全民调查：圣诞节意味着什么？附10句圣诞名言

Christians around the world celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25, each year. For many, it's a day of merriment and giving of thanks, marked by gatherings with friends and family, shared meals and the exchange of gifts.
每年的12月25日，全世界的基督教徒们都会庆祝圣诞节。在很多人看来，圣诞节是一个充满快乐与感恩的日子。在这一天，人们总会与自己的亲友相聚，共享佳肴，互相交换礼物和祝福。

The Huffington Post editors asked readers around the world what Christmas means to them. Scroll below to read the best responses.
在今年的圣诞节来临之际，赫芬顿邮报的编辑们向读者询问圣诞节对他们的意义。以下就是一些很棒的答案。

"Every year, my family goes with two or three other families (usually families we have known for many years) to sing Christmas carols at the local nursing home. Many of the residents have very few family members who visit them. Some have no Christmas visitors and are very lonely. We have one friend who lives in the nursing home who joins us every year, making his way through the halls as we push him in his wheelchair.
“每年，我们全家都会和另外两三个家庭（通常这些家庭都与我们是世交）一同去当地的疗养院为住在那里的人唱圣诞颂歌。住在那里的很多人常常一年到头都很少有人探望。有些人甚至在圣诞节时也无人问津，非常孤独。在那个疗养院里，我们有一个朋友。每到圣诞节，我们总会推着他的轮椅，走进礼堂，与我们共同歌唱、共同欢乐。

"It is a way that my parents taught me to think of others before myself, especially during the very materialistic Christmas season. Jesus teaches us to welcome strangers and comfort those who mourn. What better time to live out His teachings than during Christmas?"
--Lauren Purser, email
“这就是我父母教给我的东西：多为他人着想，尤其是在圣诞节这样一个物欲横流的节日里更应该如此。耶稣教育我们要善待素不相识的人，给予伤心者以安慰。在圣诞节奉行他的教诲，岂不是一大乐事？”
——来自劳伦·铂泽的一封电子邮件

"I don't think of Christmas as being religious or non-religious, but rather as one of the few days where everyone can relax and snuggle up somewhere warm together (at least in the Northern hemisphere), and that is how I want it to be. Like, if just for that day, everyone could forget any hatred or sadness and just have kind sentiments."
-- Koh Fujinaga, HuffPost Japan Facebook
“我觉得圣诞节不存在什么宗教非宗教的特点，它只是人们在一年之中难得的、可以放松下来与别人相依相偎、共同取暖的日子（至少在北半球是这样的），而且我理想的圣诞也是这样的。我希望每个人都能忘记所有的仇恨和忧愁，内心充满善意和温暖，哪怕只是在圣诞节那么短短的一天。”
——藤永（日本），来自赫芬顿邮报脸书

"Our family is always together, that is our great tradition."
-- Márcia Andréia Lopes, HuffPost Brasil Facebook
“我们一家人总要团聚，这就是我们最重要的圣诞习俗。”
——马西娅·安德尔·洛佩斯（巴西），来自赫芬顿邮报脸书

"My love for Stollen [a traditional Christmas bread] and dried fruits and nuts is endless."
-- Masae Nakamura, HuffPost Japan Facebook
“我对果子甜面包（一种传统圣诞面包）、干果和坚果的爱是无穷无尽的，怎么也吃不够。”
——来自雅枝中村（日本），赫芬顿邮报脸书

Instead of giving gifts, our family gives blessings based on what we have observed during the year #huffpostchristmas
— Evan Schellenberg (@evanbuilds) December 19, 2015
“我们家并不会互相送礼物，我们会根据各自在这一年的状况相互给予祝福。”
——伊万·舍伦贝格（@evanbuilds）于2015年12月19日

Favorite part of Christmas is pictures with the fam. #huffpostchristmas
— m.i.milliman (@mimilliman) December 20, 2015 10 great Christmas quotes
在圣诞节，最幸福的事情就是与家人照全家福。
——网友m.i.milliman (@mimilliman)于2015年12月20日

