Thousands of people have attended Christmas Eve celebrations at the birthplace of Christianity in Bethlehem.
数千人在基督教诞生地伯利恒参加圣诞夜庆祝活动。
Christmas Eve began with festive marches through Manger Square by Palestinian boy and girl scouts. The celebrations took place outside the ancient Church of the Nativity, where tradition says Jesus was born.
由巴勒斯坦的男女孩子们组成的童子军带领着游行队伍穿过马槽广场，开始了圣诞夜的庆祝活动。庆祝活动是在古老的圣诞教堂旁举行，据说，耶稣就是在这里诞生的。
Bethlehem is in the Palestinian-ruled West Bank, and religion mixed with nationalism. Manger Square was decked out with Christmas trees and lights and Palestinian flags.
伯利恒地处巴勒斯坦统治下的西岸，这里居住着不同民族，有着各种不同宗教信仰的人。圣诞树、彩灯和巴勒斯坦旗帜装饰着马槽广场。
Religious observances began with the arrival of the Latin Patriarch, the head of the Roman Catholic Church in the Holy Land.
宗教仪式是以天主教会驻圣地领袖拉丁大主教的到来开始的。
Priests and monks in white robes held a procession into the Church of the Nativity leaving a trail of fragrant incense. Pilgrims from around the world looked on, including Paul Edelman from the U.S. state of Iowa. "Just the festivities, the idea that this is the birthplace of Christ, and you get to see all the historic places and share it with people from around the world; it's a very nice experience," he said.
教士和修道院士身穿白袍列队进入圣诞教堂，身后留下焚香的芬芳。来自世界各地的朝圣者观看宗教仪式，其中有来自美国俄亥俄州的保罗·艾戴尔曼。他说：“我们欢庆的是，这是耶稣诞生地，你要参观所有历史遗迹，并跟来自世界各地的人一起分享这个经历，这真是一个非常好的体验。”
Palestinian police with assault rifles patrolled the streets but the atmosphere was calm. A lull in violence brought a big turnout of tourists; some 70,000 are expected to visit Bethlehem this week.
佩戴攻击步枪的巴勒斯坦警察在街道上巡逻，不过，城市气氛平和。由于暴力活动的停息，大批游客涌来，估计这个星期会有大约7万人参观伯利恒。
Palestinian shopkeeper Nadia Hazboun said the security situation in the West Bank is much better than a few years ago, when there was fighting with Israel and militants ruled the streets. "It was bad, now it is good. I told you, before anybody take the law in his (own) hands. But now the law (is) with the police. We have security, we have calm, we have now the best situation in Bethlehem," he said.
巴勒斯坦人纳迪尔·哈兹伯恩是一个商店的店主，他说，西岸的安全局势比几年前好得多，那时，巴勒斯坦正在跟以色列打仗，武装分子在街道上为所欲为。他说：“那时的情况真糟糕，现在不错了。过去谁都能给别人治罪，但是现在只有警察才能执法。我们这里安全、平静，我们现在有着伯利恒最好的时光。”
At the same time, the Palestinians complain that Israel's separation wall at the entrance to Bethlehem casts a dark shadow over Christmas. Israel erected the wall to stop a wave of suicide bombers, but Bethlehem Mayor Victor Batarseh says the town of Jesus' birth has become a prison. "We need bridges of love and understanding between the people, not walls of hatred," he said.
与此同时，这位巴勒斯坦人抱怨说，以色列在进入伯利恒的通道处设立的隔离墙给圣诞节投下阴影。以色列为了阻止一波又一波的自杀炸弹袭击者树起了这道墙，但是伯利恒市长维克多·巴塔尔萨说，耶稣诞生的城市变成了一座监狱。巴塔尔萨市长说：“在人民之间，我们需要的是爱与理解的桥梁，而不是仇恨的高墙。”
Batarseh, who is a Christian, said Bethlehem still brings hope at Christmas, with its eternal message of peace on earth, goodwill toward men.
巴塔尔萨是一名基督徒，他说，伯利恒向全球传递永恒的和平信息，向人类传播友好意愿，伯利恒仍在圣诞节给人们带来希望。 |