討論:中英對照/總會大會/2019下/The Message, the Meaning, and the Multitude
1Brothers and sisters, this is Sammy Ho Ching, seven months old, watching general conference on television in his home last April.
1弟兄姊妹們，這是七個月大的山米（何青）今年4月在家中觀看總會大會電視轉播的照片。
2As time approached to sustain President Russell M. Nelson and the other General Authorities, Sammy’s arms were busy holding his bottle.
2大會進行到舉手支持羅素·納爾遜會長和其他總會持有權柄人員時，山米的手臂正忙著抓住奶瓶。
3So he did the next best thing.
3所以他用變通的方法來表示支持。
4Sammy gives entirely new meaning to the concept of voting with your feet.
4山米為「用腳投票」這個概念，賦予了全新的意義。
5Welcome to this semiannual conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
5歡迎各位參加耶穌基督後期聖徒教會下半年的總會大會。
6To set the stage for a discussion of the meaning of these twice-a-year gatherings, I invoke this scene from Luke’s New Testament account:
6在探討這每年兩次的聚集具有什麼意義之前，我要用新約路加福音裡的一個場景作為背景說明：
7“It came to pass, that as [Jesus] was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging:
7「耶穌將近耶利哥的時候，有一個瞎子坐在路旁討飯。
8“… Hearing [a] multitude pass by, he asked what it meant.
8「聽見許多人經過，就問是甚麼事。
9“… They told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by.
9「他們告訴他，是拿撒勒人耶穌經過。
10“And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.”
10「他就呼叫說：『大衛的子孫耶穌啊，可憐我吧！
11Startled at his boldness, the crowd tried to silence the man, but “he cried so much the more,” it says.
11群眾對他大膽的舉動感到吃驚，不許他作聲，但「他卻越發喊叫。」
12As a result of his persistence, he was brought to Jesus, who heard his faith-filled plea for the restoration of his sight and healed him.
12由於他鍥而不捨，他被帶去耶穌那裡，耶穌聽見這人充滿信心的呼求，希望能重見光明，就醫治了他。
13I am moved by this vivid little vignette every time I read it.
13每次讀到這段簡潔生動的描述，我都深受感動。
14We can sense the man’s distress.
14我們不難察覺到這人的痛苦。
15We can almost hear him shouting for the Savior’s attention.
15也幾乎能聽到他高聲呼叫，希望救主會注意到他；
16We smile at his refusal to be silenced —indeed, his determination to turn the volume up when everyone else was telling him to turn it down.
16對於他拒絕不出聲，我們莞爾一笑 — —是的，他在眾人要求他降低音量時，反而下定決心要提高音量。
17It is, in and of itself, a sweet story of very determined faith.
17這個感人的故事本身正說明了，什麼是毅然決然的信心。
18But as with all scripture, the more we read it, the more we find in it.
18但正如所有的經文一樣，這個故事我們讀越多次，就越能從中得到豐富的收穫。
19One thought that struck me only recently is the good sense this man had in having spiritually sensitive people around him.
19最近我突然驚訝地發現，這個人有敏銳的知覺，能察覺到自己身邊有一群容易感受屬靈事物的人。
20The entire significance of this story hinges on a handful of anonymous women and men who, when asked by their colleague, “What does this commotion mean?” had the vision, if you will, to identify Christ as the reason for the clamor; He was Meaning Personified.
20這則故事的重要性就在於一群不知名的男女，當他們被問道，「這些喧囂的意義為何？」的時候，你可以說他們是慧眼獨具，他們認出基督就是這些喧囂的緣由；祂就是「那真正意義的化身」。
21There is a lesson in this little exchange for all of us.
21我們每個人都可以由這一則小故事獲得啟發。
22In matters of faith and conviction, it helps to direct your inquiry toward those who actually have some!
22關於信心和歸信方面的問題，如果你有任何疑問，有效的做法是詢問那些確實有信心並且歸信的人！
23“Can the blind lead the blind?” Jesus once asked.
23「瞎子豈能領瞎子？」耶穌有一次問道，
24“[If so,] shall they not both fall into the ditch?”
