Sacred Language: the Relevance of Minority Language use in the Religious Domain

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Sacred Language:

the Relevance of

Minority Language

use in the Religious

Domain

The Frisian Language in the Protestant Church Communities of Fryslân

Sibrecht Veenstra – S2978636

MA Thesis, Departments of Applied Linguistics and Frisian

Language and Culture, Faculty of Arts, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen

Supervisors: Prof. dr. G.T Jensma & Dr. J. Da Silveira Duarte

July 5, 2020

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0. Abstract

The connection between language and religion is part of a newly emerging field of study within language studies, religious studies, and migration and globalization studies. On one hand, there is an obvious connection between the spread of language and the spread of religion. On the other hand, there is a more abstract way in which language is used as an instrument in religion. In the Christian tradition language is used to practice religion, and to do so, source-texts have been translated resulting in many different types of Bible translations. Minority languages have long not been seen as languages divine enough to be used to practice religion, as was the case with Frisian. However, since the beginning of the twentieth century, the Frisian language is making its way into the religious domain. In the year of 2024, a third Frisian Bible translation will be published.

For this research, a group of 38 ministers and church workers within the Protestant Church Community in Fryslân have filled out a questionnaire with a total of 25 questions about language use, language attitudes towards the mother tongue use, language awareness, and attitudes towards Bible translations. Results show that there is a high awareness of the added value of mother tongue use within the religious domain. However, in general the participants think that the bilingual context of the province of Fryslân does not allow for fully Frisian church services. In addition, the different types and proficiency levels of Frisian cause difficulties in this aspect. It is the ministers and church workers themselves who decide if and how Frisian elements are implemented in the church services.

1. Introduction

Language and religion hold links in various ways. Within the Bible, there are many Bible stories in which language plays an important role. The two most commonly referred to Bible stories in relationship to language are The Tower of Babel, Genesis 11, 1-9, and Acts 2, 1-13 (Holy Bible, New International Version, 2011). In the narrative of the Tower of Babel, God sees the effect that complete unity has on the people and wants to put a stop to this. God decides to confuse the languages of the people to stop them from understanding each other and to scatter the people across the earth. Here the diversity of languages was created by God. Acts 2, 1-13 tells the story of Pentecost, where the Holy Spirit comes down to the Apostles giving them the ability to all speak in other languages. This allowed them to spread the Gospel, as the people heard the Apostles speak in their mother tongues. Thus, during Pentecost, the diversity of languages is celebrated, as is the possibility to receive the Gospel of God in our own language (Bremmer, 2020).

That language plays a big role in the Bible and religion is commonly accepted, and religious language has been a subject of research for quite some time. However, if language and religion hold a

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3 relevant link to multilingualism has not been researched thoroughly (Spolsky, 2003, p. 81). Bilinguals and multilinguals have more linguistic resources to fall back upon. Nevertheless, within every bilingual and multilingual context, the extent to which these linguistic resources are present and used within the religious domain can differ significantly (Woods, 2004, p. 13).

Spolsky (2003, p. 82) signals that the lack of research into these communities might be because the scholars themselves were secularized and thus did not see the strong connection between religion and life, and above all, language. Nevertheless, language plays an important role in religion because “to know and interact with another world tends to demand highly marked uses of linguistic resources” (Keane, 1997, p. 47 in Han, 2018, p. 433). As Ferguson (1982, p. 95, in Han, 2018, p. 433), puts it, language is one of the most important mediums to practice religion. For actions such as “reading and reciting scripture, preaching and responding, singing, praying, testifying, confessing, meditating, chanting, and so on.” (Ferguson, 1982, p. 95, in Han, 2018, p. 433).

Han (2018, p. 433) also signals that there has been a surprisingly small amount of research done on the topic of language and religion. Even though religion has played an important role in institutions, communities, and homes on a historical, political, social, and linguistical level. In addition to Spolsky’s (2003, p. 82) reasoning of researchers being secularized, a reason that Han (2018, p. 433) signals for this is that religion had become a more private matter throughout the years. However, one could also argue that in recent years religion has gradually become more present again in public life. Recent discussions around e.g. abortion, vaccination, gender roles, sexuality, and assisted death have made that religion has become a more visible part of people’s lives again (Han, 2018, p. 434). Because of these social changes and the awakening of religion, Han (2018, p. 434) argues that this makes “the interdisciplinary study of religion significant and timely”. Thus, it leads to an emerging field of study regarding language and religion. Adding to the field of language and religion also contributes to other fields of study such as language studies, sociology and anthropology of religion, and migration and globalization studies (Han, 2018, p. 438).

