My year of living biblically | A.J. Jacobs

Translator: Joachim Mangilima Reviewer: Nelson Simfukwe

I thought I'd tell you a little about what I like to write.

Nimeona niwaeleze kidogo kuhusu kile ninachopenda kuandika

And I like to immerse myself in my topics.

Napenda kujikita hasa katika mada zangu.

I just like to dive right in and become sort of a human guinea pig.

Napenda kuzamia humo na kuwa kama nguruwe.

And I see my life as a series of experiments.

ninaona maisha yangu kama mkusanyiko wa majaribio

So, I work for Esquire magazine, and a couple of years ago,

Nafanya kazi na Jarida la Esquire, na miaka michache iliyopita

I wrote an article called "My Outsourced Life,"

Niliandika makala iliyoitwa "Maisha yangu kwenda kwa wengine"

where I hired a team of people in Bangalore, India,

ambapo niliajiri watu katika mji wa Bangalore, India

to live my life for me.

Kuyaishi kwa niaba yangu

So, they answered my emails.

Kwa hiyo walikuwa wanajibu barua pepe zangu

They answered my phone.

walijibu simu zangu

They argued with my wife for me, and they read my son bedtime stories.

Waligombana na mke wangu kwa niaba yangu,na kumsomea hadithi mtoto wangu wa kiume

It was the best month of my life,

ulikuwa ni mwezi mzuri sana wa maisha yangu

because I just sat back and I read books and watched movies.

Kwa sababu nilikaa tu nikisoma vitabu na kuangalia filamu

It was a wonderful experience.

Hii ilikuwa hali nzuri sana

More recently, I wrote an article for Esquire called --

Hivi karibuni, nimeandika makala kwa ajili ya jarida la Esquire

about radical honesty.

Kuhusu kuwa mwaminifu hasa

And this is a movement where --

Na huu ni muunganiko wa watu

this is started by a psychologist in Virginia,

ulioanzishwa na mwanasaikolojia katika mji wa Virginia

who says that you should never, ever lie,

Ambaye anasema usiseme uongo kabisa.

except maybe during poker and golf, his only exceptions.

labda tu wakati unacheza kamari au mchezo wa golf.

And, more than that, whatever is on your brain

Na zaidi ya hapo, chochote kilicho katika ubongo wako

should come out of your mouth.

kinatakiwa kitoke katika mdomo wako

So, I decided I would try this for a month.

Niliamua kuwa nitajaribu kwa mwezi mmoja.

This was the worst month of my life.

Huu ulikuwa ni mwezi mbaya sana wa maisha yangu

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

I do not recommend this at all.

Sipendekezi hatua hii kwa mtu yeyote

To give you a sense of the experience,

Kukujulisha jinsi hali inavyokuwa,

the article was called, "I Think You're Fat."

Makala iliitwa "Nafikiri wewe ni mnene"

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

So, that was hard.

Kwa hiyo,ilikuwa ngumu

My most recent book -- my previous book was called "The Know-It-All,"

Kitabu cha karibuni, kitabu cha zamani kinaitwa "kujua yote"

and it was about the year I spent reading the Encyclopedia Britannica

Ulikuwa ni mwaka niliosoma kitabu cha Encyclopedia Britannica.

from A to Z in my quest to learn everything in the world,

Kutokea mwanzo mpaka mwisho, katika nia yangu ya kujifunza kila kitu katika Dunia

or more precisely from Aak, which is a type of East Asian music,

au pia kutoka A-ak ambao ni aina ya muziki kutoka Mashariki ya Asia.

all the way to Zwyiec, which is -- well, I don't want to ruin the ending.

Mpaka Zwyiec,ambayo ni -- sitaki kuharibu mwisho wake.

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

It's a very exciting twist ending, like an O. Henry novel, so I won't ruin it.

Ina mabadiliko ya ajabu mwishoni kama kitabu cha hadithi cha Henry, kwa hiyo sitaki kuharibu.

But I love that one,

lakini naipenda hiyo

because that was an experiment about how much information

Kwa sababu hili lilikuwa ni zoezi kuhusu taarifa kiasi gani.

one human brain could absorb.

ubongo mmoja unaweza kuchukua,

Although, listening to Kevin Kelly, you don't have to remember anything.

ingawa ukimsikiliza Kevin Kelly, hauhitaji kukumbuka chochote.

