Archaic hymns: Speaking in Tongues for the Reformed?

I've started with that provocative heading because I do think there's a key passage to direct our attention to. It's the section of 1 Corinthians dealing with speaking in incomprehensible tongues. And I think there's an irony that some Reformed churches fall into the same error as those wilder charismatic churches which practise glossolalia without interpretation, something Paul speaks against (1 Cor 14vv13,19)

The Corinthians clearly thought these utterances were a mark of higher spirituality, but Paul challenges their thinking. Unless there is interpretation, "you will be speaking into the air" (v9)

I have had concerns about this for years, but have felt prompted to blog on this subject because of a sizeable group of Iranians who've been coming to church. I want to take one line of a hymn as an example:

Many of us are familiar with the line in the classic Be Thou My Vision: ‘Nought be all else to me save that thou art’. If you asked your average churchgoer to explain what they're singing there, I think they'd struggle. In fact, I still don't know what exactly that line is saying!

Praise! is a hymnbook which has breathed new life into old hymns by modernising the language. They have rendered a valuable service to the church, especially since a quarter of century on from their revision work, British churches have far more non-native English speakers in the congregation.

Imagine you're an Iranian with elementary English and you're glad that you have worked out some key words like holy, forgiveness, 'save' and 'Saviour'. Church is becoming more heart-warming to you. But then you're expected to understand that 'save' has this archaic meaning of 'except'. 'Nought be all else to me save that thou art'.

Compare the modern Praise! version:

Lord, be my vision, supreme in my heart,

bid every rival give way and depart:

you my best thought in the day or the night,

waking or sleeping, your presence my light.

which is surely more understandable and therefore edifying than

Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart;

Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art;

Thou my best Thought, by day or by night,

Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Some older folks might be put out, especially if they have the older lyrics memorised. (I think service leaders can encourage them to retain those old versions in their minds, and cherish them-- and value the opportunity to sing these modernised words as a fresh perspective on the much-loved version we may have grown up singing, so that we can continue to sing them at home with renewed thoughtfulness and understanding.)

In this case, people are not actually holding to the original version, unless we sing the Gaelic original! But even if with other hymns some argue for the original version, I think we should seek to use what will most build up the body of Christ. And in the body of Christ, the stronger should serve the weaker, following the pattern of the great Son of Man who gave his life for others. There is something worrying if clinging to tradition leads us to sing something which Iranians, Ukrainians and many others will simply not grasp. 

In Praise! - search and check out their versions- in Crown Him with Many Crowns they sensibly replace 'ineffably sublime' with 'in majesty sublime'. This small change brings us closer to understanding what we're singing. 

By way of conclusion, let's hold the words we use in church to Paul's plumb-line: "I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with my understanding" 1 Cor 14:15

Extra Notes:

a) I don't think thees and thous are the biggest problem. They can be explained. And so I wouldn't make a big deal about replacing the thees in And Can it Be. It is of course a wisdom call in the few cases where 'thee' leaves us with a rhyme and 'you' does not. You're then balancing better rhyme with clearer English 

b) Careful readers of Paul will see that archaic words don't contravene Paul's instructions if there is interpretation. In line with this principle, some churches put glosses for complex words in the margins. This is a way to raise the bar of people's understanding, rather than having to dumb everything down -which then witholds from the church the richer words of some quite complex hymns.

Starting Conversations with Muslim Shopkeepers

Some notes from a seminar in Glasgow (mp3 here):

'Where are you from?' is often an alienating question, because for one thing it can be a hard question to answer, and it can sound xenophobic. (I remember the guy I asked that question to at a petrol station kiosk and he replied 'Well, I used to live in Belgium, and I'm a Kurd who grew up in Syria and now I live in the UK')
Other approaches we discussed in this seminar include:

1. A better intro question might be 'We're terrible at learning other languages in Britain. What other languages do you speak?' Or make an educated guess- 'Do you speak some Urdu or Arabic?' [this already marks you out from xenophobes. People who hate Asians, for example, probably don't know their main language is called Urdu- his ethnographic knowledge barely stretches further than the abbreviated form of 'Pakistani'...]
   
2. Note whether they sell alcohol & pork. This will give an indication of how serious their Islam is. If they sell bacon sandwiches, we can point out we agree that all foods are clean, and as Jesus said the real issue is what comes out of our hearts.
3. Take an interest in their spices and ethnic food products. "I'd love to be able to cook a better curry!"...sometimes the wife would love to have a woman visit and learn from them how to cook.
4. Ask them to show you their favourite Kurdish/ Punjabi/ Turkish singer on YouTube.
5. If they're a parent, talking about bad influences at school is a good topic to bring up. Many Muslims are alarmed at what the LGBT lobby try to foist on young children, and they will respect you if you say you are very unhappy about how marriage is undermined in many schools and that the Bible does not support homosexual practice and transgender ideology. 
   
