Why people of different faiths are painting their houses of worship yellow | Nabila Alibhai

翻译人员: Ella Zhang 校对人员: psjmz mz

We live in a time of fear,

我们生活在恐惧的时代，

and our response to fear can either be to contract

我们对恐惧的反应 可以是蜷缩起来

and attempt to guard ourselves

试图保护自己，

or to extend ourselves, hold on to each other,

也可以是扩宽自己，相互支持，

and face our fears together.

共同面对我们的恐惧。

What is your instinct?

你的本能是什么？

What do you see more of in the world?

你在世界上看到更多的是什么？

The problem with the first approach

第一种方式的问题在于

is that in our mounting isolation,

我们的孤立在不断增长，

we divide ourselves from others.

我们把自己和别人隔离开来。

Our sense of isolation grows,

我们的孤立感与日俱增，

because our imagination goes into overdrive

因为我们会对那些

about the people and the spaces that we no longer engage with.

我们不再接触的人和空间 进行过度想象。

Our sense of otherness grows, and we lose empathy.

我们的异己感在增长， 我们在失去同情心。

Today I'm going to tell you about a group of people

今天我要给你们讲述一群

that took the global challenge of terrorism

应对全球恐怖主义挑战的人，

and began creating spaces where strangers connect in solidarity.

他们在创造能让陌生人 团结起来的空间。

My own obsession with what I see as irrational divisions began as a child.

我对我所看到的非理性分裂 的痴迷始于孩提时代。

As a fourth-generation Kenyan Muslim of Indian origin,

作为有印度血统的第四代 肯尼亚穆斯林人，

it bothered me that in four generations,

让我感到困惑的是在我们四代人中，

there wasn't a single marriage in my family

我家庭中的每一段婚姻

outside of my small religious community.

都局限在我的小宗教团体之内。

And I wondered what that was about.

我好奇这是为什么。

Was it fear?

是恐惧吗？

Was it racism?

是种族歧视吗？

Was it cultural preservation?

是文化保护吗？

Did it have something to do with colonialism?

跟殖民主义有关吗？

Certainly, we didn't share a lot of the same public spaces with others.

当然，我们并没与他人 共享很多公共区域。

These divisions bothered me deeply, and they drove my career choices.

这种隔离带给我很深的困扰， 并且推动了我的职业选择。

When I was 20, the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania were bombed.

我20岁时，美国驻肯尼亚和 坦桑尼亚大使馆遭到轰炸。

A year later, I was on my way to the Middle East

一年之后，我前往中东

to study conflict resolution.

学习冲突解决法。

And then from that point on,

然后从那个时候开始，

it wasn't very hard for me to find insecure environments to work in,

在不安全的地方找到一份工作 就变得不再难了，

because the world was quickly shifting

因为世界正在迅速地走向

in what we now know as the time of terrorism.

我们现在所知道的恐怖主义时代。

I was in Washington, DC when 9/11 happened,

911事件发生时，我在华盛顿特区，

and then I moved back home to Kenya to work with refugees

随后我回到肯尼亚做难民事务，

and then later worked in Pakistan

然后又在巴基斯坦

and in Afghanistan.

和阿富汗工作。

In all of these places, what I noticed

在所有这些地方，我注意到

was how important physical spaces are

物理间隔在令我们

to making us feel safe

感到安全和舒服，

and well

以及感到归属上

and like we belong.

是如何的重要。

In 2013, I came back home to Nairobi from Afghanistan.

2013年，我从阿富汗回到家乡内罗毕。

Al-Shabaab operatives had besieged Westgate shopping center,

青年党成员包围了 韦斯特盖特购物中心，

killing 67 people in a day of utter horror.

在极度恐怖的一天中 杀死了67个人。

Soon after that,

就在那之后，

I could see how Nairobi was beginning to change,

我可以看到内罗毕开始发生变化，

and it was beginning to feel more like the fear and terror-weary

我开始觉得这里更像是 我曾经工作过的那些恐惧、

and war-torn cities that I had worked in.

厌倦恐怖、饱受战争蹂躏的城市。

And Nairobi continues to grow in fear-driven ways.

