英国新闻听力 对巴黎街头百万民众游行的思考

There was something powerfully impressive in the sight yesterday of 40 of the world's leaders linking arms on the streets of Paris in a demonstration¹ of solidarity² in the face of last week's horrific attacks.

面对上周法国发生的恐怖袭击，昨天全世界40名领导人肩并肩站在巴黎街头表示团结，其场面非常令人印象深刻。

Equally striking was the fact that an estimated one and a half million ordinary people turned out in the largest demonstration in the history of France,

同样让人印象深刻的是有大约150万普通民众也参加了这场法国历史上最大规模的游行，

bringing together Muslims, Jews, Christians³ and people of no religious affiliation⁵

穆斯林、犹太人、基督徒和无宗教信仰的人士齐聚一起，

in a determination to halt what some commentators⁶ have suggested threatens to tear the very fabric⁷ of democratic culture.

他们决定阻止在一些评论家看来可能要撕裂民主文化结构的破坏力。

For Christians there is a long tradition of understanding the painstaking⁸ work of mending what is torn as the labour in which God is engaged.

对基督徒来说有这么一个悠久的传统，那就是明白修补破旧东西的辛苦，因为里面有上帝的劳作。

One of the Desert Fathers of early Christianity, Abba Mios, when visited by a soldier,

有位士兵拜访早期基督教的沙漠之父阿巴·米奥斯，

attempted to describe the character of God by asking the soldier whether, if his cloak were ripped he would throw it away?

米奥斯为了描述上帝的性格，就问士兵，如果他的斗篷被撕破，他会将之丢弃吗？

When the soldier replied, 'No' - that certainly he would mend it -

士兵回答说，“不”，当然他会修补它。

Abba Mios told him, that God's desire, patience and willingness to mend what is damaged exceeds even our human desire to mend a valued garment.

于是阿巴·米奥斯告诉他，上帝想修补破旧东西的愿望、耐心和意志甚至超过了人类想修补一件珍贵衣服的愿望。

Some of the work necessary now to prevent the ripping apart of democratic societies across the world needs to be done at the level of national and international leadership,

如今，要预防全世界的民主社会被撕裂，有必要在国家和国际领导人层面做些工作，

as the dreadful news from Nigeria this morning makes plain,

今天早上从尼日利亚传来的可怕消息就说明了这一点，

but equally important and consistent action also needs to be taken by ordinary people at the local and domestic level.

但当地和国内层面的普通民众也要做出同样重要且持之以恒的行动。

Both in France and in our own rather different context, for example,

无论是在法国还是在非常不同的环境下，

we all need to be responsible for resisting the temptation to respond to the terrorist desires of the few with an Islamophobia

我们都需要负起责任来抵挡诱惑，不要用伊斯兰恐惧症来应对恐怖分子的欲望，

that further undermines the universal human rights that have been at the heart of Europe since the end of World War II.

因为这只会进一步削弱自二战结束以来作为欧洲核心的普遍人权。

Less dramatically, we all also need to be engaged in the patient labour of building cross cultural relationships in our everyday settings.

另外，我们都需要耐心地努力，在日常生活中建造跨文化关系。

This was brought home to me last week, in an unassuming way in the person of Hussain, who came to the house to do some work.

这让我想起上周的事，一个名叫侯赛因的人低调地来我家做些活计，

In the course of the conversation that developed, he spoke⁹ about his Middle Eastern background and I confessed to being a Christian⁴ minister,

我们两人谈起话来，他谈到自己的中东背景，我承认自己是基督教牧师，

and in the process the stereotypes¹⁰ that so easily attach to both of us were, with some humour,

这一过程中原本很容易让彼此容易产生的成见却在我们的幽默话语中被搁置一边，

put on one side as we discovered a mutual¹¹ passion in giving new life to things that need work.

我们发现互动的热情能给事物新的生命。

A response that is going to be adequate to the events of last week, to the divisions in French society,

对上周的袭击案做出反应，对法国社会的分歧做出反应，

and to the complexity¹² of the way in which global challenges affect different parts of the world cannot be made by a single day's march on the streets of Paris, nor by any one-off personal encounter.

对全球挑战影响世界不同地方的复杂性做出应对，都无法通过巴黎街头一天的游行得以完成，也无法通过任何一次性的个人会面得以完成。

Rather, it will require a widespread and active commitment -on behalf of every one of us – to the weaving of multi-cultural and just societies

这需要广泛且积极的承诺，代表每个人来编织多文化和正义的社会，

so that even if they might suffer damage by those who wish them harm, it will not be possible for them, irreparably, to be torn apart.

这样即使这种文化和社会会被有恶意的人破坏，也不可能被无法修复地撕裂。

1 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

2 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

3 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

4 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

5 affiliation   

n.联系，联合

参考例句：

• There is no affiliation between our organization and theirs,even though our names are similar.尽管两个组织的名称相似，但我们之间并没有关系。
• The kidnappers had no affiliation with any militant group.这些绑架者与任何军事组织都没有紧密联系。

6 commentators   

n.评论员( commentator的名词复数 )；时事评论员；注释者；实况广播员

参考例句：

• Sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 体育解说员翻来覆去说着同样的词语，真叫人腻烦。
• Television sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 电视体育解说员说来说去就是那么几句话，令人厌烦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 fabric   

n.织物，织品，布；构造，结构，组织

参考例句：

• The fabric will spot easily.这种织品很容易玷污。
• I don't like the pattern on the fabric.我不喜欢那块布料上的图案。

8 painstaking   

adj.苦干的；艰苦的，费力的，刻苦的

参考例句：

• She is not very clever but she is painstaking.她并不很聪明，但肯下苦功夫。
• Through years of our painstaking efforts,we have at last achieved what we have today.大家经过多少年的努力，才取得今天的成绩。

9 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

10 stereotypes   

n.老套，模式化的见解，有老一套固定想法的人( stereotype的名词复数 )v.把…模式化，使成陈规( stereotype的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Such jokes tend to reinforce racial stereotypes. 这样的笑话容易渲染种族偏见。
• It makes me sick to read over such stereotypes devoid of content. 这种空洞无物的八股调，我看了就讨厌。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

12 complexity   

n.复杂(性)，复杂的事物

参考例句：

• Only now did he understand the full complexity of the problem.直到现在他才明白这一问题的全部复杂性。
• The complexity of the road map puzzled me.错综复杂的公路图把我搞糊涂了。