Questions tagged [language]

Languages spoken by Biblic characters, linguistic approaches in Bible study and meeting of faith and finer points of language such as using God's name in vain.

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1 answer
73 views

How well do Catholics in the USA know Latin?

Latin is the official language of the Catholic Church. And, after Croatia got independent in the early 1990s, the Catholic Church has lobbied the Croatian government to introduce Latin as an ...
2 votes
1 answer
527 views

According to Catholicism, is ”damn” a blasphemous expression?

A lot of things in today's culture have names with the word "damn" in them, e.g., the restaurant Hattie B's Hot Chicken has a menu option named "Damn Hot". I'm sure it was a sin ...
14 votes
5 answers
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What is the reasoning for Latin being the official language of Catholic Mass?

The New Testament was originally written in Greek. But yet Roman Catholics held Mass in Latin for hundreds of years. What scriptural evidence, if any, caused Latin to be picked over Greek? Was any ...
2 votes
1 answer
120 views

What do Young-Earth Creationists think about the Proto-Afro-Asiatic language? Did it really exist? And, if so, when?

Young-Earth Creationists, as far as I understand it, believe that Proto-Indo-European was one of the languages spoken immediately after the Tower of Babel, that is, around 2200 BC. Obviously, you need ...
3 votes
2 answers
2k views

How would I write Jesus in in ancient Aramaic?

I would like to know how to print out Jesus is God in Aramaic specifically the Aramaic Christ spoke.
0 votes
2 answers
469 views

How did Moses speak to the children of Israel & write the Torah if he was learned in all the ways of the Egyptians?

Text: “At this time Moses was born, and was well pleasing to God; and he was brought up in his father’s house for three months. But when he was set out, Pharaoh’s daughter took him away and brought ...
-2 votes
2 answers
2k views

In what language were the four Gospels and Paul's writings originally written?

I'm an Orthodox Christian and the tradition we believe says that Matthew and John (the Gospel writers) are the same as Matthew and John (two of the original 12 apostles). I know that scholars say that ...
3 votes
1 answer
568 views

How did Rahab speak the language spoken by Joshua’s spies

Did the Israelites learn many languages in Egypt and pass them down (including to one of these two spies)? Is it known how Rahab was able to communicate?
2 votes
2 answers
2k views

What language did Adam speak?

Is it possible to know the language that Adam and Eve spoke? I am not interested in "how did Adam and then Eve, learned to speak", but rather is it possible to know the language that was ...
0 votes
2 answers
177 views

When Jesus was living on the Earth, was He capable of communicating in all languages?

I am curious to know if Jesus was capable of communicating with everyone on the Earth back when He was living on the Earth. So, say for example, if a person from China had visited Israel back in 30 A....
0 votes
1 answer
65 views

What is the Biblical Basis against the use of profanity?

It's very common to have a negative perception about cursing, saying swear words (i.e. the use of profanity), among all Christian groups. What is the biblical basis for not swearing?
16 votes
6 answers
14k views

In which language did Pontius Pilate communicate with Jesus?

According to this post: Both Aramaic and Hebrew were in use in the Land at the time of Jesus. However, while we cannot say one predominated, we can say that Mishnaic Hebrew was very much a living ...
2 votes
1 answer
183 views

Do the teachings of Catholic Church prohibit the use of “Amen” for purposes other than prayers?

Amen is a secular word of Greek and Hebrew origin, and is used to express solemn ratification (as of an expression of faith) or hearty approval (as of an assertion). The Church has been associating ...
0 votes
1 answer
121 views

Why are missionary priests allowed to fumble over liturgies in the vernacular?

Traditiones Custodes states that ... possess a knowledge of the Latin language sufficient for a thorough comprehension of the rubrics and liturgical texts, and be animated by a lively pastoral ...
7 votes
1 answer
1k views

Do all Catholic seminary schools require instruction in Latin and/or Greek?

My son has shown an interest in the priesthood. He seems to have the right psychosexual and behavioral characteristics. Among other reasons, notably, he has no interest in physically intimate ...
13 votes
7 answers
21k views

How do Mormon missionaries learn foreign languages so quickly?

Latter-day Saints who choose to serve missions enter a Missionary Training Center for just 2-10 weeks before they go out into their assigned areas for the remaining 18 or 24 months. Since many serve ...
2 votes
1 answer
94 views

Has the Catholic Church issued any guidelines in relation to the language(s) to be used by churches?

