by Diana-Maria Stocker //
Language is the secret of man. It elevates him above all creatures and makes him capable not only of naming, but also of thinking, writing poetry and debating. While the theory of evolution describes language as a laboriously achieved product of sound imitation and random brain development, the Bible tells a different story - one that is astonishingly accurate to the facts.
Even in the first chapters of Genesis, we encounter Adam as a man who is perfectly capable of speech. He understands God's words (Gen 2:16-17), he himself speaks in a poetic gesture when he sees Eve for the first time (Gen 2:23). He invents new words by naming the animals (Gen 2:19-20). Here, language does not appear as a stammering attempt, but as a creative gift - complex, expressive, poetic.
This becomes even clearer in the account of the Tower of Babel (Gen 11:1-9). A uniform original language is fragmented into many languages through divine intervention. Diversity is not an accidental result here, but a deliberate choice, a boundary against human megalomania. Babel explains why there is no one original language from which everything would have developed, but many that stand side by side on an equal footing. Pentecost finally shows the opposite: the disciples speak in foreign languages, and yet they all understand each other. Language, given by God, divides and unites, confuses and clarifies - depending on the purpose of the spirit.
The history of language confirms this biblical picture. The oldest documented languages - Sanskrit, Sumerian, Ancient Egyptian, Ancient Greek - are highly complex systems, rich in forms, finely differentiated in expression and grammar. The newer languages, on the other hand, show simplification, abrasion, loss. It is not a rise, but a process of decay, just as Paul writes in his letter to the Romans: "Creation is subject to corruption" (Romans 8:20).
And this disintegration is strikingly evident today. What used to be considered elementary - speaking in full sentences, greeting others, expressing thoughts in a differentiated way - seems to have become dispensable in large sections of society. In some Austrian regions, this is known as "Maulfaul". It is comfort, arrogance or simply laziness. A young Moroccan man told me that his clear, articulate language is a source of astonishment for others. People are surprised when someone speaks properly - a sure sign of a low cultural level.
One symptom of this development is the fact that Ulf Poschardt's latest book The shit bourgeoisie has also published the book in "simple language". A format that was originally intended for people with cognitive impairments or for learners of German is now finding its way into the general book market. It is questionable whether inclusion is actually the intention here - or whether it is tacitly assumed that large sections of the audience are no longer able to cope with cultivated, differentiated German.
A look at street and youth language shows the trend. Articles and prepositions are disappearing: "Isch geh Kino" replaces "Ich gehe ins Kino", "Meine Mutter ihr Auto" replaces "Das Auto meiner Mutter". Sentence structure follows foreign language patterns: "Are you coming to the station?" instead of "Are you coming to the station?" Fixed phrases mutate into codes: "Machst du Auge" for envy, "Machst du Film" for exaggeration. And where once "That's really good" was enough, now it sounds "Crassly correct".
Added to this is an arsenal of Anglophone and net-driven buzzwords: cringe for embarrassment, smash for sexual interest, lowkey for subliminal, aura for charisma, tuff for impressive. Words that no longer build, but only mark, abbreviate, suggest.
In this way, the Bible also proves itself in the mirror of science. It does not describe man as an accidental ape who laboriously learned to speak, but as a creature who received language from the beginning - as part of his likeness to God, who himself is "the Word" (John 1:1). Therein lies the true dignity of man: He is a being of the Word, created to understand and to be understood.
But a godless society exposes itself in its language. Where the word is no longer respected, where the art of language atrophies, where communication shrinks to scraps, it becomes clear that it is not only language that is decaying, but culture itself. The poverty of language becomes a parable of intellectual and moral decline
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word is God. And in the end? "Digga."
Note: inspired by Roger Liebi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7y9wRBFfE4
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6 Responses
Liebe Frau Stocker,
anstatt von einer gottlosen Gesellschaft wuerde ich lieber von einer heutigen Gesellschaft ohne Bewusstsein und ohne Sprachkultur sprechen. Meiner Auffassung nach hat der Mensch einen goettlich unsterblichen Kern, den auch Atheisten oder Andersglaubige in sich haben (siehe serioese Nahtodforschung). Der beruehmte Beginn des Johannes Evangeliums implementierte auch eine an einen unsichtbaren rein maennlichen Gott sich ausrichtende undemokratische Obrigkeitshoerigkeit, an der unsere Demokratie vollends in der Coronazeit gescheitert ist. Der gesellschaftliche Wieder-Aufbau steht auch in der Sprache noch aus.
Very nice article Ms. Stocker.
Yes, I have a (Luther) Bible on my bookshelf and have looked through your sources.
I was shocked when I read the word "male" under Genesis 2:23. For Adam, it is the female form of man because she was created from his flesh and bone.
Should the "gendering" have a deeper origin after all?
I'm joking, of course.
Balm for the soul of a person who loves his mother tongue so much!
Wonderfully observed, well-founded and placed in biblical contexts - comforting, encouraging and reassuring that there are still people with clear thoughts and such a differentiated ability to express themselves... THANK YOU and best regards, dear Diana-Maria Stocker
The word -aura- is explained in detail by Walter Benjamin.
A reduction to -perception- would not be recognizable here.
Thank you, Ms. Stocker, for this current congenial wake-up call, as it has been handed down to us in a comparable way in a cry by Novalis over two centuries old, which expresses the hope that the "whole inverted being" - I am thinking of our language, which has coagulated into shreds (and also of the encryption mania) - will fly away "before ONE secret word". - So off into the future with open arms and ears!