Tag: jw.org

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Yēsū Xīshēng Jìniàn Jùhuì

Yēsū (Jesus’ 耶稣 耶穌)
Xīshēng (Xī·shēng {Sacrifice (n)} · {(as with a) Domestic Animal} → [Sacrifice] 牺牲 犧牲)
Jìniàn Jùhuì ((Jì·niàn Remembering · {Thinking Of} → [Commemorating] 记/纪念 記/紀念) (Jùhuì Meeting 聚会 聚會) → [Memorial]) 👈🏼 Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[As of this writing, jw.org is featuring the upcoming Memorial. So, this is basically a reposting of a post from a few years back about the current official Mandarin translation of “the Memorial of Jesus’ death”.]

This year’s Memorial is coming up soon, so this week’s MEotW is “Yēsū (Jesus’ 耶稣 耶穌) Xīshēng (Xī·shēng {Sacrifice (n)} · {(as with a) Domestic Animal} → [Sacrifice] 牺牲 犧牲) Jìniàn Jùhuì ((Jì·niàn Remembering · {Thinking Of} → [Commemorating] 记/纪念 記/紀念) (Jùhuì Meeting 聚会 聚會) → [Memorial])”. This is currently the official way to translate “the Memorial of Jesus’ death” into Mandarin, as can be seen by comparing the English and Mandarin pages for the Memorial on jw.org.

It’s worth noting that this is a simple, straightforward, functional translation, free of unnecessary sentimentality or ceremony. As one dictionary puts it, “ceremony”, in this case, refers to:

The formalities observed on some solemn or important public or state occasion in order to render it more imposing or impressive: as, the ceremony of crowning a king, or of laying a foundation-stone; the ceremony of inaugurating the President of the United States.

Indeed, for those of us who appreciate Jesus’ ransom sacrifice, the Memorial is about this appreciation, not about ceremony or empty or showy rituals.

What Price Ceremony?

The matter of unnecessary ceremony reminds me of something I heard in a podcast a while ago:

Here is a clip of the podcast referred to in the X post above, in which Mr. Cohen speaks of the core goal to make Swift ceremony-free:

As the above X post also mentions, Chinese characters have oodles and gobs of unnecessary, time-and-energy-consuming ceremony, especially compared to the simple, straightforward, and elegant Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) writing system. And, echoing Mr. Cohen’s observation that ceremony can weigh programmers down and rob them of the joy that they could otherwise feel when coding, many have found that the unnecessary, traditionally mandated complexity and ceremonial baggage of Chinese characters can weigh down Mandarin learners and take away much of the joy that they should be able to feel from learning how to really communicate with Mandarin-speaking people.

Is it appropriate for us to look at the Chinese characters writing system through the same lens that we use to look at a technological system like the Swift programming language? It really is, because while the Chinese characters writing system is indeed a matter of culture, all writing systems are simultaneously technologies, applications of skills and knowledge for practical purposes.

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Zhōngdōng

Zhōngdōng (Zhōng·dōng Middle · East 中东 中東) 👈🏼 Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[In view of the renewed fighting in the Middle East, and since the below-mentioned article is again being featured on jw.org, it seems appropriate to revisit this post that was originally posted on July 1, 2025. By the way, the Mandarin expression for “Iran” is “Yīlǎng (Iran 伊朗)”.]

[Notes: Tap/click on a Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to reveal its “flashcard”; tap/click on a “flashcard” or its Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to hide the “flashcard”. 📖 📄 📘 icons mean 📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and 📘 Reveal None re all the “flashcards” in the heading, paragraph, etc. that they are placed at the beginning of.]

At the time of this writing, jw.org was featuring the article “War in the Middle East—What Does the Bible Say?”. Where the English version of this article uses the expression “Middle East”, the Mandarin version uses this week’s MEotW, “Zhōngdōng (Zhōng·dōng Middle · East 中东 中東)”. For example, here are the English and Mandarin versions of the article’s title:

English:

War in the Middle East—What Does the Bible Say?

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Guānyú (Guān·yú {Closing → [Relating]} · to 关于 關於) Zhōngdōng (Zhōng·dōng Middle · East’s 中东 中東) Fāshēng (Fā·shēng {Issuing Forth} · {Coming to Life} → [Happening] 发生 發生) de (’s 的) Zhànzhēng (Zhàn·zhēng War · Contending → [War] 战争 戰爭), Shèngjīng (Shèng·jīng (the) Holy · Scriptures → [the Bible] 圣经 聖經) de (’s 的) Guāndiǎn (Guān·diǎn {Looking at → [View]} · Point → [Viewpoint] 观点 觀點) Shì (Is 是) Shénme (Shén·me What · [suf] 什么 什/甚麼)?