This thesis will add to this newly emerging field of study by looking at the connection between language and religion in the Frisian-Dutch bilingual province of Fryslân within the Protestant Church communities (PKN). The Protestant Church community has been chosen as the main subject for this thesis as, in a study done in 2015 by the Central Bureau for Statistics (Schmeets, 2016, p. 8) it was shown that with 14.6% of the Frisians ecclesiastically denominated to the Protestant Church Community, it is the biggest religious group in the province. In this bilingual province of Fryslân, the Frisian language plays a role in the religious domain, also within the Protestant Church community. In 2024 a new Frisian Bible translation will be published following up on two previous translations from 1943 and 1978. Therefore, it is interesting to find out what the current visions and opinions of the protestant ministers in Fryslân regarding language within religion are. The research question in this thesis will thus be: “How do the protestant ministers in the province of Fryslân experience and interpret the connection between language and religion?”

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4 In chapter 2 the general research upon the connection between language and religion will be outlined, the more concrete one as well as the more abstract connection. Chapter 3 consists of an overview of minority language use within different Christian contexts. In addition to this, the connection with the Bible translations will be made and translation strategies will be introduced. In chapter 4 the Frisian context will be presented with a concise historic overview of the use of Frisian within the religious domain. The next chapter, chapter 5, will give the statement of purpose. Chapter 6 will present the methods used and introduce the participants, materials, procedures, and design and analysis. What follows is chapter 7 in which the results and analyses will be delivered. In chapter 8 a discussion will be given. Lastly, chapter 9 offers a conclusion.

2. Language and religion

Although the link between language and religion has not been subject to research in the field of multilingualism, this does not mean the link is simply not there. One could argue that the link between language and religion can be seen in various aspects. These links could be categorized on a more evident basis and a more abstract basis.

The more evident basis is the link between the spread of religion and the spread of language described by Ferguson (1982, in Omoniyi & Fishman, 2006, p. 3; in Han, 2018, p. 433). He associates the spread of language with the spread of religion. Take for example the spread of the Islam and with it Arabic, the spread of Spanish parallel to the spread of Catholicism during the Conquista, and the spread of English with Protestantism which has continued spreading within what is now seen as globalization. These languages were not only introduced in a spoken form, but it also brought a writing system into some of these communities. In general, with the constant changes and shifts in cultures and languages, religious practices can and have been altered. Overall, religions often have a clear link to one language, the associated language (Spolsky, 2006, p. 4), nevertheless, because of the aforementioned globalization and religious shifts this is no longer a “one-on-one correspondence” and the different religions are being practiced in a multitude of languages. For example, for the early Western Christian tradition only Hebrew, Greek, and Latin were considered to be sacred languages, whereas in the Eastern Christian tradition this was far more diverse. The language diversity of the people, including Copts, Goths, Syrians, Georgians, Armenians, and the Christians from Persia and Arabia, was an important characteristic of the religious domain at that time and should also continue to be diverse in the future. However, also in these regions, there was a struggle against the influence of the Greek language. Nevertheless, the languages were able to maintain their equal position within the religious domain, but also resulted “into a struggle for the recognition of national cultures and national rights in general.” (Bolvadze, 2006, p. 60). This shows that the language struggle that religious groups experience, might go deeper than just the religious domain.

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5 Besides changes and shifts in languages, religion can also be subject of change. As Fishman (2006, p. 15) puts it, the connection one may have to a certain church or religion may change over time. This can occur on an individual level, or more broadly within a region or a country. Some of the causes that can lead to “between-group and the within-group variation vis-à-vis the languages/varieties of religion and those of secular life” (Fishman, 2006, p. 15), are said to be the increasing modernization which brings with it, for example, economical societal change and new social mobility possibilities. The religious domain is not one of true stability and can, therefore, undergo “slow but constant ‘leakage’ and change.” (Fishman, 2006, p. 15). One of the initiators of these changes is language. Language can take on new functions that will affect the language of religion. Thus, language shift and contact do not only lead to cultural changes in general, but also to changes in the language of religion (Fishman, 2006, p. 19). These clear and direct influences of language on religion, but also of religion on language, show that the “sociological studies of religion are enriched if they add language, and sociolinguistics is enriched when it considers religious language and religious domains for language use” (Spolsky, 2006, p. 7).

