Why Latin?

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Sister_Amy

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Why would a mass be in Latin, to a population that doesn’t speak Latin?
 
It provides a universal language, so that any Catholic anywhere in the world can attend a mass and be able to know what is going on.
 
Sister_Amy said:
Why would a mass be in Latin, to a population that doesn’t speak Latin?
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Many Churches use the language of their origin. The Church is 2000 years old. Even for Greeks, the Greek of the Liturgy is not modern Greek. For Ukranians, the language of the liturgy is Old Church Slavonic.

Mass is primarily for those initiated into the Faith. By the time you have been taught and have lived the Christian life well enough to participate fully in the Mass, you will understand the language, even if it is not the language of your everyday speech.

Jews conduct much of their worship in Hebrew, Moslems use Arabic . . . It is very common. And across national boundaries, the language binds people of a common faith in a common worship. It’s really quite beautiful.
 
ibkc said:
It provides a universal language, so that any Catholic anywhere in the world can attend a mass and be able to know what is going on.
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people around the world know english a lot more than latin.
 
AgnosTheist said:
people around the world know english a lot more than latin.
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This is the perfect example of the ignorance of agnos.

The Latin language was the language of the western world for hundreds if not thousands of years, almost every western language is derived from it and most words have their roots in it.

Reason is not sufficient as you have once again proven, because your idea of reason is insufficient.
 
Sister_Amy said:
Why would a mass be in Latin, to a population that doesn’t speak Latin?
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For some centuries it was not allowed the translation of the Bible to other languages, it was feared that the word of God would be misinterpreted or changed

Only then it was allowed the translations to other languages

From one language to another there is always changes, and difficulties

The first and official bible of Catholic Church was Latin Vulgate, and still is the main source for all translations…

You can find Latin Vulgate in Vatican Library

But there was some revisions for spellings, punctuations, etc…

But changes were minimum
 
AgnosTheist said:
people around the world know english a lot more than latin.
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shrug And your point is? It’s actually better to keep using an ancient, dead-but-not-forgotten language as the universal one, to avoid the inevitable political implications which go along with choosing a language. Also, many elements of the Catholic liturgical experience developed around Latin and don’t translate all that well into English and other languages: chant, for instance.
 
Sister_Amy said:
Why would a mass be in Latin, to a population that doesn’t speak Latin?
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As near as I can tell, it’s the same concept as practiced in the reform temple I occasionally attend. They’ll have Hebrew, with an English translation in writing or in a second narration (which, surprisingly, does not detract from the service as much as you’d imagine).

There’s a wider issue re: Latin that transcends religion, but remains relevant to your question.

Until recently most people in the west learned Latin, in the same way many Afghanis and Africans learned Arabic, and in that regard it was a common language by which a person could be understood widely when speaking to a worldwide audience. Latin was supplanted in the 19th century by French, and now English. The next language of the educated might be Mandarin.

The idea of Latin as a universal language is a good one, in that it carries little in the way of cultural imperialism or national chauvinism, in the way that English does. If Christians in Malaysia held services in English, they’d inherently be communicating a message of Anglo-American superiority. Nobody speaks Latin as a first language at this point in history, and as a result it can be everyone’s second language, and no one’s first.
 
ibkc said:
It provides a universal language, so that any Catholic anywhere in the world can attend a mass and be able to know what is going on.
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Short and to the point. Beautifully said. Thank you. :twocents:
 
Sister_Amy said:
Why would a mass be in Latin, to a population that doesn’t speak Latin?
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At the time Latin began to be used, it was the common language of the parts of the Roman empire, used very widely as English is today. Educated persons of one culture could speak and write it; it was a unifying factor. Since the church had spread to many countries, it was a good way to maintain unity. After the fall of Rome, Latin continued to be taught and used in the universities. Seminaries taught in Latin.

Even as late as 1960, two years of Latin were required to get into most colleges in the US. So many people knew a little Latin.

As Roman Catholics, Latin is our heritage. Many great hymns, prayers, and other writings were in Latin. I grew up with mass in Latin. I personally prefer mass in a language I speak but some prefer mass in Latin to be in touch with our heritage and because they feel that those who attend the Latin mass are more reverent in their behavior.

What language do Muslims use for their daily prayers? Is it Arabic or the language of the country where they live?
 
We use Aramaic in our mass…not all the mass though…it is not true that we do not understand it…of course the first time we won’t, but we can take pamphlets (sp?), and learn how to pronounce them and what they mean…many Arabic words are derived from Aramaic so we understand them perfectly.
 
Sister_Amy said:
Why would a mass be in Latin, to a population that doesn’t speak Latin?
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Because Latin ROCKS! 🙂

But seriously…I was discussing this with my daughter today…she said she noticed that the oldest religions all pray in a language distinct to that religion, for example:

In traditional Judaism, synagogue services are entirely in Hebrew.

In the Eastern churches, the Divine Liturgy is entirely in Old Church Slavonic.

In traditional Roman Catholicism, the Tridentine Mass is (almost, except for the Kyrie Eleison) entirely in Latin.

And don’t Muslims perform salat (daily prayers) in Arabic?
 
If Latin is the language of the church, did Jesus speak Latin?

Why can Bibles be translated?

If mass can’t be translated because Latin is special then why was the Bible translated from Latin into English, etc?

Should the Bible have been translated into Latin from Greek?

Why isn’t Greek or Aramaic the language of the Church when it’s more likely Jesus spoke those languages? Why not Hebrew, the language of the Jews? Why Latin?
 
Sister_Amy said:
Why would a mass be in Latin, to a population that doesn’t speak Latin?
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Why would an Islamic Sholat must be in Arabic for the Indonesian muslims who are much more than the Arabs, and they don’t speak Arabic?
 
inJESUS said:
We use Aramaic in our mass…not all the mass though…it is not true that we do not understand it…of course the first time we won’t, but we can take pamphlets (sp?), and learn how to pronounce them and what they mean…many Arabic words are derived from Aramaic so we understand them perfectly.
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Maronite?
 
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