Philosophical And Theological Issues Regarding Language In Worship

The nature of language is a topic of significant recent interest to liturgical scholars. The following article outlines some of the most difficult questions these scholars address. These questions can also be helpful to worship planners and leaders as they reflect on the language they use in worship. Introduction Language is one of the primary ways that a people's culture is indicated and transmitted. Liturgical language is that set of words, usually vernacular but not necessarily colloquial, with which the Christian assembly publicly prays. What are the many issues that concern us as we choose the language for our liturgy? In order to give our conversation specific focus, we shall consider the liturgical use of the tetragrammaton (YHWH as a name for God; cf. Exodus 3) as our primary case in point as we attempt to list the questions concerning liturgical language before the Christian churches today. God's Unspeakability We begin where all liturgical language begins: the Bible. In…