VOA慢速英语2021--天主教圣餐的争议是什么？

What Is the Dispute Over Catholic Communion?

A committee of U.S. Roman Catholic bishops¹ is getting to work on a new policy document that some say targets U.S. President Joe Biden.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) approved the writing of a document "on the meaning of the Eucharist in the life of the Church." The Eucharist is an important Christian³ ceremony or rite⁴. A believer eats bread and wine in honor of Jesus Christ.

Some bishops hope the new document will criticize politicians who support abortion⁵, and possibly deny them the Eucharist rite. Abortion is a medical operation that ends a pregnancy⁶ causing the fetus's death. The Roman Catholic Church opposes abortion.

The Bishops voted 168 to 55 to write the document although the Vatican urged them to deal with the issue carefully.

Is the proposed document aimed at politicians?

The chairman of the USCCB's doctrine⁷ committee, Bishop² Kevin Rhoades, said no decisions have been made on the document. He said it will not include any names and it will offer guidelines, not new rules.

However, several bishops said the document is politically important and relates to the president. Those who support the writing of the document say Biden should be criticized because of his actions to protect abortion rights. Those who argued against the document say the Roman Catholic Church risks appearing partisan⁸ in a disputed political issue.

"It's quite clear that for a lot of the bishops, a lot of the impact is political," said William Cavanaugh. He is a professor of Catholic studies at DePaul University in Chicago.

"You have some of them saying this is not about Joe Biden," he said. Cavanaugh added that during online discussions so many bishops talked about Biden that it "gave the game away," or made their opinion clear.

The bishops met online because of COVID-19 concerns.

Biden is the nation's second Catholic president. But, he is the first to be elected since abortion became a political issue.

Biden supports the legality of abortion. The Catholic bishops want abortion to be illegal. Biden speaks openly about his Catholic faith and attends Catholic church services often.

What do Biden and other Catholic politicians say?

When asked at the White House Friday about the document, Biden said: "That's a private matter, and I don't think that's going to happen."

Sixty Catholic Democratic Party members in Congress signed a letter to the bishops urging them not to write the document. The letter said the Eucharist should not be denied to anyone "over one issue."

The congress members said they follow Catholic teaching to serve the poor and want the Catholic Church to help women find other ways to deal with an unwanted pregnancy.

They added that the bishops have not targeted Catholic politicians who disagree with the Church on other issues, such as the death sentence or immigration.

What is the bishops' position?

The bishops wrote an earlier document called Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship⁹. It was last updated in 2019. In it, the U.S. bishops explain official teachings on the political responsibilities of Catholics. It discusses many political issues, but places abortion as the number one issue.

Abortion "directly attacks life itself," the document says. It goes on to state, however, that other serious threats to human life cannot be ignored. But it is much less common for bishops to discuss denying the Eucharist over issues other than abortion.

Can the group of bishops deny Biden the Eucharist?

The bishops' conference cannot deny Biden the rite of the Eucharist. Only the bishop where Biden attends church can do that. Cardinal¹⁰ Wilton Gregory is the archbishop of Washington, D.C. He has made clear that Biden is welcome to receive the Eucharist at Catholic churches in the Washington area.

What will happen next?

Next, the USCCB's Committee on Doctrine will spend the next few months writing a first version of the document.

The bishops will meet in Baltimore in November. Observers expect they will have a chance to offer amendments¹¹ to the first version.

For the document to become policy, a final draft must be approved by more than 66 percent of bishops in the United States. Then, it must be approved by the Pope who is the leader of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church.

Words in This Story

bishop – n. an official in some Christian religions who is ranked higher than a priest and is in charge of a geographical¹² area.

doctrine – n. a set of ideas or beliefs that are taught or believed to be true

partisan – adj. strongly supporting one leader, group or political party over another

impact – n. a powerful or major influence or effect

1 bishops   

（基督教某些教派管辖大教区的）主教( bishop的名词复数 )； （国际象棋的）象

参考例句：

• Each player has two bishops at the start of the game. 棋赛开始时，每名棋手有两只象。
• "Only sheriffs and bishops and rich people and kings, and such like. “他劫富济贫，抢的都是郡长、主教、国王之类的富人。

2 bishop   

n.主教，（国际象棋）象

参考例句：

• He was a bishop who was held in reverence by all.他是一位被大家都尊敬的主教。
• Two years after his death the bishop was canonised.主教逝世两年后被正式封为圣者。

3 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。

4 rite   

n.典礼，惯例，习俗

参考例句：

• This festival descends from a religious rite.这个节日起源于宗教仪式。
• Most traditional societies have transition rites at puberty.大多数传统社会都为青春期的孩子举行成人礼。

5 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

6 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

7 doctrine   

n.教义；主义；学说

参考例句：

• He was impelled to proclaim his doctrine.他不得不宣扬他的教义。
• The council met to consider changes to doctrine.宗教议会开会考虑更改教义。

8 partisan   

adj.党派性的；游击队的；n.游击队员；党徒

参考例句：

• In their anger they forget all the partisan quarrels.愤怒之中，他们忘掉一切党派之争。
• The numerous newly created partisan detachments began working slowly towards that region.许多新建的游击队都开始慢慢地向那里移动。

9 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

10 cardinal   

n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的

参考例句：

• This is a matter of cardinal significance.这是非常重要的事。
• The Cardinal coloured with vexation. 红衣主教感到恼火，脸涨得通红。

11 amendments   

（法律、文件的）改动( amendment的名词复数 )； 修正案； 修改； （美国宪法的）修正案

参考例句：

• The committee does not adequately consult others when drafting amendments. 委员会在起草修正案时没有充分征求他人的意见。
• Please propose amendments and addenda to the first draft of the document. 请对这个文件的初稿提出修改和补充意见。

12 geographical   

adj.地理的；地区(性)的

参考例句：

• The current survey will have a wider geographical spread.当前的调查将在更广泛的地域范围內进行。
• These birds have a wide geographical distribution.这些鸟的地理分布很广。