   
   

Can Kurds Understand Eachother Across Dialects?

Yes, and No...

I've just got back from Scotland and I had two very different experiences of the Kurmanji-Sorani divide. I had supper with a family from Erbil who speak Sorani and we had no problems talking in each other's dialects and understanding eachother.

Then I sat next to an Iranian Kurd in church who also speaks Sorani and he really struggled to understand basic things I was saying to him. He presumably has had little or no contact with Kurmanji speakers, whereas Sorani speakers from Erbil are so close to the Kurmanji territory (ie north-west of the Greater Zab river) that many of them can understand Kurmanji quite well. When I read out Psalm 67 with this family in Kurmanji, they seemed to follow it fine and gladly got out their phone to video the reading, evidently feeling this was very much 'their language' being spoken.

If you mention to Kurds the botched attempt to create a Kurdish Esperanto called 'Sormanji', they will likely be amused. It was always just a pipe-dream. Linguists sometimes point out that Sorani and Kurmanji are actually different languages, not just dialects. This is technically true, but there is so much overlap in terms of vocabulary that it does often feel like they are dialects rather than languages.

The Behdini spoken by about a quarter of the five million in Iraqi Kurdistan is a sub-dialect of Kurmanji, and it's generally closer to Sorani than the Kurmanji spoken by Kurds in Syria or Turkey.

Other realities worth noting are that often people who speak Behdini understand Sorani quite well, but the Sorani speakers don't understand Behdini so well. It's like Portuguese people understanding Spanish because it's the more widely-spoken language. And then there's the diaspora factor, where Kurds might be working together in barber shops and spending hours hearing the other dialect/language being spoken. Kurdish TV has also improved the mutual comprehension of different Kurdish groups: Rudaw and Kurdistan 24, for example, both switch unannounced between Sorani and Kurmanji broadcasting, so you end up hearing both.

And then there's the obvious issue of script. Turkish Kurds will almost certainly not be able to read the Arabic script, but in a spoken form it may well make quite good sense. Iraqi Kurds in theory should be able to copy with Kurdish written in Latin script, but in practice they often turn away from wirtten text and just find it too difficult. (They themselves likely write in 'Lazy Latînî' in text messages, but that doesn't mean they can happily read a poem or newspaper article in Latin script)

If you're wanting to share Scripture, remember that Psalm 23 or John 3:16 will quite likely make sense across dialects, but don't expect them to sit through an exposition of Romans if it's not in their dialect! 

Praying for the Asylum Crisis

Friends, 

We shd pray for our Prime Minister & the Home Office: "By the end of 2023, the Prime Minister has pledged to clear the backlog of 92,601 so-called 'legacy' cases which had been in the system as of the end of June last year." (Independent Newspaper) 

The costs are eye-watering: "Home Office spending on asylum in the year to June rose by £1.85billion, up from £2.12billion in 2021/22." (GB News) The asylum crisis is costing Britain £4 billion a year* [comparative annual UK figures: prisons £.5 billion, schools cost £106 billion]. As Christians, we should not be angry so much at footing this bill as taxpayers, but because able-bodied young people are left in limbo and unable to properly contribute to society, so that sparse public funds will not be able to go to those really in need of welfare.

"Lord, please would these precious people, made in your image, all 175,457 people waiting for an initial decision on their asylum claims, become productive members of UK society, or where their claims are judged spurious be speedily removed, so that they can help contribute to the welfare of their country of origin rather than being left in limbo, unable to do paid work and often left anxious and depressed. Help us as churches to help them integrate and learn English; and may we be enriched and challenged by the many beautiful things in their cultures, so that our churches more and more resemble the 'house of prayer for all nations' which our Lord Jesus died to create. And may many who observe the kindness of UK churches be pointed to the Lord Jesus' wonderful grace and become followers of Jesus. Amen"

Your brother in Christ,

Jeremy

* I assume this includes all costs, not least the hotel accommodation, but the GB News article doesn't clarify. 

Hêvîşikestî- Hope for the Downcast at a time of Election

I have been following the news of the Turkish elections and felt a burden to share something from God’s Word about this.

One Kurdish friend I spoke to told me he thought it would make no difference who wins the election; it will still be bad for the Kurdish people. That’s why I’ve called this article Hêvîşikestî, meaning hope-broken, disillusioned, weary.

Recently quite a number of Kurdish people have started to follow Jesus, and I write these words especially for those who teach and shepherd them. Idon’t believe pastors should pronounce in a black and white way who their church memebers should vote for. After all, although Kılıçdaroğlu stands against autocracy, you could point out that Erdoğan is pro-Life and against the harmful teachings of the LGBTQ movement. There are elements of both sides that line up with God’s truth.

