The Meaning and understanding of words and language of the rational nature of man in the Church, contrasted with that of the world

LANGUAGES: HUMAN AND DIVINE

by Hieromonk Haralampos (Skordakis)

(Delivered at the Clergy Synaxis, October 4, 1995)

Perhaps everyone has had the experience of speaking to someone and being misunderstood or not understood. What one understands is not what the other understands even though a common language is shared. The mistake in meaning could be attributed to the language since everyone understands a word in the light of his own experience. Different experiences will shade a spectrum of meanings for the same word, graduating from different subjective nuances to a quite different definition. In addition, some concepts signified by the words may be beyond the capacity of the other or completely outside his experience. A blind man would not understand a description of color; nor could a man…