【英语语言学习】躺着的雕像

 RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

There's a new religious statue in the town of Davidson, N.C., that's unlike anything you might see in a church. It depicts¹ Jesus as a vagrant² sleeping on a park bench. A few residents have complained, but most find the statue spiritually moving. NPR's John Burnett brings us the story.

JOHN BURNETT, BYLINE³: In February, St. Alban's Episcopal Church, in Davidson, installed the homeless Jesus statue on its property, in the middle of an upscale neighborhood filled with well-kept townhomes. Jesus is huddled⁴ under a blanket, with his face and hands obscured. Only the crucifixion wounds on his uncovered feet give him away. The reaction was immediate⁵. Some loved it, and some didn't.

DAVID BORAKS: One woman from the neighborhood actually called police the first time she drove by. She thought it was an actual homeless person.

BURNETT: That's right. Somebody called the cops on Jesus. David Boraks is editor of DavidsonNews.net.

BORAKS: Another neighbor, who lives a couple of doors down from the church, wrote us a letter to the editor saying it creeps him out. ]>

BURNETT: Some neighbors felt it was an insulting depiction⁶ of the son of God, and what appears to be a hobo curled up on a bench demeans the neighborhood. The bronze statue was purchased for $22,000 in memoriam for a parishioner, Kate McIntyre, who had loved public art. The rector of this liberal, inclusive church is Rev⁷. David Buck⁸, a 65-year-old Baptist-turned-Episcopalian who seems not at all averse⁹ to the controversy¹⁰, the double takes and the discussion the statue has provoked.

THE REV. DAVID BUCK: It gives authenticity¹¹ to our church. This is a relatively¹² affluent¹³ church, to be honest. And we need to be reminded ourselves that our faith expresses itself in active concern for the marginalized of society.

BURNETT: The sculpture is intended as a visual translation of the passage in the Book of Matthew in which Jesus tells his disciples¹⁴: As you did it to one of the least of my brothers, you did it to me. Moreover, Buck says it's a good Bible lesson for those used to seeing Jesus depicted¹⁵ in traditional, religious art as the Christ of glory, enthroned in finery.

BUCK: Because we believe that that's the kind of life Jesus had. He was, in essence, a homeless person.

BURNETT: This lakeside college town north of Charlotte has the first homeless Jesus statue on display in the United States. Catholic Charities of Chicago plans to install its statue when the weather warms up. The Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., is said to be interested in one, too. The creator is a Canadian sculptor¹⁶ and devout¹⁷ Catholic named Timothy Schmalz. He says he offered the first castes to St. Michael's Cathedral, in Toronto; and St. Patrick's Cathedral, in New York. Both declined. Schmalz says in an interview from his studio in Ontario he's learned that his homeless Jesus is provocative¹⁸.

TIMOTHY SCHMALZ: And that's essentially¹⁹ what the sculpture's there to do. It's meant to challenge people.

BURNETT: A spokesman at St. Michaels says appreciation²⁰ of the statue was not unanimous. And the church was being restored, so a new work of art was out of the question. That statue has been placed in front of the Jesuit School of Theology, at the University of Toronto. A spokesperson at St. Patrick's, in New York, says they liked the homeless Jesus. But their cathedral is also being renovated²¹, and they had to turn it down.

The most famous installation, hands down, of the bronze Jesus on a park bench will be on the Via della Conziliazione, the avenue leading to St. Peter's Basilica - that is, if the city of Rome approves it. Schmalz traveled to the Vatican last November to present a miniature statue to the pope himself.

SCHMALZ: He walked over to the sculpture, and it was just chilling because he touched the knee of the "Jesus the Homeless" sculpture, and closed his eyes and prayed. And it was like, that's what he's doing throughout the whole world. Pope Francis is reaching out to the marginalized.

BURNETT: Back at St. Albans in Davidson, the rector reports that the homeless Jesus statue has earned more followers²² than detractors. It's now common, he says, to see people come, sit on the bench, rest their hand on the bronze feet and pray. John Burnett, NPR News.

