The Language of the Sacred

1
The Language of the Sacred

• The Sacred Quest, chapter 4

2
Language and Sacred Reality

• What are the limits of our language in describing
  religious experience?
• Example Nirvana
• Why do we teach children through stories?
• How does hearing a religious story affect you
  differently than studying a doctrine?
• Story of Buddha vs. doctrines of impermanence,
  no-self, nirvana

3
Narrative

• Used in religion
• To reveal
• To teach memorably, personally
• To alter relationships
• Religion is my story being shaped by another
  story (p. 62)
• Life itself has a narrative quality
• Certain stories are paradigms, like the Exodus or
  story of Buddha
• Applying the story to ones life distinguishes
  mere history from an experience of the sacred

4
Passover Seder

• How does this bring the narrative of the Exodus
  to life?
• In the modern text recited by the participants
• In the rituals
• How is the Seder a story not just about the past
  (Israelites in Egypt) but the present (Jews
  today)?
• How is the story a paradigm for Jewish
  experience?
• How is it a story about present identity of God,
  of Jews, of their relationship?
• Does it reveal? Teach? Alter relationships?

5
Types of religious language

• Myth
• Universal expresses fundamental beliefs about
  relation of sacred reality to humanity and
  natural world
• Disclose ultimate truth about crucial human
  questions (SQ 59)
• Historical narratives (stories in SQ)
• particular
• Parables
• Moral point
• Specific, relatable, yet can be applied more
  broadly
• Theology
• second order reflection on first order
  experience

6
Myth

• One type of narrative
• Answers questions about how people relate to
  sacred reality and to their world
• Universal in scope
• Does NOT mean not true
• actually, it discloses an ultimate truth about
  the world and its relationship to the sacred
• Its meaning is not primarily about history
  (particular time and place) but what is true
  universally (at all times and places)

7
Scriptures

• Why do most religions have scriptures?
• Unites the community (its story is my story)
• Compare American stories, e.g., pilgrims
• Privileged disclosure of the sacred
• Revelation from God
• Must be recognized by the community, given their
  past experience
• Sustain and nourish religious traditions
• Provide a framework for the religious life of
  the believer (p 67)

8
Theology

• All religious people are theologians
• Reflect on/talk about their experiences of sacred
  reality
• Theology is second-level discourse
• One step removed from primary experience
• First-level discourse is language of scripture,
  prayer, liturgy directly communicates with
  sacred reality
• Doctrine is also second-level discourse
• guides people in thinking about primary
  experiences
• Example how is Jesus encountered in the
  eucharist?