Linguistics is the last of the four subfields of Anthropology, the others being biological, archaeological, and socio/cultural. Simply put, linguistics is the scientific study of language-how it began, how it evolved, how various groups of people weave it into their cultures, and much else. Studying languages and the meanings that they have on societies today has always been beautiful to me, for each language is similar to a puzzle, one that is delicately strung together in intentional ways, made up of tiny individual pieces that are vital in making up the whole. I could get lost for ages in the complexity of merely one single language.
Languages are how people interact and communicate with one another, and being elements of cultures they are serve as ways for groups of people to claim a unique identity in and of themselves. Oftentimes linguistics becomes the main, distinct difference between one people group and another. Like any culture, the mainline Protestant evangelical culture within North America has a language of its own which separates it as a people group from any other, and like any other language it consists of common phrases, cliches, and sayings that contain meanings used to connect those that are a part of the culture. Like any other language, it is a cultural characteristic. It is a complex puzzle made up of many pieces, and just as languages within other cultures, this one, often termed 'Christianese', is a beautiful part of the North American Church that identifies her as the unique culture that she is. Christianese is a part of what makes the Church the Church.
You most likely know what I'm describing. It's a language drawn from the Scriptures, old hymns, and tradition that has been passed on from generation to generation that is still used frequently today, particularly within my generation. It's phrases such as the following:
'He/she is sold out for Jesus'
'I just love doing life together'
'You don't want to cause your brother/sister to stumble'
'I'm just really trying to love on that person'
'I feel led to do this or that'
'It's just a *fill-in-the-blank* season of life for me'
'This is my life-verse'.
'What's your love language?'
'It's not a religion-it's a relationship'
'I have such a heart for *insert third world country here*'
'I'm not single, I'm just dating Jesus' (is this one even biblical? hmm...)
It's words like:
'Abounding'
'Lavished'
'Servant-hearted'
'Purpling'
'Fellowship'
'Knee-mail'
It's abbreviations such as:
'MK'
'DTR'
'PTL'
'WWJD'
The lists are endless, because in various parts of the world and especially in North America Christians are seeking out 'callings', furthering 'testimonies', 'spreading the seeds', 'living in community', and being each others 'prayer warriors'. Christianese is an amazing phenomenon found within the Church.
A lot of people have blogged, written, and spoken out against Christianese, but that isn't the goal of this post. There are already plenty of articles bashing the language, and I do not wish to heap more abusive wordage onto the pile, because the truth is, it's not all bad. In fact, in and of itself, it isn't bad at all. Language is a magnificent gift, a cultural element that distinguishes a group as unique from any other. Language is a means of identifying, a method of communication. Language is good; it has never been inherently evil.
Rachel Held Evans published a lovely post on how Christianese can be an edifying tool indeed: Vulnerability and Christianese.
Why then, does it receive so much flack?
There are various reasons.
Though language is a cultural element that connects people and creates inclusivity, when used in the wrong context or with the wrong intent it actually creates exclusive barriers.
For example, about two years ago I had one occurrence where, in a frustrated bout of conviction, I threw up my hands and declared that I had been 'letting grace abound!' My friend, a nonbeliever who was sitting next to me, looked at me, began to laugh, and responded with, 'what does that even mean?!'
The moment was pivotal. I realized that I had become so accustomed to using a language that I had reached a point of becoming careless with my speech. I was not speaking out of an intentional place, and because of this a relational barrier divided my friend and me. What's worse, a bit of the kingdom was made confusing to him, all because I wasn't thinking about what was coming out of my mouth or how another person may or may not perceive it.
Thankfully, we were able to laugh that one off and I easily explained my words (to let grace abound means to sin knowingly without caring, basically. Simply put: it is taking advantage of God's grace). This instance was easily fixed, but there are other examples that are perhaps more fatal.
