VOA慢速英语2021 一只雄鹿在狩猎季第一天闯入了教堂

Buck¹ Enters Church at Start of Hunting Season

Church is a place where people may seek comfort during difficult times. It can be considered a sanctuary² – a place that provides safety or protection. Usually, that safety or protection is meant for humans...not massive woodland creatures.

But in the state of Michigan, a huge buck entered a church on the first day of hunting season. Hunting season there begins on November 15. A buck is a male deer. The animals are prized targets for many hunters. In this case, the church served as a sanctuary for the buck by protecting it from hunters.

Religious leaders at the church Grace Sturgis found the buck inside the church's main gathering³ room.

A video the church posted on Facebook shows the buck walking around the church. Then it climbed the stairs to a second-floor seating area.

Pastors⁴ Amanda and Luke Eicher and Justin Wickey blocked a hallway with large pieces of wood. They wanted to keep the animal away from the rest of the church.

Amanda Eicher said of the animal, "I was amazed at how big he was."

The buck did not appear to have any gunshot wounds. But it was bleeding a little from what appeared to be cuts from glass, Amanda Eicher told the Kalamazoo Gazette. This buck, however, jumped through a window and back into the wild before anyone had a chance to get close enough to know for sure.

Besides the broken window, the only other damage in the church was blood stains on the floor.

Amanda Eicher said she and others found humor in the situation.

"We all need reasons to laugh, especially with the hard seasons from the past two years," Amanda Eicher said. "I'm glad we could provide some laughs."

Words in This Story

church -n. a building for public and especially Christian⁶ worship

pastor⁵ -n. a spiritual overseer

hallway -n. an entrance hall

amaze -v. to fill with wonder

stain -n. a soiled or discolored spot

1 buck   

n.雄鹿，雄兔；v.马离地跳跃

参考例句：

• The boy bent curiously to the skeleton of the buck.这个男孩好奇地弯下身去看鹿的骸骨。
• The female deer attracts the buck with high-pitched sounds.雌鹿以尖声吸引雄鹿。

2 sanctuary   

n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区

参考例句：

• There was a sanctuary of political refugees behind the hospital.医院后面有一个政治难民的避难所。
• Most countries refuse to give sanctuary to people who hijack aeroplanes.大多数国家拒绝对劫机者提供庇护。

3 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

4 pastors   

n.（基督教的）牧师( pastor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Do we show respect to our pastors, missionaries, Sunday school teachers? 我们有没有尊敬牧师、宣教士，以及主日学的老师？ 来自互联网
• Should pastors or elders be paid, or serve as a volunteer? 牧师或长老需要付给酬劳，还是志愿的事奉呢？ 来自互联网

5 pastor   

n.牧师，牧人

参考例句：

• He was the son of a poor pastor.他是一个穷牧师的儿子。
• We have no pastor at present:the church is run by five deacons.我们目前没有牧师：教会的事是由五位执事管理的。

6 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• 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。