This is sort of an inside baseball post, mostly just a vent. IMO the ban on the use of the word “Yahweh” in a liturgical setting, in place in the Catholic Church since 2008, is bad history, bad theology, and misdirection. For background, see here. Further, I believe that bowdlerization of the hymns using the word by substituting something else is immoral—it amounts to desecration and is little different from chopping the noses off statues or painting over icons. If they are offensive their use should be banned altogether rather than bowdlerized.
“Yahweh” has been used in papal encyclicals, letters, and homilies for many years. Were popes wrong in using the word? And who is empowered to make such a pronouncement?
Any argument made about use of the word “Yahweh” pertains equally to the word “Jehovah”. The two words differ only in the interpretation of vowel points in Hebrew (the vowel points for Adonai, Lord were written over the letters YHWH to remind readers to say Adonai rather than pronounce the unpronounceable). Modern Hebrew does not include vowel points; the Torah was written without vowel points; ancient Hebrew documents were written without vowel points. Any assertion of the antiquity of vowel points is speculative.
Since the vowel points aren’t actually part of the scripture, words based on their use cannot possibly be offensive. The worst they can be is mistaken. If they’re worried about offending modern Jews, why stop there? Many pious Jews object to the use of the word “God”, preferring “G*d”. If we remove “Yahweh”, “Jehovah”, and “God” from our hymns, our hymnody will become pretty threadbare.
There are attestations of the use of the word “Jehovah” in English hymns, letters, commentaries, and translations of scripture going back more than 700 years. It is used in hymns currently in use that were written 250 years ago. Objecting to the use now is not merely closing the barn door after the horses are already out, it’s closing the barn door after the barn has been razed and a shopping mall built in its place.
Don’t cardinals have anything better to do?
End vent.
“Don’t cardinals have anything better to do?”
Mmmm, no. Need to remember that a major point of disagreement in the Great Schism was whether to use leavened or unleavened bread for Communion. (Family just happened to be studying this today.)
Steve
Not referring to a person (human or deity) by name is a basic fiction-writer’s trick. See Tolkien and JK Rowling. It ramps up the mystery.
I’ve done it myself, but only in parody. From The Magnificent 12: