73 短文欣賞

                                                  英语语法进深──博客

73 短文欣賞                                                                                                             4/17/2014

明日4/18/2014星期五是主耶稣基督受死的日子, 星期日祂要从死里复活. 有基督信仰的人, 如 Rusty Wright (頼若思先生) 以历史的观点著作 “Jesus’ Resurrection: Fact or Fiction?” 今帖出共同欣赏. 其文简洁有力的述说耶稣基督复活的证据. 译者为美国达拉斯恩友堂刘陈筱瑶姐妹. 译文流利, 极少带英文的中文语气, 对国人极具可读性. 对主耶稣基督的复活带给信徒的盼望, 充满字里行间. 今以中英文并列对照帖出, 对英语语法的学习和增强翻译的能力都有帮助.

Jesus' Resurrection: Fact or Fiction?                     主的复活:证据何在?
Written by Rusty Wright                                       作者頼若思 刘陈筱瑶译

At Easter, some might wonder what all the          在复活节，有些人或许会大
fuss is about. Who cares? What difference           惊小怪的: 这是那门子的事啊?
does it make if Jesus rose from the dead?             谁在乎呢？如果耶稣真的
                                                                                 从死里复活了,那又有怎幺样？

It makes all the difference in the world.                主的复活使世界震惊. 如果基督
If Christ did not rise, then thousands of                没有复活,那幺成千上万殉道的
believers have died as martyrs for a hoax.            信徒都是为了一场骗局死的。
If he did rise, then he is still alive and can            如果祂真的复活升天, 那幺祂还活
offer peace to troubled, hurting lives.                   着,且能为伤心痛苦的人提供宁静。
Countless scholars--among them the                    无以数计的学者,有使徒保罗,圣奥
apostle Paul, Augustine, Sir Isaac Newton           古斯丁，科学家以撒·牛顿公爵和英
and C.S. Lewis--believed in the resurrection.       国文学界巨擘鲁益士等人,他们都相
We need not fear committing intellectual             信主的复活. 所以,若我们也如此相
suicide by believing it also. Where do the            信就不要害怕会显出我们
facts lead?                                                              的愚昧与反智.那幺证据在那里?

Paul, a first-century skeptic-turned believer,        使徒保罗曾经是第一世纪著名的怀
wrote that "Christ died for our sins...he was         疑论者,在他因相信而成为基督信徒
buried...he was raised on the third day...he          之后写道：“基督为我们的罪死了,
appeared to Peter, and then to the                        又埋葬了,…第三天复活了;并且曾
Twelve (Disciples). After that, he appeared        经向彼得显现,然后向十二使徒显现.
to more than five hundred...at the same tim        以后,又有一次向500多个兄弟显现.
most of whom are still living."                             他们中间大多数到现今还在.”
                                                                               (新约圣经哥林多前书15:3-6)

Consider four pieces of evidence:                       现在让我们来看一看这些证据：
1. The explosive growth of          1.爆炸性的基督徒运动.
 the Christian movement.                   
 Within a few weeks after Jesus was                  在耶稣基被钉死后的数周之后,
 crucified, a movement arose which,                一场被敌对者称为是“搅乱天下”
 by the later admission of its enemies,               的运动兴起了.  他们的领袖被处
 "upset the world." What happened                    决后这幺短的时间内,发生了
 to ignite this movement shortly                         什幺事,因而点燃了这
 after its leader had been executed?                    场运动的热火？

2. The Disciples' changed lives.     2.门徒生命的改变.耶稣的被捕和
After Jesus' arrest and crucifixion, most         被钉十字架使得大多数的门徒都因
of the Disciples fled in fear. Peter denied        惧怕而逃逸无踪, 彼得在当时曾三
three times that he was a follower of               次否认他是耶稣的跟随者(倒是那
Jesus.  (The women were braver and               些妇女们勇敢地坚持到底).然而后
stayed to the end.) Yet ten out of the eleven   来除了出卖耶稣的犹大以外,十一
Disciples (Judas  committed suicide) were     位门徒中有十位是因着信仰的缘
martyred for their faith. According to             故而殉道的.根据传统的记载,彼得
traditions, Peter was crucified upside             是被倒钉十架的;多马被枪剌串
down; Thomas was skewered; Johnwas          烧死;约翰被沸的油煎却侥幸的存
boiled in oil but survived.  What turned          活.什幺使得这些懦夫变成英雄
these cowards into heroes? Each believed      的？他们每一位都相信自己亲眼
he had seen Jesus alive again.                            看见耶稣复活了.
         

3. The empty tomb.                             3.空的坟墓.星期五傍晚, 耶稣的尸
Jesus' corpse was removed from the cross,     体从十字架上取下来后, 就被层层的
wrapped like a mummy and placed in a          包裹像木乃伊般放置在石墓里. 一块
solid-rock tomb. A one-and-a-half to              约一吨半至两吨重的巨石被辊来封
two-ton stone was rolled into a slightly          住墓的门口.
depressed groove to seal the tomb's entrance.

