环球英语 — 322：Wintershall

　　Voice 1
Hello. I’m Mike Procter
Voice 2
And I’m Liz Waid. Welcome to Spotlight¹. This programme uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Come with us to a large farm. The farm is in the south of England. Many people have gathered here, men women and children. They are the audience for something that is about to happen. At fifteen minutes past ten in the morning, music begins to play.
A man appears in front of the people. He begins to tell a story. Other people appear around him. These people are acting² out the story. The story becomes a play. The actors wear clothes just like those of the Middle East, 2000 years ago.
Voice 2
Four hours later the play has not finished. The actors have moved to a different part of the farm. The whole audience has moved with them. The story has progressed. Now things look very bad. A man, almost naked³, is hanging on a wooden cross. There are soldiers, who fixed⁴ him to the cross by his hands and feet. There are people making fun of the man. But there are also people crying for him. Finally, he dies.
Voice 1
Then the story moves forward again. All the people have moved to another part of the farm. They are near a tomb - a place where a dead person was buried. But the tomb is empty. The man who was in it is now walking by a lake! It is the same man who was on the cross. But he is no longer dead. He meets people, and talks to them. People are surprised to see him. He leads them to a place by the lake where some men are trying to catch fish. He helps the fishermen to catch a lot of fish. The fishermen are very surprised. The man then says goodbye to them and walks away. The other actors walk through the crowd who have been watching - the audience. They give pieces of bread to the audience. And they say, to everyone, “Peace be with you.” Then play is finished. The people in the audience gather their belongings⁵ together and start their trip home. It has been a great day out, but it has affected⁶ them deeply. They have been watching the story of Jesus Christ⁷.
Voice 2
The play is acted every year at a farm called Wintershall in southern England. It is very popular. Many people enjoy acting in the play. Other people enjoy watching. The man who produces the play is Peter Hutley. He owns the farm at Wintershall. Peter explained that he had always believed in Jesus Christ. But about twenty years ago he went to Bosnia, to a place called Medjugorje. He thought it was a wonderful place. People there took their faith very seriously. It made Peter think deeply about what he believed. When he returned home he felt that he knew what God wanted him to do. God wanted him to tell people about Jesus Christ. Peter said:
Voice 3
‘I enjoyed writing. I had a lovely house and a large amount of land. So I decided⁸ to write a play about the birth of Jesus Christ. Many people know what happened. They know how the baby Jesus was born in an animal shelter, and how his first bed was an animal feeding box. But I wrote the play as a fight between good and evil⁹, between God and the devil¹⁰. We perform this play every year on my farm a few days before Christmas. Many people come to see it.
‘In 1990, I wrote a play about the suffering and death of Jesus Christ. This play was performed every year during the Easter festival - in late March or early April. We had a wonderful young actor to play the part of Christ. While he was acting the part of Christ he decided to become a Christian¹¹. He decided to devote his life to following Christ.’
Voice 1
Peter Hutley decided to write a much longer play for the year 2000. The play lasted five hours. He called it, ‘The Life of Christ’. Every year, at the end of June, this play is acted six times. Experienced¹² actors play the main parts: Jesus, his followers¹³, the priests¹⁴ and the Roman soldiers who executed¹⁵ Jesus. But there is a large crowd of other actors. These are about 100 people who live in the local area.
Voice 2
Shelagh Godwin lives close to Wintershall farm. In 2006, she acted in the play. She told of her experience,
Voice 4
‘I had to learn my part. I had to go to many rehearsals¹⁶. And if I missed one, the words I had been given to say were given to another person. I feel it is a real honour to put on a first-century costume and to act as a member of the crowd. The actor who plays the part of Jesus is wonderful. He brings Jesus’s stories to life. And then there are the things that Jesus did. For example, he fed a crowd of people from almost nothing, and he made sick people well. I am happy to take part in this great story. And the music is so good, too’.
Voice 1
What of the future? Peter Hutley hopes that this play will take place every year, for many years to come. And he has written another play. The new play is about what the followers of Jesus did after Jesus had left them. The Christian Bible¹⁷ says that after Jesus came alive again he spent some time with his followers before he went to heaven. He gave these followers great power so that they too could do the wonderful things that he had done, like making sick people well.
Voice 2
Peter and Ann Hutley want to use Wintershall farm to tell people about Jesus. In Europe today, people are often so busy that they do not have time to consider spiritual matters. They do not have time to think about what life means. They worry about many things. Peter and Ann Hutley have designed Wintershall as a place to rest, to think and to learn about God. It provides a space for people in a busy world. Peter says,
Voice 3
‘Since I know about Jesus, I feel it is my job to tell other people about him. And the best way I can do this is to use my farm and write these plays and have them performed. I hope this will continue for many years to come’.
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

3 naked   

adj.裸露的；赤裸裸的，无遮蔽的

参考例句：

• To the east of our school,there's a naked hillside.我们学校东边有片光秃秃的山坡。
• The children stripped off their clothes and swam naked in the river.孩子们脱得光溜溜的在河里游泳。

4 fixed   

adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的

参考例句：

• Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗？
• Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定，我们就不应该随意改变。

5 belongings   

n.私人物品，私人财物

参考例句：

• I put a few personal belongings in a bag.我把几件私人物品装进包中。
• Your personal belongings are not dutiable.个人物品不用纳税。

6 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

7 Christ   

n.基督，救世主，耶稣

参考例句：

• I regarded him as the Christ.我把他当作救世主。
• Christ preached that we should love each other.基督在布道中说人们应该互爱。

8 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

9 evil   

n.邪恶，不幸，罪恶；adj.邪恶的，不幸的，有害的，诽谤的

参考例句：

• We pray to God to deliver us from evil.我们祈求上帝把我们从罪恶中拯救出来。
• Love of money is the root of all evil.爱钱是邪恶的根源。

10 devil   

n.魔鬼，恶魔

参考例句：

• It is easier to raise the devil than to lay him.召鬼容易驱鬼难。
• Susie,you're a determined little devil.苏茜，你真是个坚决的小家伙。

11 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。

12 experienced   

adj.有经验的；经验丰富的，熟练的

参考例句：

• Experienced seamen will advise you about sailing in this weather.有经验的海员会告诉你在这种天气下的航行情况。
• Perhaps you and I had better change over;you are more experienced.也许我们的工作还是对换一下好，你比我更有经验。

13 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。

14 priests   

n.（基督教和罗马天主教的）神父( priest的名词复数 )；牧师；（非基督教会的）教士；祭司

参考例句：

• the ordination of women priests 女司祭的授职礼
• The clergy remain divided on the issue of women priests. 在女性教士的问题上，牧师们意见不一。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 executed   

v.执行（法令）( execute的过去式和过去分词 )；（按计划或设计）作成；履行；演（戏）

参考例句：

• He was executed for treason. 他因叛国罪被处死。
• He was executed in 1887for plotting to assassinate the tsar. 他因密谋暗杀沙皇在1887年被判处极刑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

16 rehearsals   

n.练习( rehearsal的名词复数 )；排练；复述；重复

参考例句：

• The earlier protests had just been dress rehearsals for full-scale revolution. 早期的抗议仅仅是大革命开始前的预演。
• She worked like a demon all through rehearsals. 她每次排演时始终精力过人。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 bible   

n.《圣经》；得到权威支持的典籍

参考例句：

• According to the Bible we are all the seed of Adam.根据《圣经》所说的，我们都是亚当的后裔。
• This dictionary should be your Bible when studying English.学习英语时，这本字典应是你的主要参考书。