文/文谦
直至1864年夏末，林肯还没想到他会在总统选举中获胜。1864年秋，联邦军的节节胜利，尤其是攻陷了亚特兰大，不但使战局扭转，而且也改变了总统选举的投票结果。
1865年3月4日，林肯在华盛顿发表连任总统就职演说。林肯总统在这次演说中明确流露出，他明了神的意志。此时他知道战争即将结束，他也知道该是反省这个国家和人民经历的痛苦并展望未来的时候了。
On the occasion corresponding to this four years ago all thoughts were anxiously directed to an impending civil war. All dreaded it， all sought to avert it. While the inaugural address was being delivered from this place， devoted altogether to saving the Union without war， insurgent agents were in the city seeking to destroy it without war—seeking to dissolve the Union and divide effects by negotiation. Both parties deprecated war， but one of them would make war rather than let the nation survive， and the other would accept war rather than let it perish， and the war came.
四年前，在与此相同的时刻，所有人的思想都焦虑地集中在一场即将来临的内战上。谁都害怕内战，都想尽办法去避免它。当我在这个地方作就职演说时，我曾想尽量不诉诸战争而保存联邦，然而反叛者的代理人却设法在这个城市里不经过战争来破坏联邦── 他们力图以谈判的方式来瓦解联邦，分享财物。双方都声称反对战争，可是有一方宁愿打仗而不愿让国家生存，另一方则宁可接受战争而不愿让国家灭亡，于是战争就来临了。
Both read the same Bible and pray to the same God， and each invokes His aid against the other. It may seem strange that any men should dare to ask a just God’s assistance in wringing their bread from the sweat of other men’s faces， but let us judge not， that we be not judged. The prayers of both could not be answered. That of neither has been answered fully. The Almighty has His own purposes. “Woe unto the world because of offenses； for it must needs be that offenses come， but woe to that man by whom the offense cometh.”
双方都诵读同样的圣经，向同一位上帝祈祷，甚至每一方都祈求同一个上帝的帮助以反对另一方。人们竟敢要求公正的上帝来帮助他们夺取他人以血汗换来的面包，这看来似乎很奇怪。可是，我们还是别评判人家，以免别人来评判我们。双方的祈祷都无法如愿，而且从没全部如愿以偿。万能的上帝自有他自己的意旨：“世界由于罪恶而受苦难，因为世界总是有罪恶的，然而那个作恶的 人，要受苦难。”
If we shall suppose that American slavery is one of those offenses which， in the providence of God， must needs come， but which， having continued through His appointed time， He now wills to remove， and that He gives to both North and South this terrible war as the woe due to those by whom the offense came， shall we discern therein any departure from those divine attributes which the believers in a living God always ascribe to Him？ Fondly do we hope， fervently do we pray， that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet， if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsman’s two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk， and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the sword， as was said three thousand years ago， so still it must be said “the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.”
假如我们认为美国的奴隶制是这种罪恶之一，而这些罪恶按上帝的意志又在所难免，但既经持续了他所指定的一段时间，他现在便要消除这些罪恶。假如我们认为上帝把这场惨烈的战争加在南北双方的头上，作为对那些作恶的人的责罚，难道我们可以由此认为这有悖于虔奉上帝的信徒们所归诸上帝的那些圣德吗？我们殷切地希塑，热忱地祈祷，但愿这战争的重罚会很快过去。可是，假使上帝要让战争再继续下去，直到二百五十年来奴隶无偿劳动所积聚的财富化为乌有，并像三千年前人们所说的那样，直至被鞭苔所流的每一滴血为刀剑下流的每一滴血所偿付为止，那么，我也只好说：“主的裁判是完全正确而公道的。”
With malice toward none， with charity for all， with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right， let us strive on to finish the work we are in， to bind up the nation’s wounds， to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan， to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.
我们对任何人都不怀恶意，我们对任何人都抱好感。神让我们看到哪一边是正确的，我们就坚信那是正确的一边。让我们继续奋斗，以完成我们正在进行的工作， 去治疗国家的创伤，去照顾艰苦作战的战士和他们的遗孀遗孤，尽一切努力实现并维护我们自己之间以及我国与他国之间的公正和持久的和平。◇
责任编辑：章勤