When Christians throw around abbreviations in everyday conversation, people who are unfamiliar with them literally cannot understand what is being said. At least with certain phrases and words someone could use context or make a best guess to decipher the meaning, but with abbreviations all hope has been demoted to three or four letters that could stand for a multitude of different words.
The point is, when Christian lingo becomes a tool that excludes people and confuses the kingdom of God rather than includes people and reveals truth, it has become distorted from its original goodness.
When we throw words around carelessly without thinking, we forget who we are representing.
Christians are called sons and daughters of God because in accepting God's gift of grace, we accept His invitation to be His children. The picture of an earthly adoption reflects this concept perfectly: if I were to adopt a little girl or boy, he or she would take on my name. From that point forward, he or she would be a 'Ward' and anyone who hears the name would associate the child with me. I would hope that the child would represent the family name well, being known for a redemptive spirit and having a heart after God's. He or she would be a Ward. He or she would live a life that would be associated with the Ward family.
The same is true in the family of God. If I claim to be a Christ-follower, then I am claiming a name that I represent with my life. My thoughts, my actions, and my words all reflect the God that I believe in. Language matters because it tells the world about the God that we claim to believe in. This is vital to understand, because knowing this can help Christians to become more aware of what we say and when we say it. Understanding this can put our hearts back on track, for 'out of our hearts our mouths speak' (Luke 6:45). Grasping this concept can teach us to speak lovingly, for our words no longer are our own but they are representing God and His character.
Oftentimes our speech becomes sloppy, so that our words are actually unbiblical.
I won't discuss this point in depth here, but there are often phrases and even concepts that circulate within the Church that aren't even based upon Scripture, and these sorts of things are deceptive and deteriorating to the Faith. Church, we need to strive for intellectual faith that is truly based upon the Bible.
Lastly, Christian lingo becomes a stumbling block when we use it to comfort ourselves rather than edify other people.
There are so many words and phrases that apply to this last point. I follow a lot of Christian bloggers and authors, so I absorb various posts, books, tweets, and articles on a regular basis. Sometimes, I appreciate the ones who write with descriptive language and wordy paragraphs, because sometimes the words are poetic and used properly to make a point. However, there are times when I come across a post or an article that makes me want to slap my palm to my forehead and say, 'can't you just tell it to me straight?' When we use words like 'lavish' and 'revel' or when we use Greek to emphasize a point, extreme caution must be used. I'm not saying using descriptive language is sinful or that ancient languages can't be helpful, it's just a person does not have to be educated to understand the Bible. You don't have to know Greek to understand unconditional love. Sometimes these tools can be hindrances rather than helpful, depending on who is listening and how they are being used.
Oftentimes we use words and phrases without thinking about who is listening, and when we forget about who is receiving the words, then our focus is most-likely on ourselves. I'm not sure what motivations we could conjure up-creating environments in which we feel included and comfortable, using words to make ourselves sound smart, engaging lingo for the wrong reasons-but the point is that we need to always be aware of our motivation behind all areas of life, even our words, otherwise we become passive, foolish, unintentional, and even hurtful, and none of these attributes are of God.
The language that has evolved within the evangelical culture is an intriguing phenomenon to say the least, and what's interesting to me is that I get it: I understand the appeal to use words and phrases that connect people in a loving way. Especially with Christianese the appeal is strong, because what it says is who we are. Our words and phrases identify us as the ones of love, the children of light, the ones who love a God so good that He looked on us as messy sinners and called us lovely sons and daughters. I get it, I really do, and I use some (though not all) of the phrases and words listed above. However, when it comes to any aspect of life, Christians are called to be intentional, and with culture elements it is vital to strive for unity in order to preserve relationships. The Church should constantly be in a state of forming community with one another while keeping an open-door policy, so that no man, woman, or child is excluded from the kingdom of God. Somehow we've got to find a way, especially with our language, to hold on to cultural diversity while still existing as an inclusive, unified body that reaches out to love the world so that more people may know love.
