英语名人堂：特蕾莎修女

特蕾莎修女（英文名：Blessed Teresa of Calcutta，1910年8月27日－1997年9月5日），又称作德兰修女、特里莎修女、泰瑞莎修女，是世界著名的天主教慈善工作者，主要替印度加尔各答的穷人服务。因其一生致力于消除贫困，于1979年得到诺贝尔和平奖。2003年10月被教皇约翰·保罗二世列入了天主教宣福名单Beatification，特蕾莎修女的名称也因此变为真福特雷莎修女（Blessed Teresa）。

Mother Teresa was born in Albania in 1910, and died in 1997. Her real name is Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu. She became famous the world over for starting the Missionaries¹ of Charity in Calcutta, India. She began this work in 1950 and for over forty years, she looked after the poor, sick, orphaned², and dying. She won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 for her humanitarian³ work.

 

Agnes developed an interest in helping⁴ the less fortunate at a very young age. She was fascinated by stories of people who dedicated⁵ their life to help others. She decided⁶ to become a nun⁷ when she was 12. She joined the Sisters of Loreto as a missionary⁸ when she was 18. She initially⁹ went to Ireland, to learn English.

 

She arrived in India in 1929 and became a nun two years later. The poverty and suffering she saw around her in Calcutta deeply disturbed her. A famine in 1943 killed thousands and worsened the situation. In 1946 she received a call from God. "I was to leave the convent and help the poor while living among them. It was an order,” she said.

 

She was an international symbol of charity, visiting many countries to help poor children. At the time of her death, her organization was operating in 123 countries. After she died, the Pope started the process that might one day make her a saint. An international survey ranked her as the "most admired person of the 20th Century."

1 missionaries   

n.传教士( missionary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Some missionaries came from England in the Qing Dynasty. 清朝时，从英国来了一些传教士。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The missionaries rebuked the natives for worshipping images. 传教士指责当地人崇拜偶像。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 orphaned   

[计][修]孤立

参考例句：

• Orphaned children were consigned to institutions. 孤儿都打发到了福利院。
• He was orphaned at an early age. 他幼年时便成了孤儿。

3 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

4 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

5 dedicated   

adj.一心一意的；献身的；热诚的

参考例句：

• He dedicated his life to the cause of education.他献身于教育事业。
• His whole energies are dedicated to improve the design.他的全部精力都放在改进这项设计上了。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 nun   

n.修女，尼姑

参考例句：

• I can't believe that the famous singer has become a nun.我无法相信那个著名的歌星已做了修女。
• She shaved her head and became a nun.她削发为尼。

8 missionary   

adj.教会的，传教(士)的；n.传教士

参考例句：

• She taught in a missionary school for a couple of years.她在一所教会学校教了两年书。
• I hope every member understands the value of missionary work. 我希望教友都了解传教工作的价值。

9 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。