Easter: The Day of New Life and Hope

復(fù)活節(jié)：新生和希望的節(jié)日

本篇適合：朗讀，挑戰(zhàn)

小朋友們，四月到了，你們感受到了春天的氣息嗎？在西方國家，這段時間可是有一個非常盛大的節(jié)日哦！對于信奉基督教的人來說，這個節(jié)日甚至比圣誕節(jié)還重要。它就是慶祝耶穌基督被釘死在十字架之后復(fù)活的節(jié)日——復(fù)活節(jié)。這個節(jié)日除了有宗教意義，還象征著新生與希望。活潑可愛的復(fù)活節(jié)兔，圓滾滾的漂亮彩蛋，五顏六色的美味糖果——復(fù)活節(jié)對孩子們來說就是一個快樂的節(jié)日，快一起來了解一下吧！

by Sea

Easter is the holiest day of the year for many people of the Christian faith. It celebrates Jesus Christ’s resurrection.

The story of Jesus’ resurrection

Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. He got angry because people didn’t use the temple properly. Jesus talked to the people. Some people did not like him and wanted him killed.

Jesus had a supper with his friends. He knew he was going to die. Jesus and his friends drank wine and ate bread. Then they went to a garden to pray. Judas kissed Jesus on the cheek. This was not a good thing.

Judas helped the guards arrest Jesus. Jesus was taken away. Jesus was brought to see an important man called Pilate. Some people told Pilate that Jesus was evil and he should die. Jesus was hung on a cross and died.

Some friends put his body in a cave. When they went to see his body two days later, it had gone! Then an angel told them all was well and Jesus was alive. Suddenly, they saw Jesus and he talked to them. He told them to tell people about what had happened and he would be back one day. After that he went up to heaven.

holy ['h??l?] adj. 神圣的（最高級：holiest）

Christian ['kr?st??n] adj. 基督教的，信奉基督教的

faith [fe?θ] n. 宗教信仰

celebrate ['sel?bre?t] v. 慶祝（第三人稱單數(shù)：celebrates）

Jesus Christ ['d?i?z?s kra?st] 耶穌基督（基督教各派信奉的救世主）

resurrection [,rez?'rek?n] n. 復(fù)活

Jerusalem [d??'ru?s?l?m] n. 宗教圣地耶路撒冷

temple ['templ] n. 廟；神殿

properly ['pr?p?l?] adv. 恰當?shù)?，正確地

pray [pre?] v. 祈禱

cheek [t?i?k] n. 臉頰

guard [ga?d] n. 護衛(wèi)隊（復(fù)數(shù)：guards）

arrest [?'rest] v. 逮捕

evil ['i?vl] adj. 罪惡的

hang [h??] v. 懸掛（過去分詞：hung）

cross [kr?s] n. 十字架

cave [ke?v] n. 洞穴

alive [?'la?v] adj. 活著的

suddenly ['s?d?nl?] adv. 意外地，忽然地

heaven ['hevn] n. 天堂

Customs of the Easter Day

The Easter Bunny brings the new life to the world. A colourful egg is the symbol of new life. Parents hide those eggs and let children find them. Chocolates and candies are also important parts of this holiday.

中文大意請見第44頁。

bunny ['b?n?] n. 兔子

symbol ['s?mbl] n. 象征，標志

hide [ha?d] v. 隱藏

復(fù)活節(jié)慶祝傳統(tǒng)

公元325年尼西亞宗教會議規(guī)定，每年過了春分月圓后的第一個星期天為復(fù)活節(jié)。因此每年復(fù)活節(jié)的日期是不一樣的，今年人們在4月16日慶祝復(fù)活節(jié)。

在多數(shù)西方國家里，復(fù)活節(jié)一般要舉行盛大的游行。節(jié)日游行洋溢著喜慶的氣氛，具有濃厚的民間特色和地方特色。復(fù)活節(jié)這一天，到處都可以見到漂亮的百合花，百合花象征著神圣和純潔，代表著耶穌基督的圣潔。人們還會換上新衣，打掃屋舍，迎接新生活。

裝飾彩蛋是最古老的復(fù)活節(jié)傳統(tǒng)之一，代表著人們的美好心愿。據(jù)說復(fù)活節(jié)兔子會將彩蛋藏在室內(nèi)或是草地里，讓孩子們?nèi)ふ?。還有滾彩蛋比賽：人們把彩蛋放在地上或土坡上滾，彩蛋最后一個破的人為獲勝者，獲勝者可以得到所有參賽者的彩蛋。