《剪下一方暖和--喻道小故事》

比萨斜塔 Tower of Pisa

According to a story in the Chicago Tribune, around 1990, the leaning Tower of Pisa began to lean too far. Seeing that the 180-foot-high tower would soon become dangerous, engineers designed a system to salvage the 12th-century landmark by holding the lean constant.

First, the engineers injected super cold liquid nitrogen into the ground around the tower to “freeze the area” and thereby minimize dangerous ground vibrations during their work and in future years.

Then they installed cables to pull the structure more upright. The underground cables were expected to pull the tower toward center by at least one inch.

Left to itself, our world resembles the Leaning Tower of Pisa, tilting and heading toward catastrophe . To prevent total anarchy , God establishes governments to maintain order and stability. Authority and government function like the underground steel cables that hold up the Tower of Pisa. The tower still leans. It’s not perfect. But the cables prevent total destruction.

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字汇
Salvage拯救
Nitrogen氮
Vibration震动
Catastrophe灾难
Anarchy无政府状态



芝加哥论坛报导了一则故事，在一九九零年左右，比萨斜塔开始倾斜得很厉害。眼看着这座一百八十英尺的高塔很快会造成危险，工程师就设计了一个维持斜度的系统，来抢救这个十二世纪的地标。

首先，工程师注入超级冷的液体氮到斜塔周围的土地里，「冻住这块区域」，使他们施工时和在将来年日中的地面震动危险减至最小。然后，他们安装缆绳把这个建筑结构拉得比较直。他们期望地下缆绳能把斜塔拉向中心至少一英寸。

我们的世界，如果置之不理，就会像比萨斜塔一样倾斜，朝向灾难的结局。为了防止无政府状态，上帝设立政府维持秩序与安定。权柄与政府的功能就像拉住比萨斜塔的地下钢缆。塔仍然倾斜，并非完美，但缆绳防止了全面毁灭。

思考与应用

1. 有没有什么事，如果我们置之不理，一定会出问题？(健康、家庭…)
2. 在动手处理岌岌可危的事前，防范措施也很重要，不然可能会崩塌更快，你曾有这种经验吗？

about 【剪下一方暖和】专栏译者：顾美芬