VOA标准英语2013--美国无信仰者建立利益集团

 

Non-believers Create Political Pressure Group 美国无信仰者建立利益集团

Polls show that at least six percent of Americans do not believe in God, but their numbers are not reflected in Congress. A new political action committee or PAC will try to win them political representation.

民意调查显示,至少百分之六的美国人不相信上帝,但是它们的数量并没有反映在国会。一个新的政治行动委员会或PAC将努力赢得他们的政治代表。

Representatives Andre Carson and Keith Ellison are Muslims. Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard is a Hindu and Senator Mazie Hirono a Buddhist¹. But not a single declared atheist² sits among the 535 lawmakers in Congress.

The recently launched Freethought Equality Fund wants to change that. Executive director Roy Speckhardt says among the public, atheists and those who question God's existence now outnumber Jews, Muslims and Mormons combined.

“We are in fact one of the largest minorities in the United States today. But you’d never know it from our organized numbers or political power,” he said.

He says the Fund will support candidates regardless of faith who support secular³ ideals. Candidates like New Jersey⁴ Democrat⁵ Rush Holt who recently asked Congress to honor Charles Darwin  for his theory of evolution.

Maggie Ardiente of the American Humanist Association hopes some lawmakers will even declare themselves publicly as skeptics.

“I think this PAC is needed because there’s still a stigma⁶ against atheists and humanists and people who don’t believe in a God," she said. "I think many people believe that you can’t be good without a God and be an elected official in the United States.”

Robert Jones of the Public Religion Research Institute takes the longer view. He said, “In the American context, the word atheism⁷ has a troubled past.”

It was associated with Communism during the Cold War, and Jones says belief in a higher being is still seen as a proxy⁸ for morality.

“And I think for many Americans evaluating and saying, ‘Does this person believe in God or not,’ is a sort of mental shortcut⁹, I think, that many religious Americans make when they’re evaluating candidates,” he said.

It’s one reason so many official speeches end with “God bless America.”

But with surveys showing one third of adults under 30 don’t identify with any religion, God’s place of prominence¹⁰ in American politics may no longer be as assured.

1 Buddhist   

adj./n.佛教的，佛教徒

参考例句：

• The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。
• In the eye of the Buddhist,every worldly affair is vain.在佛教徒的眼里，人世上一切事情都是空的。

2 atheist   

n.无神论者

参考例句：

• She was an atheist but now she says she's seen the light.她本来是个无神论者，可是现在她说自己的信仰改变了。
• He is admittedly an atheist.他被公认是位无神论者。

3 secular   

n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的

参考例句：

• We live in an increasingly secular society.我们生活在一个日益非宗教的社会。
• Britain is a plural society in which the secular predominates.英国是个世俗主导的多元社会。

4 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

5 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

6 stigma   

n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头

参考例句：

• Being an unmarried mother used to carry a social stigma.做未婚母亲在社会上曾是不光彩的事。
• The stigma of losing weighed heavily on the team.失败的耻辱让整个队伍压力沉重。

7 atheism   

n.无神论，不信神

参考例句：

• Atheism is the opinion that there is no God.无神论是认为不存在上帝的看法。
• Atheism is a hot topic.无神论是个热门话题。

8 proxy   

n.代理权，代表权；（对代理人的）委托书；代理人

参考例句：

• You may appoint a proxy to vote for you.你可以委托他人代你投票。
• We enclose a form of proxy for use at the Annual General Meeting.我们附上委任年度大会代表的表格。

9 shortcut   

n.近路，捷径

参考例句：

• He was always looking for a shortcut to fame and fortune.他总是在找成名发财的捷径。
• If you take the shortcut,it will be two li closer.走抄道去要近2里路。

10 prominence   

n.突出；显著；杰出；重要

参考例句：

• He came to prominence during the World Cup in Italy.他在意大利的世界杯赛中声名鹊起。
• This young fashion designer is rising to prominence.这位年轻的时装设计师的声望越来越高。