A wonderful Debate
绝妙的辩论
Professor : You are a Christian, aren’t you, son ?
教授：你是一个基督徒，是吗， 孩子？
Student : Yes, sir.
学生：先生，是的。
Professor: So, you believe in GOD ?
教授：所以你相信上帝？
Student : Absolutely, sir.
学生：那绝无问题，先生。
Professor : Is GOD good ?
教授：上帝对你好吗？
Student : Sure.
学生：当然啦。
Professor: Is GOD all powerful ?
教授：上帝是全能的吗？
Student : Yes.
学生：是的。
Professor: My brother died of cancer even though he prayed to GOD to heal him. Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But GOD didn’t. How is this GOD good then? Hmm?
教授：我的兄弟得了癌症，他祈祷上帝治愈他的病，可是他死了。我们大多人都是希望帮助生病的人，但是上帝没有。这位上帝好在哪里呢？嗯？
(Student was silent.)
（学生默默无语。）
Professor: You can’t answer, can you? Let’s start again, young fella. Is GOD good?
教授：你无法回答这个问题，是吗?让我们再重头开始。上帝好吗？
Student: Yes.
学生：是的。
Professor: Is satan good?
教授：撒旦好吗？
Student : No.
学生：不好。
Professor: Where does satan come from?
教授：撒旦是从哪里来的？
Student : From … GOD …
学生：是......上帝造的......。
Professor: That’s right. Tell me son, is there evil in this world?
教授：这就对了。孩子，告诉我这个世界上有邪恶的东西吗？
Student : Yes.
学生：有的。
Professor: Evil is everywhere, isn’t it ? And GOD did make everything. Correct?
教授：邪恶的东西到处存在，是吗? 而且上帝创造了世上所有的事和物，正确吗？
Student: Yes.
学生：正确。
Professor: So who created evil?
教授：那么谁创造了邪恶的东西呢？
(Student did not answer.)
（学生没有回答）
Professor: Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the world, don’t they?
教授：有没有疾病？不道德？仇恨？丑恶？所有这些可怕事物都存在世界上，是吗？
Student : Yes, sir，
学生：先生，是的。
Professor: So, who created them ?
教授：那么谁制造了这些可怕的事物的？
(Student had no answer.)
（学生没有回答）
Professor: Science says you have 5 Senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Tell me, son, have you ever seen GOD?
教授：科学说人有五官，用来识别和观察人周围的世界。孩子，告诉我，你见过上帝吗？
Student : No, sir.
学生：没有。
Professor: Tell us if you have ever heard your GOD?
教授：告诉我你听到上帝说话吗？
Student : No , sir.
学生：没有。
Professor: Have you ever felt your GOD, tasted your GOD, smelt your GOD? Have you ever had any sensory perception of GOD for that matter?
教授：你触摸过上帝，尝到上帝，闻到上帝吗？你的感官感觉到上帝吗？
Student: No, sir. I’m afraid I haven’t.
学生：先生，没有。恐怕从来没有感觉到上帝。
Professor: Yet you still believe in Him?
教授：尽管如此，你还是相信上帝。
Student: Yes.
学生：是的。
Professor: According to Empirical, Testable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says your GOD doesn’t exist. What do you say to that, son?
教授：根据经验的，可证实的，可举例的说法，科学宣布你的上帝是不存在的。孩子，你对此如何评论？
Student : Nothing. I only have my faith.
学生：没有可评论的。我只有我的信仰。
Professor: Yes, faith. And that is the problem Science has.
教授：哈哈，信仰。这就是科学要面对的问题。
Student: Professor, is there such a thing as heat?
学生：教授，有没有叫做热的东西。
Professor: Yes.
教授：有啊。
Student : And is there such a thing as cold?
学生：有没有叫做冷的东西。
Professor: Yes.
教授：有的。
Student : No, sir. There isn’t.
学生：不对，先生，没有叫做冷的东西。
(The lecture theater became very quiet with this turn of events.)
（随时讨论方向的转变，授课大厅变得非常安静。）
Student: Sir, you can have lots of heat, even more heat, superheat, mega heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat. But we don’t have anything called cold. We can hit 458 degrees below zero which is no heat, but we can’t go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold. Cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.