India is a country which boasts of rich cultural heritage including a large number of languages. In addition to the ancient Indo-Aryan language Sanskrit,India has 21 modern languages along with 19,...
12 votes
2 answers
2k views

What are the good Bahasa / Malay / Indonesian words to refer to the Christian God?

Recently there has been a ban on the use of the word Allah to refer to the Christian God. What are the good alternatives to the word Allah in countries where it is banned? I heard Tuhan is one of ...
26 votes
4 answers
17k views

What languages did Jesus speak?

As a young believer I was quickly turned on to the idea of learning some things about the "original languages" of the Bible. After all, how could you understand John 21:15-17 without ...
2 votes
0 answers
122 views

How did Jesus say "God"? [duplicate]

When Jesus spoke of God, he often said Father, or Lord. Or at least he used the corresponding words in the language of his time. Of course, these words have an ordinary meaning, besides designing the ...
9 votes
2 answers
1k views

What languages were used during Mass from paleo-Christianty until the Council of Trent?

I know Latin was a vulgarization in attempting to make Mass more accessible to Christians. So which were the languages used in paleo-Christian Mass? Koine Greek, classical Greek, or something else? ...
3 votes
1 answer
88 views

Question regarding different translations of the Bible into Japanese

I also posted this on the Japanese language site but I don’t feel like it fits very well in either category. If you can think of a better stack exchange site please let me know. Some background: My ...
6 votes
3 answers
1k views

Why use Yeshua instead of Jesus?

We known the name of Christ through the Bible which is written in κοινή greek. In the original language the name is Ἰησοῦς which transliterated to Latin as Iesus and then to English as Jesus. Why ...
1 vote
2 answers
1k views

Should the Catholic rosary be recited in Latin or the vernacular language?

Should the Catholic prayer be recited in Latin or the vernacular language? During recitation, should the Catholic recite by chanting the verses or by singing with a catchy melody? Is it a sin to use ...
8 votes
1 answer
5k views

Did Martin Luther know Hebrew or Greek?

I know that Martin Luther knew Latin and German, but did he know other languages? For example, did he know Greek or Hebrew (I mean those Greek and Hebrew that the Bible is written in)?
7 votes
6 answers
12k views

Why does Mark 15:34 say "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani"?

In all Christian Bibles the translators wrote this verse in the same language and translated it, (maybe it's Hebrew which I don't know) but why only Mark 15:34 in the whole, is it because when Jesus ...
8 votes
2 answers
561 views

What liturgical languages were used in the worldwide church/broad christiandom around 500 AD?

I understand that the western church used Latin, the eastern church used Greek, and the far eastern church was using Syriac. Was it only those three languages? Or were other languages in use as well ...
1 vote
2 answers
286 views

Is salvation in the name "Jesus", or in the person Jesus [closed]

Are we saved because we believed in "Jesus" (the name) or Jesus (the person)? Because other languages have other names for Jesus. If they call upon that name for salvation would they be saved? I'm ...
9 votes
5 answers
1k views

Can a priest give a Mass in American Sign Language (ASL)? What does he do when he is supposed to lift up the Eucharist while speaking in ASL?

Part of the mass involves the priest lifting up the Eucharist and saying the following aloud: Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world. Blessed are those called to ...
13 votes
2 answers
1k views

Is this distinction of biblical "love" terminology compatible with scripture?

I very frequently hear repeated that there are three Greek words (or word-groups, more precisely) that are translated into the same English word "love"; the words being ἀγάπη, φιλíα, and ἔρως. ἔρως is ...
12 votes
3 answers
429 views

What's the origin of this approach of trying to obtain meaning from the individual letters of Hebrew words?

In a recent question about the names of God, two answers from different people wrote that the letters of the Tetragrammaton by themselves give the meaning of: The Hebrew letters mean “Behold the hand,...
1 vote
4 answers
2k views

Why did the Catholic Church adopt the use of Latin, the language of the crucifiers of Jesus?

While reading on Wikipedia I got to thinking why the church uses Latin as a language. According to the canonical Gospels, Jesus was arrested and tried by the Sanhedrin, and then sentenced by ...
4 votes
1 answer
913 views

Why did Clement of Alexandria say that the name of Jesus, Iesous, has a Greek origin, not a Hebrew one?

