VOA标准英语2008年-Thousands Greet Pope in Sydney

Hundreds of thousands of people have greeted the Pope on his official arrival for World Youth Day in the Australian city, Sydney. The pontiff has praised the Australian government for apologizing to the country's indigenous¹ people for past injustices². From Sydney, Phil Mercer reports.
　
Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd (L), Pope Benedict XVI and Rudd's wife Therese Rein³ pose for a photograph at Admiralty House in Sydney, 17 Jul 2008

What has been called "Super Holy Thursday" has attracted up to half-a-million people into the center of Australia's biggest city. The Pope traveled across Sydney Harbor, accompanied by a flotilla of vessels⁴, before disembarking to address pilgrims on the shore.

Earlier, Benedict used his first public appearance in Australia to praise a government apology to the country's Aborigines for injustices committed in the past. Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd formally apologized to indigenous people, earlier this year, in a historic act of contrition⁵.

The Pope says it was a brave move that offered hope to disadvantaged people, around the world.

"Their ancient heritage forms an essential part of the cultural landscape of modern Australia," he said. "Thanks to the Australian government's courageous⁶ decision to acknowledge the injustices committed against the indigenous peoples in the past, concrete steps are now being taken to achieve reconciliation⁷."

The Pope is in Australia for World Youth Day, an international festival that celebrates the faith of young Catholics from all over the world. Pilgrims have come from all corners; from South America and Europe to Indonesia and the South Pacific island nation of the Solomon Islands.

Eighteen-year-old Colombian student Marcela Franco has traveled from her home, in Bogota, to see the Pope.

"Oh, my God!" she exclaimed. "I don't know. It's just a spiritual experience, you know. I'm so excited. I mean, it's going to be amazing. "You see the Pope, and you go to many Catechesis, you know. It's a lot of information, a lot of learning about this. A great experience."

World Youth Day began in the mid⁸ 1980's and has become a pivotal part of the Catholic calendar. The event in Sydney has taken five years to plan and is attracting more people than the 2000 Olympics that were staged in Australia's iconic harborside city.

During his ten-day visit, Pope Benedict is expected to apologize for sexual abuse by the clergy⁹ in Australia.

Concerns about climate change will also be addressed by the leader of the world's billion Catholics.

The highlight of World Youth Day is a giant open-air papal mass in Sydney on Sunday.

 

1 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

2 injustices   

不公平( injustice的名词复数 )； 非正义； 待…不公正； 冤枉

参考例句：

• One who committed many injustices is doomed to failure. 多行不义必自毙。
• He felt confident that his injustices would be righted. 他相信他的冤屈会受到昭雪的。

3 rein   

n.疆绳，统治，支配；vt.以僵绳控制，统治

参考例句：

• The horse answered to the slightest pull on the rein.只要缰绳轻轻一拉,马就作出反应。
• He never drew rein for a moment till he reached the river.他一刻不停地一直跑到河边。

4 vessels   

n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人

参考例句：

• The river is navigable by vessels of up to 90 tons. 90 吨以下的船只可以从这条河通过。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All modern vessels of any size are fitted with radar installations. 所有现代化船只都有雷达装置。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 contrition   

n.悔罪，痛悔

参考例句：

• The next day he'd be full of contrition,weeping and begging forgiveness.第二天，他就会懊悔不已，哭着乞求原谅。
• She forgave him because his contrition was real.她原谅了他是由于他的懊悔是真心的。

6 courageous   

adj.勇敢的，有胆量的

参考例句：

• We all honour courageous people.我们都尊重勇敢的人。
• He was roused to action by courageous words.豪言壮语促使他奋起行动。

7 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

8 mid   

adj.中央的，中间的

参考例句：

• Our mid-term exam is pending.我们就要期中考试了。
• He switched over to teaching in mid-career.他在而立之年转入教学工作。

9 clergy   

n.[总称]牧师，神职人员

参考例句：

• I could heartily wish that more of our country clergy would follow this example.我衷心希望，我国有更多的牧师效法这个榜样。
• All the local clergy attended the ceremony.当地所有的牧师出席了仪式。