哈佛大學校園英語情景對話03：改頭換面

Han Meimei and John meet on Sunday, and they are talking about John’s Saturday.

H: How is your Saturday?

H:你周六過得怎么樣?

J: Fabulous! You can go with me next time. I can introduce new friends to you.

J：好極了!下次咱們一起去，我可以介紹新朋友結你。

H: Thank you, I’d like to make more friends, but I don't believe in religion.

H:謝謝，我想交更多朋友，可是我不信仰宗教。

J: Don’t forget I’m a Christian，Han Meimei.

J：韓梅梅，別忘了我可是個基督徒哦。

H: Oh, John. I，m sorry. I intended no offense.

H:噢，約翰，不好意思，我沒有冒犯的意思。

J: I know. I was kidding. I know China is quite different from America. Most of youpeople',event)">Han people have no faith in religion.

J：我知道，我開玩笑呢。我知道中國和美國很不一樣，你們漢族人大都不信教。

H: Things are different now. Believe or not, now more and more Chinese people begin to believe inChristianity，

H:現在情況不一樣了。信不信由你，現在越來越多的中國人開始信基督了。

J: Really? Unfortunately the United States is now in a crisis of faith.

J：真的嗎?可惜的是美國現在卻有了信仰危機。

H: Why?

H:為什么?

J: More and more American people, especially intellectuals?, don’t know how to cope with the relationship between science and religion，and give up having faith in religion.

J:越來越多的美國人，尤其是知識分子，不知道如 何處理科學和宗教的關系從而放棄了宗教信仰。

H: That’s my doubt as well.

H:那也是我的疑惑。

J: Take Harvard University as an example. There has been great disagreements over religious teaching. Most of its faculty believe that the primary goal of a Harvard education is the pursuit of truth through rational inquiry, and that religion has no place in that,

J：拿哈佛大學來說，對于宗教教學的不同意見有很 多，大部分老師認為哈佛教育的首要目的是追求 真理，這主要靠理性探究，不關宗教的事。

H: I remember you said that Harvard was initially founded by Puritans. It seems that religion was very important to Harvard.

H:我記得你說過哈佛最初是由清敎徒創(chuàng)建的，好像 宗教對哈佛來說很重要啊。

J: That referred to the early history of Harvard University. The University gradually freed itself from Church control after nearly 200 years’ war between science and religion.

J：那指的是哈佛大學的早期歷史。經過近200年科 學與宗教之間的戰(zhàn)爭，哈佛逐漸擺脫了教會的束縛。

H: I think it’s good for a university to be independent of any external control. Only in this way can it pursue academic freedom and make such great achievements now.

K:我倒認為一所大學能不受任何外界控制兩它來說是好事。只有這樣它才能追求學 術自由，并取得現在這樣大的成就。

J： I’m not saying that Harvard should be controlled by the Church, but that it has gone from one extreme to another.

J：我不是說哈佛應該受控于教會，而是說它從一個極端走向了另一個極端。

H： Which extreme?

H:哪個極端?

J： At first, it was totally religious. Now, it is totally secular?.

J:起初它完全是宗教的，現在則完全世俗化了。

H: Doesn’t it have Divinity School?

H:不是有神學院嗎?

J： Yes, but the School is half a mile away from Harvard Yard, which implies that it is isolated

J:有是有，但神學院距離哈佛園有半英里呢，這暗示出神學院是孤立的。

H: John, you are too sensitive.

H:約翰，你太敏感了。

J: Am I? You know most professors who teach religion generally belong to other

departments, for example anthropology, and don’t have their own department.

J:我有嗎?要知道大多數教宗教的教授都是其他系的，比如人類學系，沒有屬于自 己的系。

H: John, don’t hit the ceiling.

H:約翰，別發(fā)火。

J: Students with more than a passing interest in religion are appointed to the Divinity School. And when the subject of religion comes up, the scholars on the Faculty of Arts and Sciences sniff at its seriousness.

J:那些對宗教不僅僅是一時感興趣的學生都給送到了神學院。當有關宗教的問題出 現時，文理學院的學者們都不屑一顧，不認真對待宗教問題。

H： I finally figure out why you，re angry. Actually you’re worrying about your future. You don’t know what to do if you go to Harvard because you love both science and Christianity. Right?

H:我終于搞清楚你為什么生氣了。實際上你在擔心自己的將來吧，因為你既熱愛科 學也熱愛宗教，所以如果你上哈佛的話，不知道該怎么做。

J： You hit the nail on the head.

J:一語中的。

H: Well, it’s a tricky? issue. I'm afraid our hands are tied.

H:這是個棘手的問題，恐怕我們無能為力。

J: Fortunately, some people have cried out for more attention to the study of religion.

J:幸運的是一些人已經開始呼吁給宗敎研究更多關注了。

H： It seems that the war between science and religion will go on, although science seems to be in the dominant position at Harvard now.

H:看來科學和宗教之爭還會繼續(xù)呀，雖然說現在科學在哈佛占據主導地位。

J: I just hope that the two don’t repel.

J：我只是希望兩者不要相互排斥。

H: Well, let things take their course.

H:好了，順其自然吧。

J: Ok, forget it. Let’s walk around.

J:嗯，不去想了，咱們四處走走吧。