That religion and language as a whole have an intrinsic and complex relationship is clear. The language used within religion itself can be seen as a little bit more abstract. For now, we will focus on Christianity. Christianity can be seen as the religion of the Logos, as the religion according to the reason (Edwards, 2009, p. 102). Logos holds various meanings with regards to word, thought, pervading principle, reason, and logic (Edwards, 2009, p.102). Thus, for Christianity thoughts and words are at the centre. These thoughts can and will be expressed through language. Language in relation to religion is not simply a historical language built with grammar, syntax, and lexicon, but it is how messages are communicated in different registers. Downes (2010, p. 2) identifies various registers used within religion; “to pray, to engage with a sermon, to study scripture, to participate in liturgy or discuss theology and so on.” He goes on in identifying that above all, language is used to manifest thoughts, whether in public, private, conscious, or in inner speech. Language is used to manifest and disseminate religious thinking. Moreover, the uniqueness of Christianity is not only that it involves great amounts of corporate worship and fellowship, but also that every individual can have a personal relationship with God. This relationship consists of one-on-one communication with God. God is not only perceived as the most Holy but also as the most intimate at the same time. The language(s) used by a Christian within his or her religious practices can be a reflection of this (Woods, 2004, p.2). A question posed by Downes (2010, p. 3) is how the religious thoughts, that are mostly unclear and mysterious, are understood and used. The variations in languages are so widespread, however, the religious content is also so universal. As one’s mother tongue is closest to the heart, feelings, and thoughts, it could be argued that religion is best experienced in one’s mother tongue which has led to the large amounts of translations and re-interpretations of the religious scriptures.

The practice of translating the scripture and spreading the religious content in the language that the target audience understands best will allow for a stronger bond with the speaker or the scripture that

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6 is read. Being able to speak and preach in the language of the people strengthens the bond with the speaker. This is an important aspect of the church as it also holds a confidential bond with the congregation. People can only show the inner part of their soul when speaking in their mother tongue (Huismans, 1916, p.57). As G.A. Wumkes made clear in his speech to call attention for the importance of a Frisian Bible translation, language is the sound of the thoughts. The people need the words closest to them to be able to have thoughts about the highest and godliest possible (Wumkes, 1917, p. 74). For simultaneous bilinguals or simultaneous multilinguals, this means that they are able to experience their religion in multiple mother tongues. Smolicz (1994, p. 38, in Woods, 2004, pp. 13-14) shows that being bilingual does not have to mean that one of your languages is the better choice within the religious domain. He mentions a priest who practices one mass in English and another in Italian on the same Sunday, showing the universality of the Church. This indicates the adaptability of the, in this case catholic priest, to match the preferred language of the targeted audience and by using this language one can come closer to the congregation.

To allow everyone to read the scriptures and experience religion in their own mother tongues, Bible translations have been made and are continued to be updated. Using contemporary language varieties does enhance the understandability of the texts, however, this also causes concerns for the metaphoric advantages and sacred functions that might get lost when a variety closer to the spoken language is used (Fishman, 2006, p. 17). Fishman (2006, p. 22) uses an example of the constantly updated versions of the Bible in the English contemporary language. This is a never-ending process, as the English language will continue to change. In addition, the contemporary language “demystifies and desanctifies” the mysteries written in the Bible. Woods (2004, p. 14) also mentions this tendency of the usage of more plain English in the religious domain. This should, however, not be at the expense of the poetic character of liturgical materials. Still, it reflects the change in the sociology of the Anglican church and that the scriptures should be made understandable for all social classes. That translations take away metaphors is not solely an English practice. Also in the Dutch Bible translations this can be found. Take for example Psalm 94, verse 20:

Statenvertaling 1637 Zou zich de stoel der schadelijkheden met U

vergezelschappen, die moeite verdicht bij inzetting?

