Christianity and how it preserved traditional languages, 1

BY DR. JOSE PALU-AY DACUDAO

THE FIRST Visayan dictionary was written by Jesuit missionaries in the early 1600s. We can infer that at this time, the Visayan languages were still close enough to each other so that the Christian missionaries only needed one dictionary for their use in the entirety of what is today Visayas and Mindanao.

It is a historical fact that Christian evangelists evangelized in indigenous languages again and again throughout history. One of the most notable achievements by Christian evangelists is the Glagolitic alphabet, the first alphabet used to transcribe Old Church Slavonic, made by Saint Cyril (826-869) and Saint Methodius (815-885), who were brothers.

It’s quite possible that some Slavic languages were saved from extinction because of their use by these evangelists.

Another important language that may have been saved from extinction is Catalan, because of its use the local churches in Catalonia for a thousand years; else this would have been replaced entirely by the dominant Castilian Spanish.

In 1962 in Vatican II, the Catholic Church mandated that local languages be used. The first Hiligaynon Mass was held in Bacolod in 1964 by Bishop Antonio Fortich (interestingly a Cebuano from near Dumaguete Negros Oriental). It was translated from the Latin by a young priest at that time, Father Guillermo Gaston of Silay, Negros Occidental. He also translated common prayers (such as The Our Father) and songs into Hiligaynon.

Most mainline Protestant churches also use the indigenous languages.

Historically, languages that were downgraded by a Nation-State’s “national language” have died out once there were no more major social institutions that used them. In general, it is only when major social institutions use them that they are preserved.

In case of the Philippines, Christian churches after World War 2 have been the only ones that still use indigenous regional languages steadfastly. (The national government and its institutions use Tagalog.) This is probably the major reason why the Philippines’ regional languages are still acceptable lingua franca in their native regions, and a reason why they have not yet gone extinct.

In recap, the Christianity Church has used indigenous languages for 200 thousand years, right at its beginning. Is this theologically sound? Yes.

Consider what the New Testament has to say.

“All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues… When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language… We hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” (Acts 2:4-11)

Taken literally, this passage has always been taken by Christians as a miracle. Some Christian groups have even been founded that focus on the attempted reenactment of this passage. Speaking in tongues, a miracle, a sign from God! (To be continued)/PN