777 has a very good point. (post 127) In Latin it says “Idem non idem.” That “means” that "The same thing (in one language) is not the same (in another.) I submit, again, such books that explain this re the gospels in laymen’s terms: *The New Man: *an explanaton of some of the parables and miracles of Christ, by Maurice Nicol, and the unfortunatly titled but exceptionally useful Insights for the Age of Aquarius: a handbook for religious sanity, by Gina Cerminara. I also submit my personal experience as a native speaker of Hungarian.
It is just not possible to get a completely conguent translation between Hungarian and English. There are differences in nuance that are based also on cultural context that simply don’t go, as well as the dictionary meaning aspect. And I say that about two languages that exist concurrently, and not with about 2K years difference and through yet another language. Lord, we hardly understand each other in English!!!
And, again, the teaching language of that time had levels of meaning which is why the parable was used. There are nuances, for instance, of the word “I” in those languages that I have not even seen mentioned in christianist interpretations. Could that be important???
It is why an early translation of part of the Bible into Inuit, for instance, had to call Jesus “the seal pup of God” as they have no lambs, and the fig tree posed another problem, those not existing on the tundras.
For my part, I feel that in our minds we shrink God to unsustainable smallness when we don’t allow for the wee portion of His Infinitude in these matters that we don’t personally understand with our magnificent intellects and all-encompassing beliefs.
uch:
