VOA标准英语2013--Obama to Speak About His Faith at Prayer Breakfast

 

Obama to Speak About His Faith at Prayer Breakfast

 

The National Prayer Breakfast is a chance for influential¹ Americans and foreign dignitaries to hear the president talk about his faith, as he did last year. 

"In my moments of prayer, I’m reminded that faith and values play an enormous role in motivating us to solve some of our most urgent problems," Obama said. 

Gatherings² that focus on prayer are an integral part of Washington's political calendar and the president's attendance is often expected. 

Public policy professor Mark Rozell, an expert on religion and the presidency³, said, "People expect to have a president of strong religious faith, and they are comfortable with the president engaging in public displays of religious faith and commitment."

But not everybody agrees. 

"Technically⁴ it's not a violation⁵ of the Constitution for the president of the United States to go to a religious event that's off public property," said Barry Lynn, a minister in the United Church of Christ and director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State. "This is held in a big hotel. But I'm very troubled by the way that politicians in the United States tend to want to use religion for political purposes, giving speeches that quote Jesus, as if Jesus was supposed to be making decisions about how we develop an anti-gun policy or run a budget." 

It's a difficult balancing act for Obama. An increasing number of Americans describe themselves as religously unaffiliated, and they were crucial in his re-election victory last year. 

1 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

2 gatherings   

聚集( gathering的名词复数 )； 收集； 采集； 搜集

参考例句：

• His conduct at social gatherings created a lot of comment. 他在社交聚会上的表现引起许多闲话。
• During one of these gatherings a pupil caught stealing. 有一次，其中一名弟子偷窃被抓住。

3 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

4 technically   

adv.专门地，技术上地

参考例句：

• Technically it is the most advanced equipment ever.从技术上说，这是最先进的设备。
• The tomato is technically a fruit,although it is eaten as a vegetable.严格地说，西红柿是一种水果，尽管它是当作蔬菜吃的。

5 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。