Related Expressions

The “Zhōng ({within/among/[in] the midst of (it/them…)} | centre; middle | midst | amid | medium; intermediate 中)” in “Zhōngdōng (Zhōng·dōng Middle · East 中东 中東)” corresponds to “Middle”, and it also occurs in expressions such as past MEotW’s “Zhōngguó (Zhōng·guó Central · Nation → [China | Chinese] 中国 中國)” 🔗, “Zhōngwén (Zhōng·wén {Central → [Chinese]} · Writing 中文)” 🔗, and “Zhōngyāng Zhǎnglǎo‐Tuán ((Zhōngyāng Central 中央) (Zhǎng·lǎo {Grown → [Elder]} · Old (Men) → [Elders] 长老 長老)‐(Tuán {Rolled into a Ball (Thing)} → [Group] → [Body] 团 團/糰) → [Governing Body])” 🔗. (Note that in these past MEotW’s, “Zhōng ({within/among/[in] the midst of (it/them…)} | centre; middle | midst | amid | medium; intermediate 中)” is really used to mean “Central”, which is a bit different from “Middle”.)

The “dōng (east 东 東)” in “Zhōngdōng (Zhōng·dōng Middle · East 中东 中東)” corresponds to “East”. For reference, here are the Mandarin expressions for the cardinal directions and the ordinal or intercardinal directions:

  • běi (north | northern 北)
  • dōngběi (dōng·běi {east | eastern} · {north | northern} → [north-east | north-eastern] 东北 東北)
  • dōng (east | eastern 东 東)
  • dōngnán (dōng·nán {east | eastern} · {south | southern} → [south-east | south-eastern] 东南 東南)
  • nán (south | southern 南)
  • xīnán (xī·nán {west | western} · {south | southern} → [south-west | south-western] 西南)
  • xī (west | western 西)
  • xīběi (xī·běi {west | western} · {north | northern} → [north-west | north-western] 西北)

Note how the Mandarin expressions for the ordinal or intercardinal directions use reverse word order compared to their English counterparts. For example, “xīběi (xī·běi {west | western} · {north | northern} → [north-west | north-western] 西北)” literally means “west · north”, in contrast to the English word “north-west”. This may remind one of how the Mandarin word for “compass”, past MEotW “zhǐnán‐zhēn ((zhǐ·nán {(points with) finger → [points]} · south 指南)‐(zhēn needle 针 針) → [compass])”, on a certain level of literalness means “points south needle”, in contrast to the Western view that a compass needle points north. Both are right—when one end of a symmetrical compass needle is pointing south, the other end is simultaneously pointing north—they’re just different ways of thinking about the same thing.

A Longer Usage Example

To provide a longer, more extensive example of how “Zhōngdōng (Zhōng·dōng Middle · East 中东 中東)” and some related expressions can be used in the ministry, here is some Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) Plus material based on the introductory paragraphs of the above-mentioned article:

English:

The world is anxiously watching the conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran. Will the situation escalate into a wider war? Can governments avert disaster and achieve lasting peace?

Those familiar with Bible prophecy may wonder whether this Middle East conflict could be the start of the battle of Armageddon mentioned in the book of Revelation.

What does the Bible say?