A "Green Beret"-like unit of Roman               一队绿色贝雷帽罗马士兵严严的守
soldiers guarded the grave. Sunday morning, 着墓穴. 星期天的早晨，墓门的石头
the stone was found rolled away, the body     被人发现挪开了，耶稣的身体不见了,
was gone but the graveclothes were still in    可是裹尸布仍在原处.发生了什幺
place. What happened? Did Christ's              事？是基督的朋友偷取了祂的身体
friends steal the body? Perhaps one of the     吗？可能是其中的一位妇女借机与警
women sweet-talked (karate-chopped?) the   卫的士兵攀谈，而让其他的人偷偷地
guards while the others moved the stone        将耶稣的身体移走;又或许是彼得
and tiptoed off with the body. Or maybe        (还记得他的勇敢)或多马(怀疑的多马)
Peter (remember his bravery) or Thomas      制服警卫而偷取了身体，然后
(Doubting Thomas) overpowered the             编造了这复活的神话.
guards, stole the body, then fabricated--        并且自己也为之而死.
and died for--a resurrection myth. 

These theories hardly seem plausible.           这些说法似乎不太合理.

The guard was too powerful, the stone          因为这些守卫都是孔武有力,

too heavy and the disciples too                      石头也非常沉重, 而门徒们却是优

spineless to attempt such a feat.                  柔惧怕得不可能完成这样的大事。

                                                                       

Did Christ's enemies steal the body?              难道是敌对耶稣的人窃取祂的

If Romans or Jewish religious leaders had     尸体？如果是罗马人或犹太的宗教 

the body, surely they would have exposed     领袖偷了去,他们肯定会将它公布

it publicly and Christianity would have          于世, 那幺基督教不是就败絶了吗?

died out. They didn't, and it didn't.                  但是他们没有如此做，

                                                                          而基督教亦依然存在!

The "Swoon Theory" supposes that Jesus      另外有一种理论是假设耶稣并没有

didn't really die but was only unconscious.     真正的死去，不过是暂时失去意识

The expert Roman executioners merely         而已。有经验的罗马执刑者只是以

thought he was dead. After a few days in      为他已经死了,经过几天在坟墓里没

the tomb without food or medicine,               有水,没有食物,没有任何药物的

the cool air revived him.                                 生活，阴凉的空气将耶稣苏醒了。

          

He burst from the 100 pounds of grave         耶稣从一百磅的裹尸布中崩裂出来,用

clothes, rolled away the stone with his           祂那被钉子剌穿的双手把巨石辊开，

nail-pierced hands, scared the daylights         并且在光天化日之下吓退了罗马士兵，

out of the Roman soldiers, walked miles        然后以受伤的双脚走了好几英里的路

on wounded feet and convinced his               去说服门徒祂已经从死里复活了.

Disciples he'd been raised from the                相信此说法比相信耶稣复活困难多了。

dead. This one is harder to believe

than the resurrection itself.

4. The appearances of the       4. 督基复活之后的显现.

risen Christ.

For 40 days after his death, many                   耶稣复活后有四十天之久，许多不

different people said they saw Jesus alive.     同的人说他们看见了耶稣。这些见

Witnesses included a woman, a shrewd         证人包括一个妇人，一个精明的税

tax collector, several fishermen and over       吏，好些个渔夫, 以及一组超过五

500 people at once. These claims                   百人的群众。这些人提供了更进一
provide further eyewitness testimony             步的有关于耶稣复活的
 for the resurrection                                         目睹证据。

 
   

As a skeptic, I realized that attempts to       对一个怀疑论者的我本人而言，曾

 explain away the evidences run into a        企图蔑视那些事实和证据并做出不同

brick wall of facts that point to one             的解释，但最后只能得出一个

conclusion: Christ is risen.                          结论, 那就是基督确实从死里复活了.

  

The above does not constitute an                以上的推论并不能构成一个毫无漏洞

exhaustive proof, rather a reasoned           的证明，而只是对这些证据的一个合

examination of the evidence.                      理的检验。每一个有心的人都必须去

Each interested person should evaluate      评估并定夺这些证据的合理性。

the evidence and decide if it makes            当然，我们确知主的复活是真或是假

sense. Of course, the truth or falsity of       是与历史的事实有关，并非由任

the resurrection is a matter of historical     何人的相信与否而论定。如果事实

  

fact and is not dependent on anyone's        证明这种说法正确，我们就可下结论

belief. If the facts support the claim,          说耶稣是复活. 在任何情况下,很少

one can conclude that he arose. In any      人是单纯的靠理智上的赞同这些事实，

case, mere intellectual assent to the           而获得生命上的改变的。

facts does little for one's life.

A major evidence comes experientially,   主要的证据乃是来自个人经验上接

in personally receiving Jesus' free gift      受耶稣基督赦罪，饶恕的无价恩典。

of forgiveness. He said, "I stand at the     耶稣说：“我站在门外叩门，

door and knock; if anyone hears my         若有听见我的声音就开门的，我要

voice and opens the door, I will come      进到他那里去,我与他,他与我一同

 in to him (or her)."                                  坐席.” (新约圣经启示录3:20)

       Worth considering?                          值得一试吗？

     

    請將意見寄到     swlei2011@gmail.com