Posted by
peripheral on Friday, August 08, 2008 8:17:33 AM
From My Perspective - - -
Communicating accurately is
not always as simple and easy as one would hope. So many factors enter into
verbal communication - tone, nuance,
inflection, definition, body language, etc. One needs to be guarded lest
assumption of what is meant overrides what was intended by the words spoken.
It’s always wise to ask for clarification rather than to assume. Basic
Communication is, and entails: “The exchange of thoughts, messages, or information,
as by speech, signals, writing, or behavior. Interpersonal rapport. The art and
technique of using words effectively to impart information or ideas.
For many years, a religious organization has worked to
translate the Bible into every language. It was many years ago that Wycliffe
Bible Translators believed there were only “2,000 tongues to go” and their
literature so indicated. The more they worked with peoples all over the world,
they began to find many tribes and dialects/sounds that were unknown to them –
and so the work goes on. Recently, the Peacemaker Ministry has recently published
(08-01-08): “According to the website www.ethnologue.com, there are 6,912 living
languages in the world. An interesting fact is that “347 (or approximately
5%) of the world’s languages have at least one million speakers and account for
94% of the world’s population. By contrast, the remaining 95% of languages are
spoken by only 6% of the world’s people.” I also found it intriguing to
learn that Papua, New Guinea has the most linguistic diversity of any
country in the world--they have 820 living languages, and if you were to
pick two people at random, there is a 99% chance that they would speak
different languages…”
How well do we communicate with each other in an interpersonal
relationship? Some things that we read, do we try to discern what might be in
the author’s mind or do we critique it based upon a personal position that has
been formulated (and since “I” devised it - it must be correct and the standard
by which all else is measured)? In a religious setting, an appeal can often be
made to one’s Hermeneutic. But even there, whose Hermeneutic – Milton Terry
(Classic); Bernard Ramm (Modern); or McQuilkin (Recent)? While there should be
total agreement, there are different approaches to the understanding of
language and interpretation. For instance, Terry states: “Hermeneutics is the
science of interpretation. The word is usually applied to the explanation
of written documents, and may therefore be more specifically defined as the
science of interpreting an author's language. This science assumes that there
are divers modes of thought and ambiguities of expression among men, and,
accordingly, it aims to remove the supposable differences between a writer and
his readers, so that the meaning of the one may be truly and accurately
apprehended by the others.” Bernard Ramm’s approach had variations with the
Classic view. It was observed about Ramm: “In some respects Ramm's emphasis on
the inner witness of the Spirit reflected the view of John Calvin,
but it also reflected the influence of Karl Barth
under whom he studied in Switzerland.”
Ramm also had struggles with Flood Geology and the age of the earth. It would
be easy to suggest that his Hermeneutic was more subjective than objective.
There are some interesting thoughts in the Epistle of James.
He enjoins that we be “slow to speak” – be accurate (1:19);“speak carefully”
(2:12);and “do not speak negatively” (4:11).One’s task is to communicate,
wisely, clearly, factually so that another individual will be able to discern
the intention and the ramification of what has been communicated. Communication
seeks to pass along information and/or instruction to gain a positive response that
will be demonstrated by an action that ensues.
Consider these things with me and let us be defined and be like
those in Malachi 3:16, “Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened
and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name.”