Rather, I think this is a great opportunity for those who lead little flocks of Kurdish (and Tuekish) believers to teach them about the reign of King Jesus. Psalm 72 is a song about a future king from the family of David who will rule over all the nations. It warms my heart when I read it, because in my own country I also am not happy with either of the two main parties. This Psalm helps me lift my eyes to the One whose kingdom of perfect peace will last forever.

Now I know some may say this poem sounds nice, but we’ll never see this kind of kingdom emerge. I want to reply, this kingdom has come in part; Jesus has come, he has died for us and risen again triumphantly to secure a passport for us that none of us deserve.

I want to take some of the concerns I have heard about the current government in Turkey and show how Jesus’ kingdom is radically different.

1. Oppression. The grievance is that as the ruling party and its President have got more and more powerful, innocent people have suffered. I know thousands of people have been put in prison, and many academics have lost their jobs.
   v12 - "For he will rescue the poor who cry out

                        and the afflicted who have no helper."

2. Terrorism. I know Kurdish people in Syria have been very angered by the way Ankara has supported extremist Islamist groups in their homeland.
   v4 - "May he vindicate the afflicted among the people,

                    help the poor,

                        and crush the oppressor."
Verses like this really should be made into a song, with a rousing Kurdish melody. Jesus is no hippy, wafting to and fro telling people to ‘spread the love around’. He is unbending in his opposition to evil and will on the day he returns crush all oppressors.

3. Economic Mismanagement
   The Turkish economy is in a mess. Many have been brought to poverty. The government seem to be partly responsible for the inflation by allowing people to borrow recklessly and not putting up interest rates. Many pastors do not teach about economics, but the Bible has a lot to say about economics. Here in Psalm 72 we see that Jesus’ kingdom will bring about an amazing economic boom.
   v16: "May there be plenty of grain in the land;

                        may it wave on the tops of the mountains.

                    May its crops be like Lebanon.

                    May people flourish in the cities

                        like the grass of the field."
I smile when I read this; grain does not normally grow on mountains, but rather on the plains. But Jesus brings such economic boom that even the mountains are waving with stalks of grain. I am not preaching the Prosperity Gospel here. But one day we will enjoy staggering economic prosperity; and as people who submit to Jesus work hard and steward their wealth well, we do sometimes see prosperity even in this age.

4. Colonialism
   Many are disturbed by the neo-Ottoman, expansionist plans of the current government. Jesus has come to grow an empire, but it is not an oppressive empire. One day all kings will bow before Jesus the King of Kings. If we are worried by the growth of a neo-Ottoman Empire, we can rest content that in God’s perfect plans it will overall serve the growth of the Kingdom of God. v11: "Let all kings bow in homage to him,
   all nations serve him."
   In this world, too much power is a dangerous thing, and we are right to limit the powers of those in government. But in Jesus’ kingdom, he exercises all power in heaven and earth and yet never gets corrupted by power.

I believe this kingdom of Jesus will be seen in all its glory when Jesus returns. But nonetheless, his kingdom is still seen as the Church grows across the world. I write this in Oxford a week after our local church’s Annual Church Meeting. I believe we are seeing some of this Psalm fulfilled. The needy are being looked after. We had a big budget surplus last year. We have been blessed by a team of elders whom the church trusts. They are not perfect, but they have learnt their style of leadership from King Jesus. There is an abundance of well-being in our relationships, and righteousness is being nurtured in church life. His Kingdom is coming, even now. Churches should be marked by a whole different culture to the governments of This Age, not least that we believe in temas of elders, not rule by a dictator (unhealthy churches sadly give all power to one autocrat who bullies people into following his dictats)

May the hearts of many Kurdish people be drawn to Jesus. People who are so bitterly disappointed by politicians, may they let Jesus reign now in their little domains at home and work and church by caring for the poor and oppressed. And may they long for Jesus to appear. Jesus is a politician, and he’s active today. But unlike the politicians on the billboards, Jesus can be absolutely trusted. It's true he’s an invisible politician, laughed at my many. But he will come again- and soon! “Let us not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up.” (Gal 6:9)

How to preach when you're being translated

 It's sad; there's so little help out there in what is an increasing need in the preaching of the Word around the world.

The best I have found so far is https://www.ugandamission.net/ministry/teaching/preach-w-interpreter.pdf

'Dear Pastor Mohammed, isn't it time you changed your name?'

(Apolgies for the formatting problems- I don't know yet how to fix this. Try the version here

In the book Joining the Family, Tim Green refers to an Iranian pastor called 'Rev Mohammad' and asks "Can 'Rev' and 'Mohammad' go together? Why not?!"

He actually raises an important and quite complex question.

My answer would be that it is a matter of freedom for the believer, and I believe the Bible implicity gives us guidance, but I am aware that many will instinctively have strong opinions for or against a name change.