24「〔若是如此，〕兩個人不是都要掉在坑裏嗎？」
25Such a quest for faith and conviction is our purpose in these conferences, and by joining with us today, you will realize that this search is a broadly shared endeavor.
25尋求信心和歸信，正是我們參加總會大會的目的；今日我們一同在此聚會，就說明了這份追尋實為眾人共通之志。
26Look around you.
26我們都有事可做。
27Here on these grounds you see families of all sizes coming from every direction.
27在會議中心廣闊的腹地上，可以看到大大小小的家庭從四面八方前來。
28Old friends embrace in joyful reunion, a marvelous choir is warming up, and protestors shout from their favorite soapbox.
28重逢的老朋友快樂地擁抱，卓越不凡的唱詩班在作獻唱前的準備；還有抗爭人士站上他們最喜歡的位置放聲疾呼。
29Missionaries of an earlier day look for former companions, while recently returned missionaries look for entirely new companions (if you know what I mean!).
29早期的傳教士在這裡尋找他們當年的同伴；而剛返鄉的傳教士則在尋覓他們的新同伴（希望各位懂我的意思！）。
30And photos?
30至於拍下多少張照片？
31Heaven help us!
31數都數不清！
32With cell phones in every hand, we have morphed from “every member a missionary” to “every member a photographer.”
32在人手一支手機的情況下，我們已經從「每位成員都是傳教士」變成「每位成員都是攝影師。」
33In the midst of all of this delightful commotion, one could justifiably ask, “What does it all mean?”
33在這些令人愉快的喧囂中，我們難免要問：「這一切的意義何在？」
34As in our New Testament story, those blessed with sight will recognize that, in spite of everything else this conference tradition may offer us, it will mean little or nothing unless we find Jesus at the center of it all.
34如同在這個新約故事裡所看到的，凡是蒙福可以看見的人都明白，儘管總會大會這項傳統會帶來許多其他的祝福，但如果我們未能看出耶穌就是這一切的核心所在，則總會大會幾乎毫無意義。
35To grasp the vision we are seeking, the healing that He promises, the significance we somehow know is here, we must cut through the commotion —joyful as it is —and fix our attention on Him.
35若要獲得我們所尋求的洞察力，和祂所應許的醫治奇蹟，以及我們或多或少都知道的這場聚會的重要性，我們就必須穿越喧囂 — —不論那喧囂是多麼令人感到愉快 — —並且將我們的注意力集中在祂身上。
36The prayer of every speaker, the hope of all who sing, the reverence of every guest —all are dedicated to inviting the Spirit of Him whose Church this is —the living Christ, the Lamb of God, the Prince of Peace.
36每位演講者的懇切祈禱，唱詩班成員的衷心盼望，以及每位來賓所表現的虔敬 — —所有這一切都是為了邀來祂的靈，即活著的基督、神的羔羊、和平之君；而這是祂的教會。
37But we don’t have to be in a conference center to find Him.
37但是我們並非只在會議中心裡才能找到祂。
38When a child reads the Book of Mormon for the first time and is enamored with Abinadi’s courage or the march of 2,000 stripling warriors, we can gently add that Jesus is the omnipresent central figure in this marvelous chronicle, standing like a colossus over virtually every page of it and providing the link to all of the other faith-promoting figures in it.
38當孩子第一次讀摩爾門經，對勇敢的阿賓納代或2千名青年戰士的跋涉征戰感到著迷時，我們可以輕聲補充說，耶穌才是這本卓越不凡的歷史紀錄中，無所不在的核心人物；祂像巨人般矗立在經文的每一篇頁之間，也是將所有激發信心的經文人物串連起來的中心樞紐。
39Likewise, when a friend is learning about our faith, she or he can be a bit overwhelmed by some of the unique elements and unfamiliar vocabulary of our religious practice —dietary restrictions, self-reliance supplies, pioneer treks, digitized family trees, with an untold number of stake centers where some have undoubtedly expected to be served a fine charbroiled sirloin, medium-rare.
