Language of Religion…
I discussed a few days ago some of my thoughts on the preservation of language. When I look at classical Greek and Hebrew I see a clear reason to keep alive certain aspects of a given language. Even though such a language might be in the process of ‘dying’ or simply just used by a smaller people group I wonder if many languages have ties to religious communication. When I studied Biblical Greek in college we clearly studied the language for religious purposes. Obviously the religious purpose is Christianity related in this situation. While looking at classical Greek one could easily tie the language to incredible epic poetry and ancient history (very important things!) it serves the decided purpose, as well, of communicating about Jesus. Hebrew and Greek live on in their classical forms in part because they live on in Biblical manuscripts. Could other languages be preserved for the purposes of communicating the truths of God?
As an aside I want to mention that I am aware that a number of classical languages “live on” in for a number of reasons including history, culture, religion, and more. I am simply stating that I wonder if one huge reason for preserving languages is for communicating about Jesus as well as communicating with Jesus.
Which brings me to my second aspect of this discussion. I moved in a number of different denominational circles over the course of life and found myself often exposed to the issue of “speaking in tongues”. I smile when I think of the hours of debate that exists around this topic. One argument that exists presses the point that the Greek term “glossalia” refers only to clearly understandable human languages. While I am not weighing in on the issue of tongues I am setting the stage for my point.
In church a few weeks ago I found myself praying aloud in a foreign language during our singing time. Yes, aloud. I began to wonder suddenly if people around me worried about the crazy guy speaking in tongues during worship! I knew exactly what I was saying. That is my issue. At times I prefer using words from other languages to communicate with Jesus as I feel that those words fit my mindset better in that moment. I also tend to focus more while worshiping in a foreign language. I love these fruits that come from hours of language study. Could languages be preserved and cultivated for communication with Jesus?
I keep working through this concept as it fascinates me and is very practical to me. Might be worth taking a shot praying a bit in your favorite foreign language tonight…
Nature of a Nomad 
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