Um. It's in LATIN! I took Greek, not Latin. And I refuse to Babelfish it.

Wow, the last time I went to a service in Latin, I was being baptized. My appreciation for the language was limited to gurgling sounds.

Ye gods, I wish Babelfish handled Latin!

I deeply regret not having taken Latin in either high school or college. It's such a sonorous, poetic-sounding language, mighty with the weight of history and tradition.

Of course, back then, my attitude was more like "Pffft! I'm gonna take something I can actually use!" And now, of course, neither my high school Spanish nor my college German do me any good, and I'm frequently running across texts in Latin that I wish I could read without the laborious aid of a dictionary.

I'm not Catholic, but I have always loved the sound of the Latin liturgy. It's almost like a magical incantation. Certainly it works magic on me; it fills me with longing to believe that there is something after this life, some higher purpose, some plan or sense to existence.

I used to believe that. I used to believe that no matter what happened, everything would turn out right in the end. It was comforting to believe that, like the fowls of the air and the lilies of the field, there was someone out there watching over me and who would provide for me in times of need.

One by one, my beliefs fell away for lack of evidence. All that remains in my worldview is a cold, uncaring, unreasoning universe, with no second chances or posthumous rewards. According to all the evidence available to me, the self is but the byproduct of electrochemical transactions in the brain; once the neurons stop firing, existence ceases.

Karen once asked me why, if I felt this way, I was so keen on having Latin in the wedding, why I wanted a ceremony that invoked a God in whom I had no belief.

And I don't know why, but hearing the liturgy in Latin brings me to a place where, for a short time, I can at least believe the possibility of something greater, in a way that rites in English do not. I can't explain it; Latin was never a part of my religious upbringing.

Well, crap. I think that's the most deeply personal thing I've ever posted on this entire site.

"All that remains in my worldview is a cold, uncaring, unreasoning universe, with no second chances or posthumous rewards."

It's not the world's responsability to make you feel safe, cozy and needed. That is exactly what religion is for. You are the only person that can make a difference in your own existence. You can't depend on anyone for anything. You need to be able to rely on yourself. Sure, this attitude seemingly sucks as well, but it really makes a difference.

I love my husband dearly, my family and my friends and I would be very lonely without them around me. BUT I do not depend on any of those people to make me happy. For as much as I wish it were true, their existence doesn't hinge on my happiness and for as much as we all love each other, shit happens, and life goes on. And it will go on and on and on, whether we are active participants or not - just like the SCA - but not really. :•)

Anyway, if there is an afterlife, I hope it's as challenging as this life is - I can't stand doing nothing all day. My philosophy is: be a good person, help your neighbor when you can, and don't be a dick. It's not very poetic, of course, and sometimes it's a hard philosophy to work with even in its simplicity.

You know me, I don't believe in any type of organized religion (much to my mother's dismay), but I do try to be a good person. We have the smarts to make our own decisions in this world. It's the difference between living a full life and being miserable all the time. As we have learned, all too often, tuition spent in the Universty of Life either makes you better or bitter. Your choice.

Lisa

OK, I tried commenting before and my connection died (and it's cable!), so let's try again....

One by one, my beliefs fell away for lack of evidence. All that remains in my worldview is a cold, uncaring, unreasoning universe, with no second chances or posthumous rewards. According to all the evidence available to me, the self is but the byproduct of electrochemical transactions in the brain; once the neurons stop firing, existence ceases.

Well yeah, that describes what I believe pretty well, except I would describe the universe itself (as a physical entity) as "neutral" rather than "uncaring" or actively malevolent -- although maybe that's what you meant anyway. However, the thought of oblivion absolutely terrifies me and brings on panic attacks, so part of my brain has made this deal with another part of my brain that We Just Won't Think About It Right This Minute, and also that who knows? maybe there's a little tiny spark that flies out and survives somehow (yes I know that's a completely irrational unsupported belief. But it makes more sense at 3 AM).

I think you're right about the Latin. Did you see the great post about Latin as used in Buffy on Naomi's (bairita's) site? (I wish I could write stuff that good.) There's just something....magic about it. I had the chance to learn it at Santa Fe Preparatory School, but I never dug the verb tenses and I also dropped out after about a month and a half. I keep thinking idly some day, somehow, I'll go to the Greek and Latin Institute two summers in a row and come out knowing how to sightread both languages. Ah, me.

And I like the personal stuff! (big surprise.)

....So did you guys memorize the Latin phonetically, like my friends at their mitvahs?

Aaagh! It's showing my hotmail address! Spam! Boo!

Actually, Karen took Latin in high school, so she was pretty good with it. And I've sung enough Latin — and tried to learn several Latin-based languages — that I was able to hold my own.

We did have to write it out phonetically for the minister, though, and I recorded the Latin bits for him to listen to beforehand.

(...and I've added your URL so the email address doesn't display.)

Note that we did not have the whole thing in Latin, I didn't want to lose the audience, so to speak.

Yeah, I can understand some of the Buffy Latin. My HS Latin teacher wasn't big on teaching spoken Latin, we did mostly written translation. I wish I remembered more than I do. One of the reasons I think I was not a hit with the boys in HS was the fact that I took Latin from grades 8-12. Yes, I am a glutton for punishment.

However, the thought of oblivion absolutely terrifies me and brings on panic attacks, so part of my brain has made this deal with another part of my brain that We Just Won't Think About It Right This Minute, and also that who knows? maybe there's a little tiny spark that flies out and survives somehow (yes I know that's a completely irrational unsupported belief. But it makes more sense at 3 AM).

Makes a lot of sense to me, actually.

For the record, and I know it's unsolicited, but what the heck; here's my take on how the universe functions:
I believe in a higher power, a force greater than myself because I find it impossible to believe that I am the top of the food chain. I believe that God exists outside of Her/His creation, and doesn't tamper with it, kind of like a scientist monitoring a very long experiment. I believe that there is something after death because of thermodynamics and postulates of the conservation of energy, life doesn't continue in the same way, but, at least as far as I'm concerned, it does continue, whether you're a frequency or an electromagnetic charge.

I believe that people are responsible for looking after each other, that religion is a man-made political tool, and that you make your own future - there is no such thing as predestination. The purpose of the universe is to discover it's own meaning. I believe that most religions have the same basic idea: look out for each other and try to behave like an actual civilization, and you'll prosper. Act like schmucks and thugs, and society takes a header into the trashbin.

Makes a lot of sense to me, actually

Heh. Kinda like Hemingway:

"Are you croyant?"
"At night."

"Latin from grades 8-12"! Yowza. There aren't any "Speak Latin in 10 Days" type of language tape sets, are there?

Posted by Moira on 7 Mar 2003 21:17

Hmmm, I'd better add tag-closure checking to the comment code.

Crap! Usually I catch that. Don't take away my license to nitpick!

"Latin Made Simple"? hmmmmmmmmmmm...