39同樣的，新朋友在認識我們的信仰的過程中，可能會對一些獨特的事物和陌生的宗教用語感到不知所措 — —例如飲食方面的限制、自立的物資、先驅者之旅、電子版的家譜樹，還有發音與「牛排中心」相似的支聯會中心，肯定曾經讓人誤以為會在那裡吃到上好的五分熟沙朗牛排！
40So, as our new friends experience a multitude of new sights and sounds, we must point past the hustle and bustle and concentrate them on the meaning of it all, on the beating heart of the eternal gospel —the love of Heavenly Parents, the atoning gift of a divine Son, the comforting guidance of the Holy Ghost, the latter-day restoration of all these truths and so much more.
40當我們的新朋友體驗到這些新奇的景象和詞彙時，我們務必要向他們指出，這些喧囂擾嚷背後的意義，亦即這永恆福音的核心 — —也就是天上父母的愛、神子的贖罪恩賜、聖靈撫慰人心的指引，以及後期時代所有這些真理的復興等許許多多 — —才是他們應當專注的事。
41When one goes to the holy temple for the first time, he or she may be somewhat awestruck by that experience.
41第一次進入神聖聖殿的人，可能會對聖殿裡的經歷感到有些訝異或困惑。
42Our job is to ensure that the sacred symbols and revealed rituals, the ceremonial clothing and visual presentations, never distract from but rather point toward the Savior, whom we are there to worship.
42我們有責任要確保，聖殿裡的神聖象徵、所揭露的儀式、教儀服裝和視覺影像，都不會使我們分心，而是清楚地指向救主，因為祂是我們去聖殿崇拜的對象。
43The temple is His house, and He should be uppermost in our minds and hearts —the majestic doctrine of Christ pervading our very being just as it pervades the temple ordinances —from the time we read the inscription over the front door to the very last moment we spend in the building.
43聖殿是主的屋宇，我們的心思意念都應當專注在祂的身上 — —讓基督宏偉的教義彌漫我們的身心，正如同它貫串聖殿所有的教儀一樣 — —這樣的專注，應當從我們看到刻在聖殿大門上方的那些字開始，直到我們離開聖殿前的最後一刻。
44Amid all the wonder we encounter, we are to see, above all else, the meaning of Jesus in the temple.
44在聖殿裡所經歷的種種奇妙中，我們要能夠看出聖殿裡所蘊含的耶穌的意義，勝過任何其他事物。
45Consider the swirl of bold initiatives and new announcements in the Church in these recent months.
45想想教會在最近許多個月來所作的眾多大膽創舉和宣布。
46As we minister to one another, or refine our Sabbath experience, or embrace a new program for children and youth, we will miss the real reason for these revelatory adjustments if we see them as disparate, unrelated elements rather than as an interrelated effort to help us build more firmly on the Rock of our Salvation.
46當我們彼此施助、精簡安息日的聚會時間，或者興奮地迎接為兒童和青少年制定的新計畫時，如果我們將這些調整視為分開且互不相關，而非一連串互有關聯，能幫助我們更堅定地站在我們救恩磐石上的計畫，那麼我們就難以看出這些經由啟示而來的調整，其真正的原因何在。
47Surely, surely, this is what President Russell M. Nelson intends in having us use the revealed name of the Church.
47誠然，這確實正是羅素·納爾遜會長要求我們使用神所啟示的教會名稱的用意。
48If Jesus —His name, His doctrine, His example, His divinity —can be at the center of our worship, we will be reinforcing the great truth Alma once taught: “There be many things to come; [but] behold, there is one thing which is of more importance than they all — … the Redeemer [who] liveth and cometh among his people.”
48如果耶穌 — —祂的名字、教義、典範和神性 — —成為我們一切崇拜的核心，我們就會更深刻了解阿爾瑪所教導的這項偉大真理：「很多事會發生；〔但是〕看啊，有一件事比其他所有的都重要，……〔即那位將〕要降世，來到祂人民之中〔的救贖主〕。」
49One concluding thought: Joseph Smith’s 19th-century frontier environment was aflame with competing crowds of Christian witnesses.
49我要分享一個想法作為總結：在約瑟·斯密所處的19世紀邊疆地帶，許多對宗教狂熱的基督教人士相互爭論，燃起猛烈的言論砲火。
50But in the tumult they created, these exuberant revivalists were, ironically, obscuring the very Savior young Joseph so earnestly sought.
