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Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!duke!mcnc!smb@ulysses.UUCP (Steven Bellovin)
From: smb@ulysses.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.religion
Subject: Re: Answers for Larry W.
Message-ID: <747@ulysses.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 31-Dec-83 22:37:49 EST
Article-I.D.: ulysses.747
Posted: Sat Dec 31 22:37:49 1983
Date-Received: Mon, 2-Jan-84 02:13:19 EST
References: <719@ssc-vax.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill
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Certainly an interesting exposition of one view of Christianity.  To be
sure, many of the doctrines stated by David Norris are not shared by
all Christians, either today or historically.  But I wanted to raise a
different point this time:  it would be a mistake to attach too much
meaning to the exact words of Jesus as given in Greek.  After all, he
spoke Aramaic; even assuming that the transcriptions are exact, we must
consider the problem of translation.  Whoever wrote the Greek version may
have had an imperfect understanding of Aramaic, or the two languages may
not have the same concepts.  David cited a similar problem in the King
James translation of certain Hebrew phrases; I see no reason to believe
that the same couldn't happen in the Gospels.  It's interesting to note
the one phrase that *is* rendered in Aramaic:  "Eli, Eli, lamah samachthani?"
("My Lord, my Lord, why have You forsaken me?")  A professor of Judaic
studies (secular outlook) at Chapel Hill once remarked to me that that
outcry must have *really* impressed Jesus' followers, to have been preserved
in its original form rather than simply be translated.