VOA慢速英语2019 美国总统乔治·华盛顿主张设立全国性感恩节

How George Washington Angered Lawmakers Over Thanksgiving

In September 1789,the government of the United States was only a few months old.George Washington was president – the nations first.Congress was new, too.Some of the early lawmakers came to the president with a question: Would he call for a national Thanksgiving?

1789年9月，美国政府成立刚刚几个月。乔治·华盛顿是美国第一任总统。国会也才成立。一些早期议员向总统提出了一个问题：他会主张设立全国性的感恩节吗？

One aim was to help unify¹ the young country,which was made of the 13 former colonies.Calling a national Thanksgiving would be a way to bring Americans together.

其目标之一就是帮助这个由13个前殖民地组成的年轻国家团结起来。主张设立全国性的感恩节是让美国人团结起来的一种方式。

But other lawmakers strongly objected to the idea.Critics had two main concerns.

但其他议员强烈反对这一想法。批评者主要有两点担忧。 

First, some saw Thanksgiving as a religious holiday.They noted² the president could not use the power of the federal government to urge Americans to follow -- or not follow -- a religious tradition.

首先，有些人把感恩节视为宗教节日。他们指出，总统不能利用联邦政府权力敦促美国人遵循或不遵循某种宗教传统。

Second, opponents of the measure believed the president did not have the right to call a national Thanksgiving.That power belonged to the leader of each state, they said.

其次，反对这项措施的人认为，总统没有权利要求设立全国性的感恩节。他们表示，这种权力属于各州州长。

In the end,Washington did formally call for a national Thanksgiving.It was the countrys first presidential proclamation.In it, he called for a national "day of public thanksgiving and prayer."

最终，华盛顿正式主张设立全国性感恩节。这是该国第一份总统公告。在公告中，华盛顿主张设立一个全国性的“公众感恩节和祈祷日”。

He also tried to satisfy opponents of the idea.

他还试图让反对者对这一想法满意。 

Melanie Kirkpatrick is the writer of "Thanksgiving: The Holiday at the Heart of the American Experience."She explains that Washington sent copies of his proclamation to the leader of each of the 13 states.He asked them to call a national Thanksgiving on the day he had chosen.

梅兰妮·柯克帕特里克是《感恩节：美国经历的核心节日》一书的作者。她解释道，华盛顿向13个州的州长发送了公告副本。他要求他们响应他的主张，在他选择的那天设立全国性感恩节。

The president was very well respected, Kirkpatrick notes.And so the state leaders all agreed.

柯克帕特里克指出，（华盛顿）总统十分受人尊敬。因此，各州州长都表示同意。 

In the years that followed,some presidents issued their own proclamations for a day of thanksgiving; many others did not.

在随后的数年中，有些总统发布了自己的感恩节公告。 

Finally, in 1941,lawmakers in Congress made the fourth Thursday in November a legal holiday.

最终，在1941年，国会议员将11月的第4个星期四定为法定假日。 

This Thanksgiving, millions of Americans will gather to eat a meal and express their thanks.Their gatherings⁴ may echo⁵ George Washingtons first Thanksgiving proclamation.In it, the first president made a point of declaring that people of all religions should celebrate Thanksgiving.

感恩节这一天，数百万美国人将聚在一起吃饭，并表达感谢。他们的相聚可能响应了乔治·华盛顿总统的第一份感恩节公告。华盛顿在公告中指出，各宗教的人都应该庆祝感恩节。

That idea is still important.Almost everyone in the country, including immigrants,observes the holiday in some way.

这个想法仍然很重要。在美国几乎所有人，包括移民，都以某种方式庆祝这一节日。 

Kirkpatrick says that for new Americans,the day can be a rite³ of passage.In her words, “The idea is that once you celebrate Thanksgiving, you know you are truly participating in a national festival that cements your position as an American.”

柯克帕特里克表示，对于新美国人来说，这一天可能是某种重要仪式。用她的话说，“这个想法是，只要庆祝感恩节，你就会知道自己真正地参与了一个全国性节日，这让你更强化自己作为美国人的意识。”

1 unify   

vt.使联合，统一；使相同，使一致

参考例句：

• How can we unify such scattered islands into a nation?我们怎么才能把如此分散的岛屿统一成一个国家呢？
• It is difficult to imagine how the North and South could ever agree on a formula to unify the divided peninsula.很难想象南北双方在统一半岛的方案上究竟怎样才能达成一致。

2 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

3 rite   

n.典礼，惯例，习俗

参考例句：

• This festival descends from a religious rite.这个节日起源于宗教仪式。
• Most traditional societies have transition rites at puberty.大多数传统社会都为青春期的孩子举行成人礼。

4 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。

5 echo   

n.回音，共鸣；vi.发出回声；vt.模仿，附和

参考例句：

• She shouted on the mountaintop and listened for the echo.她在山顶上大声喊着，然后聆听着回声。
• I should like to echo the words of the previous speaker.我想重复前面一位发言者的话。