The Never-Ending Fight
永无休止的战争
Isaac Asimov
艾萨克•阿西莫夫
I was interviewed on television recently and, in answering the questions, I found myself expressing my contempt for the various superstitious beliefs that plague humanity.
最近接受电视采访回答问题时,我表达了自己对困扰人们的各种迷信观念的蔑视。
The interviewer asked, "But since, by your own admission, most people believe this sort of thing and find solace or comfort in it, why do you want to deprive them of it?"
采访者问:“可是,既然如您自己所承认的那样,大多数人相信这种东西,并能从中得到安慰或慰藉,为什么你还要人们放弃他们的迷信观念呢?”
I answered as best I could in the brief time available to me before the camera. But I can do it better now with more space at my disposal. This, in essence, is what I said.
面对镜头,在仅有的短暂时间里,我尽可能地做了最好的回答。但是现在我能回答得更好,因为有更多的时间可供我支配。实际上,下面才是我想说的。
There are two reasons. In the first place, I have the call to do so, the call to point out the uselessness of superstition. Everyone is perfectly ready to believe theists when they say they have the call to preach their version of the word of God and to accord them a kind of humble respect for having such a noble mission. Why, then should I be scorned because I have the call to preach my version of the word of reason?
有两个原因。首先,我有义务这么做,有义务指出迷信的无用之处。当有神论者们说他们有义务宣传他们所认为的上帝之道时,人们会非常乐意相信他们,并因为他们拥有如此高尚的使命而给予他们一种恭顺的敬重那么,为什么我因为有义务宣传理智的观点就该遭到鄙视呢?