You can just Google it.

unaweza ukaitafuta katika mtandao wa Google

So, I wasted some time there.

kwa hiyo nilipoteza muda kidogo hapo

I love those experiments,

nayapenda majaribio kama hayo

but I think that the most profound

lakini nadhani jaribio muhimu zaidi

and life-changing experiment that I've done

na lililobadilisha maisha yangu

is my most recent experiment, where I spent a year

ni hili la karibuni, ambapo nilikaa mwaka moja

trying to follow all of the rules of the Bible,

nikijitahidi kufuata maelekezo ya Biblia

"The Year of Living Biblically."

"Mwaka wa kuishi Kibiblia"

And I undertook this for two reasons.

na nilifanya hivi kwa sababu mbili

The first was that I grew up with no religion at all.

Kwanza, ni kwa sababu nilikua bila dini kabisa

As I say in my book, I'm Jewish in the same way

Kama navyosema katika kitabu changu, ni Myahudi kama vile

the Olive Garden is Italian.

Kama vile bustani ya mizeituni ilivyo ya kiitaliano

(Laughter)

(vicheko)

So, not very.

Kwa hiyo sio sana

But I've become increasingly interested in religion.

Lakini nimevutiwa sana na dini

I do think it's the defining issue of our time,

Na amini ni jambo muhimu sana kwa kipindi hiki

or one of the main ones.

moja muhimu kati ya mengi

And I have a son. I want to know what to teach him.

Na nina mtoto wa kiume na nataka nijue jinsi ya kumfundisha.

So, I decided to dive in head first, and try to live the Bible.

kwa hiyo nikaamua kuishi kwa kufuata Biblia

The second reason I undertook this is because

Sababu ya pili ni kuwa

I'm concerned about the rise of fundamentalism,

ninaguswa na mwongezeko wa uhafidhina

religious fundamentalism, and people who say

uhafidhina wa kidini, na watu wanaosema

they take the Bible literally, which is, according to some polls,

Wanaifuata Biblia kama ilivyo, na kwa mujibu wa tafiti mbalimbali

as high as 45 or 50 percent of America.

Asilimia karibu 45 au 50 ya wamarekani

So I decided, what if you really did take the Bible literally?

Kwa hiyo nikaamua, itakuwaje kama utaifuata Biblia kama ilivyo?

I decided to take it to its logical conclusion

nikaamua kuifuata

and take everything in the Bible literally,

kufuata kila kama kilivyo

without picking and choosing.

bila kuchuja wala kubagua

The first thing I did was I got a stack of bibles.

Kitu cha kwanza nilichofanya ilikuwa ni kutafuta Biblia nyingi

I had Christian bibles.

Nilikuwa na Biblia ya Kikristo

I had Jewish bibles.

Nilikuwa na Biblia ya Kiyahudi

A friend of mine sent me something called a hip-hop bible,

Rafiki yangu alinitumia Biblia ya kufoka foka,

where the twenty-third Psalm is rendered as, "The Lord is all that,"

Ambayo Zaburi ya 23, inasema "Bwana ndiye kila kitu",

as opposed to what I knew it as, "The Lord is my shepherd."

Badala ya "Bwana ndiye mchungaji wangu" kama ninavyojua

Then I went down and I read several versions,

Na nikaendelea na kusoma tafsiri mbalimbali

and I wrote down every single law that I could find.

Na nikaandika kila agizo ambalo niliweza kuliona

And this was a very long list -- over 700 rules.

hii ilikuwa orodha ndefu -- zaidi ya maagizo 700

And they range from the famous ones that I had heard of --

Kuanzia yale maarufu ambayo niliwahi kuyasikia

The Ten Commandments, love your neighbor, be fruitful and multiply.

Amri kumi, mpende jirani yako,enendeni mkaijaze nchi.

So I wanted to follow those.

