美国语文第六册 第148期:守安息日(1)

搜索关注在线英语听力室公众号：tingroom，领取免费英语资料大礼包。

Morality flows from principle. 道德源于准则。

Let the principles of moral obligation become relaxed, and the practice of morality will not long survive the overthrow¹. 让阐释道德义务的准则自由自在，那么道德规范的践行将不会长久。

No man can preserve his own morals, no parent can preserve the morals of his children, without the impressions of religious obligation. 没有宗教义务的影响，没有谁能保持自己的道德准则，也没有哪位父母能让自己的孩子保持道德准则。

If you can induce a community to doubt the genuineness and authenticity² of the Scriptures³; 如果你能引诱一个团体对圣经的真实性和权威性产生怀疑，

to question the reality and obligations of religion; to hesitate, undeciding, whether there be any such thing as virtue⁴ or vice⁵; 对宗教义务和现实产生疑问，对是否存在美德或恶行，

whether there be an eternal state of retribution beyond the grave; or whether there exists any such being as God, 对是否有超越死亡的永恒的惩罚，或者是否存在诸如上帝这样的实在踌躇不决的话，

you have broken down the barriers of moral virtue, and hoisted⁶ the flood gates of immorality⁷ and crime. 那么你就打破了道德上的界限，吊起了拦住不道德和罪恶洪水的闸门。

I need not say that when a people have once done this, they can no longer exist as a tranquil⁸ and happy people. 不用我说，当人们一旦这样的话，他们就不再作为内心安宁和快乐人而存在了。

Every bond that holds society together would be ruptured⁹; 将社会连在一起的每一纽带都会断裂，

fraud and treachery would take the place of confidence between man and man; 人与人之间建立起来的信任关系中充斥了欺骗和背叛，

the tribunals of justice would be scenes of bribery¹⁰ and injustice¹¹; 法院成了见证贿赂和不公正的场所，

avarice¹², perjury¹³, ambition, and revenge would walk through the land, 贪婪、偏见、野心和报复堂而皇之地肆虐，

and render it more like the dwelling¹⁴ of savage¹⁵ beasts than the tranquil abode¹⁶ of civilized¹⁷ and Christianized men. 使得这块土地更像是野兽的居所，而不是文明开化和皈依了基督教的人平静安详的聚居之地。

 

分享到：