大紐約區海外台灣人筆會第七屆年刊
《會長的話-President’s Message》
Welcome Address by Dr. S. Lin (President)會長 林隆博士
January 01, 2011.
Happy New Year! Happy New Year!! Happy New Year!!! It is a joy to see us all, both old and new faces, again for our 7th annual club meeting, and on behalf of the Executives of the Club I extend a special welcome to you all to this meeting!
This year, as always, we are honored to have various distinguished personalities and speakers, among us, and I want to take this opportunity to acknowledge the presence of New Jersey Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen. We also welcome Dr. Jacob Huang (黃正雅 醫師），Professor Yuan(袁紅冰教授)，and Dr. Ching-hsi Chang(張清溪教授)，will explore various topics related to our general theme: Our Kairos Moment. Professor Yuan will explore the topic “Grand State Strategies” while Dr. Ching-hsi Chang will speak on “Self Awakening and National Vision.” We will also have a joint discussion session with both speakers on the topic: “The Path Toward Honor and Dignity.” Our own Dr. Jacob Huang will explore with us，the topic: “Aging and Cancer.”
The term kairos is one of three Greek words translated into English language as time (the others being aeon/eon, connoting a period or age, and chronos, denoting time as it relates events, sequentially).
Kairos denotes a special or specific moment that comes in the course of history, presenting with it rare opportunities for people to act, and/or take decision(s) that in itself changes the course of history. Several centuries ago, in the history of the Jewish nation, a kairos moment presented itself, when Esther, a captive-girl-turned Queen to King Ahaseurus of Persia, defiled protocol, and risking dear life went into the presence of the king to speak on behalf of her people. Her decision，“I will go in to see the king，which is against the law, and if I perish, I perish!” cannot but show the urgency of the moment，the opportunity, and I believe, the faith that she employed. She succeeded, and the Jewish people were not annihilated!
The kairos moment is the set time, in other words, the now time to act, and a lack of understanding and appropriate response to it can result in living behind time for, for most of the time such moment will appear only once in a people’s lifetime. As a nation，I do not see a better time in our history to act towards national sovereignty that now. NOW is our kairos moment. The urgency of this time transcends apathy and indifference, and disintegrates fear and anomie. Could we also be bold and say that we will resist and act against the forces of that constantly seek to devour us as well as the temptations that seek to sway us, and if we perish, we perish. This is a decision we must make for posterity, for our children and our country. I implore you therefore, friends, to awaken the strong person inside us, for who knows that we also, like Esther have been brought together for this cause at such a time as this! May the Lord shed the light on our path to direct and preserve. Welcome !
Posted in 2015/01