Kwa hiyo nikataka kuzifuata

And actually, I take my projects very seriously,

Na kwa kweli nilichukulia jambo kwa uzito sana

because I had twins during my year,

Kwa sababu nilipata watoto mapacha katika mwaka huo

so I definitely take my projects seriously.

kwa hiyo nilichukulia jambo hili kwa uzito unaostahili

But I also wanted to follow the hundreds

lakini pia nilitaka kufuata mamia

of arcane and obscure laws that are in the Bible.

ya maagizo ambayo hayajulikani na wengi ndani ya Biblia

There is the law in Leviticus,

Kuna agizo katika Walawi

"You cannot shave the corners of your beard."

Linalosema hauwezi kunyoa kona ya masharubu yako

I didn't know where my corners were,

sikujua kona yangu itakuwa wapi,

so I decided to let the whole thing grow,

kwa hiyo nikaacha ziendelee kukua

and this is what I looked like by the end.

na hivi ndivyo nilivyokuwa mwishowe

As you can imagine, I spent a lot of time at airport security.

Na kama unavyoweza kufikiri, nilikuwa nasimamishwa sana na watu wa usalama katika viwanja vya ndege

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

My wife wouldn't kiss me for the last two months.

Mke wangu hakutaka kunibusu katika miezi miwili ya mwisho

So, certainly the challenge was there.

Kwa kweli,ilikuwa ni changamoto

The Bible says you cannot wear clothes made of mixed fibers,

Biblia inasema hauwezi kuvaa nguo zinazotokana na mchanganyiko wa nyuzi

so I thought, "Sounds strange, but I'll try it."

kwa hiyo nikaona kuwa ni kitu kigeni lakini nikasema nitajaribu

You only know if you try it.

hauwezi kujua bila kujaribu

I got rid of all my poly-cotton T-shirts.

nikaachana na fulana zangu za mchanganyiko mbalimbali

The Bible says that if two men are in a fight,

Biblia inasema kama wanaume wawili wanapigana

and the wife of one of those men grabs the testicles of the other man,

na mke wa mmoja wao akashika sehemu za siri za mwingine

then her hand shall be cut off.

mkono wake unatakiwa ukatwe

So, I wanted to follow that rule.

kwa hiyo nikataka nifuate agizo hilo

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

That one I followed by default,

kwa hiyo nikalifuata bila kutaka

by not getting in a fight with a man whose wife was standing nearby,

kwa kutopigana na mwanaume ambaye mke wake alikuwa anasimama karibu,

looking like she had a strong grip.

ambaye alionekana kama anaweza akanishika vizuri

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

So -- oh, there's another shot of my beard.

na hii pia ni picha yangu nyingine ya sharubu zangu

I will say it was an amazing year

ulikuwa ni mwaka wa ajabu

because it really was life changing, and incredibly challenging.

kwa kuwa nilibadilishwa na pia ilikuwa ni changamoto ya ajabu

And there were two types of laws that were particularly challenging.

kulikuwa na maagizo mawili ambayo yalinipa changamoto za kipekee

The first was avoiding the little sins that we all commit every day.

Kwanza ilikuwa ni kujiepusha na dhambi ndogo tunazozifanya kila siku

You know, I could spend a year not killing,

Ninaweza kukaa mwaka mzima bila kuua

but spending a year not gossiping, not coveting, not lying --

Lakini kukaa mwaka mzima bila kusengenya,bila kutamani,au kudanganya--

you know, I live in New York, and I work as a journalist,

Ninaishi New York, na nafanya kazi kama mwandishi wa habari

so this was 75, 80 percent of my day I had to do it.

kwa hiyo asilimia 75, 80 ya siku ilibidi nifanye

But it was really interesting, because I was able to make some progress,

lakini ilikuwa ni ya kupendekeza, na nilifanikiwa kupiga hatua

because I couldn't believe how much

kwa kuwa sikuamini kwa kiasi gani

my behavior changed my thoughts.

matendo yangu yalibadilisha mawazo yangu

This was one of the huge lessons of the year,

ili lilikuwa ni somo kubwa sana kwa mwaka huo,

is that I almost pretended to be a better person,

ni kwamba nilijifanya kuwa mtu mzuri

and I became a little bit of a better person.

na nikafanikiwa kuwa mtu mzuri kidogo

So I had always thought, you know, "You change your mind,

nimekuwa kila wakati nikifikiri, "Badilisha mawazo yako,

and you change your behavior," but it's often the other way around.

na utabadilisha pia matendo yako, lakini mara nyingi inakuwa ni kinyume.

