Have you ever been to any famous religious sites in China ?

Religions in China

Buddhist site

The Mogao Grottoes In Dunhuang, Gansu Province

Buddhist site

The White Horse Temple In Louyang, Henan Province

Tibetan Buddhist site

The Potala Palace In Lhasa, Tibet

Symbols and god of Buddhism

What do you know about Taoism?

Taoism is one of the major religions in China.

It was founded by Lao-tzu in about the 6th century B.C.

The most important text of Taoism is Tao-te-Ching.

In the 5th century AD, Taoism developed as a religious system.

Taoism—Another religion in China

What is the belief behind Taoism?

Taoism is also a system of thought. The central concept of Taoism is Tao, which refers to the ways the universe functions. Taoism believes in ‘wuwei’, which means that everything must follow its course and happen naturally.

The yinyang of Taoism has greatly influenced Chinese philosophy.

Taoism believes that ‘yin’ and ‘yang’ are two fundamental forces in the universe. ‘Yin’ is the passive or negative force, while ‘yang’ represents active and positive things, such as the bright, dry and masculine aspects.

According to Taoism, wise people will achieve a balance between the interactions of these two forces.

Taoist site

Mount Wudang In Hubei Province

Taoist monks

Have you ever been to any famous religious sites

overseas?

Holy city for Judaism, Christianity and Islam

Jerusalem

The holiest place for Islam —birthplace of Muhammad

Mecca, In Saudi Arabia

sacred city for Hindu pilgrims

Gaya, in Bihar, in India

the Vatican, in Italy

the Roman Catholic Church

What day is it in the church ?

Christmas Day

Christmas brings families and friends together to share the much loved customs and traditions which have been around for centuries. Most people are on holidays and stay at home with their family on Christmas.

The real meaning of Christmas The word ‘Christmas’ comes from the old

English name Criste Maesse-Christ’s Mass—and is the celebration of the birth of Jesus.

Christmas is a religious day Christmas , a Christian

holiday, is celebrated in many different countries.

Every year in December Christians celebrate the birthday of Jesus Christ.

Literature of Christian

the Bible

What is the Bible?

The Bible is the holy book of Christianity and consists of two parts, the 39-chapter Old Testament, which is an account of God’s dealings with the chosen people, the Jews, and the 27-chapter New Testament, which talks mainly about the life and teachings of Jesus, the son of God. It is used by Christians in almost all services of public worship. It teaches people about God and how to live with their lives.

Guessing game

Can you guess the meanings of the underlined words?

1. A: Oh, my God! What happened? Why are you black and blue all over?

B: I got beaten by Peter’s brother.

A: That’s a bad apple! Let’s think up a way and teach him a lesson.

坏蛋 a bad apple:

2. A: There’s no point in losing temper on me. It’s unfair!

B: What did you do to him?A: If I did something bad, I wouldn’t blame him for getting angry with me. The point is that I did nothing wrong.

B: Maybe he thought you reported him to the manager.

no point: 没理由

3. A: I think it was Jason who stole my document.

B: Fat chance!

A: He’s the only one who left here late.B: I know him. He’ll never do that sort of thing.

Fat chance:

微小的机会；极少的可能

4. A: Where’s Annie?B: In the house.A: In the house? Where is she?

B: Search me, I don’t know where she is now.

Search me: ( 非正式 ) 不知道

Fast reading

Go through the passage as quickly as possible and try to find answers to the three questions in part A on Page 50. At the same time pay attention to the structure of the passage.

The structure of the passage

Part 1 (Para. 1) : definitionPart 2 (Para. 2): the reason why the

bible has many idiomsPart 3 (Para. 3-Para.5):introduce

some biblical idiomsPart 4 (Para. 6): Idioms are part of

language and studying them is useful in English learning.

1. What is an idiom?An idiom is a group of words or an expression whose meaning is not straightforward, because it often can not be understood by looking at the meanings of its separate words .2. Which languages was the Bible first written in?

In Hebrew. 3. Which idiom is often used to describe children? ‘Apple of their parents’ eye’.

Detailed reading1. Read the passage a second time and complete Part C1.

(1) Why did Biblical idioms often come from stories?

Because the idiom itself was the expression that underlined the moral of a story and gave audiences a picture to help them understand the story better.

(2) What does ‘feet of clay’ mean?

There is a hidden weakness in somebody whom we admire or respect.

(4) Which examples included in the text are related to agricultural life or food?

(3) Which animal is featured in the idioms in the article?

A calf.

They are ‘reap what we sow’ and ‘the apple of my eye’.

You can improve your comprehension . By learning many important idioms, you can develop a high level of competence in communication skills.

(5) How is studying idioms useful in language learning?