Nederlands Bijbelgenootschap vertaling 1951 Hebt Gij iets gemeen met de zetel van het verderf, die onder schijn van recht onheil sticht?

De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling 2004 Kiest u de kant van verdorven rechters, die onheil stichten in naam van de wet?

With ‘de stoel der schadelijkheden’ the translators meant the corrupt judges, which they explained with a footnote (Trouw, 2004). In the 1951 translation, this metaphor is still largely in place, however, already

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7 with clearer language. In the 2004 translation, the metaphor has been erased in order to create an unambiguous verse, that needs no further explanations like it did in 1637.

The movements against the use of contemporary and mostly unambiguous language, like in the 2004 New Bible translation in Dutch, initiate the debate for turning back the desire for translations and to use the language of their fathers and mothers. Furthermore, there is a call for returning “to some or all of the former language(s) of religion per se.” (Fishman, 2006, p. 22).

Thus, on one hand there is the evident connection between language and religion with the spread of languages that has come with the spread of religion. In addition, both changes in religion and language can influence and change each other. On the other hand there is the abstract connection between language and religion where language can be used in various ways and within various registers to be the medium to practice religion. This widespread variety of language registers within Christianity causes different views on the usage of languages and the importance of minority languages. In addition, the practice of translating the Bible is a delicate one where one should pay attention to the poetic character of the source texts, but should also find a way to make use of the contemporary language to allow for better understanding for all its readers.

3. Religion and the Bible in Minority Languages

So far, the evident and more abstract connections between language and religion have been outlined. The varieties of languages and registers used during different religious practices, like praying, engaging with a sermon, studying the scriptures, participating in liturgy, and discussing theology, that are mentioned by Downes (2010, p.2), are in sharp contrast with the seemingly universal content of the Bible and religion. For example, one can use more formal language in church and more colloquial language at home. Moreover, one can choose to practice religion at home in a different language than the dominant language in the local church. The used language can change, but the general content of the Bible stays the same.

3.1 Bible Translation

This brings us to the next layer of the relation between language and religion. This layer is the existence of Bible translations and their connection to the diverse languages and language registers. As Fishman (2006, p. 17) indicates, some translations might take away metaphorical advantages when a language too close to the spoken vernacular is used. The act of translating the Bible has been subject to research, and there are several frameworks that have been developed to use when translating the Bible.

There is the functionalist approach that focuses on the function and purpose that the translated texts hold for the targeted audience. This entails that the translator does not has to translate the text word by word, but the interpretation needs to be identical to the original intention. The different cultures of

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8 the source and the target should not stand in the way of a good translation, meaning that the translated work should be understood and create the same effect in the targeted audience the same way as it was understood by the source receivers. In order to account for these requirements, a literal translation is impossible and the translator should be allowed the space to justify its decisions. Thus, this means that the translator has the freedom to deviate from the literal wordings in the source text and to adapt it to the targeted audience’s language but also culture to end up with the same meaning and goal of the text (Osotsi Mojola & Wendland, 2003, pp. 13-17).

The next approach is the descriptive approach in which “a major aim is to describe how translations actually function in the wider context of society and more narrowly within a certain literary system” (Osotsi Mojola & Wendland, 2003, p. 17). The descriptive approach works with product and process norms, to establish what a translation should look like and how the translation process can be regulated. It looks at how the translation fits in with the expectation of the readers. But also, what the accountability towards the source text and the author’s intention is. Whether there is “a sufficient degree of intertextual similarity and overall communication effectiveness” (Osotsi Mojola & Wendland, 2003, p. 19). Thus the descriptive approach differs from the functional approach as it has to conform to certain norms during the translation process, whereas within the functionalist approach the translator has the freedom to follow different steps with every translation done. In addition, the intertextual similarity between the source text and the translation is more important in the descriptive approach. For the functionalist approach, the interpretation needs to be identical, regardless of the intertextual similarity. Another well-renowned approach is a translation from a text-linguistic perspective. This approach deals with the dynamic aspects that biblical texts can have. It divides the texts based upon two perspectives; frequency and focus. Words that are less frequent will be of bigger significance to the content of the message and need more focus. The translators are expected to stay close to the original texts when considering these less frequent items (Osotsi Mojola & Wendland, 2003, p. 20).