You change your behavior, and you change your mind.

Unabadilisha matendo yako, na pia unabadilisha mawazo yako.

So, you know, if you want to become more compassionate,

Kwa hiyo kama unataka kuwa mwema

you visit sick people in the hospital,

unatembelea wagonjwa hospitalini

and you will become more compassionate.

na utakuwa mwema

You donate money to a cause,

unachangia pesa katika jambo fulani,

and you become emotionally involved in that cause.

na unajihusisha na jambo hilo

So, it really was cognitive psychology --

kwa hiyo ilikuwa ni fikra za kisaikolojia

you know, cognitive dissonance -- that I was experiencing.

unajua ilikuwa ni hali kutojisikia vizuri ambayo ilinikumba

The Bible actually talks about cognitive psychology,

Biblia inaongelea kuhusu fikra za kisaikolojia

very primitive cognitive psychology.

fikra za kisaikolojia za kizamani sana

In the Proverbs, it says that if you smile, you will become happier,

Katika Mithali, inasema kama ukitabasamu,utakuwa na furaha.

which, as we know, is actually true.

Ambavyo kama tunavyojua ni kweli

The second type of rule that was difficult to obey

Aina ya pili ya agizo ambayo ilikuwa ngumu kufuata,

was the rules that will get you into a little trouble

Ilikuwa ni agizo ambalo litakuingiza katika matatizo kidogo

in twenty-first-century America.

Katika Marekani ya karne ya 21.

And perhaps the clearest example of this is stoning adulterers.

Na mfano mzuri wa hii ni kuwapiga mawe wazinzi

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

But it's a big part of the Bible,

Lakini ni sehemu kubwa ya Biblia

so I figured I had to address it.

Kwa hiyo nikaona ni vizuri niiongelee

So, I was able to stone one adulterer.

Kwa hiyo niliweza kumpiga mawe mzinzi mmoja

It happened -- I was in the park, and I was dressed in my biblical clothing,

ilitokea, nilikuwa katika bustani, na nilikuwa nimevaa mavazi yangu ya kibiblia

so sandals and sort of a white robe,

sandoz na kanzu nyeupe

you know, because again, the outer affects the inner.

kama unavyojua tena, nje kunaathiri ndani.

I wanted to see how dressing biblically affected my mind.

Nilitaka kuona uvaaji wa kibiblia utaathiri vipi mawazo yangu

And this man came up to me and he said,

na mtu mmoja akaja akaniambia

"Why are you dressed like that?"

Kwa nini umevaa hivyo?

And I explained my project,

Nikamweleza kuhusu zoezi langu,

and he said, "Well, I am an adulterer, are you going to stone me?"

Na akasema mimi ni mzinzi je utanipiga mawe?

And I said, "Well, that would be great!"

Nikasema, "nadhani hiyo itakuwa nzuri"

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

And I actually took out a handful of stones from my pocket

Nikachukua mawe kadhaa kutoka katika mfuko wangu

that I had been carrying around for weeks,

ambayo nilikuwa nimeyabeba kwa wiki kadhaa

hoping for just this interaction -- and, you know, they were pebbles --

nikitumaini kupata nafasi kama hii, na yalikuwa mawe madogo tu

but he grabbed them out of my hand.

lakini aliyachukua kutoka katika mkono wangu

He was actually an elderly man, mid-70s, just so you know.

alikuwa ni mtu mzima,katikati ya miaka sabini.

But he's still an adulterer, and still quite angry.

lakini bado alikuwa ni mzinzi, na mwenye hasira

He grabbed them out of my hand

aliyachukua kutoka mkononi mwangu

and threw them at my face, and I felt that I could --

akanirushia usoni, na nikahisi kuwa

eye for an eye -- I could retaliate, and throw one back at him.

jicho kwa jicho, ningeweza kumrudishia, nikamrushia moja.