内罗毕在恐惧的持续笼罩下发展。

We see more walls, more barriers,

我们看到了更多墙，更多壁垒，

more security.

更多安保。

And like other parts of the world,

就像世界其他地方，

we are experiencing an erosion of human connection.

我们正遭遇着人际关系的侵蚀。

Divisions along religious lines are deepening,

宗教分歧在不断加深，

and we're doubting more and more how much we have in common.

我们越来越怀疑 我们到底有多少共同点。

We are at a pivotal time

我们处在一个关键的时间点，

when we need to restore our confidence in humanity

我们需要重拾我们对人性的自信

and stand boldly and visibly together.

并且勇敢而明显地站在一起。

So in 2014, I brought together a group of people in Nairobi

2014年，我在内罗毕召集了一组人

to figure out what to do:

想找出该做什么的方法：

public intellectuals, diplomats, artists, development workers.

成员包括公共知识分子，外交官， 艺术家，发展工作者。

And the group articulated our challenge as threefold:

这个小组将我们面临的 挑战阐述为三个方面：

one, to reclaim the city from the narrative of terrorism

第一，把城市从恐怖主义 的叙述中拯救出来

and back into the hands of the people that live there;

归还到那里的居民手中；

two, introduce a language beyond race, tribe or religion

第二，引进一种超越种族， 部落或宗教的语言

that would help us transcend our differences;

以帮助我们超越我们的差异性。

and three, provide a gesture that would help restore empathy

第三，提供一个能帮助恢复同理心、

and conversation and trust.

对话和信任的倡议。

One of the people in this group was an artist and architect,

小组中有一个名叫Yazmany Arboleda

Yazmany Arboleda.

的艺术家和建筑师。

He and I have collaborated in other parts of the world

他和我在世界其它地方有过合作

over many years.

很多年。

He has a history

他有过

of disrupting urban environments

在破坏的城市环境中

and making strangers connect

让陌生人以不可思议、

in incredible, beautiful and spectacular ways.

美丽和壮观的方式联系的历史。

He had an idea.

他有个主意。

The idea was to unite people of different faiths

这个主意是通过让不同信仰的人

by getting them to paint each other's houses of worship,

去粉刷对方的礼拜堂来团结人们，

mosques, temples, synagogues, churches,

把清真寺，寺庙，犹太教堂，教堂

paint them yellow

涂成黄色，

in the name of love.

以爱的名义。

By focusing on icons of faith,

通过专注于信仰的象征，

we would get people to reexamine the true essence of their faith,

我们要让人们重新审视 他们信仰的真正本质，

the common belief that we share in kindness, generosity and friendship.

我们分享在善良，慷慨 和友谊中的共同信念。

By creating pathways between houses of worship

通过在同个社区之间 建造相邻礼拜堂

within one neighborhood,

之间的道路，

we would create islands of stability

我们将会建立稳定的的岛屿

and networks of people

和能够抵御威胁

that could withstand threats.

的人际网络。

And neighbors, by picking up a paintbrush with other neighbors,

邻居们，通过和其他邻居 一起拿起漆刷，

would engage not just with their heads

不仅用他们的头脑，

but with their hands and with their hearts.

而且还用手和心来参与。

And the painted buildings would become sculptures in the landscape

这些粉刷的建筑将成为景观中的雕塑

that speak of people from very different backgrounds

描绘来自不同背景的人们

that stand together.

站在一起。

We'd call the project "Colour in Faith."

我们管这个项目叫做“信仰的颜色”。

We loved the idea and we immediately began approaching houses of worship:

我们很喜欢这个主意并 立刻开始联系那些宗教场所：

churches, temples, mosques, synagogues.

教堂，寺庙，清真寺，犹太教堂。

Door to door, we went to more than 60 rabbis,

我们挨家挨户拜访了 至少60位犹太教祭司，

imams, pastors and priests.

伊玛目，牧师和神父。

As you can imagine,

你可以想象得到，

bringing these communities together

当偏见被全球性的恐惧强化时，

when prejudices are reinforced by a global pandemic of fear

将这些社区连接起来

is not easy.