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Měiguó (Měi·guó American · Nation → [USA] 美国 美國), Yǐsèliè (Israel 以色列), hé ({(together) with} → [and] 和 和/龢) Yīlǎng (Iran 伊朗) zhījiān (zhī·jiān them · among 之间 之間) de (’s 的) chōngtū (chōng·tū {dashing → [clashing]} · {chimney → [dashing forward]} → [conflict] 冲突 衝突), nòngde (nòng·de {has played with → [has made]} · getting 弄得) shìjiè (shì·jiè {generation → [world]} · extent’s → [world’s] 世界) gèdì (gè·dì various · lands 各地) rénxīn (rén·xīn people’s · hearts → [public feeling] 人心)‐huánghuáng (huáng·huáng {to be fearful → [to be anxious]} · {to be fearful → [to be anxious]} 惶惶). Zhèige (Zhèi·ge this · [mw] 这个 這個) chōngtū (chōng·tū {dashing → [clashing]} · {chimney → [dashing forward]} → [conflict] 冲突 衝突) huì (will 会 會) yǎnbiàn (yǎn·biàn perform · changing → [develop] 演变 演變) chéng ({to become} 成) dà (large 大)‐guīmó (guī·mó {compasses → [rules]} · model → [scale] 规模 規模) de (’s 的) zhànzhēng (zhàn·zhēng war · contending → [war] 战争 戰爭) ma ([? ptcl for “yes/no” questions] 吗 嗎)? Zhèngfǔ (Zhèng·fǔ political · {seats of government} → [governments] 政府) yǒu ({do have} 有) nénglì (néng·lì ability · power 能力) píngxī (píng·xī {to make to be flat, level, even → [to make to be calm]} · {to stop} → [to calm/quiet down] 平息) chōngtū (chōng·tū {dashing → [clashing]} · {chimney → [dashing forward]} → [conflict] 冲突 衝突), dàilái (dài·lái {to bring} · {to come} 带来 帶來) chángjiǔ (cháng·jiǔ long · {for a long time} 长久 長久) de (’s 的) hépíng (hé·píng {being (together) with (one another)} · {being flat, level, even} → [peace (nwtsty-CHS Appx. A2 says this term mainly refers to the absence of war or conflict)] 和平) ma ([? ptcl for “yes/no” questions] 吗 嗎)?

📖 📄 📘 Yǒuxiē (Yǒu·xiē {(there) are having → [(there) are]} · some 有些) dúguo (dú·guo reading · {have passed} → [have read] 读过 讀過) Shèngjīng (Shèng·jīng Holy · Scriptures → [Bible] 圣经 聖經) yùyán (yù·yán {in advance} · sayings → [prophecy] 预言 預言) de (’s 的) rén (people (who) 人) kěnéng (kě·néng maybe · {being able} → [maybe] 可能) huì (will 会 會) dānxīn (dān·xīn {carry on a shoulder pole → [take on (a heavy)]} · heart → [worry] 担/耽心 擔/耽心), zài (in 在) Zhōngdōng (Zhōng·dōng Middle · East 中东 中東) fāshēng (fā·shēng {issuing forth} · {coming to life} → [happening] 发生 發生) de (’s 的) chōngtū (chōng·tū {dashing → [clashing]} · {chimney → [dashing forward]} → [conflict] 冲突 衝突) huì (will 会 會) yǐnfā (yǐn·fā {draw (out)} · {to send out} → [lead to] 引发 引發) Hāmǐjíduōdùn (Armageddon 哈米吉多顿 哈米吉多頓) dàzhàn (dà·zhàn {big → [great]} · war 大战 大戰), cóng’ér (cóng’·ér {from (that)} · thus 从而 從而) dàilái (dài·lái bring · {to come} 带来 帶來) shìjiè (shì·jiè {generation → [world]} · extent’s → [world’s] 世界) mòrì (mò·rì end · {sun → [day]} → [doomsday] 末日).

📖 📄 📘 Nàme (Nà·me {(in) that (case)} · [suf] 那么/末 那麼/末), Shèngjīng (Shèng·jīng (the) Holy · Scriptures → [the Bible] 圣经 聖經) de (’s 的) guāndiǎn (guān·diǎn {looking at → [view]} · point → [viewpoint] 观点 觀點) shì (is 是) shénme (shén·me what · [suf] 什么 什/甚麼) ne ([? ptcl] 呢)?

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Mòrì Shízhōng

Mòrì (Mò·rì End · {Sun → [Day]} → [Doomsday] 末日)
Shízhōng (Shí·zhōng {(Particular) Times} · Clock → [Clock] 时钟 時鐘) 👈🏼 Tap/click to show/hide the “flashcard”

[Notes: Tap/click on a Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to reveal its “flashcard”; tap/click on a “flashcard” or its Pīnyīn (Pīn·yīn {Piecing Together of} · Sounds → [Pinyin] 拼音) expression to hide the “flashcard”. 📖 📄 📘 icons mean 📖 Reveal All, 📄 Reveal Advanced, and 📘 Reveal None re all the “flashcards” in the heading, paragraph, etc. that they are placed at the beginning of.]

At the time of this writing, jw.org was featuring the article “Doomsday Clock Moves Closer to Midnight”. Where the English version of this article uses the expression “Doomsday Clock”, the Mandarin version uses this week’s MEotW, “Mòrì (Mò·rì End · {Sun → [Day]} → [Doomsday] 末日) Shízhōng (Shí·zhōng {(Particular) Times} · Clock → [Clock] 时钟 時鐘)”.

