Respecting Our Use Of Words
By DONALD DeMARCO
Dag Hammarskjold, former secretary of the United Nations, has given us important advice concerning how we must be most careful in how we use our words. In his classic work, Markings, he states: “Respect for the word is the first commandment in the discipline by which a man can be educated to maturity — intellectual, emotional, and moral. Respect for the word — to employ it with scrupulous care and incorruptible heartfelt care for truth — is essential if there is to be any growth in a society or in the human race.”
This respect for the word is not evident in the current use of language in our society. As a result, we are often misled by what is said, sometimes believing in the very opposite of what the word should convey. This lack of respect is a serious impediment to communicating to others as well as addressing social problems in a constructive way. Consider the following twelve examples of how it is painfully common to say what one does not mean.
Faith: Faith is belief that is consistent with reason. Pope St. John Paul II’s encyclical, Faith and Reason, is a sustained explanation of how faith and reason are mutually compatible. They are, he writes, “like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth.” Faith is to be distinguished from gullibility which accepts something as truth without any accompanying reason. Gullibility is faith without reason.
Hope: Hope, very much like faith, is associated with reason. We cannot live without hope. It is what keeps us energized as we move into the future. Its opposite is naiveté which is gratuitous and akin to wishful thinking. Hope is also a supernatural virtue which should be a constant companion in our life that contains never-ending problems and difficulties. Naiveté soon leads to disappointment and ultimately to hopelessness.
Charity: Charity is love. It is based on the recognition that our neighbor is capable of receiving love’s benefits. Charity, therefore, is positive, both in the giver and in the receiver. It is not pity, which is the sadness one feels when confronted with a disability, or weakness in the other. Charity is hopeful that its blessings can truly benefit the other. Pity, on the other hand, is not an attitude that is at all hopeful.
Preaching: Preaching is a dignified manner of teaching. The Dominican Order identifies itself with the “Order of Preachers.” Hence the letters “O.P.” added to the names of its members. Preaching is not to be confused with dictating, which transpires between an employer and his secretary. One preaches the Gospel, for example, with passion and imagination. What is dictated is preprogrammed and inflexible.
Justice: Justice is a cardinal virtue. It renders to another what is due. What we observe these days when people protest in the name of justice is nothing less than vengeance. Justice is tempered. Vengeance is overkill. Justice requires time, deliberation, fairness, and ripe judgment. Vengeance is spontaneous, reckless, and of the moment. Justice is the legacy of an institution that has evolved over time. Vengeance is momentary and soon fizzles out.
Docility: Docility means teachable. The etymology of the word indicates that a “doctor” teaches a “doctrine” to a student who is “docile.” Education demands docility on the part of the student, a teacher who serves as a “doctor” and a “doctrine” which is the subject matter of what is taught. Unfortunately, docility is commonly misunderstood as passivity, and the teacher is misrepresented as being “doctrinaire.” The docile student is not passive, not a blotter soaking up whatever his teacher dictates. He is receptive of the truth and critical of falsehoods.
Meekness: Meekness is self-possession in the face of difficulties. It is a virtue associated with patience. Christ identified Himself as being “Meek and humble of heart.” The common error identifies meekness with weakness. Meekness, however, is the capacity to experience anger but to control it. In this sense, meekness is the ability to exclude rage, vengeance, and despair while remaining in possession of one’s self.
Humility: Humility is the virtue in which a person accepts who he is, no more, no less. It is a realistic assessment of one’s self. It is not self-abasement nor timidity, as is commonly believed. It avoids the deadly sins of pride, on the one hand, and despair on the other. For Confucius, “Humility is the solid foundation of all the virtues.” This is because of its freedom from illusions that hamper positive action. The humble person welcomes all the other virtues.
Law: Law, as St. Thomas Aquinas states, is “an ordinance of reason for the common good made by him who has charge of the community, and properly promulgated.” Therefore, it would be a mistake to think of law as a restriction or an abridgment of freedom. Law protects freedom from lawlessness. In the Hebrew language, the words choruth and cheruth mean, respectively, law and freedom. Law and freedom go hand in hand.
Bonding: Bonding can be understood as a special intimacy between people that is beneficial to both. We speak of the bond of matrimony as a special affiliation between husband and wife that elevates their singularity to a higher and more fruitful level. Wedlock is not padlock, which is a form of bondage. Marriage is an exalted state; bondage is a form of slavery. Cynics, however, love to reduce bonding to bondage.
Community: Community refers to a congregation of like-minded people who are united by their shared values. Community transcends self-interest and is dedicated to the common good. Therefore, a community is much more than a group. A group is a gathering of individuals who are brought together by accident, such as a group of shoppers appearing together at a department store. Some groups (the LGBTQ, for example) like to call themselves members of a community solely because they wanted to be accepted.
Discrimination: Discrimination, in its positive denotation, is the act of judging between what is good and what is bad, between what is true and what is false. This legitimate notion of the word, however, has been pre-empted by the same word referring to a prejudicial judgment between people. Thus, some people are convinced that both forms of discrimination are equally erroneous.
When we lack respect for the word we also, at the same time, lack respect for ourselves as well as respect for the person or persons with whom we are trying to communicate. The inevitable result is chaos.
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(Dr. Donald DeMarco is professor emeritus St. Jerome’s University and an adjunct professor at Holy Apostles College. He is a regular columnist for St. Austin Review and is the author of 39 books. His latest book, The 12 Supporting Pillars of the Culture of Life and Why They Are Crumbling, is posted on amazon.com.)