never seen such a crusade since!
Not only was he not angry after the meeting, he even asked us to play ball and sing. After hanging out with him for two months, he was baptized. After I was baptized, I discovered that I had done what I hated most—becoming a Christian. Because I have always believed in the textbooks that Christianity invaded China, I have been hostile to Christians since I was a child. How come you completely forgot about it during that period of time? Unknowingly, his influence pulled me from east to west!
When I was with Brother Hong, I not only forgot about national justice, but also forgot about taking the college entrance examination. I hang out in church every day, from morning watch to evening prayers. Brother Hong comes on Friday and pesters him to practice hymns. During that time, my faith grew rapidly and I became very hungry for the truth!
When I was baptized, Brother Hong gave me a Bible. On the bottom of the cover he wrote Romans 12:1-2: “Therefore, brothers, I urge you by the mercies of God to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy , which is your spiritual service, pleasing to God. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
I often use this verse to remind myself to see if I still have reservations that I am unwilling to give? Are you unwilling to learn due to complacency? Although the answer is mostly no, as we grow older, the number of negatives becomes less and less. Thanks to Brother Hong, when I was still lacking in wisdom and experience, I put this passage in my heart and grew up with it!
Brother Hong’s short internship quickly changed my life. My memory about him has become blurry, but even so, I still know clearly in my heart - Brother Hong is my steamed bun. He led me onto the path of faith and never looked back once I did, like the hymn he taught us to sing:
Move forward! Work hard to move forward and never look back. Move forward! Work hard to move forward, don’t move backward. He who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is not worthy of entering the kingdom of God. Move forward! Keep moving forward, the Lord is ahead.
Enter the palace of academics and spirituality
In university, life enters another chapter, and knowledge comes from all directions. The sociology department at Fu Jen Catholic University where I studied was not popular, but the theories in it deeply attracted me. The School of Law and Business is run by the Catholic Jesuits, and the director of the department, Father Luo Siwei, is a Jesuit priest. Father Luo led me step by step into the palace of humanities and became my steamed bun.
According to Catholic regulations, he had to offer one mass every day. And I lived in the school dormitory and was often invited to participate. At that time, Catholicism and Christianity were at odds with each other, and there were constant debates between the two sides. He is a wise man who, consciously or unconsciously, taught me the similarities and differences between the two and what we can learn from each other. There are not many people at each Mass, about five people. The rituals are all in a booklet, including hymns, prayers, Bible readings, etc. It is easy to follow the instructions. The most special thing is that there is Holy Communion at every Mass, not just once a month. The wine was placed in a large cup, like the Holy Grail in the movie Raiders of the Lost Ark, and everyone drank in turn. Think about it, more than 40 years ago, tobacco and alcohol were not allowed to be imported. The only way to drink authentic imported Italian red wine was at mass. Because I am not a Catholic, I cannot receive Holy Communion. Seeing the students not sipping in small sips, but drinking with Adam's apple shaking violently, saying "my sin, my sin, my serious crime" in their mouths, I couldn't be more envious!
At that time, there was no spirituality in Christianity, and the Jesuits attached great importance to spirituality and retreat because their founder, St. Ignatius Loyola, was a master of spirituality. Once Father Luo took us for a retreat at the Kansai Catholic Seminary in Taiwan. The monastery is built on the mountainside, surrounded by mountains; the stream winds through the bottom of the valley, quiet and intimate.
In the morning, the priest gave us a scripture and asked us to meditate on it. Except for three meals a day, they don't talk to each other. Everyone was meditating on scriptures and praying either on the mountain or by the stream. In silence, my five senses gradually become sharper and I can hear people talking from afar; my soul gradually wakes up and I can talk to the Lord through scriptures. My relationship with the Lord seems to have become much closer all of a sudden, and my understanding of the truth has become much deeper. It is as if I have taken an elixir and am improving my martial arts. Although I have not entered the third heaven like Paul, I definitely have the first heaven.
During my four years in college, Father Luo provided me with various opportunities. During my freshman and sophomore years, he asked me to establish a department library. Thousands of original English sociology classics are archived and put on the shelves. Although I am just doing this, it has opened my eyes and I know what it means to have endless learning. He also encouraged me to participate in various social surveys and different studies during winter and summer vacations, from sample selection, questionnaire design, to analysis and research, etc., which enriched my research abilities and skills. After serving in the army, he hired me back to school as a teaching assistant and continued to take me with him. I followed every step like a little apprentice. He is indeed my nobleman and my steamed bun, there is no doubt about it! (For a more detailed understanding of the author's friendship with Father Luo, please refer to Issue 60 of this magazine "A Belated "Sorry"".)
