新西兰英语 638 Ramadan in New Zealand

 　　Ramadan begins tomorrow and ends August 18th in New Zealand. Actually it begins after sunset tonight when the new moon is seen. Islam uses the Lunar calendar so each year it is about 11 days earlier on the Gregorian calendar than the previous year.

　　During the 30 days of Ramadan, Muslims do not eat or drink between sunrise and sunset. This is a time of fasting and a time of prayer. For athletes competing in the Olympics, this could be difficult. They have to decide for themselves whether they will fast or not.

　　New Zealand has about 40,000 Muslims, just under 1% of the population. Most of them live in Auckland. They come from 40 different countries. The largest group is Indian, from Fiji.

　　Questions

　　?Which sports would be the hardest for athletes to train and compete in while they are fasting?

　　?Do Christian¹ and Jewish² athletes have worries about training and competing on certain holy days?

　　?What other events (e.g. exams) cause difficulties for Muslims at this time?

　　?In Northern Hemisphere³ countries, Ramadan falls during the summer this year. How might this be difficult for Muslims?

1 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。

2 Jewish   

adj.犹太人的，犹太民族的

参考例句：

• The coin bears a Jewish symbol.硬币上有犹太标记。
• They were two Jewish kids;I was friendly with both of them.他们是两个犹太小孩；我同他们都很要好。

3 hemisphere   

n.半球，半球地图

参考例句：

• This animal is to be found only in the Southern Hemisphere.这种动物只有在南半球才能找到。
• In most people,the left hemisphere is bigger than the right.多数人的左脑比右脑大。