A Research on Chen Yingzhen’s Theological Thought through His Literary and Political Expressions

Abstract

陳映真是台灣文壇上少數直接將基督宗教寫入作品的作家，更是熱切關懷社會的知識分子。他的作品中不但充滿聖經歷史與基督教義，還有承襲自新約使徒的書寫技巧以及舊約先知的警世精神。即便逐步成為馬克斯主義的支持者，陳映真卻始終沒有完全棄絕基督信仰，神學思維一直圍繞於他的筆桿。事實上，耶穌關懷老弱殘疾的愛心是吸引陳映真走入社會的關鍵因素。對上帝的求問與對政治的批判則是陳映真的創作動能之所在－陳期望在書寫的過程中找到解答。即或沒有得到一個讓他滿意的結果，寫作至少讓他抒發了不明白的焦慮、不認同的憤怒以及不得知音的孤獨。大多數學者著重剖析陳映真的文學與政治作為，相對忽略影響陳映真甚巨的家族信仰。筆者嘗試加入宗教這一向度來解讀陳映真的思想與作品，說明對於基督徒而言，左翼思想與基督信仰實無物質上的矛盾，因為前者的目標在地上，後者的盼望在天上。在有限的今生，陳想同時貫徹二者，因而經歷許多痛苦的掙扎；這份掙扎卻剛好足以證明陳始終不願意放棄其中任何一者。經由三個向度的立體分析，我們得以明白陳映真的思想轉折與複雜的生命張力。

Chen Yingzhen’s works show a serious concern over social issues in Taiwan, as is revealed by his theological thoughts. In his fiction as well as essays, one finds not only biblical history and Christian doctrines, but also his views on the narrative styles of the New Testament and his feeling about the Old Testament prophets' passion and urgency in bringing back a wayward people to God -- all showing Chen's familiarity with the Bible. Though he is a Marxist, Chen never entirely rejects Christian faith. In fact, Jesus’ love for the sick and disabled inspires him to work hard on behalf of his fellow people. Chen questions God, criticizes the government, and expresses his anxiety, indignation and loneliness in his writings, although such expressions of sentiments often meet with silence. Many scholars have analyzed Chen’s personality and identity as embodied in his literary works and his life, but have overlooked his religious experiences. Reading the Bible and joining Sunday school (though he quit it early in life), however, has had a great influence on Chen. For a Christian, politics belongs to the secular world, while faith belongs to the Heavenly Kingdom. Since Chen wants to concurrently materialize the goals of these two realms, he is constantly engaged in the tug-of-war between the earthly pursuits and the spiritual aspirations. A close reading of Chen’s works will shed more light on the depth of theological influence on his literary creations as well as his political behavior.