Scripture and prayers in other languages

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McatholicN

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From studying linguistics, I’ve learned that certain things cannot be perfectly translated from one language to another. So what if someone speaks a language where they can’t pray the Our Father or recite John 1:1-5 without making a theological error/heresy? Would it be immoral (we can’t judge if they’ve actually sinned, correct?) to pray/recite these things?
 
Things often cannot be translated word-for-word, that is true. As a multilingual I understand this very well. But that does not mean they cannot be translated well and translated accurately. All it means is that care must be taken to ensure that the meaning and understanding of the text is properly, translating not just the words themselves but their deeper context and expression. So I cannot imagine a situation where a translation would have to cause a theological error.
 
A language so deficient is theoretically possible, but in practice, I am not aware of a single one. Even Toki Pona, an artificial language known for its simplicity, has translated religious texts such as the New Testament. See for yourself. It includes Matthew’s version of the Lord’s Prayer.
 
McatholicN said:
From studying linguistics, I’ve learned that certain things cannot be perfectly translated from one language to another. So what if someone speaks a language where they can’t pray the Our Father or recite John 1:1-5 without making a theological error/heresy? Would it be immoral (we can’t judge if they’ve actually sinned, correct?) to pray/recite these things?
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This is one of those places where the distinction between “literal” and “literalist” is important. We worship and serve the Living God, not a the written text.
 
Elizium23 said:
A language so deficient is theoretically possible, but in practice, I am not aware of a single one. Even Toki Pona, an artificial language known for its simplicity, has translated religious texts such as the New Testament. See for yourself. It includes Matthew’s version of the Lord’s Prayer.
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As a conlanger, I am glad that you refrenced a conlang (albeit a rather unpopular one in the conlanging community). 👍 In fact, I asked this question because I have a language I made that I want to translate prayers and scripture into it.
 
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