VOA标准英语2012--Pope Visits Lebanon Amidst Turbulent Time for Arab Christians
时间：2019-01-13 作者：英语课 分类：VOA标准英语2012年(九月)
Pope Visits Lebanon Amidst Turbulent Time for Arab Christians 2
Preparations are underway for a visit by the Pope to the small, religiously diverse nation of Lebanon, home to 18 official sects 3.
Christians have lived in these lands for some 2,000 years, starting before Islam began. But post-war events in Iraq, and the developments of the so-called "Arab Spring" have some Christians here concerned for the future.
“I’m afraid for my children, and my children’s children, but at this moment, I’m not scared,” said Lebanese Christian 1 Fadia Asem. “We’re afraid of Syria and Lebanon becoming another Iraq,” added Joe Noura, another Christian in Lebanon.
Iraqi Christians suffered during sectarian violence after the fall of longtime dictator Saddam Hussein, and many fled the country.
“The situation of the Christians in the Middle East was more stable, more secure, at least on the surface. Certainly the Arab world still lived under dictatorships and authoritarian 4 governments and people complained about that, but also there was a kind of stability there,” said Paul Salem, the director of the Carnegie Institute for Middle East peace.
Archbishop Issam Darwich of Zahle, a Christian stronghold in Lebanon, hopes the pope can ease some of those tensions with his message of peace. He worries the days of peaceful co-existence are slipping away.
“We never had a problem with the Sunnis, the Shia, the Alawite, we lived together in peace, but now with what’s happened in Egypt, in Libya, in Iraq, we don’t know about the future because of the extremism; the Wahabis are in Syria and Lebanon and everywhere, and I don’t think they believe in the co-existence between Christians and Muslims,” he said.
The pontiff is expected to address the conflict in Syria, which has divided Lebanese Christians. And it's likely he will appeal to Lebanese Christians, who include Maronite Catholics, Greek Orthodox and others, not to leave their homeland.
“One Achilles heel that Christians of the Arab world have, is they have, in a way, an easy exit. It’s easier for them to move, to emigrate, to go to the West,” Salem said.
Pope Benedict will also use his Lebanon trip as an example of religious tolerance 5 by meeting with heads of Muslim communities, most of which are welcoming his visit.
- 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。
- Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
- His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。
- Members of these sects are ruthlessly persecuted and suppressed. 这些教派的成员遭到了残酷的迫害和镇压。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- He had subdued the religious sects, cleaned up Saigon. 他压服了宗教派别，刷新了西贡的面貌。 来自辞典例句
- Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
- The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。