Sing the music of husband and wife serving together
After coming to the United States to study for graduate school, he stayed in Los Angeles and was introduced to the Los Angeles Christian Church by a friend. The youth fellowship was very prosperous at that time, and we met many steamed buns, the most exciting of which were Brother Chen and Sister Wang. Their age no longer belongs to "youth", but they are very willing to participate in fellowship activities.
Brother Chen and Sister Wang were around forty at the time, a time when their bodies and minds were mature. Brother Chen studied electrical engineering and worked at JPL in the aviation industry; Sister Wang studied music and served as a church choir conductor. Both of them are social elites who are admired and loved by everyone.
Brother Chen and Sister Wang are warm and hospitable people and take great care of the young people in the fellowship. Everyone plays ball, sings, and eats at his house. They can come and go freely, just like they are at home. At that time, we were all alone in the United States, and we especially needed a place that could soothe our lonely hearts. We love to go and feel warm when we go, because what they provide is not just a place, but a home, a happy home!
One time at his house, Brother Chen said, "Sister Wang is very hard-working and saves money. She made all the curtains in my house herself, and she also cleaned the pots inside and outside." This kind of affection for his wife comes from the heart. My parents’ generation had never heard of praise, and I had never seen it among my friends. They were so respectful to each other and prepared me for the next stage of my life - starting a family.
They often hosted pastors from out of town, and I got to know some of them. One of the most important ones was Lin Zhiping, the former director-general of Universal Light. Knowing Brother Lin will be a great help for our couple’s future writing work. When Mrs. Mofei first started writing, Universe Light generously gave her a column, allowing her long-term publishing space, and later helped her publish a book. There are shadows of Brother Chen and Sister Wang behind these things.
▲Brother Chen and Sister Wang set an example for the author and his wife, singing the tune of husband and wife serving together.
Sister Wang’s main ministry is in music. The couple once released a Chinese version of Handel’s Messiah album, which was played around the world. For a while, I helped Sister Wang proofread several poems she had translated. This hymnbook, Family Hymns, collects more than 520 hymns commonly sung by Western churches. Sister Wang volunteered to translate, proofread, and print them all. She is the promoter of the hymnbook, but her name is not even included in the hymnbook. In an era when there was no self-composed poetry in Chinese, this feat benefited many Chinese churches. Her humility in not taking credit has become a role model for me.
My husband and I received a lot of musical training from them. First, maybe because she sang too loudly in the choir, Sister Wang asked her for special training. I accompanied her every time and was pulled together to be coached. As the saying goes, a woman sings and her husband follows her. I don't particularly care about this kind of guidance, because not only do they not charge for it, but they also take care of the meals. Singing and singing like this, I sang for two years without realizing it. If they hadn't left due to church planting, I don't think they had any plans to end the teacher-student relationship!
That is, through such individual guidance, we can more closely observe their interaction as a couple, their interactions with brothers and sisters, and their persistence in serving. They don't make a lot of sense, but when they do it, people can't help but believe it. When I became a parent myself, I realized that children will not listen to what you say, but watch what you do. I think a good steamed bun should be like this. He doesn't tell you what to do, but shows you what to do! Brother Chen and Sister Wang have done a lot silently together, which is a good steamed bun that inspired my wife and me to serve together!
In the past, if someone was not a high-ranking person, I would not let him make steamed buns. Now I find that more and more people can make my steamed buns. Some people can still maintain a pure heart when they are old, this is my steamed bun; some people can still maintain joy when their body is in decline, this is my steamed bun; some people can be teachers but have been students all their lives, this is also my steamed bun.
Most importantly, Jesus is my big bun! Because He is not only my steamed bun, but also my steamed bun’s steamed bun! Yes, I want steamed buns, more steamed buns!
Du Yonghao, specializes in computer information management. He once worked for Kaiser Medical Systems in Southern California and retired earlier this year. Currently, he is the Director-General of Chuangwen, responsible for various administrative affairs and teaching video shooting and editing. I have been interested in culture and literature since college. Now I work with my wife, Director Mo Fei, to lead the creative team to promote the vision of literature ministry in the three places across the Taiwan Strait and North America.