In the beginning was the Word

I got into a very stimulating conversation the other day about language and about how coarse or bad language had unfortunately become the norm in many places these days.

Some would say that this is largely to do with the influence of television and movies. There are comedians today who seem to rely upon the constant use of foul language to make people laugh. To some extent there may be the influence of one’s social or family background.

My mother claimed that it was due to the lack of vocabulary. It does seem that there is a sad loss of eloquence. I used to enjoy listening to the former US president Barack Obama because he had a great command of language. By contrast, Donald Trump sounds so much like an illiterate demagogue.

But it does have implications for what it means to be a missionary disciple of Jesus Christ who is called to preach, in word and deed, the Good News. In his gospel, John sets up a fascinating dynamic between the Divine Word that appears “in the beginning” (1:1) and the human word with which he concludes his gospel – “I suppose the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.” (21:25)

As cross-cultural missionaries, we are sensitive when it comes to language because we are called to proclaim the Divine Word by means of the very human word. And when that Word is communicated via thousands of languages around the world, this thought calls to mind a colourful tapestry woven into a single garment of majestic and unimaginable quality. I mean try to think of one word, like “God” for instance, being translated into 7000 languages. These thousands of words that give expression to this one reality, the divine godhead, don’t have to harmonise or even make common sense. But whatever you do, be absolutely careful how you handle this word or these words! What this means is that we should take care whenever we have something to say, no matter how trivial it may seem.

Going back to my mother, an ardent crossword buff, she could get so excited when she heard a new word, in English, of course. But she would experiment with using this word in diverse ways and tell me about it. It was like a treasure that she had found, and she enjoyed turning it over and over so as to view its many facets. This is what makes for eloquence and good expression, appreciation for the magical quality of language. It also gives us a sense of how sad it is that we have allowed language to become abused and misused in modern times.

Perhaps her enthusiasm for language and learning new words helped me in learning Fijian. I also enjoyed trying out new words. Our teacher was also very good in encouraging us to explore different ways of using a particular word and so helped us to become competent preachers and speakers in Fijian. But there was one thing. He never taught us how to “swear” or to use bad language in Fijian. I have heard a couple of expressions in later years, after my language learning, but I have never dared to use them.

It is sadly interesting to note how Fijian rugby players, like other players of other nationalities, use English words when they are expressing disgust at themselves for making a mistake on the field. It doesn’t take too much effort to read players’ lips to know what they are saying! Still, it does also further indicate the influence of Western movies and television.

Preaching the Word of God is an awesome responsibility. But so is day-to-day speech. May we restore what may be considered old-fashioned respect for language and take care how we speak to one another, even in anger. After all we pass on an important legacy to future generations, our diverse languages by which we give praise to God and show respect for one another.

Fr Tom Rouse - Regional Councillor of Oceania