The next approach mentioned by Osotsi Mojola & Wendland (2003, p. 20) is the relevance theory approach. This entails that translating needs to be done in such a way that it is the easiest for the targeted audience to understand, with minimal processing efforts. However, adequate cognitive effects need to be achieved by communicating the desired information. Thus, the translator needs to determine how much of a text has to be saved in translation in order to receive the same interpretation of the original text.

The last approach, which is the literalist approach, does not only pay attention to the written translation, but also to how the translation sounds when it is read aloud. Attention has to be put upon the rhythm and sounds, taking into consideration the Hebrew wordings and reproducing the Hebrew key words within the translated texts. This often leads to translations that are unintelligible for the ones who have no knowledge of the Hebrew language (Osotsi Mojala & Wendland, 2003, pp. 23-24). To conclude, a straightforward literal ‘word for word’ translation is also used in Bible translations. When this is done, each word is translated separately, without looking at how words are

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9 used together in a phrase or sentence (Cambridge Dictionary, 2020, literal entry). Which translation framework is used depends highly on the character the translation is ought to have. In addition, every translation project has a different character caused by the diversity in “culture, language, gender, ethnicity, social status, educational level, age group, and ideological orientation” (Osotsi Mojala & Wendland, 2003, p. 25).

Where we can clearly see practices of the functionalist approach in religion and translation is in the context of, for example, African theology. To ensure the understanding of the translated works by the targeted audience within the scope of their culture, in African theology the own background, history, culture, and identity are brought into Christianity (Wagenaar, 2002, p. 238). This indigenizing principle of putting the gospel in the local culture of the people involved leads to the church being a place where people can feel at home. Nowadays this inter-relationship between culture and worship is called inculturation (Wagenaar, 2002, p. 241; Woods, 2004, p. 17). The practice of inculturation is defined as follows by Atta-Bafoe and Tovey (1990, p. 14, in Woods, 2004, p. 17):

“The incarnation of the Christian life and message in a particular cultural context in such a way that not only do local Christians find expression for their faith through elements proper to their culture but also that faith and worship animate, direct and unify the culture. Inculturation in this sense is the dialogue of gospel and culture.”

Wolf (2006, p. 55), also signals this inculturation principle in the Western African Christian congregations where they blend the ‘traditional’ African spirituality with the ‘modern’ Christian elements. Wolf continues in saying that this practice, is crucial to these western African Christian congregations. In addition, he adds that also this traditional African spirituality could become part of the Christian elements elsewhere. Thus, to understand the gospel it is important to be able to adapt it to one’s community and culture. Furthermore, the addition of other influences might enrich the religious domain (Wolf, 2006, p. 55). Even more than incorporating culture, the use of the local language, which has a fundamental role in constructing meaning and identity (Meyjes, 2006, p. 37) can enhance this process of inculturation significantly. This brings us to the use of minority languages in religion.

3.2 Minority Languages in Religion

Using the minority language as part of putting the religion in the local community and working towards inculturation is not a change that is easy to make. It brings with it specific challenges. Minority languages are found in different contexts, for example, it being an autochthonous language like Frisian in the Netherlands, or an immigrant language like Spanish in The United States of America. The number of speakers and the (legal) position of the language can differ significantly for each minority language. Thus, for minority languages within a specific geographic context, the language choice within the

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10 religious domain might be a more complicated one than for others. As to what language is preferred when practicing religion there is no universal history to be found.

When regarding immigrant groups, their minority languages can be put into a broader context when they have not only taken their language with them but also their religion. This is the case in many parts of the world, for example in Australia. In a study done by Woods (2004) several migrant groups and the churches they were affiliated with were subject of investigation. In, for example, the Latvian case, the Latvian language was seen as the most vital element for the survival of the Latvian community. Latvian was used within the church as they signalled that language survival depends on the existence of domains where the language can be used (Woods, 2004, p. 7). For many of these migrant groups, the church is one of the most influential domains that can help in the survival of minority languages (Woods, 2004, p.8).

