Pondering missional #2: Language

Language.

Somewhere not far from the heart of it all, the "missional" discussion I sent you to is a search for language. We create new vocabulary when the old definitions and descriptions don't work anymore to say what we're trying to say. That's been true for generations. We need new words to represent new ideas or new discoveries and to replace the things that we want to leave behind. The quest for common language is, at some level, an attempt to unify.

So we have a new word for what we consider a new idea but we realize that it means different things to different people. We want a common definition so when we use this word we know we all mean the same thing. We want to tie it down the meaning to facilitate communication, to prevent misunderstanding, so when we use a word we're all on the same page. If you only have an hour, you want to be able to spend an hour talking about the idea and how to implement it. You don't want to spend all your time trying to define it. Well, there are some people who love spending hours crafting definitions, lol. Different members of the Body with different gifts. Members who need each other.

We need to know that the words we use with children in our care mean the same thing to the each children as they mean to us is also important.

How do you know? Ask! Ask them what it means, what they think of when you say a word, pick the right picture out of a group of pictures. Tell them what you think of when you hear those words.

Sometimes, our different understandings of language come out in discussions after the fact. "Our Father" is in heaven, not "Our Father" aren't in heaven. Which makes the recap important. When I was little and someone said "cramp" I always thought it meant a crab inside you. I wasn't too far off.

And it doesn't work to say, "Is there anyone who doesn't know what ____ means?" Who's going to raise their hand? Assume you're a child. What if you think you know what it means, and you find out you're wrong after it's all over and you miss the point? Or you think everyone understands but you and you don't want to stand out and embarrass yourself.

Language is something we take for granted. Maybe we shouldn't. We don't all share the same understandings, even as adults. Think about language/meaning/context, not just with kids from other cultures but from different regions and subcultures here in the US or North America: kids who watch TV and kids who don't, kids who participate in activities with the vocabulary you're using (sports, characters from books, animals, nature, . . .) and kids who don't. One of the challenges of living in such a diverse culture is finding common language. The more interaction we have with people who aren't like us the more we realize that we can't assume we speak the same language. We may need to assume that we don't.

Instead of assuming we disagree, a phrase like "I'm not sure I know what you mean when you say. . ." goes a long way towards building bridges.