So that was my experience stoning, and it did allow me

Kwa hiyo,huo ndio ulikuwa uzoefu wangu,kuhusu kupiga mawe,na uliniruhusu

to talk about, in a more serious way, these big issues.

kuongelea kwa uzito zaidi mambo mazito haya

How can the Bible be so barbaric in some places,

Kwa nini Biblia ni ya kikatili katika sehemu nyingine,

and yet so incredibly wise in others?

Na papo hapo imejaa hekima kupindukia katika maeneo mengine

How should we view the Bible?

Tuiangalieje Biblia?

Should we view it, you know, as original intent,

Je tuiangalie katika dhumuni lake halisi

like a sort of a Scalia version of the Bible?

Kama tafsiri ya Scalia ya Biblia?

How was the Bible written?

Je Biblia iliandikwaje?

And actually, since this is a tech crowd,

Na kwa kuwa hii ni hadhara ya watu wa teknolojia

I talk in the book about how the Bible actually reminds me

Ninaongelea katika kitabu jinsi Biblia ambavyo inanikumbusha,

of the Wikipedia, because it has all of these authors and editors

Kuhusu Wikipedia wa sababu ina waandishi na wahariri

over hundreds of years.

mbalimbali kwa zaidi ya mamia ya miaka

And it's sort of evolved.

Na imeendela kubadilika

It's not a book that was written and came down from on high.

Sio kitabu kilichoandikwa na kushuka kutoka juu

So I thought I would end by telling you

Nafikiri nimalizie kwa kuwaeleza

just a couple of the take-aways, the bigger lessons

kuhusu mambo makubwa

that I learned from my year.

niliyojifunza katika mwaka huu

The first is, thou shalt not take the Bible literally.

Cha kwanza, Usichukue neno katika Biblia bila kulielewa

This became very, very clear, early on.

Hii ilikuwa dhahiri kwangu mwanzoni kabisa

Because if you do, then you end up acting like a crazy person,

Kwa sababu kama ukifanya hivyo,utakuwa kama mtu aliyechanganyikiwa

and stoning adulterers, or -- here's another example.

kuwapiga mawe wazinzi au mfano mwingine

Well, that's another. I did spend some time shepherding.

nilikaa nikichunga kondoo

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

It's a very relaxing vocation. I recommend it.

ni kazi nzuri, napendekeza kwa wengine

But this one is -- the Bible says that you cannot touch women

Lakini pia Biblia inasema hauwezi kumshika mwanamke

during certain times of the month, and more than that,

akiwa katika siku zake za hedhi

you cannot sit on a seat where a menstruating woman has sat.

Hauruhusiwi kukaa katika kiti ambacho mwanamke aliye katika hedhi alikaa

And my wife thought this was very offensive,

Mke wangu hakuipenda hii

so she sat in every seat in our apartment,

kwa hiyo akawa anakaa katika kila kiti katika nyumba yetu

and I had to spend much of the year standing

ilibidi niishi karibia mwaka wote nikiwa nasimama

until I bought my own seat and carried it around.

mpaka niliponunua kiti changu na kuwa nakibeba

So, you know, I met with creationists.

nilikutana na watu wanaoamini kuhusu uumbaji

I went to the creationists' museum.

nikaenda katika makumbusho ya watu hawa

And these are the ultimate literalists.

hawa ni wale wanaochukua maneno kama yalivyo

And it was fascinating, because they were not stupid people at all.

ilipendeza sana, kwa kuwa hawakuwa wajinga kabisa.

I would wager that their IQ is exactly the same as the average evolutionist.

ufahamu wao ulikuwa ni sawa sawa na wale wasioamini juu ya uumbaji

It's just that their faith is so strong

Tofauti ni kuwa imani ni kubwa sana

in this literal interpretation of the Bible

Katika tafsiri hii ya Biblia

that they distort all the data to fit their model.

ambayo imebadilishwa ili kwendana na mawazo yao

And they go through these amazing mental gymnastics to accomplish this.

Na wanabadilisha vitu ili kufanikisha hii.

And I will say, though, the museum is gorgeous.

Ingawa nitasema kuwa makumbusho ni nzuri sana.