Boyd (1985, p. 163, in Woods, 2004, p. 12) found that for the immigrant communities, a change towards the use of the dominant language within the church would be met with resistance and people wanting the leave the church community if this was done. Their language might not be considered as sacred enough by others but they themselves accorded this value to it. The Greek Orthodox church poses an example of this tendency. For the Greek immigrant groups, the language holds such a closely related link to the religion and if the dominant language would be used it would not feel as church anymore, more like a general talk (Katsikis, 1993, in Woods, 2004, p. 16). This indicates that the language used within the church can be considered as a different language register than everyday speech or even talks. Consequently, the presence of two or more languages within one context can lead to one language being the more dominant one with a higher status and the other being a more colloquial language that is used with friends and family. However, within the same language, these differences can also be made when using different language registers. One can decide to either use the language or register with the higher status to accord to God, that has the highest status possible. Another option is to use the more colloquial language or register and highlight the personal and intimate bond that one has with God (Woods, 2004, p.2). Whenever the vernacular is used to a significant amount, with sometimes even Bible translations written in the vernacular, it can obtain a certain degree of sanctity of its own. Given that, the association between the scriptures, the religious domain, and the vernacular growth results in the acceptance of that language when practicing religion (Fishman, 2006, p. 17).

This division of language and register might be seen nowadays as a voluntarily one, however, this has not always been the case. In the sixteenth, seventeenth, and eighteenth-century minority languages like Catalan, Breton, Welsh, and Gaelic were used in the religious domain. Nevertheless, as Marfany (2005) argues, this was only done to maintain the social scales of that time. The churches in these regions encouraged the use of the local languages as these were associated with the lower classes. Only the upper classes should be able to speak the state language (Marfany, 2005, p. 154). In France, this was the case for all the dialects present. The role of the ministers, preachers, and priests was to be the intermediaries between the word of the Lord that came down in the writing of the upper classes and

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11 to translate this to the lower classes in their dialects, only in spoken form (Marfany, 2005, pp. 160-161). However, Marfany (2005, p. 162) signals that with the Protestant Reformation, initiated by Martin Luther in 1517, there was a growing interest and concern for maintaining and using the minority languages in the religious domain. The Reformation was at the base of some of the written translations of the Holy Scriptures for these minority languages, mostly in languages that were too different from the dominant language, like Basque, Welsh, and Gaelic. Still, in practice, the catholic social class differentiation between languages was kept in place (Marfany, 2005, p. 162). In Wales, some resilience has been shown towards the established orders. There was a growing demand to speak and learn English, in daily life, and also in the church. The people knew that speaking English could lead to upward social mobility (Marfany, 2005, pp. 165-166). With the end of the Ancien Régime it became everyone’s duty to learn the language of the state, this process however, was not a quick one. Nevertheless, the degree of literacy that the lower classes had obtained by exposure to religious texts in some way helped these classes in becoming literate in the state language more quickly (Marfany, 2005, pp. 169-173). Marfany concludes by saying that even though the actions of the church may have saved the minority languages, it was only to maintain the social scale and to keep the speakers of it as low as possible on the said scale (Marfany, 2005, p. 174). Spolsky (2006, p. 7) also addresses this point, acknowledging the fact that the Christian missionaries (especially Protestant ones) played a central role in maintaining the minority languages, also to some extent in a written form. However, the effect in the end has been that these minority language speakers shifted away from their minority language to the dominant language as this would bring them upwards on the social scale.

These minority language speakers thus received their religion only in spoken form and had no possibility to read the scriptures themselves. There are thus multiple actions, language registers, and contexts in which the religion can be brought into the minority language communities. Here, there also lies a role for the ministers who can act as the translator and language advocate. The minister holds the role of being a linguistic role model. “The view of clergy as linguistic role models clearly places them at risk of criticism by these for whom notions of language ‘purity’ and the sanctity of religious practice are strongly linked” (Woods, 2004, p. 21). However, for minority languages within a bilingual or multilingual situation, the language used within the sermon can indicate the level of language maintenance. Language purity cannot always be achieved when one of the languages is not understood fully by the targeted audience. Within the church services, the sermons are and can be adapted to suit the audience more easily than the translated scriptures, by, for example, adding explanations in the other language. Hofman (1966, p. 133, in Woods, 2004, p. 20) sees the sermon as being “probably most sensitive to the linguistic needs and preferences of the congregation as a whole”. Thus, the language used in the sermon can indicate the perceived language preferences of the congregation, likewise, language preferences of the congregation can be implemented in the sermons, and the liturgy as a whole. As Fishman (2006, p. 23) puts it:

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12 “But clergy frequently need and take instruction as to how to communicate with their ﬂocks, although the ﬂocks do not speak with one voice and are sometimes ambivalent and even change directions in language preferences!”