2. Read the article again and complete Part C2.

(1) Sarah’s mother adores her; Sarah is _______________________________.the apple of her mother’s eye

(2) Wilson was disappointed when he learnt that the coach had __________________.feet of clay

(3) She knew it might take a long time for her teammates to change their minds, but she believed that the new plan would work __________.by and by

(4)Debbie’s father always warns her to be nice to people around her, because we __________________.reap what we sow

(5) When my brother came back home from his trip to Europe, we __________________ for him.killed the fatted calf

(6) After his company suffered millions ofDollars in losses, Joe ________________________________and left the company. saw the handwriting on the wall

Do you think understanding idioms is an important part of language learning? Why or why not?

Language points

1. expression: noun [C]a word or group of words used in a particular situation or by particular people:

He uses a lot of unusual expressions.他用了许多不同寻常的表达。

 noun <1> [C or U] when you say what you think or show how you feel using words or actions:

He wrote her a poem as an expression of his love.

他给她写了一首诗作为他的爱的表达。

She plays the violin with great expression (= feeling).

她带着强烈的感情拉小提琴。

<2> [C] the look on someone's face, showing what they feel or think:

I could tell from her expression that something serious had happened.

我从她的表情可以判断发生了严重的事情。

express: verb [T]

<1> to show a feeling, opinion or fact:

I would like to express my thanks for your kindness.

我很想表达对你好意的感激。

<2> express yourself to communicate what you think or feel, by speaking or writing, or in some other way:

I'm afraid I'm not expressing myself very clearly.

我恐怕我并不在清楚地表达我的想法。

2) (of a person) honest and not tending to hide their opinions:

He is straightforward and let's you know what he's thinking.

他很坦率 , 让你知道他的想法。

straightforwardly    adverb

He explained quite straightforwardly that there wasn't enough work for us all.

他很直接地解释说没有足够工作给我们所有的人。

Straightforward adj. 1) simpleThis is a straightforward job.

in other words

in a word

have a word with sb

have words with sb

keep one’s word

word came that

换句话说简言之，总之

与某人谈一下

与某人吵架守信，信守诺言有消息称……

《圣经》最初是用希伯来文写的，后来被译为希腊语。这两种语言都是使用了很多习语。Eg:

She has two daughters, neither of whom lives at home.

He has five dictionaries, all of which are practical.

Line8 The bible was first written in Hebrew and then translated into Greek, both of which use many idioms.

Last week, only two people came to look at the house, ___ wanted to buy it.

A.none of them B. both of them

C. none of whom D. neither of whom

(2007 安徽 )

I have many story books, of which all are interesting.

<1> not clearly expressed, known, described or decided:

I do have a vague memory of meeting her many years ago.

我确实有许多年前遇到过她的模糊的记忆。

<2> not clear in shape, or not clearly seen:

vague: adjective

Through the mist I could just make out a vague figure.

透过薄雾 , 我只能辨认出一个模糊的人影。

<3> describes someone who is not able to think clearly, or who, sometimes as a way of hiding what they really think, does not express their opinions clearly:

My aunt is incredibly vague - she can never remember where she's left things.

我阿姨非常糊涂 , 总是不记得把东西放在什么地方。

vaguely adverb

I vaguely remembered having met her before.

我隐约记得以前见过她。

vagueness   noun [U]

underline: verb [T] 1> to draw a line under a word, especially in order to show its importance:

All the technical words have been underlined in red.

所有的技术词汇都用红颜色划出来了。

2> to emphasize:

为了突出他们的厌恶 , 人群开始向舞台上扔瓶子。

To underline their disgust, the crowd started throwing bottles at the stage.

+ 部位

strike it on the feet 击中他的脚 on the

strike/hit/pat sb. in the

by the

﹛ ﹜

A bird in the hand (is worth two in the bush).

comprehension: noun

<1> [U] the ability to understand completely and be aware of a situation, facts, etc:

The problem is above [beyond] my comprehension. 

这个问题超出我的理解力。

<2> [C or U] UK a test to find out how 　　 well students understand written 　　 or spoken language:

a listening/reading comprehension

听力／阅读理解

15. competence: noun [U] (ALSO competency)

the ability to do something well:

Her competence as a teacher is unquestionable.

她作为一个老师的能力是毋庸置疑的。

NOTE: The opposite is incompetence.

competent    adj.able to do something well:

I wouldn't say he was brilliant but he is competent at his job.

我不会说他很优秀，但他在他的工作上有能力。

thorough: adj.

<1> complete, very great, very much:

It was a thorough waste of time.

这完全是浪费时间。

<2> detailed and careful:

They did a thorough search of the area but found nothing.

他们对这个地区进行了仔细的搜寻，但什么也没找到。

thoroughly  adverb

I thoroughly enjoyed the performance.

我完全喜欢这场演出。

Homework

1.Finish part A1 & A2 of the Wb.2.Revise what we learn today.