VOA标准英语2010年-President Obama Seeks to Bridge Differ

US President Barack Obama has again postponed¹ his trip to Indonesia because of pressing issues in the U.S.  The trip is part of his ongoing² effort to reach out to Muslims worldwide. Last year, he gave a speech in Cairo that was considered a landmark³ in the effort to bridge differences between Islam and the West. Many Muslims believe he should do more

Frictions⁴ between Islam and the West often flare⁵ up - like when when a Danish newspaper published cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed - or when Muslim girls in Europe went to school wearing veils, or new minarets⁶ in Switzerland were banned.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have also complicated America's relationship with the Islamic world.

Last year, President Obama went to Cairo hoping to change that. He extended the traditional Muslim greeting, and said while he is a Christian⁷, his father's family includes generations of Muslims.  "I've come here to Cairo to seek a new beginning, between the United States and Muslims around the world," he said.

He declared that the U.S. is not at war with Islam, but is against violent extremists who exploit the tensions between Islam and the West.

Those tensions go all the way back to the Crusades - when Christian armies invaded the Holy Land.

But there have also been times of harmony like in medieval Spain. 

Since the September 11 attacks, attempts to bridge the differences between the two civilizations have acquired a new urgency.

Recently, Sunni and Shi'ite clerics met with Christian counterparts at the National Cathedral in Washington.

Professor Ahmad El Tayeb of Al Azhar University in Cairo said the President's speech there was a landmark.  "I was there, and I admired that speech very much. But we are still waiting to see practical results," he said.

He says the U.S. shouldn't side with Israel or fight wars in Muslim countries.

Fouad Ajami heads the Middle East Studies program at the School of Advanced International Studies in Washington. "I think in many ways some of the issues Mr. Obama raised were legitimate⁸ ones. But he overpromised, he overpromised, and eventually he was going to come down to earth," he said.

Ajami says there's only so much an American president  can do. He says the conflict is actually within Islam. "In fact what has happened over the last generation is that Islam has been hijacked⁹ for all practical purposes by the most extreme elements in the Muslim world. And you have these radical¹⁰ preachers in Yemen, you have these radical preachers in south Asia, you have these radical preachers in Pakistan. And I think that the Muslims finally awakened¹¹ to the fact that their faith is in danger, that their faith has become in many ways synonymous with radicalism," he said.

The president's task is not easy. At home, critics accuse him of apologizing for America.

Still, Mr. Obama holds up his own country as a place where people of all religions can thrive.  "And that includes nearly 7 million American Muslims in our country today who, by the way, enjoy incomes and educational levels that are higher than the American average," he said.

Several hundred Muslims worship every Friday at the Islamic Cultural Center in Washington, D.C.

Some are diplomats¹² from nearby embassies. But many are citizens who have lived in America for decades. They still believe in Mr. Obama's message. "People think he's going to do the thing in a snap, he cannot do that," said Mohamed Adje, a worshiper.
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Another worshiper, Mohammed Abdul Meguid Saleh, added "No way can push everything fast. Everything is going to be okay. It's not easy, it take time to get everything together."

When the president travels to Indonesia, he'll have another opportunity to reach out to the Muslim world. It's a place that is personal for him  - he lived there as a child. So at the very least, he can once again present himself as a symbol of hope for reconciliation¹³ between Islam and the West.
 

1 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

2 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

3 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

4 frictions   

n.摩擦( friction的名词复数 )；摩擦力；冲突；不和

参考例句：

• Family frictions can interfere with a child's schoolwork. 家庭中的争吵会影响孩子的学业。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• As far as we are concerned, these frictions are not of our own making [have been imposed on us]. 就我们来说，这种摩擦是被动式的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 flare   

v.闪耀，闪烁；n.潮红；突发

参考例句：

• The match gave a flare.火柴发出闪光。
• You need not flare up merely because I mentioned your work.你大可不必因为我提到你的工作就动怒。

6 minarets   

n.（清真寺旁由报告祈祷时刻的人使用的）光塔( minaret的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Remind you of a mosque, red baked bricks, the minarets. 红砖和尖塔都会使你联想到伊斯兰教的礼拜寺。 来自互联网
• These purchases usually went along with embellishments such as minarets. 这些购置通常也伴随着注入尖塔等的装饰。 来自互联网

7 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。

8 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

9 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

10 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

11 awakened   

v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到

参考例句：

• She awakened to the sound of birds singing. 她醒来听到鸟的叫声。
• The public has been awakened to the full horror of the situation. 公众完全意识到了这一状况的可怕程度。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 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。