VOA慢速英语2015 复活节,逾越节和春天应该吃的食物

Foods Important to Easter, Passover and the Spring 复活节,逾越节和春天应该吃的食物

This weekend some Americans celebrate the Christian¹ holiday of Easter, while others will celebrate the Jewish holiday of Passover. Easter is when Christians² celebrate the life of Jesus and what they believe was his return from the dead. For most Christians, Easter this year is on Sunday, April 5.

Jews observe Passover, or Pesach in Hebrew, this year from April 3-11. Passover celebrates the Jews' escape from slavery in Egypt. The Jewish holy book, the Torah, tells about how Moses led the Jews to freedom. A special dinner, the seder, begins the celebration of Passover.

Jewish families get together and eat foods that represent the Exodus³ story. One food is matzoh, a flat, crisp bread. It represents the hurry linked to the slaves’ escape. They did not have time to let their bread rise before baking it.

Another special food on the seder table is maror, bitter herbs. They represent the pain of slavery.

In America, many children are told stories about the Easter Bunny. He is said to hide eggs, chocolates and other sweets, for children to find on Easter morning.

The Easter Bunny tradition probably developed from a German celebration of spring. Germans first settled in North America in the eighteenth century. Eggs are an almost worldwide symbol of fertility and renewal⁴.

?Individual families often organize Easter egg hunts. But egg hunts can also be public gatherings⁵. Every year, on the Monday after Easter, the U.S. president holds an event called the White House Easter Egg Roll.

This is the 137th year the White House has held the event. The President and his wife invite hundreds of children to the White House. They join the children in hunting for eggs, playing games, and reading stories. 

Many Christians in America attend religious services on Easter Sunday. Often, these services take place at sunrise.

Easter around the world

One of our French readers tells VOA about an Easter tradition in France, where many Roman Catholics live. Churches in France do not ring their bells on the two days before Easter Sunday. The bells are silenced in respect of the death of Jesus. They ring again on Easter Sunday, the day Christians believe he came back to life.

French children are told a story about why the bells are quiet on Friday and Saturday. Parents say the bells have flown to Rome to see the head of the Roman Catholic⁶ Church. But on Sunday morning, the bells return and ring again.

The Greek Orthodox⁷ Church celebrates Easter on April 12 this year. Orthodox Christians in America celebrate by blessing⁸ food baskets. In Greece, people color hard-boiled eggs and play a game by knocking them together. They eat lamb and party into the late night.

Spring and New Year Celebrations

The Persian New Year, acknowledged⁹ by the United Nations as the International Day of Nowruz, was on March 21 this year. This holiday marks the first day of spring, or the Equinox. A “haft sin” table shows many symbols of spring and life on Earth. The table includes eggs, a live goldfish, sprouts¹⁰, and other foods.

No matter what your culture or religion, it seems we all love spring. It is especially welcome after a long, cold winter. In the United States, many cities saw record snowfalls this year which makes spring all the sweeter.

Words in This Story

celebrate – v. to honor a person or event with special activities

seder - n. a Jewish religious service and dinner that is held on the first or first and second evenings of the Passover

matzoh - n. a dry, thin bread eaten especially by Jewish people at Passover

bitter – adj. having a strong and often unpleasant flavor that is the opposite of sweet

symbol – n. an action, object, event, etc., that expresses or represents a particular idea or quality

bunny - n. a young rabbit - this name is used especially by children or when talking to children

basket - n. a container usually made by weaving together long thin pieces of material

haft sin - n. specially prepared holiday table that includes at least seven basic items, each beginning with the letter s (sin in Persian)

1 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。

2 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。

3 exodus   

v.大批离去，成群外出

参考例句：

• The medical system is facing collapse because of an exodus of doctors.由于医生大批离去，医疗系统面临崩溃。
• Man's great challenge at this moment is to prevent his exodus from this planet.人在当前所遇到的最大挑战，就是要防止人从这个星球上消失。

4 renewal   

adj.(契约)延期，续订，更新，复活，重来

参考例句：

• Her contract is coming up for renewal in the autumn.她的合同秋天就应该续签了。
• Easter eggs symbolize the renewal of life.复活蛋象征新生。

5 gatherings   

聚集( gathering的名词复数 )； 收集； 采集； 搜集

参考例句：

• His conduct at social gatherings created a lot of comment. 他在社交聚会上的表现引起许多闲话。
• During one of these gatherings a pupil caught stealing. 有一次，其中一名弟子偷窃被抓住。

6 catholic   

adj.天主教的；n.天主教徒

参考例句：

• The Pope is the supreme leader of the Roman Catholic Church.教皇是罗马天主教的最高领袖。
• She was a devoutly Catholic.她是一个虔诚地天主教徒。

7 orthodox   

adj.正统的，传统的，惯常的

参考例句：

• They are orthodox Jews.他们是正统的犹太教徒。
• His ideas are very orthodox.他的思想非常合乎规范。

8 blessing   

n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿

参考例句：

• The blessing was said in Hebrew.祷告用了希伯来语。
• A double blessing has descended upon the house.双喜临门。

9 acknowledged   

adj.公认的v.承认( acknowledge的过去式和过去分词 )；鸣谢；对…打招呼；告知已收到

参考例句：

• He acknowledged publicly that he might have made a mistake. 他当众承认自己可能犯了个错误。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The police acknowledged that three police vehicles were damaged. 警方承认有三辆警车被毁。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 sprouts   

n.新芽，嫩枝( sprout的名词复数 )v.发芽( sprout的第三人称单数 )；抽芽；出现；（使）涌现出

参考例句：

• The wheat sprouts grew perceptibly after the rain. 下了一场雨，麦苗立刻见长。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The sprouts have pushed up the earth. 嫩芽把土顶起来了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》