(Incidentally, “wǔyè (wǔ·yè {7th of the 12 Earthly Branches → [south (placed at the midnight position of Chinese directions charts)]} · night → [midnight] 午夜)”, the Mandarin word for “midnight”, was the subject of a past MEotW post.)

The End

The “mò (tip; end [→ [last/final stage]] 末)” in “mòrì (mò·rì end · {sun → [day]} → [doomsday] 末日)” was discussed in the MEotW post on “shìjiè (shì·jiè {generation → [world]} · extent → [world] 世界) mòrì (mò·rì end · {sun → [day]} 末日)”:

The “mò (tip; end [→ [last/final stage]] 末)” in “mòrì (mò·rì end · {sun → [day]} 末日)” also appears in “mòqī (mò·qī end · period 末期)”, and indeed, in “mòshì (mò·shì {end of → [last stage/phase of]} · {generation → [world | age; era]} 末世)”. Some who have been in the Mandarin field for a while may also remember the expression “mòhòu (mò·hòu end · last 末后 末後) de (’s 的) rìzi (rì·zi {suns → [days]} · [suf for nouns] 日子)”. However, note that in the current version of the Mandarin New World Translation Bible (nwtsty), this expression has been replaced with “zuìhòu (zuì·hòu most · afterwards → [final] 最后 最後) de (’s 的) shíqī (shí·qī {(particular) time} · period 时期 時期)” in scriptures such as Ezekiel 38:16.

Ezekiel 38:16 (WOL CHS+Pinyin Parallel Translations)

What Is the Doomsday Clock?

The above-mentioned article contains the following footnote explaining what the Doomsday Clock is:

English:

“The Doomsday Clock is a design that warns the public about how close we are to destroying our world with dangerous technologies of our own making. It is a metaphor, a reminder of the perils we must address if we are to survive on the planet.”—Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 “Mòrì (Mò·rì End · {Sun → [Day]} → [Doomsday] 末日) Shízhōng (Shí·zhōng {(Particular) Times} · Clock → [Clock] 时钟 時鐘) shì (is 是) yí (one 一) ge ([mw] 个 個/个) xūgòu (xū·gòu {being empty → [falsely]} · {constructed → [made up]} → [imaginary] 虚构 虛構) de (’s 的) zhōngmiàn (zhōng·miàn clock · face 钟面 鐘面), yònglái (yòng·lái used · {to come} 用来 用來) jǐngshì (jǐng·shì {to warn} · {to show} 警示) rénmen (rén·men person · [pl] → [people] 人们 人們) yīn ({because of} 因) lànyòng (làn·yòng {overflowingly → [indiscriminately]} · using → [misusing] 滥用 濫用) kējì (kē·jì {branches of study → [science]} · {skills → [technology]} → [technology] 科技), jùlí (jù·lí {being apart from → [distance from]} · {leaving from → [being at a distance from]} → [distance from] 距离 距離) zìwǒ (zì·wǒ self · {me → [self]} 自我) huǐmiè (huǐ·miè destroying · extinguishing → [destruction] 毁灭 毀滅) yǒu ({is having} → [is] 有) duō ({(how) much} 多) jìn ({being close} 近), yě (also 也) tíxǐng (tí·xǐng {to carry (hanging down from the hand) → [to raise]} · {being awake} of → [to remind] 提醒) rénlèi (rén·lèi human·kind 人类 人類) rúguǒ (rú·guǒ if · {fruit → [if indeed]} 如果) yào ({(we) want} 要) bìkāi (bì·kāi {to avoid} · {to be opened from → [to be clear of]} 避开 避開) zhèyàng (zhè·yàng this · kind 这样 這樣) de (’s 的) hàojié (hào·jié great · {plundering → [catastrophe]} 浩劫), jiù (then 就) yào (must 要) jiějué (jiě·jué {untie → [solve]} · decide → [solve] 解决 解決) něixiē (něi·xiē which · {indefinite number of} → [which] 哪些) wèntí (wèn·tí asking · problems → [problems] 问题 問題).”—Yuánzǐ Kēxué‐jiā Gōngbào ((Yuán·zǐ Original · {Small and Hard Things} → [Atomic] 原子) ((Kē·xué {Branches of Study} · Learning → [Science] 科学 科學)‐(jiā -ists’ 家) → [Scientists’]) (Gōng·bào Public · Bulletin → [Bulletin] 公报 公報) → [Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists]) (Yīngyǔ (Yīng·yǔ English · Language 英语 英語)).