Up until now we have seen that there are different types of translation frameworks that can be used when translating the Bible. These frameworks use different strategies and the outcomes can differ significantly from each other. However, the content of the Bible will remain universally the same. Translating the Bible in minority languages has not been a general practice. In addition, there are many different contexts and situations that determine why, how, and when the minority languages are used within the religious domain. Moreover, the many different ways in which language is used in the religious domain poses as an opportunity to use languages interchangeably, creating a multilingual religious domain. The ministers hold a role in this to anticipate the language preferences of the congregation and to place their services in the bilingual or multilingual context of which the minority language is a part of. In the next chapter, the use of the Frisian language in the religious domain will be discussed.

4. Frisian and Religion and the Bible

The situation as described for France, Spain, Wales, and Scotland, did not occur similarly in the province of Fryslân. The Frisian language was not seen as divine enough to be used for religion, and thus the Frisian people received and practiced their religion in Dutch. At the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century, a movement arose that advocated for the usage of the Frisian language within the religious domain, it being the mother tongue of many inhabitants of Fryslân. Nowadays, little over half of the Frisian population has Frisian as their mother tongue as was shown in the Fryske Taalatlas 2015, with a total of 450.000 speakers. A 93.7% of the participants could understand Frisian well to very well. Only a small group of the participants, 6.3% could not understand Frisian at all or with a lot of effort. For reading proficiency, 51.8% could read Frisian well to very well. Some 25% could read Frisian quite well and a little less than 25% was not able to read Frisian or very little (Provinsje Fryslân, 2015, p. 5). There is thus a relatively large group of people who can speak Frisian or at least understand it in the Province of Fryslân. With regards to the religious domain, as mentioned in the introduction, the Protestant Church Community is the largest religious group within the province of Fryslân. The Protestant Church Community has a total of 1.849.202 members in the Netherlands (Protestantse Kerk, 2017, p. 6). Officially, the term member is a collective term with three sub categories. These categories are practicing members, baptized members of the church, and others. With others, the Protestant Church Community means guest members, co-registered family members, and people who are not official members but who want to be part of the community for specific reasons (blijkgevers). For now these categories will be clustered into the general ‘members’. In January of 2017,

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13 the province of Fryslân had 646.874 inhabitants, out of which 157.983 (24.4%) were members of the Protestant Church Community. In addition to the different member categories, the Protestant Church Community can also still be divided into four different religious movements, it being the Protestants, the Reformed Church, the Dutch Reformed, and the Lutheran denominations. Out of these 157.983 members of the Protestant Church Community in the Province of Fryslân, the largest religious movement is the Protestant community with 123.147 (78%) members. Next is the Reformed Church, with a total of 18.355 (11.6%) members. The third biggest group are the Dutch Reformed with 16.229 (10.3%) members. The Lutherans are the smallest with ‘only’ 207 (0.1%) members in Fryslân (Protestantse Kerk, 2017, pp 16-19). Out of the 777 Protestant parishes in the Netherlands, there are 148 (19%) in the Province of Fryslân. In addition, there are 47 (8.9%) out of the 527 Reformed parishes, 27 (11.5%) of the in total 235 Dutch Reformed parishes, and one (2.9%) of the 34 Lutheran parishes. Making a total of 223 parishes within the Protestant Church Community in the Province Fryslân (Protestantse Kerk, 2017, p. 25).