50但諷刺的是，這些情緒高昂的信仰復興人士所造成的紛亂，反而掩蓋了年少的約瑟所熱切尋求的救主。
51Battling what he called “darkness and confusion,” he retreated to the solitude of a grove of trees where he saw and heard a more glorious witness of the Savior’s centrality to the gospel than anything we have mentioned here this morning.
51由於約瑟不想處在他所稱的「黑暗和混亂」中，他隱入寧靜的樹林，在那裡看見並聽到，一位比我們今天早上在此提到的任何事物都更為榮耀的證人，向他見證救主是這福音的重要核心。
52With a gift of sight unimagined and unanticipated, Joseph beheld in vision his Heavenly Father, the great God of the universe, and Jesus Christ, His perfect Only Begotten Son.
52藉著這份不曾想像過，也從未預期的親眼目睹的恩賜，約瑟在異象中看見了天父，全宇宙偉大的神，以及祂完美的獨生子耶穌基督。
53Then the Father set the example we have been applauding this morning: He pointed to Jesus, saying: “This is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!”
53接著，天父樹立的典範，正是我們今天早晨所稱頌的：祂指著耶穌說 — —「這是我的愛子。聽祂說！」
54No greater expression of Jesus’s divine identity, His primacy in the plan of salvation, and His standing in the eyes of God could ever exceed that short seven-word declaration.
54這短短九個字宣告了耶穌的神聖身分，祂在救恩計畫中的首要性，以及祂在神眼中的地位；沒有任何一句話比這更強而有力。
55Commotion and confusion?
55至於騷動和混亂呢？
56Crowds and contention?
56至於群眾和紛爭呢？
57There is plenty of all that in our world.
57在今日的世界，這些仍然存在，而且有很多。
58Indeed, skeptics and the faithful still contend over this vision and virtually all else I have referred to today.
58的確，懷疑人士和信徒仍舊在爭論第一次異象，以及我今天談到的其他事。
59In case you may be striving to see more clearly and to find meaning in the midst of a multitude of opinions, I point you toward that same Jesus and bear apostolic witness of Joseph Smith’s experience, coming as it did some 1,800 years after our blind friend received his sight on the ancient Jericho Road.
59倘若你正努力想要更清楚地看見，希望在眾多分歧的見解中找到真正的意義，我要向你指明那同一位耶穌，並以使徒的身分向你見證，大約在我們那位瞎眼的朋友，坐在古老的耶利哥城路旁，眼睛得以重見光明的1800年後，約瑟·斯密確實看見了異象。
60I testify with these two and a host of others down through time that surely the most thrilling sight and sound in life is that of Jesus not only passing by but His coming to us, stopping beside us, and making His abode with us.
60我要和他們兩位以及從古到今其他許多證人，一同向你們見證，生命中最撼動人心的景象和聲音，就是看見和聽見耶穌不只經過我們身旁，而且正朝著我們走來，停在我們身邊，並與我們同住。
61Sisters and brothers, through the incessant din and drumbeat of our day, may we strive to see Christ at the center of our lives, of our faith, and of our service.
61弟兄姊妹們，在這喧囂吵雜、忙亂緊湊的世上，願我們竭盡所能得以看出，基督是我們個人生活、信仰和服務的核心。
62That is where true meaning lies.
62因為那才是真正的意義所在。
63And if some days our vision is limited or our confidence has waned or our belief is being tested and refined —as surely it will be —may we then cry out the louder, “Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me.”
63在未來的某些日子，如果我們能夠明白的事情有限，我們的自信心低落，或我們的信仰受到考驗或試鍊 — —這些事都必然會發生 — —願我們那時會更大聲地呼喊：「大衛的子孫耶穌啊，可憐我吧！」
64I promise with apostolic fervor and prophetic conviction that He will hear you and will say, soon or late, “Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.”
64我懷著使徒的熱誠和先知的確信應許你們，祂必聽見你們的呼喊，而且無論或早或遲，祂必會說，「你可以看見！你的信救了你了。」
65Welcome to general conference.
65歡迎來到總會大會。
66In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
66奉耶穌基督的名，阿們。
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