彭蒙惠英语：新闻剪辑(2/3)
News Worthy Clips
新闻剪辑(2/3)
News Worthy Clips
Update your vocabulary with news clips from around the world
A synagogue faces destruction; a community fades
The government’s decision to proceed with the destruction of the only remaining synagogue in Tajikistan has left the tiny Jewish community here angry and shocked. The synagogue has been threatened since April 2004 when the government decided to resurrect Soviet-era plans to build a Palace of the Nation. The palace will also serve as the residence of President Imomali Rahmonov.
Authorities insisted the project means that the synagogue had to go, although the building was not the site of the proposed construction. Instead, the synagogue was torn down to make way for a road that will lead to the new structure.
The government claims to have offered the Jewish congregation a plot of land elsewhere as compensation for the current site. The state will also provide them with free space that they can use for three months while the new synagogue is being built.
But the Jews say a plot of land alone will not help preserve their dwindling community. The most recent official census indicated that there were only 200 Jews left in the country.
“There is a small Jewish community left in the country and the synagogue is the only place where we can gather together to pray and interact. Its location is very convenient, and easy for elderly people to get to,” said another member of the community who declined to be named. “Demolishing the synagogue means scattering our community and threatening our rights as a minority group,” he added.
The fight appears to be between a stridently secular government and a devoutly religious community.
“The Jewish community says that according to their beliefs, a synagogue cannot be moved or demolished,” said Shamsiddin Nuriddino, head of the department for religious affairs. “But the Tajik Jews forget that they are living in another nation, which is naturally ruled by its own laws.”
Specialized Terms
Synagogue (n) 犹太教堂 a building in which Jewish people worship and study their religion
Soviet (adj) 前苏联的 of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR)
Census (n) 人口普查 an official count of the number of people living in a country including information about them
Vocabulary Focus
Resurrect (v) to bring back into use something that had ended
Compensation (n) payment or property given in exchange for something
Dwindling (adj) becoming fewer in number
Scatter (v) to cause to move far apart in different directions
Stridently (adv) in a manner expressed in forceful language which does not try to avoid upsetting other people
Discussion Question
Which side would win the fight? Why?
Extra Exercise
1. Translate the following sentence into Chinese, ‘Demolishing the synagogue means scattering our community and threatening our rights as a minority group,’
2. According to the recording, the government destroyed the synagogue possibly want to …