They really did a fantastic job.

walifanya kazi nzuri sana

If you're ever in Kentucky,

kama itatokea kuwa Kentucky,

there's, you can see a movie of the flood,

Pale -- unaweza kuona filamu ya gharika,

and they have sprinklers in the ceiling

na wana vibomba vidogo vidogo katika dari

that will sprinkle on you during the flood scenes.

ambavyo vitakumwagia maji katika sehemu ambayo filamu inaonyesha mafuriko

So, whatever you think of creationism -- and I think it's crazy --

Kwa hiyo vyovyote unavyofikiri kuhusu uumbaji

they did a great job.

walifanya kazi nzuri

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

Another lesson is that thou shalt give thanks.

Somo jingine ni kuwa unatakiwa uwe ni mtu wa shukrani

And this one was a big lesson because I was praying,

na hili lilikuwa ni somo kubwa kwa kuwa nilikuwa ninaomba

giving these prayers of thanksgiving, which was odd for an agnostic.

nikitoa maombi ya shukrani,

But I was saying thanks all the time, every day,

Nilikuwa nasema asante wakati wote, kila siku,

and I started to change my perspective.

nikaanza kubadilisha mtazamo wangu

And I started to realize the hundreds of little things

nikaanza kutambua vitu vidogo vidogo vingi

that go right every day, that I didn't even notice,

ambavyo vinatokea kila siku, ambavyo sikuweza hata kuvijua

that I took for granted, as opposed to focusing

ambavyo sikuvizingatia, toauti na kutiliaa maanani

on the three or four that went wrong.

kati ya vitatu au vinne ambavyo havikwenda vizuri

So, this is actually a key to happiness for me,

kwa huu ndiyo ufunguo wa furaha kwangu mimi

is to just remember when I came over here,

ni kukumbuka kuwa nilipokuja hapa

the car didn't flip over, and I didn't trip coming up the stairs.

gari halikupinduka, na sikuteleza wakati napanda ngazi

It's a remarkable thing.

ni kitu cha ajabu sana

Third, that thou shall have reverence.

Tatu,unatakiwa uwe na hofu ya Mungu

This one was unexpected because I started the year

Hii sikuitegemea, kwa sababu nilianza mwaka

as an agnostic, and by the end of the year,

Kama mtu asiye na hakika na uwepo wa Mungu, lakini mwishoni mwa mwaka

I became what a friend of mine calls a reverent agnostic, which I love.

Nikawa kama rafiki yangu anavyopenda kusema,asiyeamini mwenye hofu ya Mungu,kitu ambacho nakipenda

And I'm trying to start it as a movement.

Na nataka nianzishe muungano wa watu wa namna hii

So, if anyone wants to join,

kama mtu yoyote anataka kujiunga

the basic idea is, whether or not there is a God,

wazo kuu ni, kama Mungu yupo au la,

there's something important and beautiful about the idea of sacredness,

Kuna kitu muhimu na kizuri kuhusu utakatifu

and that our rituals can be sacred.

na mambo yetu ya kila siku yanaweza yakawa matakatifu

The Sabbath can be sacred.

Sabato inaweza ikawa takatifu

This was one of the great things about my year, doing the Sabbath,

Hiki kile ni kitu kizuri sana katika mwaka huu kwa kuifuata Sabato

because I am a workaholic, so having this one day

Kwa sababu napenda sana kufanya kazi,kwa hiyo kupata hii siku moja

where you cannot work, it really, that changed my life.

ambayo haufanyi kazi ,ilibadilisha maisha yangu.

So, this idea of sacredness, whether or not there is a God.

Kwa hiyo wazo hili la utakatifu,bila kujali kama Mungu yupo au la,

Thou shall not stereotype.

Usilidharau

This one happened because

Hii imetokea kwa sababu

I spent a lot of time with various religious communities

kwa sababu natumia muda mwingi na jamii za dini mbalimbali

throughout America because I wanted it to be more

katika maeneo mengi ya Marekani, na nilitaka pia

than about my journey.

iwe zaidi tu ya safari yangu

I wanted it to be about religion in America.

Nilitaka iwe ni kuhusu dini nchini Marekani

So, I spent time with evangelical Christians, and Hasidic Jews, and the Amish.

