VOA标准英语2013--Pope's Resignation Could be Turning Point for Church

 

Pope's Resignation Could be Turning Point for Church

Hundreds of the faithful stood reverently¹ in front of large television screens on St. Peter's Square on a chilly² evening, to be close by as Pope Benedict led his final scheduled mass on Ash Wednesday. The pope thanked all those who had helped him during his eight-year papacy, and asked them to pray for him.

The retirement³ of the 85-year-old pontiff opens the way for church leaders to move toward reforms that many of the faithful would like to see, on issues like the pedophilia scandal, birth control, tolerance⁴ for homosexuals and the role of women. That will largely be up to his successor, who may have been among the dozens of cardinals⁵ who attended Wednesday's mass.

But veteran reporter Sean-Patrick Lovett of Vatican Radio warns against expecting any dramatic changes.

"The Catholic Church is not about change, it's not a democracy," Lovett said. "It's about continuity, and doctrine⁶ is very unlikely to change no matter who becomes pope."

One high priority for any new pope will have to be the scandal over sexual abuse by priests. But the current pope's official apology and new guidelines are about as much as can be done, said Lovett.

"I'm sure the next pope will continue to meet with victims, will continue to make sure that these policies are set in place and ensure that none of this ever happens again," he said.

Still, some people think the new pope will have to do more, including Vatican correspondent Alessandro Speciale of the Religion News Service.

"He will have to tackle the sex abuse crisis head on, and he will have to do it pro-actively, before the crisis erupts," he said.

Preventing further abuse is particularly important for the church's main growth areas, Africa and Latin America, he said. Some observers believe the next pope may come from one of those areas, but Speciale said even that would not necessarily signal major policy changes.

"The symbolic⁷ value of an African pope would be unimaginable, but how different in terms of policies and approach, that would depend on who exactly this pope is," he said.

People visiting the Vatican, in the days after the first papal resignation in nearly 600 years, were not expecting big policy changes, but were open to the idea of a southern hemisphere pope.

"It doesn't matter where you're from. It's all about your faith and your commitment to the job," said one visitor.

"I think it will open the eyes of the people, particularly in the Western world, the developed world, into what's going on in the countries of the Third World," said another.

It is a rare moment for Catholics to be able to say farewell to a pope, and to contemplate⁸ the future, without the sadness of a pope's death. It will also be rare for a new pope, whatever he wants to do, to feel his predecessor's presence quite so strongly. 

1 reverently   

adv.虔诚地

参考例句：

• He gazed reverently at the handiwork. 他满怀敬意地凝视着这件手工艺品。
• Pork gazed at it reverently and slowly delight spread over his face. 波克怀着愉快的心情看着这只表，脸上慢慢显出十分崇敬的神色。

2 chilly   

adj.凉快的，寒冷的

参考例句：

• I feel chilly without a coat.我由于没有穿大衣而感到凉飕飕的。
• I grew chilly when the fire went out.炉火熄灭后，寒气逼人。

3 retirement   

n.退休，退职

参考例句：

• She wanted to enjoy her retirement without being beset by financial worries.她想享受退休生活而不必为金钱担忧。
• I have to put everything away for my retirement.我必须把一切都积蓄起来以便退休后用。

4 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

5 cardinals   

红衣主教( cardinal的名词复数 )； 红衣凤头鸟（见于北美，雄鸟为鲜红色）； 基数

参考例句：

• cardinals in scarlet robes 身披红袍的枢机主教
• A conclave of cardinals was held to elect the new Pope. 红衣主教团举行了秘密会议来选举新教皇。

6 doctrine   

n.教义；主义；学说

参考例句：

• He was impelled to proclaim his doctrine.他不得不宣扬他的教义。
• The council met to consider changes to doctrine.宗教议会开会考虑更改教义。

7 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

8 contemplate   

vt.盘算，计议；周密考虑；注视，凝视

参考例句：

• The possibility of war is too horrifying to contemplate.战争的可能性太可怕了，真不堪细想。
• The consequences would be too ghastly to contemplate.后果不堪设想。