You are listening to a program from BBC Radio 4. Good morning. Twenty years ago football came home in Euro 96, and in the coming weeks, even fifty years of hurt will not stop medreaming that Wayne Rooney lifts the Henri Delaunay Cup in winning the European Championship. But behind what has become a media and financial juggernaut, is a story offaith and hope. While England may claim to the home of football, European and world championships have their origin in France - through Henri Delaunay and his predecessor asPresident of the French Football Federation, Jules Rimet. They were the architects of both theWorld Cup and the European Football Championship and represented a morality very different to recent reports of FIFA secret bonuses. For Rimet in particular, football was an outworkingof his faith. Inspired by catholic social teaching he took the view that sport was important to God and to the future shaping of society. In his twenties, he founded a sports club, which was distinct for two reasons. First it opposed the view that sport was the preserve of gentleman and amateurs and so his club did not discriminate on race or class. Second, it included football which at the time the French looked down upon as only for thugs, professionals and Englishmen. He believed that football could positively channel nationalism, provide healing and relieve the moral and physical suffering of the poor - but only if it was accessible to all social classes. His dream was that football would spread the Christian virtues of hard work, honesty,comradeship and fair play. This dream was not easy to achieve and had to be worked out within the harsh political realities which were costly to Rimet's time, energy and reputation.His example is a reminder of the way that faith at its best can be inspiring rather than oppressive. Further it is about the attempt to change the world for good, rather than just aprivatized comfort blanket. Indeed, in the last couple of days, within the eulogies to Muhammad Ali's greatness and human weaknesses, there is a story of faith which was foundational to the man who in the words of President Obama 'fought for what was right.... and spoke out when others wouldn't'. Sport is a key part of human experience and community and I see it as a gift from God. Its commercialization on the world stage is inevitable, and it isopen to all kinds of abuse but it still has the potential to unite us and give us glorious pictures of what humanity can achieve. Whatever England does in the coming weeks, for me in thewords of the song 'Jules Rimet will still be gleaming.'

您正在收听的是BBC广播4台。各位听众早上好。20年前，英格兰队借欧洲杯的契机回归，而在未来的数周中，即便曾有50年的伤痛，但我依然梦想着韦恩鲁尼能赢得欧洲杯，举起胜利之杯。但是在足球赛事俨然成了一场媒体和金融界的大造声势之时，足球始终寓意着信念和希望。虽然英格兰号称足球之乡，但欧洲杯和世界杯都缘起于法国：法国足协主席先后由亨利及其接班人朱尔斯担任。他们是世界杯和欧洲杯的构建者，他们代表的品德与当今足协盛传的丑闻大相径庭。这对于朱尔斯来说尤为如此，足球对朱尔斯来说是超乎信念的存在。由于受到天主教的教导，他认为，体育对上帝和未来社会的架构而言都十分重要。他二十多岁的时候，建立了一个足球俱乐部。该俱乐部与其他相比不同寻常有两个原因。其一，朱尔斯的俱乐部反对大众所认为的足球只是绅士和足球爱好者尤物的观点，因此他的俱乐部不介意不同种族和阶级。其二，朱尔斯的俱乐部接纳足球之际，正是法国人因为暴民、专业人士和英国人的加入而瞧不起足球之时。朱尔斯深信，足球能够激发国民精神，抚慰贫穷者身体和心灵的伤痛。但有一个前提条件就是所有社会阶层都可以接触足球。朱尔斯的梦想是足球能够将基督教的价值观广为传播，亦即辛勤劳动、诚实团结、公平正义。朱尔斯的梦想并不容易，只有在严酷政治现实中奋力拼搏才能得以实现。而这些对于朱尔斯的时间、精力和名誉来说都是极大的损耗。朱尔斯以身为范，以他的方式提醒着人们：信念这个东西可以是激人上进，而非压抑难受的。更重要的是，信念是尝试将世界变得更好，而非为一己私欲。确实，在过去的几天中，在我们痛失的拳王阿里身上，既能看到信念的伟大，也能看到人性的脆弱，拳王阿里的故事也是一个有关信念的故事，阿里也是奥巴马口中“为正确之事奋斗”的人，一个敢于说出其他人不敢直言之话的人。体育是人类经历中的重要组成部分，我将体育看做上帝馈赠的礼物。虽然足球的商业化不可避免，且难免或多或少受到世人苛责，但足球仍有将众人团结在一起的力量，能让我们看到人类联合在一起能创造的辉煌景象。无论英格兰接下来表现如何，我的态度始终如这歌词一般“朱尔斯永远闪耀”。



词汇解释

1.juggernaut n.世界主宰，强大的破坏力

例句：In fact, they succeeded beyond anyone’swildest expectations, transforming the region into anexport juggernaut and a model for the rest ofChina.

但事实上，改革的成功超出了所有人最大胆的期许，这个地区成为了出口巨头和中国其他地区的榜样。

2.FIFA n. 国际足球联盟

例句：I was so disappointed with the referee, he should get punished by FIFA.

我对那个裁判太失望了，他应该受到国际足联的处罚。

3.Eurpean Championship n.欧洲杯

例句：But the popularity of the European Championship far surpasses any football eventevery stage before in the country.

但是在这个国家欧洲足球锦标赛的受欢迎程度远远超过以前举办的任何足球比赛。

4.thug n.暴民，暴徒

例句：Mr Walker is now a professor of English at a state college in Massachusetts, far from thestreets he used to haunt as a thug.

沃克没有在他以往混迹的街头上成为一个恶棍，恰恰相反，现在他是麻省一所州立大学的英语教授。

5.gleaming adj.闪闪发光的，闪烁的

例句：Transitioning from that gummy grin to a mouthful of gleaming teeth is a rite of passagethat can take your little one three years to complete.

从咧开无牙的嘴笑，到满嘴闪闪发光的皓齿，这个转变是宝宝成长中的重要仪式，并且需要他三年的时间来完成。

内容解析

1.For Rimet in particular, football was anoutworking of his faith.

in particular 尤其，特别，专门（相当于particularly）

例句：When we speak, that is - -entirely and exclusively and without any other motive- forcommunication, except for one thing that the Russian formalists in particular took note of.

当我们开口说话,那是完全地专门地为了交流-,没有任何其它动机，除了一件事,也就是俄国形式主义者特别注意的。

例句：He came to see you in particular.

他专门来看你。

2.He believed that football could positively channel nationalism, provide healing and relievethe moral and physical suffering of the poor - but only if it was accessible to all social classes.

social class 社会阶层，社会阶级

例句：The people who try to divide it on the basis of social class we call either populists orelitists.

而以社会阶级划分社会的人，我们则称他们为民粹主义者或精英主义者。

例句：Competition is seen as an open and fair race where success goes to the swiftest personregardless of his or her social class background.

竞争被视为一场公开公正的赛跑，成功属于跑得最快的人，不管胜者的社会地位和背景如何。