Kwa nakaa na wakristo waliookoka, na wayahudi.

I'm very proud because

Ninajivunia kwa kuwa

I think I'm the only person in America

nadhani ni mtu pekee Marekani yote

to out Bible-talk a Jehovah's Witness.

Kuongelea Biblia kumshinda Shahidi wa Yehova

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

After three and a half hours, he looked at his watch,

Baada ya masaa matatu aliangalia saa yake,

he's like, "I gotta go."

na akasema,"inabidi niondoke"

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

Oh, thank you very much.

Asante sana

Thank you. Bless you, bless you.

Asante sana. mbarikiwe

But it was interesting

lakini pia cha kuvutia

because I had some very preconceived notions about, for instance,

ni kwa sababu nilikuwa na mawazo yangu mwenyewe kuhusu kwa mfano,

evangelical Christianity, and I found that

Ukristo wa kuokoka, na nilikuja kujua

it's such a wide and varied movement

Ni eneo pana na lenye tofauti mbalimbali

that it is difficult to make generalizations about it.

Na hauwezi ukawa na maelezo ya jumla juu ya kundi hili

There's a group I met with called the Red Letter Christians,

Kuna nikundi nilikutana nacho kiitwacho Wakristo wa Barua nyekundu,

and they focus on the red words in the Bible,

Na wao wanaangalia maneno mekundu katika Biblia,

which are the ones that Jesus spoke.

Ambayo ndiyo yale yaliyotamkwa na Yesu

That's how they printed them in the old Bibles.

ambayo ndivyo yalivyochapishwa katika Biblia za zamani.

And their argument is that Jesus never talked about homosexuality.

Na wao wanasema kuwa Yesu hakusema chochote kuhusu ushoga na usagaji.

They have a pamphlet that says,

Wana kijarida ambacho kinasema,

"Here's what Jesus said about homosexuality,"

"hivi Ndivyo Yesu alivyosema kuhusu Usagaji na Ushoga"

and you open it up, and there's nothing in it.

Na ukifungua,Hautakuta kitu chochote.

So, they say Jesus did talk a lot about helping the outcasts,

Kwa hiyo wanasema Yesu aliongelea sana kuhusu kuwasaidia watu waliotengwa,

helping poor people.

Kuwasaidia maskini.

So, this was very inspiring to me.

Kwa hiyo ilikuwa changamoto kubwa kwangu.

I recommend Jim Wallis and Tony Campolo.

Ninawapendekeza kwenu Jim Wallace na Tony Campolo.

They're very inspiring leaders, even though I disagree

Ni viongozi wanaotoa hamasa sana,ingawa sikubaliana,

with much of what they say.

Na mengi wanayoyasema.

Also, thou shalt not disregard the irrational.

Pia hautakiwi kudharau kitu kisichoeleweka

This one was very unexpected because, you know,

Hii sikuitegemea kwa kuwa

I grew up with the scientific worldview,

Nimekulia katika ulimwengu wa sayansi,

and I was shocked learning how much of my life

na nilishangaa kuona jinsi maisha yangu

is governed by irrational forces.

yanavyoongozwa na nguvu zisizoeleweka.

And the thing is, if they're not harmful,

Na kama kitu hakiumizi,

they're not to be completely dismissed.

si kitu cha kudharau moja kwa moja.

Because I learned that -- I was thinking, I was

Kwa sababu nimejifunza kuwa-- nilikuwa nafikiri

doing all these rituals, these biblical rituals,

kufanya mambo yote haya, ya Kibiblia,

separating my wool and linen, and I would ask these religious people

kutenganisha nguo zangu,na nilikuwa nikiwauliza watu wa dini,

"Why would the Bible possibly tell us to do this? Why would God care?"

Kwa nini Biblia itueleze hivi?Kwa nini Mungu ajali?

And they said, "We don't know,

Na wakasema,"Hatujui,

but it's just rituals that give us meaning."

lakini ni mambo ambayo yanatupa sisi maana"

And I would say, "But that's crazy."

Na nikawa nasema, "Lakini huu ni ujinga."