附：10句圣诞名言

1. "Bah, humbug!'
‘啊，你个骗子！’

Scrooge's catchphrase, 'Bah, humbug', is often used to express disgust with Christmas charity. Alastair Sim played Scrooge in the classic 1951 film adaptation of A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.
这句话是吝啬鬼斯克鲁奇的口头禅。在圣诞节，它常常用来表达对慈善团体的厌恶。在1951年查尔斯·狄更斯的改编电影《圣诞颂歌》中，阿拉斯塔尔·西姆扮演的吝啬鬼角色就曾经说过这句话。

2. 'Santa Claus has the right idea. Visit people only once a year.'
‘圣诞老人一年只拜访人们一次，这真是个明智的决定。’

Victor Borge (1909-2000), who was born Børge Rosenbaum, was a Danish and American comedian, conductor and pianist, affectionately known as The Clown Prince of Denmark.
这句话是来自维克托·博奇（Victor Borge），他是丹麦美国混血，是喜剧演员、指挥家和钢琴家。他因那部戏剧《丹麦的小丑王子》而广为人知。

3. 'The one thing women don’t want to find in their stockings on Christmas morning is their husband.'
‘圣诞节早晨，女人最不想在她们的长筒袜里发现的，就是她们的老公。’

--The late American comic Joan Rivers
——已故美国喜剧演员琼·里弗斯

4. 'I stopped believing in Santa Claus when I was six. Mother took me to see him in a department store and he asked for my autograph.'
‘我六岁的时候就不相信圣诞老人的存在了。因为在那一年，妈妈带我去一家百货商店看圣诞老人，结果圣诞老人向我要签名。’

--Child star actress Shirley Temple
——童星秀兰·邓波儿

5. 'Unless we make Christmas an occasion to share our blessings, all the snow in Alaska won’t make it white.'
‘除非我们在圣诞节共同分享祝福与爱，否则阿拉斯加所有的雪也不能带来真正的白色圣诞节。’

--Bing Crosby (1904-1977), American actor and singer who had a million-selling hit withI'm Dreaming Of A White Christmas.
——宾·克劳斯贝（1904－1977），美国演员、歌手，其歌曲《白色圣诞》创下了百万美元的不朽业绩。

6. 'I felt overstuffed and dull and disappointed, the way I always do the day after Christmas.'
‘圣诞节过后的第二天，我总会觉得撑得难受，既无趣又失望。’

--Sylvia Plath, poet
——诗人西尔维娅·普拉特

7. 'Always winter but never Christmas.'
‘总是冬天但从不是圣诞。’

--CS Lewis, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
——C．S．刘易斯的《狮子，女巫和魔衣橱》

8. 'My idea of Christmas, whether old-fashioned or modern, is very simple: loving others. Come to think of it, why do we have to wait for Christmas to do that?'
‘不管你觉得这太守旧亦或是太时髦，圣诞节对我来说很简单，就是关爱他人。试着想想吧，难道我们非要等到圣诞节才这么做吗？’

--American comedian Bob Hope
——美国喜剧演员鲍勃·霍普

9. 'It snowed last year too: I made a snowman and my brother knocked it down and I knocked my brother down and then we had tea.'
‘去年也下雪了：我做了个雪人，然后我弟弟把雪人弄塌了，于是我把弟弟打翻在地，之后我们相安无事，一起喝了杯茶。’

--Dylan Thomas, A Child's Christmas in Wales
——狄兰·托马斯《威尔士孩子的圣诞》

10. 'God bless us, every one!' Come on everybody . . . . 'Ahhhhh'.
‘愿上帝保佑我们每一个人！每一个人！啊！’

A sentimental ending to Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol is provided by Tiny Tim (2009 Disney version) who offers the statement, 'God bless us, every one!' at Christmas dinner, with the nice new Scrooge in mind.
这是2009年迪士尼改编的狄更斯的《圣诞颂歌》中，小蒂姆给予这部电影的一个充满情感的结尾。在吃圣诞大餐时，想着不再吝啬、善良的斯克鲁奇，他说：“愿上帝保佑我们每一个人！”