美国国家公共电台 NPR New Museum Invites Visitors To 'Engage' With The Bible

New Museum Invites Visitors To 'Engage' With The Bible

KELLY MCEVERS, HOST:

The newest museum in Washington D.C. is dedicated¹ to a single book. The Museum of the Bible opens next week. It's a $500 million project privately² funded. It puts interactive³ exhibits next to artifacts and manuscripts. NPR's Tom Gjelten reports the museum rivals a theme park in design.

TOM GJELTEN, BYLINE⁴: The museum founders⁵ and designers want visitors to feel the story of the Bible - where it was written, what was going on when it was written.

CARY SUMMERS: This is Nazareth.

GJELTEN: Cary Summers, the museum president, shows us a recreation of the village of Nazareth as it was in the time of Jesus.

SUMMERS: This is where Jesus was raised. You know, he was born in Bethlehem, based the first few years in Egypt. The family comes back. They settle in Nazareth.

GJELTEN: The dwellings⁶ are of limestone⁷ that actually came from Nazareth. There are gardens with olive trees and birds. The sounds were actually recorded in Nazareth, so you feel like you're right back there alongside Jesus and his disciples⁸.

SUMMERS: I mean, there was animals. And it was donkeys and hammering and - these were rugged⁹ guys - I mean, this - wow. And so that's what this really more represents.

GJELTEN: Museum guides dressed in clothing from that time will explain how Jesus conveyed lessons through the use of parables¹⁰. This experiential approach will be seen throughout the museum. Visitors will learn about the development of the Hebrew Bible, the Old Testament¹¹, by walking through an exhibit that begins with Abraham and ends with the Book of Ruth. Summers says the mission is to acquaint visitors with the story of the Bible, not turn them into believers, not even to convince them the Bible is the word of God.

SUMMERS: We don't use the word that it's inspired. We don't go down that road. We're just trying to present it, just talking about the Bible itself.

GJELTEN: The museum does have a point of view, as seen in its description of the Bible's impact here in the United States.

SUMMERS: How did the Bible influence the founding of America and the functioning of America? Let's go in. We'll take a look.

GJELTEN: Glass cases here hold a variety of early colonial writings with Scripture¹² references and the historic Bibles that inspired them.

SUMMERS: So we start with some of the earliest, you know, items - the 1614 King James, the Geneva Bible, which was really the base of most translations in America.

GJELTEN: The Museum of the Bible was largely funded by a billionaire Christian¹³ family, the Greens, founders and private owners of the Hobby Lobby chain of arts-and-crafts stores. This is the family that went to the Supreme¹⁴ Court to challenge on religious grounds the Obamacare contraceptive mandate¹⁵.

CANDIDA MOSS¹⁶: I would say that the Green family has been more successful at impacting religion in the public square here in America than really any other recent group.

GJELTEN: Candida Moss is the author of a new book, "Bible Nation: The United States Of Hobby Lobby." She worries the Green family connection means the museum has an evangelical agenda.

MOSS: They did try to put a Bible curriculum in public schools, and so I wouldn't want to underestimate the impact of this museum on people who come to visit it.

GJELTEN: In truth, the museum directors make no secret of their Christian convictions. Cary Summers acknowledges that board members have been asked to sign a statement of faith.

SUMMERS: I mean, it's just a commonality there. We're going to operate by the Bible. We believe in the Bible.

GJELTEN: But the museum says it's committed to a nonsectarian approach. Seth Pollinger, the museum's content director, says the Bible means different things in different faith traditions.

SETH POLLINGER: We have already realized this is at times offensive to Jewish audiences that say, well, when you say the Bible speaking from a Christian perspective, you're including the New Testament. But we don't include it. And so we - you know, I think we're working hard to try to find ways to nuance¹⁷ it. We don't feel like we need to steer¹⁸ people to the answer, the Bible.

GJELTEN: The museum has nonetheless provoked a buzz. Archaeologists have questioned the authenticity¹⁹ of some of the artifacts that came from Green family collections. In response, the museum has instituted measures to ensure all their items are legitimate²⁰. And the museum is getting praise for its efforts to educate people about what is still the best-selling book in the history of the world. Tom Gjelten, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF TOSCA'S "NATURAL HIGH")

1 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。

2 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

3 interactive   

adj.相互作用的，互相影响的，（电脑）交互的

参考例句：

• The psychotherapy is carried out in small interactive groups.这种心理治疗是在互动的小组之间进行的。
• This will make videogames more interactive than ever.这将使电子游戏的互动性更胜以往。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 founders   

n.创始人( founder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was one of the founders of the university's medical faculty. 他是该大学医学院的创建人之一。 来自辞典例句
• The founders of our religion made this a cornerstone of morality. 我们宗教的创始人把这看作是道德的基石。 来自辞典例句

6 dwellings   

n.住处，处所( dwelling的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The development will consist of 66 dwellings and a number of offices. 新建楼区将由66栋住房和一些办公用房组成。
• The hovels which passed for dwellings are being pulled down. 过去用作住室的陋屋正在被拆除。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 limestone   

n.石灰石

参考例句：

• Limestone is often used in building construction.石灰岩常用于建筑。
• Cement is made from limestone.水泥是由石灰石制成的。

8 disciples   

n.信徒( disciple的名词复数 )；门徒；耶稣的信徒；（尤指）耶稣十二门徒之一

参考例句：

• Judas was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus. 犹大是耶稣十二门徒之一。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• "The names of the first two disciples were --" “最初的两个门徒的名字是——” 来自英汉文学 - 汤姆历险

9 rugged   

adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的

参考例句：

• Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。
• The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。

10 parables   

n.（圣经中的）寓言故事( parable的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Jesus taught in parables. 耶酥以比喻讲道。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• In the New Testament are the parables and miracles. 《新约》则由寓言利奇闻趣事构成。 来自辞典例句

11 testament   

n.遗嘱；证明

参考例句：

• This is his last will and testament.这是他的遗愿和遗嘱。
• It is a testament to the power of political mythology.这说明，编造政治神话可以产生多大的威力。

12 scripture   

n.经文，圣书，手稿；Scripture:(常用复数)《圣经》，《圣经》中的一段

参考例句：

• The scripture states that God did not want us to be alone.圣经指出上帝并不是想让我们独身一人生活。
• They invoked Hindu scripture to justify their position.他们援引印度教的经文为他们的立场辩护。

13 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。

14 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

15 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

16 moss   

n.苔，藓，地衣

参考例句：

• Moss grows on a rock.苔藓生在石头上。
• He was found asleep on a pillow of leaves and moss.有人看见他枕着树叶和苔藓睡着了。

17 nuance   

n.(意义、意见、颜色)细微差别

参考例句：

• These users will easily learn each nuance of the applications they use.这些用户会很快了解他们所使用程序的每一细微差别。
• I wish I hadn't become so conscious of every little nuance.我希望我不要变得这样去思索一切琐碎之事。

18 steer   

vt.驾驶，为…操舵；引导；vi.驾驶

参考例句：

• If you push the car, I'll steer it.如果你来推车，我就来驾车。
• It's no use trying to steer the boy into a course of action that suits you.想说服这孩子按你的方式行事是徒劳的。

19 authenticity   

n.真实性

参考例句：

• There has been some debate over the authenticity of his will. 对于他的遗嘱的真实性一直有争论。
• The museum is seeking an expert opinion on the authenticity of the painting. 博物馆在请专家鉴定那幅画的真伪。

20 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。