Did Clement of Alexandria actually believe that Jesus was called Iesous in Greek and that it wasn't a translation of the Hebrew? Wikipedia cites the Catholic Encyclopedia's entry on the Origin of the ...
27 votes
12 answers
17k views

Are there any examples of sarcasm in the bible? [closed]

The closest in tone to sarcasm, though somewhat different, that I am aware of is John 1:45-46 Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the ...
1 vote
2 answers
7k views

In Genesis, how did the first language come to be?

How did Adam, and then Eve, learn to speak?
5 votes
1 answer
1k views

What were the original languages of the Nicene Creed?

In what languages were the Nicene Creed originally written? I'm guessing it would have been Latin, the official language of the Roman Empire, but by the end of the Council of Nicea, would versions in ...
4 votes
2 answers
1k views

Do exorcisms need to be performed in a particular language?

In Catholicism, does an exorcism need to be performed in a certain language, such as Latin? Or can it be performed in a language of the priest’s choice? Does it need to be one that the demon-possessed ...
4 votes
0 answers
57 views

What is the origin of this triplet: Time, Talents, and Treasure?

I am 50 years old, and I just became aware of widespread usage of "Time, Talents, and Treasure" in religious circles, maybe especially Catholicism. My own religion, Mormonism, has a temple covenant ...
2 votes
3 answers
546 views

What language(s) was Christ likely to have spoken during his mortal ministry?

1st-century Palestine was a relatively small area, surrounded by other countries, and part of the Roman Empire, which influenced commerce, government, and other areas of society. Jerusalem was a major ...
11 votes
2 answers
3k views

What version of the bible do Greek speaking Christians use?

Do Greek speaking Christians still use the Septuagint and original New Testament text? Or do they have a "modern Greek translation"? I ask because the New Testament is 2000 years old, presumably the ...
16 votes
3 answers
4k views

Do Jehovah's Witnesses use different language for theological reasons?

They don't have churches: they have Kingdom Halls (though it's not wrong to refer to a Kingdom Hall as a type of church). They don't have hymns: they have Kingdom Songs (though it's not wrong to ...
2 votes
0 answers
118 views

Would a confession be valid if the priest and penitent can't speak the same language? [duplicate]

Say that a person wanted to undergo the sacrament of confession, but the only priest available did not understand any language that the person spoke. Would that be a valid confession? Or do they need ...
14 votes
6 answers
8k views

Is Latin considered a holy language in the Catholic Church?

I've heard that many Roman Catholic Churches still hold Mass services and particularly ceremonies (e.g. weddings) in Latin. Is this true, and if so why is Latin considered to be a better language than ...
15 votes
4 answers
22k views

In what language was the Book of Matthew written?

I have heard it taught in several places that Matthew was originally written in Hebrew and its intended audience was the Jews (which would help explain why it seems a bit more vague on key Christian ...
0 votes
2 answers
4k views

Why the Western European style names? [closed]

Why are mostly Western European style names like Matthew, Mark, Luke and John used for Middle Eastern people? I mean why are those names still spelled that way in the Bible when we could find all the ...
2 votes
1 answer
245 views

Does Christianity recommend learning other languages or dealing with non-christians? [closed]

In Islamic quran, we Muslims are asked to know people from other nations and following other religions, we are recommended to learn their languages. Allah said: "O Mankind, We have created you from a ...
2 votes
6 answers
11k views

Why did God speak Hebrew?

God wrote the Ten Commandments with His own finger, on tablets of Stone, in Hebrew. When He had finished speaking with him upon Mount Sinai, He gave Moses the two tablets of the testimony, tablets ...
0 votes
1 answer
430 views

Good Urdu Translations of the Bible from the Masoretic and one of the Textus Receptuses, or just either?

I am looking for urdu translations that are reasonably close to the reconstructions of the Hebrew Masoretic text and/or Greek Textus Receptus, being a literal translation. Like how despite the KJV ...
8 votes
5 answers
10k views

Is there any holy language for Christians according to words of Jesus Christ and the apostles?

The Jews have Hebrew. Muslims have Arabic. Hindus have Sanskrit. For Christians, is there any holy language? Is there any holy language for Christians according to words of Jesus Christ and the ...
0 votes
1 answer
3k views

Why do we use the name "Jesus" if the apostles did not use it? [closed]

The gospel says that God has given us one name under heaven by which we a saved. It appears throughout scripture that God puts great importance upon names in both old and new testament. The bible says ...