TED演讲:怀疑乃信仰之关键(7)

 　　We have to recognize that real faith has no easy answers.  我们须认识到真正的信仰，从来没有简单答案

　　It's difficult and stubborn.  它是困难的、固执而不顺从的

　　It involves an ongoing¹ struggle,  牵涉不间断的挣扎

　　a continual questioning of what we think we know, a wrestling with issues and ideas. 要不断怀疑自以为知道的，它是一场争议和想法之争

　　It goes hand in hand with doubt, in a never-ending conversation with it, 在不停的对话中，它和怀疑如影随形

　　and sometimes in conscious defiance² of it.  某时有意地蔑视怀疑

　　And this conscious defiance is why I, as an agnostic, can still have faith. 作为一名不可知论者，这种有意识地蔑视怀疑就是为什么我仍然要有信仰

　　I have faith, for instance, that peace in the Middle East is possible 例如，我相信中东地区和平是可行的

　　despite the ever-accumulating mass of evidence to the contrary. 尽管越来越多证据证明事实恰恰相反

　　I'm not convinced of this. I can hardly say I believe it. 我不相信这点，也很难说我相信

　　I can only have faith in it, commit myself, that is, to the idea of it, 我只能护卫着信仰，致力于它的理念

　　and I do this precisely³ because of the temptation  我这样做正因为诱惑

　　to throw up my hands in resignation and retreat into silence. 让我举起双手投降，并退回到沉默中

　　Because despair is self-fulfilling.  因为绝望是一种自我实现

　　If we call something impossible, we act in such a way that we make it so. 如果我们认为某些事不可能，我们就以这样的方式行动使它真的不可能实现

　　And I, for one, refuse to live that way.  对我来说，我拒绝这样生活

1 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

2 defiance   

n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗

参考例句：

• He climbed the ladder in defiance of the warning.他无视警告爬上了那架梯子。
• He slammed the door in a spirit of defiance.他以挑衅性的态度把门砰地一下关上。

3 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。