VOA常速英语2008年-Slain Iraqi Catholic Archbishop Buried in Mosul

By Daniel Schearf
Irbil
14 March 2008

Iraq's Christian¹ minority has been mourning the death of the Catholic Chaldean Archbishop of Mosul.  The Christian leader's body was found Thursday, more than two weeks after he was abducted³ by gunmen in the northern Iraqi city.  Daniel Schearf reports from the nearby city of Irbil.

Thousands of Chaldean Christians⁴ gathered across Iraq Friday to pay their respects to the Chaldean Archbishop, Paulos Faraj Rahho.

The archbishop was abducted in late February by gunmen as he was leaving Mass.  The abductors shot and killed three of his colleagues.  Rahho's body was found this week in a shallow grave just outside of Mosul.

He appeared to have died some days ago, but it was not clear if his abductors murdered him or if he died of natural causes while in captivity⁵.

Rahho was laid to rest in a church in the village of Kirmles, just east of Mosul, in services broadcast live on national television.

Mourners threw flowers on the rose-covered coffin⁶ as it was carried through the church and ritually tapped against the walls.

In the Christian village of Ankawa, just north of Irbil, hundreds gathered to pray for a man they say was universally loved.

Bishop² Rufaael Bettu of the Saint Rafaael Church spoke⁷ to Iraqi television.

He says the bishop was a man of peace, a man of prayer, a man of love, a man of dialogue and a man of tolerance⁸.  He says to those who committed this crime, they should not think that Christianity will end in Iraq.  But rather, he says, the blood of martyrs⁹ like Archbishop Rahho will flower new life.

The death of the archbishop was condemned¹⁰ by Iraqi officials and internationally.

There are fewer than 1 million Christians in Iraq and Chaldeans are the largest group.

But thousands have fled since sectarian violence broke out following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.

Muslim terrorists and criminal groups have targeted Iraqi Christians accusing them of being "crusaders" for American-led forces.  Many have been killed and abducted.

Rahho was the second archbishop abducted in Mosul in the last three years.  In 2005 the Assyrian Archbishop was taken by gunmen, but released a day later unharmed.

1 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。

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 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

4 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

5 captivity   

n.囚禁；被俘；束缚

参考例句：

• A zoo is a place where live animals are kept in captivity for the public to see.动物园是圈养动物以供公众观看的场所。
• He was held in captivity for three years.他被囚禁叁年。

6 coffin   

n.棺材，灵柩

参考例句：

• When one's coffin is covered,all discussion about him can be settled.盖棺论定。
• The coffin was placed in the grave.那口棺材已安放到坟墓里去了。

7 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

8 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

9 martyrs   

n.martyr的复数形式；烈士( martyr的名词复数 )；殉道者；殉教者；乞怜者（向人诉苦以博取同情）

参考例句：

• the early Christian martyrs 早期基督教殉道者
• They paid their respects to the revolutionary martyrs. 他们向革命烈士致哀。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。