1 depicts   

描绘，描画( depict的第三人称单数 )； 描述

参考例句：

• The book vividly depicts French society of the 1930s. 这本书生动地描绘了20 世纪30 年代的法国社会。
• He depicts the sordid and vulgar sides of life exclusively. 他只描写人生肮脏和庸俗的一面。

2 vagrant   

n.流浪者，游民；adj.流浪的，漂泊不定的

参考例句：

• A vagrant is everywhere at home.流浪者四海为家。
• He lived on the street as a vagrant.他以在大街上乞讨为生。

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 huddled   

挤在一起（huddle的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• We huddled together for warmth. 我们挤在一块取暖。
• We huddled together to keep warm. 我们挤在一起来保暖。

5 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

6 depiction   

n.描述

参考例句：

• Double rhythms, resounding through the lyric depiction and connecting with each other, indicate the thespian place of mankind and the cognition of the writer to this thespian place. 这双重旋律互为表里，表明了人类的某种悲剧性处境以及作家对这种悲剧性处境的感受和认识。
• A realistic depiction of scenes from everyday domestic life. 日常家居生活的写实画。

7 rev   

v.发动机旋转，加快速度

参考例句：

• It's his job to rev up the audience before the show starts.他要负责在表演开始前鼓动观众的热情。
• Don't rev the engine so hard.别让发动机转得太快。

8 buck   

n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃

参考例句：

• The boy bent curiously to the skeleton of the buck.这个男孩好奇地弯下身去看鹿的骸骨。
• The female deer attracts the buck with high-pitched sounds.雌鹿以尖声吸引雄鹿。

9 averse   

adj.厌恶的；反对的，不乐意的

参考例句：

• I don't smoke cigarettes,but I'm not averse to the occasional cigar.我不吸烟，但我不反对偶尔抽一支雪茄。
• We are averse to such noisy surroundings.我们不喜欢这么吵闹的环境。

10 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

11 authenticity   

n.真实性

参考例句：

• There has been some debate over the authenticity of his will. 对于他的遗嘱的真实性一直有争论。
• The museum is seeking an expert opinion on the authenticity of the painting. 博物馆在请专家鉴定那幅画的真伪。

12 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

13 affluent   

adj.富裕的，富有的，丰富的，富饶的

参考例句：

• He hails from an affluent background.他出身于一个富有的家庭。
• His parents were very affluent.他的父母很富裕。

14 disciples   

n.信徒( disciple的名词复数 )；门徒；耶稣的信徒；（尤指）耶稣十二门徒之一

参考例句：

• Judas was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. 犹大是耶稣十二门徒之一。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• "The names of the first two disciples were --" “最初的两个门徒的名字是——” 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

15 depicted   

描绘，描画( depict的过去式和过去分词 )； 描述

参考例句：

• Other animals were depicted on the periphery of the group. 其他动物在群像的外围加以修饰。
• They depicted the thrilling situation to us in great detail. 他们向我们详细地描述了那激动人心的场面。

16 sculptor   

n.雕刻家，雕刻家

参考例句：

• A sculptor forms her material.雕塑家把材料塑造成雕塑品。
• The sculptor rounded the clay into a sphere.那位雕塑家把黏土做成了一个球状。

17 devout   

adj.虔诚的，虔敬的，衷心的 (n.devoutness)

参考例句：

• His devout Catholicism appeals to ordinary people.他对天主教的虔诚信仰感染了普通民众。
• The devout man prayed daily.那位虔诚的男士每天都祈祷。

18 provocative   

adj.挑衅的，煽动的，刺激的，挑逗的

参考例句：

• She wore a very provocative dress.她穿了一件非常性感的裙子。
• His provocative words only fueled the argument further.他的挑衅性讲话只能使争论进一步激化。

19 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

20 appreciation   

n.评价；欣赏；感谢；领会，理解；价格上涨

参考例句：

• I would like to express my appreciation and thanks to you all.我想对你们所有人表达我的感激和谢意。
• I'll be sending them a donation in appreciation of their help.我将送给他们一笔捐款以感谢他们的帮助。

21 renovated   

翻新，修复，整修( renovate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He renovated his house. 他翻修了房子。
• The house has been renovated three years earlier. 这所房子三年前就已翻新。

22 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。