学生：先生，你可以有很多的热，更多的热，超热，巨热，白炙热，一点点热，或者没有热。但是没有一种叫做冷的东西。我们可能碰到零下458度（华氏绝对零度-译者注），没有一点热，到了这个温度东西是无法再冷下去了。世界上没有叫做冷的东西。冷这个字是我们用来形容缺乏热。我们没法衡量冷。热一种能量。冷不是热的对立面，先生，冷只不过是没有热而已。
(There was pin-drop silence in the lecture theater.)
（教室里安静的能听到针掉在地上的声音）
Student: What about darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as darkness?
学生：那么黑暗又是怎么一回事，教授？有没有叫做黑暗的东西？
Professor: Yes. What is night if there isn’t darkness?
教授：有啊，没有黑暗夜晚又是什么呢？
Student: You’re wrong again, sir. Darkness is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light. But if you have no light constantly, you have nothing and its called darkness, isn’t it? In reality, darkness isn’t. If it is, well you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn’t you?
学生：您又错了，先生。所谓黑暗只是缺少一样东西。您可以有微光，正常光亮，炫目的光亮，闪光。如果您一直没有光您就看不到任何东西，这就叫做黑暗，对吗？实际上，黑暗是不存在的。如果黑暗存在，您就有能力让黑暗变得更暗，是吗？
Professor: So what is the point you are making, young man?
教授：年轻人，你想说明什么问题呢?
Student: Sir, my point is your philosophical premise is flawed.
学生：先生，我想说的是您的哲学前提是有缺陷的。
Professor: Flawed? Can you explain how?
教授：有缺陷？你可以解释一下吗？
Student : Sir, you are working on the premise of duality. You argue there is life and then there is death, a good GOD and a bad GOD. You are viewing the concept of GOD as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, Science can’t even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life: just the absence of it. Now tell me, Professor, do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?
学生：先生，您的前提是二重论，并据此作出推论。您说世上有生也有死，有好的上帝和不好的上帝。您把上帝看成是一件有限可变的东西，一样我们可以衡量的东西。先生，科学甚至无法说明思想是什么。思想使用电和磁场（指人的神经传导是电传导-译者注），可是我们谁也没见着思想，更不用说充分了解产生思想的电和磁场了。把死亡看成是生命的对立面，是无视死亡是无法证实的这样一个事实。死亡不是生命的对立面，只是没有生命而已。教授，请您告诉我，您教给学生知识说他们是从猴子进化来的吗？
Professor: If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, yes, of course, I do.
教授：如果你指的是自然进化的过程，是的，我当然是这么教的。
Student : Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?
学生：先生，您亲眼见到过进化的过程吗？
(The Professor shook his head with a smile, beginning to realize where the argument was going.)
（教授微笑着摇摇头，他开始理解这场辩论要向哪一个方向发展。)
Student: Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor. Are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you not a scientist but a preacher?
学生：所以说没人亲眼观察到进化的过程是如何发生的，甚至无法证明进化过程是否正在发生。可您不是在教授您的观点吗，先生？您不是科学家，是牧师吧？
(The class was in uproar.)
（教室里开始喧闹了。）
Student : Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the Professor’s brain?
学生：教室里有人看到过教授的大脑吗？
(The class broke out into laughter. )
（教室里响起一阵哄笑声。）
Student: Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor’s brain, felt it, touched or smelt it? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established Rules of Empirical, Stable, Demonstrable Protocol, Science says that you have no brain, sir. With all due respect, sir, how do we then trust your lectures, sir?
学生：这里有没有人听到过教授的大脑，感觉到，触摸过或者闻到过教授的大脑？看来没人有这样的经历。据此，根据已经建立的经验规则，稳妥的，能证明的说法，科学宣布您是没有大脑的。先生，我仍然尊敬您，可是我们如何信任你讲的课呢？
(The room was silent. The Professor stared at the student, his face unfathomable.)
（教室里一片寂静。教授瞪眼看着学生，他一脸迷惑。）
Professor: I guess you’ll have to take them on faith, son.
教授：我猜想你们只能对我的课抱有信仰，孩子。
Student : That is it sir … Exactly ! The link between man & GOD is FAITH. That is all that keeps things alive and moving.
学生：这就对，先生，太对了。人和上帝之间的联系是信仰。有了信仰所有东西都活了，都在运动。