Some will feel 'how can you continue to be named after a man who...?' I will leave you to complete the sentence. However, consider this imagined conversation up the front of church:

"My name is Mohammed, we joined the church a couple of years ago and I'm overseeing the youth club here. I'm named after my grandfather, whom I love dearly.  I spent many happy holidays in his village learning to keep bees and tend the fig trees in his orchard. Like the rest of my family he is a Muslim - I came to know the Lord was a student ten years ago, so I know it's a funny name for a youth pastor but I wanted to explain why I still like to be called Mohammed!"

Others, of course, may find they associate the name more with the founder of their previous religion, and so prefer to make a complete break with their previous captivity to a worldview they now see as dark and deceptive. Still others may go by two different names.

I recall William Carey becoming clear in his mind that converts did not have to abandon pagan names, because of a name in Romans 16.* For me it was as I prepared a sermon about Epaphroditus in Philippians 2. This unsung hero of the early church retained a name that means 'Of Aphrodite', the Greek goddess of love and procreation. Clearly this was a name borne of an unbiblical worldview: he was, in truth, conceived according to the plan of the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, not Aphrodite (Venus to the Romans). But Paul did not insist on renaming him, even though alternative names are quite common in the pages of the New Testament account (Joseph was nicknamed Barnabas, there's "John, who was also called Mark", Saul renamed Paul, Simon also called Peter).

Christians sometimes refer to the principle of 'plundering the Egyptians': that is, the gold and silver of idolaters was given to the Israelites as they left Egypt and it must have been what was used to build the tabernacle for the worship of the One True God. Similarly, a name with pagan connotations can be redeemed for holy purposes. We should not think superstitiously of a name as carrying some 'curse'.

This is an important issue, because a hasty abandonment of one's birth name can add insult to injury for the biological family. It is good, as much as possible, for believers to retain good relations with their kith and kin. Remember Jesus' instruction to Legion: “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” (Mark 5:19)

In the case of Mohammed, there is an additional consideration: the root meaning (from the three consonants H-M-D) is something perfectly acceptable to Christians: it means 'praiseworthy' (compare the oft-heard 'Elhumdullilah': “Praise be to God”).

There's plenty of middle ground, too. One Kurdish friend of mine dislikes the prophet and so prefers to be called Hamo. Mo is a common shortening in the West. We should be sensitive to people's preferences: I much prefer being called Jeremy now, but to those who have always known me as Jerry it just sounds strange for me to hear them calling me Jeremy. Names are complex things. In some contexts, locals don't handle foreign names well so people end up being called something similar that trips off the tongue more easily. For a Middle-Easterner trying to get on in, say, the construction industry or the school playground, it may well be prudent to take on a well-chosen Western name. If they don’t, quite likely others will mangle their name for them. Before we moved to Kurdistan, I decided to take on the name Îbrahîm. Jeremy meant very little to Kurds; it was often confused with Jamie (or even Germany! I know too what it’s like to be subject to the Law of Hobson-Jobson). I was glad to have chosen the name Îbrahîm; when people said ‘why did you choose an Islamic name?’ I liked to clarify that Abraham was the one to whom God promised blessing- for all the nations, including Kurds who have so often been downtrodden. However, since our neighbour’s son was called ‘Îbo’, the mother decided to disambiguate by calling me Îbê (Yes- the online marketplace, about which she was blissfully ignorant. And I still bear the nickname Ebay among Kurdish friends- with great pride!).

But panning out a bit from the wisdom calls people may make about diminutives and additional names, we could usefully meditate more deeply on what names are. Fundamentally, they represent our character, and so the real 'name change' new disciples should seek is one where we are known for our kindness, humility, hard work etc.

"A good name is more desirable than great riches; to be esteemed is better than silver or gold." (Proverbs 22:1). Conversely, "As dead flies give perfume a bad smell, so a little folly outweighs wisdom and honor." (Ecclesiastes 10:1). Someone who is obsessed with what name they are given should instead labour to put off besetting sins: a bad temper or lying, or addiction to alcohol or nicotine perhaps. This is what will give their name a pleasing aroma rather than a putrid one.

In conclusion, this is an area where we should respect Christian freedoms and keep the main thing as the main thing. When I shared this article with a friend who served in Ethiopia, he instanced another legitimate approach:  But you will sense that I have a strong sympathy with those who retain the name given them by their family, perhaps supplemented by a suitable Christian name that encapsulates something of their new identity. Here's another imagined statement of identity:

"I'm Mohammed, I grew up in Shiraz, but some people call me Martyn; I'm named after the brilliant C19th linguist who died young through his labours translating the Bible into Persian. Like Henry Martyn I love the people of Persia and often share with them the good news of Jesus our Liberator." 

*See S Pearce Carey's biography.