"Bat Bat the ouns went punk. Totally punk. Ahhhhhh. it was so so so coool."
Translation: Mum, mum the boys went completely mad with excitement. ....
These words spoken by Small before he even made it through the door yesterday evening told me that his school Rugby 1st Team had beaten their nemesis and arch rivals yesterday afternoon. And I gather that it was a memorable game despite the unseasonal rain and cold. My mother looked up blankly from her book and needed a translation.
And I realised that as a Christian I sometimes use language and concepts that have a specific meaning for us but which does not translate well into the wider world. Words like love, sin, redemption, evil, forgiveness, repentance. Recently I seem to have had cross purpose conversations with a couple of close friends who are not Christian and who seem somehow to understand these words and the concepts they represent utterly differently from me. It seems to me that sometimes we use a specialised language that is exclusive. I realise that I take care when talking to non accountants to put technical concepts in words that have common meaning, and that I usually only use the technical language of my profession with fellow accountants. And the reason is simple, I want non accountants to understand me clearly and easily. It is a trick to neither be condescending nor arrogant. I am aware often that another will miss the nuances of my point that another accountant might understand easily and that there are hazards of this approach.
But that I don't do the same thing when talking about my Christian understanding of these words. I assume that others understanding is similar to my own. And because of this there is sometimes a terrible misinformed ignorance about key concepts for Christians.
Terri works on it and says it often "words matter".
This is such a good way to think about this issue.
ReplyDeleteMy first spiritual director is a brilliant man whose Ph.D, is in literature and whose life has been spent interpreting Ignatian spirituality. He says he worked very hard to learn to distill complex theological concepts and sophisticated literature into words that can be understood by audiences with no background in those fields.
There are some religious blogs I read on which the language is so dense that no one not en route to an advanced degree could understand them. I find myself hoping that the authors are not headed anywhere near parish ministry.
But you remind me that this is a task for all of us, especially for those of us with an experience of a loving and engaged God who encounter family and friends all the time who think we are nuts.
I appreciate this on my end but find it sometimes hard to reciprocate--thank you for reminding me to do so.
ReplyDeleteIs the phrase common slang or his particular words? It would be hard for me to figure it out too!
His phrase is common slang here amongst school boys at elite private schools. They can actually talk in language that adults understand but the only reason I have learned some of the slang is that year by year I lead a confirmation group of similar age boys. The close contact in the group makes it inevitable that I understand some of what they are saying.
ReplyDeleteHowever Bat is his and his brothers own name for me and not in common use here .... other than as a slightly derogatory term "old bat".