And they would say, "Well, what about you?

na wao wakasema,"je vipi kuhusu wewe?

You blow out candles on top of a birthday cake.

unapuliza mishumaa iliyo juu ya keki ya siku ya kuzaliwa.

If a guy from Mars came down and saw, here's one guy

Kama mtu kutoka sayari ya Mars akija na kuona mtu

blowing out the fire on top of a cake

anapuliza moto juu ya keki

versus another guy not wearing clothes of mixed fabrics,

na mtu mwingine ambaye havai mavazi ya vitambaa mchanganyiko

would the Martians say, 'Well, that guy, he makes sense,

Je watu hawa kutoka sayari ya Mars unafikiri watasema, "mtu huyu anafanya kitu cha kueleweka

but that guy's crazy?'"

Lakini huyu anafanya ujinga?"

So no, I think that rituals are, by nature, irrational.

Kwa hiyo nafikiri mapokeo mengi ni vitu visivyoeleweka.

So the key is to choose the right rituals,

Kwa hiyo muhimu ni kuchagua mapokeo mazuri,

the ones that are not harmful -- but rituals by themselves

yale ambayo hayakuumizi, lakini mapokeo yenyewe

are not to be dismissed.

hayatakiwi kudharauliwa

And finally I learned that thou shall pick and choose.

Na pia nilijifunza pia kuwa unatakiwa kuangalia vizuri na kuchagua.

And this one I learned because

Na hii nilijifunza kwa sababu

I tried to follow everything in the Bible.

Nilijaribu kufuata kila kitu katika Biblia.

And I failed miserably.

Na nikashindwa vibaya sana

Because you can't.

Kwa kuwa haiwezekani.

You have to pick and choose. And anyone who follows the Bible

inabidi uchague, na yoyote anayeifuata Biblia

is going to be picking and choosing.

atakuwa anachagua.

The key is to pick and choose the right parts.

Muhimu ni kuchagua sehemu muhimu.

There's the phrase called cafeteria religion,

kuna msemo unaosema Dini ya mgahawa,

and the fundamentalists will use it in a denigrating way,

watu wanaofuata sana dini wataisema katika hali ya kumshusha mtu,

and they'll say, "Oh, it's just cafeteria religion.

Kuwa ni " Dini ya mgahawa.

You're just picking and choosing."

Unachagua tu"

But my argument is, "What's wrong with cafeterias?"

lakini msimamo ni kuwa, " Kuna tatizo gani na migahawa?"

I've had some great meals at cafeterias.

Nimefanikiwa kula vyakula vizuri sana katika migahawa.

I've also had some meals that make me want to dry heave.

lakini pia nimekula vyakula ambavyo vilinifanya nitake kutapika.

So, it's about choosing the parts of the Bible about compassion,

Kwa hiyo, ni kuchagua sehemu za Biblia zinazohusu huruma,

about tolerance, about loving your neighbor,

ma uvumilivu,kuhusu kuwapenda jirani zako,

as opposed to the parts about homosexuality is a sin,

badala ya sehemu za ushoga na usagaji kuwa ni dhambi,

or intolerance, or violence,

au kukosa uvumilivu na machafuko.

which are very much in the Bible as well.

ambavyo vipo katika Biblia pia.

So if we are to find any meaning in this book,

Kama tunataka kupata maana katika kitabu hiki,

then we have to really engage it, and wrestle with it.

tunahitaji kukitafakari hasa,

And I thought I'd end with just a couple more.

Na nafikiri nimalizie na vitu vichache.

There's me reading the Bible.

hapa ni mimi nikisoma Biblia.

That's how I hailed taxicabs.

Hivi ndivyo nilivyoziita teksi.

(Laughter)

(Vicheko)

Seriously, and it worked. And yes,

na ilifanya kazi

that was actually a rented sheep,

huyo alikuwa ni kondoo wa kukodiwa,

so I had to return that in the morning, but it served well for a day.

kwa hiyo ilibidi nimrudishe asubuhi, lakini ilinisaidia kwa siku moja,

So, anyway, thank you so much for letting me speak.

Kwa hiyo nashukuru sana kwa kuniruhusu kuongea nanyi.