英国新闻听力 学习与悲伤者同悲伤的技能

The shortest verse in English translations of the New Testament¹ is also one of the most perplexing. Jesus receives a message that Lazarus, the brother of Mary and Martha, is ill in Bethany near Jerusalem. When Jesus eventually arrives, Lazarus has been dead four days, and when he sees the party of mourners, Jesus ‘was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved’. And then that shortest verse – ‘Jesus wept’.

But why does he weep? As the story is told in John’s gospel, Jesus had always intended to raise Lazarus from the dead – and shortly after he has wept, Jesus does just that, calling Lazarus forth² from the tomb still wrapped in his burial sheets. So if Jesus is not weeping for Lazarus, then for what? Commentators³ have said different things, but it seems to me that when Jesus sees the party of mourners, chief amongst them Lazarus’s sisters, he weeps with the weepers at the woes⁴ of the world. He weeps for a world which knows so acutely the bitterness of sickness and sudden death.

Yesterday’s plane crash in the French Alps has given us painful scenes of distraught mourners. This was one of those tragedies where the rescue services are left with really nothing to do. It is easier, of course, when human efforts of ingenuity⁵ and courage can save some, or better still all, from a perilous⁶ situation. But it was not one of those occasions.

What is left for us to do? What can we do when we are in the midst of a story which cannot end in triumph because it has already concluded in tragedy? It is a little thing, maybe, but what we can do is to grieve well with those who grieve, to weep with those who weep. Medics, I suspect, know about this better than most of us. Hospitals are places of great triumphs – when the seemingly dying are brought back to life. But health care professions, no matter how professional, cannot always succeed in relieving the distress⁷ and suffering of the sick - medicine has its limits. Though hospitals are scenes of triumph, they are also scenes of tragedy, failure and defeat, day by day, where care is not only about curing, but also about extending kindness and empathy and understanding. Good medics, I suspect, feel the weight of the world – good medics, even in the defeat of their medical efforts, can extend real sympathy to those whom medicine has failed.

The skill of being present with and for those who grieve is one good medics learn. It is a skill which will be especially needed by those close to families affected⁸ by yesterday’s tragedy – but it is a skill we will all need at some time in our lives.

新约英文译本中最短的句子也是最令人困惑的句子，耶稣得知玛丽与马萨的弟弟拉撒路仍在耶路撒冷附近的伯大尼。当他最终到达那里时，拉萨路已经死了4天，耶稣看着那群哀悼者，“极为不安和感动”，然后最短的句子是这么说的：“耶稣垂泪了”。

他为何垂泪？这个故事出现在约翰福音中，耶稣一直想复活拉萨路，在他落泪后不久，他就开始这么做，他将仍穿着葬服的拉萨路从坟墓中召唤出来。如果耶稣不为拉萨路垂泪，那么为何垂泪呢？评论者对此有不同意见，但在我看来，当耶稣看到一群的哀悼者时，主要是拉萨路的姐妹们时，他就和哀悼者一起为世界的苦难而哭泣，这个世界知道疾病和暴亡的痛苦，他为这个世界而哭泣。

昨天法国阿尔卑斯山的飞机坠机事故让我们看到悲伤的哀悼者的痛苦场面，在这样的悲剧中，援救人员无计可施。如果人的智慧和勇气能从危险的境地拯救些什么或全部损失，也会好些，但这个事故根本不是这样的。

我们该做些什么呢？在惨剧已成定局、无法以胜利告终的情况下，我们该如何做呢？可能这是件微不足道的事，但我们能做的，就是和那些悲伤者和垂泪者一起悲伤和垂泪。我想医疗工作者可能比我们大多数人都明白这一点，医院是取得重大胜利的地方，那些似乎垂死者被抢救回来。但无论医疗职业多么专业，都无法减轻病人的悲伤和苦难，医学自有其局限。尽管医院总能救人性命，但也是充满惨剧、失败和挫折的地方，日复一日，在这里，医护工作不仅是治愈疾病，也是提供善意、同情和理解的地方。在我看来，优秀的医疗人员能够感知世界的分量，即使是在医疗工作失败的情况下，好的医疗人员也能给医学无力回天的患者以真正的同情。

能够陪伴悲伤着悲伤是好的医疗人员所应该学习的技能，这一技能，对于昨天惨剧中遇难者家属周围的人来说尤其必要，但这也是我们一生中一些时候都需要的一项技能。

1 testament   

n.遗嘱；证明

参考例句：

• This is his last will and testament.这是他的遗愿和遗嘱。
• It is a testament to the power of political mythology.这说明，编造政治神话可以产生多大的威力。

2 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

3 commentators   

n.评论员( commentator的名词复数 )；时事评论员；注释者；实况广播员

参考例句：

• Sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 体育解说员翻来覆去说着同样的词语，真叫人腻烦。
• Television sports commentators repeat the same phrases ad nauseam. 电视体育解说员说来说去就是那么几句话，令人厌烦。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 woes   

困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉

参考例句：

• Thanks for listening to my woes. 谢谢您听我诉说不幸的遭遇。
• She has cried the blues about its financial woes. 对于经济的困难她叫苦不迭。

5 ingenuity   

n.别出心裁；善于发明创造

参考例句：

• The boy showed ingenuity in making toys.那个小男孩做玩具很有创造力。
• I admire your ingenuity and perseverance.我钦佩你的别出心裁和毅力。

6 perilous   

adj.危险的，冒险的

参考例句：

• The journey through the jungle was perilous.穿过丛林的旅行充满了危险。
• We have been carried in safety through a perilous crisis.历经一连串危机，我们如今已安然无恙。

7 distress   

n.苦恼，痛苦，不舒适；不幸；vt.使悲痛

参考例句：

• Nothing could alleviate his distress.什么都不能减轻他的痛苦。
• Please don't distress yourself.请你不要忧愁了。

8 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。