“The Closest It Has Ever Been”

It’s noteworthy that the above-mentioned article says that as of January 27, 2026,

English:

“The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists Science and Security Board today sets the Doomsday Clock at 85 seconds to midnight, the closest it has ever been to catastrophe.”—Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 “Yuánzǐ Kēxué‐jiā Gōngbào ((Yuán·zǐ Original · {Small and Hard Things} → [Atomic] 原子) ((Kē·xué {Branches of Study} · Learning → [Science] 科学 科學)‐(jiā -ists’ 家) → [Scientists’]) (Gōng·bào Public · Bulletin → [Bulletin] 公报 公報) → [Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists]) Kēxué (Kē·xué {Branches of Study} · Learning → [Science] 科学 科學) yǔ (and 与 與/与) Ānquán (Ān·quán {Being Safe} · {Being Whole} → [Security] 安全) Wěiyuán‐Huì ((Wěi·yuán Entrusted · Members 委员 委員)‐(Huì Gathering 会 會) → [Board]) jiāng (takes 将 將) Mòrì (Mò·rì End · {Sun → [Day]} → [Doomsday] 末日) Shízhōng (Shí·zhōng {(Particular) Times} · Clock → [Clock] 时钟 時鐘) tiáokuài (tiáo·kuài {to be adjusted} · {to be fast(er) → [to be farther ahead]} 调快 調快) le ([(at the end of a phrase/sentence) indicates a change] 了), jùlí (jù·lí {to be apart from} · {to be leaving from → [to be at a distance from]} 距离 距離) wǔyè (wǔ·yè {7th of the 12 Earthly Branches → [south (placed at the midnight position of Chinese directions charts)]} · night → [midnight] 午夜) zhǐ (just 只 只/秖/衹/祇) shèng ({having remaining} 剩 剩/賸) 85 miǎo (seconds 秒), shì ((which) is 是) rénlèi (rén·lèi human·kind’s 人类 人類) shǐ (history 史) shang (upon 上) zuì (most 最 最/㝡) jiējìn (jiē·jìn {has come close to} · {has been near} 接近) shìjiè (shì·jiè {generation → [world]} · extent’s → [world’s] 世界) mòrì (mò·rì end · {sun → [day]} → [doomsday] 末日) de (’s 的) shíkè (shí·kè {(particular) time} · {carving → [moment]} 时刻 時刻).”—Yuánzǐ Kēxué‐jiā Gōngbào ((Yuán·zǐ Original · {Small and Hard Things} → [Atomic] 原子) ((Kē·xué {Branches of Study} · Learning → [Science] 科学 科學)‐(jiā -ists’ 家) → [Scientists’]) (Gōng·bào Public · Bulletin → [Bulletin] 公报 公報) → [Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists]) (Yīngyǔ (Yīng·yǔ English · Language 英语 英語)).

What’s Ahead?

Naturally, many will have questions like those below, that are asked in the above-mentioned article:

English:

Is the end of humanity and the end of our planet approaching? Do we need to fear what the future holds? What does the Bible say?

Mandarin:

📖 📄 📘 Rénlèi (Rén·lèi human·kind 人类 人類) hé ({(together) with} → [and] 和 和/龢) dìqiú (dì·qiú earth · globe → [the earth] 地球) zhēnde (zhēn·de really · ’s 真的) bīnlín (bīn·lín {are close to (the sea/river/lake/etc.) → [are on the brink of]} · {are approaching} 濒临 瀕臨) huǐmiè (huǐ·miè destroying · extinguishing → [destruction] 毁灭 毀滅) ma ([? ptcl for “yes/no” questions] 吗 嗎)? Wǒmen (Wǒ·men we · [pl] 我们 我們) xūyào ({do need} 需要) dānxīn (dān·xīn {to carry on shoulder poles → [to take on (heavy)]} · hearts (about) → [to feel anxious about] 担/耽心 擔/耽心) wèilái (wèi·lái (what) {has not yet} · come → [the future] 未来 未來) ma ([? ptcl for “yes/no” questions] 吗 嗎)? Shèngjīng (Shèng·jīng (the) Holy · Scriptures → [the Bible] 圣经 聖經) de (’s 的) guāndiǎn (guān·diǎn {looking at → [view]} · point → [viewpoint] 观点 觀點) shì (is 是) shénme (shén·me what · [suf] 什么 什/甚麼)?

It is our privilege to share the answers to those questions with honest-hearted ones in the Mandarin field, if we have learned well enough how to understand Mandarin speech and speak the required Mandarin understandably.—1 Corinthians 14:8–11.