2006年VOA标准英语-Pope, Orthodox Christian Patriarch Call for Uni
时间：2018-12-16 作者：英语课 分类：2006年VOA标准英语（十一月)
By Sabina Castelfranco
Istanbul
30 November 2006
Pope Benedict XVI and the spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians 2 held a solemn prayer service together Thursday in the Church of Saint George in Istanbul. During the joint 3 ceremony they re-committed their churches to the quest for full unity 4. For VOA, Sabina Castelfranco reports from Istanbul.
---
On the day Christians mark the feast day of Saint Andrew the apostle, Pope Benedict and Patriarch Bartholomew I held a joint ceremony in the Church of Saint George in Istanbul. The Orthodox Liturgy 5 was nearly three-hours long and full of symbolism.
Pope Benedict XVI, left, and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I at Ecumenical Patriarchate in Istanbul, 30 Nov 2006
During the ceremony the leaders of the world's Catholics and Orthodox pledged to continue all efforts towards full Christian 1 unity between their churches. The Western and Eastern branches of Christianity split in the Great Schism 6 of 1054 over differences on theology and papal authority.
"'The divisions which exist among Christians are a scandal to the world and an obstacle to the proclamation of the Gospel," said the pope.
Inside the church, the pope also urged "all world leaders to respect religious freedom as a fundamental human right."
The pope also took the opportunity to reiterate 7 the importance of Europe's Christian roots.
"We are called together with all other Christian communities to renew Europe's awareness 8 of its Christian roots, traditions and values, giving them new vitality," he said.
At the end of the liturgy, the pope and the patriarch joined hands and greeted a crowd from a balcony. In a joint statement, the pope and patriarch stressed the need to "preserve Christian roots" in European culture while remaining "open to other religions and their cultural contributions."
While the ceremony was under way, outside Istanbul University, some 100 nationalists protested against Pope Benedict's visit and called on him to stay away from Aya Sofya, which was once Christianity's largest church and is now a museum.
Amid heavy police presence supporters of the right-wing Grand Unity Party waved banners displaying "Pope get out of Turkey" and chanted "Aya Sofya is Turkish and will remain Turkish."
The pope was to visit the 1500-year-old Aya Sofia and the Blue Mosque 9 Thursday evening. His tour of the Blue Mosque in Istanbul will be only the second papal visit in history to a Muslim place of worship.
- 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。
- I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
- We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。
- When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
- We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。
- A clergyman read the liturgy from the prayer-book.一名牧师照着祈祷书念祷文。
- The mass is the church a kind of liturgy.弥撒是教会的一种礼拜仪式。
- The church seems to be on the brink of schism.教会似乎处于分裂的边缘。
- While some predict schism,others predict a good old fashioned compromise.在有些人预测分裂的同时，另一些人预测了有益的老式妥协。
- Let me reiterate that we have absolutely no plans to increase taxation.让我再一次重申我们绝对没有增税的计划。
- I must reiterate that our position on this issue is very clear.我必须重申我们对这一项议题的立场很清楚。