并不容易。

It was complicated.

这非常复杂。

We were confronted with the hierarchy of decision-making

我们要面临着宗教机构内部的决策

within religious establishments.

和等级结构。

For example, with Catholic churches,

举个例子，在天主教堂，

we were told that the archbishop would have to make the decision.

我们被告知只有大主教才能作决定。

And so we wrote a letter to the archbishop.

所以我们给大主教写了信。

We wrote a letter to the Vatican.

我们给梵蒂冈写了信。

We're still waiting to hear back.

我们还在等回信。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

And with other houses of worship,

至于其它的宗教场所，

we were told that the patrons, the people that pay for the building

我们被告知，只有出资人，

出钱建造和粉刷的人

and the construction and the painting of the buildings

would have to make a decision.

才能做决定。

And then we came head-to-head

然后，我们还要与

with the long legacy of missionary and donor dependence

传教士和捐赠者长期以来 的依赖正面交锋，

that so impedes unconditional civic action,

这种依赖阻碍了无条件的公民行动，

and we learned this the hard way.

我们为此吃尽苦头。

There was one community

其中有个社区，

that in our repeated conversations would keep asking us

在我们重复的交谈中不断要求我们

to appreciate them.

要感谢他们。

And so we would keep going back

所以我们不断回去

and telling them that we appreciate them,

告诉他们我们十分感激他们，

and of course,

当然，

if we didn't appreciate them, we wouldn't be here.

如果我们不感激他们， 我们也不会在这儿了。

And then we learned painfully late in the game

我们很晚才艰难地学到，

that the word "appreciation" is code for getting paid to participate.

“感激”这个词其实是 付钱才参与的代号。

And so we challenged them

所以我们挑战他们

and we asked the question,

提出问题，

"So what will it cost?

“那么这要多少钱？

How much could we pay you?

我们要付给你多少钱？

And if we pay for your faith, is it really faith?"

如果我们可以付钱买信仰， 那还是信仰吗？”

We started the project asking the question,

我们在项目开始时就提出问题，

"Where does your faith live?"

“你的信仰在哪里？”

And here we found ourselves asking the question,

然后在这里，我们发现 我们问的问题是

"How much does your faith cost?"

“你的信仰值多少钱？”

But the most difficult issue was the perceived risk of standing apart.

但是最困难的问题是感受到 的隔离带来的预期风险。

We had one synagogue that flat-out refused to participate

有个犹太教堂直接拒绝参与，

because it feared drawing attention to itself

因为它害怕吸引别人的注意

and becoming a target.

成为袭击目标。

Similarly, we had a mosque that also feared becoming a target.

同样，我们遇到过一个清真寺 同样害怕成为被攻击的目标。

And these fears are justified.

他们的恐惧是合理的。

And yet, there were 25 houses of worship that pledged to participate.

但是，还是有25个宗教场所同意参加。

(Applause)

（掌声）

These bold leaders took the gesture and reinforced it with their own meaning.

这些勇敢的领导者们接受了倡议， 并用自己的意愿来强化它。

For some, it was to tell the world that they're not terrorists.

对某些人来说，它是在告诉世界 他们不是恐怖分子。

For others, it was to welcome people through their doors to ask questions.

对其他人来说，这是在 欢迎人们进来提问。

And for some, it was to bridge the gap

对某些人，这是连接老一代

between the older and the younger generation,

和年轻一代隔阂的桥梁，

which by the way is something that many faiths are grappling with right now.

顺便说一下，这是许多信仰 现在正在努力解决的问题。

And for some it was simply to build neighborhood solidarity

对有些人来说， 这是担心选举暴力出现前

先建立起的邻里团结。

in advance of feared election violence.

When asked why yellow,

当有人问为什么是黄色时，

one imam beautifully said,

一位伊玛目给了一个完美的答案，

"Yellow is the color of the sun.

“黄色是太阳的颜色。

The sun shines on us all equally.

阳光平等地照耀在每一个人的身上。

It does not discriminate."

它从不歧视。”

He and others spread the word through their congregations

他和其他人通过教会

和广播把消息传递了出去。

and over the radio.

