问答题
Alabama chief justice Roy Moore has long displayed a
reverence—or obsession, depending on your point of view—for the Ten
Commandments. The Scripture has been a good calling card for Moore, gaining him
notoriety far beyond the realm of circuit-court judges after he first decorated
his courtroom in 1995 with a hand-carved rosewood plaque bearing God's laws. He
prevailed over civil libertarians who sued for its removal, and rode his fame
even further in 2000, when he was elected chief justice of Alabama's supreme
court on the slogan "Roy Moore: Still the Ten Commandments Judge". But while he
earned folk-hero status among Evangelicals and conservatives, last week he
finally pushed the legal establishment too far when he ignored a federal court
order to remove his largest monument to the Commandments, a 5,280-1b. granite
carving known as Roy's Rock. Moore and some helpers had installed the sculpture
in the rotunda of the state's judicial building during off-hours one night in
2001. In a stunning show of defiance by a jurist, Moore
disregarded the urging of all eight of his fellow supreme court justices and
Alabama's attorney general to comply with the federal ruling that the religious
artifact is inappropriate in a court of law. Instead Moore declared, to the
amens of supporters gathered on the building's portico, "I will never, never
deny the God upon whom our laws and country depends." The hundreds of protesters
had flocked to Moore's monument last week as if to a revival, carrying Bibles,
wooden crosses and placards with phrases like KEEP THE COMMANDMENTS. DUMP THE
FEDS. But within 24 hours of Moore's speech, his judicial colleagues suspended
him from the bench and ordered him to face trial before the Alabama Court of the
Judiciary, which can remove judges for ethical violations. The
legal case, brought by several civil-liberties groups, is virtually
open and shut. Moore's lawyers had argued that U.S. law is founded on the Ten
Commandments, which are displayed, more subtly and often surrounded by secular
legal symbols, in other government buildings around the country. But federal
District Judge Myron Thompson said in his ruling that Roy's Rock is "nothing
less than an obtrusive year-round religious display ... The only way to miss the
religious or nonsecular appearance of the monument would be to walk through the
Alabama State Judicial Building with one's eyes closed." A federal appeals court
agreed, and the U.S. Supreme Court declined to issue a stay in the case. Moore
has said he plans to file an appeal with the Supreme Court by late September,
but legal experts don't expect the court to take it. "[Moore] does not have any
laws of man to stand on," says University of Alabama law professor Bryan K.
Fair. "He's claiming to stand on the laws of God. Apparently he has some
difficulty recognizing the separate spheres of his own creed and the laws of the
people of Alabama. " Moore's supporters have compared him to
Martin Luther King, to Daniel, and even to Moses. The son of a construction
worker, Moore, 56, grew up in northeast Alabama and worshipped at a Baptist
church, not "an overbearing church where they shout and dance around", says his
brother Jerry, "just a nice little country church". Moore graduated from West
Point, served in Vietnam in the military police and earned his law degree at the
University of Alabama. After losing a hard-fought election for circuit judge in
1982, Moore turned from law to more exotic battles, training as a kickboxer and
wrangling cattle in Australia. It was at this stage in his life
that Moore carved his plaque of the Ten Commandments and, after being appointed
as a circuit judge, hung it in his courtroom and started making headlines. The
first lawsuit seeking to remove it was ultimately dismissed on a technicality.
His victories in the court of public opinion, however, have been more decisive.
He won his chief-justice post with 54% of the vote, and in a July poll of
Alabama residents, 77% said they approve of his stone monument. His popularity
has led to speculation that Moore is angling for higher office, although his
staff denies that. In the meantime, however, his current job depends largely on
whether he decides to obey the commandments of his legal colleagues.
问答题
Who is Roy Moore? Why is he called the "Ten Commandments judge"?
【正确答案】Roy Moore is an Alabama chief justice. He is called the "Ten Commandments judge" because he first decorated his courtroom with a plaque bearing the Ten Commandments from the Bible, and later he installed the huge, heavy granite with Ten Commandments (Roy's Rock) in Alabama's judicial building.
问答题
Give a brief introduction to the argument around Roy's Rock. Illustrate the public attitude towards Roy Moore and Moore's monument.
【正确答案】Those who support Moore point out that the U.S. law is based on the Ten Commandments, which are displayed in a number of ways in government buildings, and think his acts should be supported and praised. Those who are against Moore think Roy's Rock is a religious display. They hold that "laws of man" and "laws of god" should be separated, therefore it is not appropriate to hang or display religious artifact in a court of law. Roy Moore's supporters held demonstration and opposed the ruling of the federal court to remove Roy's Rock. They compare Roy to Martin Luther King, Daniel and even Moses, and give him the "folk-hero status". And in the court of public opinion, he won a decisive victory. 77% of Alabama residents said in a poll to approve his stone monument and he won his chief-justice post with 54% of the vote.
本题前半题考查对文章基本内容的理解，相关信息见第二、三段。对Roy Moore在法庭和法院大楼放置刻有圣经“十诫”木牌和石碑的行为，法庭律师、专家和普通大众都议论纷纷，支持者和反对者莫衰一是，作者对争执各方的意见作了介绍。后半题也考查对文章基本内容的理解，相关信息见后面四段。作者介绍了公众对他的支持和评价，既有具体评论也有相关行动。
【答案解析】
问答题
What can be inferred from the last sentence of the passage?
【正确答案】Moore's acts have not support from his colleagues. He was ordered to remove the Roy's Rock, and if he refuses to do so, he might be suspended from his current post. The use of the expression "to obey the commandments of his legal colleagues" in the sentence carries some kind of satirical meaning.