Municipal government officials stepped forward and helped

市政府官员站了出来，

with permits and with convening civil society organizations.

协助发放许可证和 召集民间社会组织。

A paint company donated a thousand liters of yellow paint

一家油漆公司捐献了 一千升专为我们调制

mixed especially for us in what they now call "optimistic yellow."

的黄色油漆，现在他们 称它为“乐观的黄色”。

(Laughter)

（笑声）

(Applause)

（掌声）

And a poetry collective joined forces with a university

一个诗歌社团与一所大学联合

and hosted a series of tweet chats

并主持了一系列推特聊天活动，

that challenged the nation on issues of faith,

挑战国家的信仰问题，

our faith not just in the context of religion,

我们的这些信仰不仅包括 宗教领域的信仰，

but our faith in politicians and tribe and nation,

还包括我们对政治，部落和国家的信仰，

our faith in the older generation and in the younger generation.

我们对老一代和年轻一代的信仰。

And then Colour in Faith was launched at a gallery event

接着，“信仰的颜色”活动 在一个画廊展出，

that invited an incredible mix of gallerygoers

这吸引了大批画廊爱好者、

and religious leaders and artists and businesspeople.

宗教领袖、艺术家和商人。

Already, even before picking up a paintbrush,

甚至在拿起画笔之前，

we had accomplished so much of the conversation and connection

我们就已经完成了这么多的

我们所希望的谈话和联系。

that we had hoped for.

And then we began to paint.

然后我们开始粉刷。

Muslims stood by Christians

穆斯林站在基督徒身边，

and atheists and agnostics and Hindus

无神论者，不可知论者和印度教徒

and painted a mosque yellow.

一起把清真寺涂成黄色。

And then they all came together again and painted a church yellow,

然后他们又一起把教堂涂成了黄色，

and then another mosque,

接着是另一个清真寺，

and then another church.

然后是另一个教堂，

Poets and musicians performed while we painted.

诗人和音乐家在我们上色时为我们表演。

We painted in Nairobi,

我们在内罗毕涂色，

and then we painted in Mombasa.

然后我们在蒙巴萨涂色。

The local and international press did features on Colour in Faith

本地和国际的媒体用英语、 法语、斯瓦希里语、

in English and French and Swahili

西班牙语、索马里语

and Spanish and Somali.

特别介绍“信仰的颜色”。

CNN highlighted Colour in Faith as a way of bringing communities together.

CNN特别强调了“信仰的颜色”是 一种把社区联系在一起的方法。

And our social media platforms lit up,

我们的社交媒体开始走红，

connecting more and more people.

联结了越来越多的人。

And these neighbors continued to stay in touch.

这些邻居们继续保持联系。

There are some that are pursuing politics with a platform of peace,

有些人以和平的纲领追求政治，

and we have communities as far as Argentina and the US

并且寻求我们帮助的社区

and as close as Mali and Rwanda

最远至阿根廷和美国，

that are asking for our help.

最近在马里和卢旺达。

And we would love to help.

我们很乐意帮忙。

It's our dream that this project, this idea, spreads across the world,

我们的梦想就是把这个项目， 这个主意散播到全世界，

with or without our support.

不论有没有我们的支持。

Colour in Faith is literally highlighting those who mean well in yellow.

“信仰的颜色”是在用黄色突出那些善意的人。

Colour in Faith is binding neighborhoods together,

“信仰的颜色”把邻居们联系在了一起，

and it's our hope that when threats come knocking,

我们希望当威胁敲门时，

they will collectively sift fact from rumor

他们可以集体从谣言中筛选出事实来，

and stand in solidarity.

并团结在一起。

We've proven that the human family can come together and send a message

我们已经证明，人类大家庭 可以走到一起，发出一个

far brighter and more powerful

比那些想要伤害我们的人

than the voices of those that wish to do us harm.

的声音更光明、更有力的信息。

Though fear is infectious,

尽管恐惧会传染，

we are showing that so is hope.

我们展现的是希望也同样如此。

Thank you.

谢谢。

(Applause)

（掌声）