For the Frisian speakers that were involved with the church in the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century arguments arose in favour of the usage of the Frisian language within the religious domain. However, there was also a group of people that was against the introduction of Frisian in the religious domain and a Frisian Bible translation. Contradictory, these people who were against a Frisian Bible translation were mostly Frisians themselves (Westra, 2008, p.7). In general, in the history of Bible translations protests are not uncommon. The overall tendency within these protests has been that the Bible needs no renewal or translation since the people have become familiarized with the form that has been used over the years. This was also the case for the Frisian language and the Frisian Bible translation. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the Frisian language and the religious domains like the Bible, faith, prayers, and church in Fryslân did not go together. Since the Reformation in 1517-1522, the church in Fryslân had been in Dutch (Popkema, 2008, p. 11). Moreover, with the publication of the Statenbijbel in Dutch in 1637, the Dutch language became even more established as the language of religion in the province of Fryslân. Not only was Dutch used when reading and quoting the Bible, also in individual prayers Dutch became the main language. This was because the prayers were based upon the tale Kanaäns, the strict liturgical language from the Bible (Zondag, 1987, p.72).

In 1908, the Kristlik Frysk Selskip was founded. It had the mission to enhance the usage of Frisian within the churches and to translate the Bible. In 1911, the first translated parts were published by Postma & De Clerq, and in 1933 the New Testament translation by Dr. G. A. Wumkes was finished. For Wumkes the desire for a Frisian Bible translation did not just come from a language point of view, but also to save – what he called - the Frisian spirit. With this he meant to keep faith and loyalty to its own Frisian character, to be itself; since language is the transmitter and translator of the mind (Wumkes, 1917, p. 73). Within four years all 10.000 copies of the first impression of the New Testament were sold (Popkema, 2014, p. 120). Besides that, soon after starting to translate the New Testament, the Psalms were also being translated. In 1923, the first complete translation of the Psalm book was published

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14 (Popkema, 2008, pp. 15-16). However, these new Frisian translations did not automatically mean that the church services were done in Frisian as well. Characteristic of the situation was the agreement made by the church council of Leeuwarden in 1935, thatone could not simply deny the people to hold their sermons and services in Frisian. Nevertheless, this was not done because of the mixed Dutch-Frisian congregations present in the province and the longstanding Dutch religious tradition. The use of Frisian within the religious domains was limited to inhouse usage and evangelization (Popkema, 2008, pp. 21-22).

As signalled at the beginning of this chapter, oppositions arose against a Frisian Bible translation. In addition, there were protests against the usage of Frisian in the general religious domain. Arguments that were put forward on the pastor conference in 1934 were the nonexistence of unity in the Frisian language, that the Frisian people spoke Dutch just as well as Frisian, that the church was in need of unity in language, and that the usage of Frisian in the church would lead to a situation of spiritual death (van Es, 1934, p.106). Furthermore, as can be read in Wagenaar (1999, p.3), the Frisian language was considered not divine enough for in church usage. In addition, the general opinion has been that Frisian is unknown and too difficult for Dutch speaking members, that the province of Fryslân is part of the Netherlands, and that Frisian is a rough language (Zondag, 2013, p. 12). However, on said pastor conference, the inhouse usage of Frisian was accepted. In addition, Frisian as a means to enhance evangelization was also accepted and was called the naïve use of Frisian in the church (van Es, 1934, pp. 106-108). As Huismans (1916, p. 58) puts it, the learned faith was in Dutch, and the inner faith in Frisian, the language of the people. However, the Frisian movement and the translation process did not stop and in 1943 the Old Testament had been translated and the complete Frisian Bible translation was presented in Leeuwarden on the 29th of September. Within that same day, all 4000 copies were sold (Popkema, 2014, p. 121).

In 1966 it was decided that a new Frisian Bible translation should be made in cooperation with all the different churches and the provincial government. There has been criticism on the previous translation as this could be considered as a literal translation, as mentioned in chapter 3, which lead to incomprehensible texts (de Haan, 1978, pp. 10-16). In 1978 a new Frisian Bible translation was published together with the Lieteboek foar de Tsjerken (hymnbook). These translations were not affected by the strain of getting a Frisian translation out there like in the beginning of the twentieth century, but more so with the goal of spreading the Bible and the theological practices in Frisian. In the new translation the goal was to bring the texts in the Bible as close as possible to the religious reader, using the language of the present time (de Haan, 1978, p. 48). This translation can be categorized in the descriptive translation approach discussed in chapter 3, as the language used had to match the expectations of the readers. Despite the new translation, Frisian church services did not receive a lot of support, the people were simply not asking for them (Popkema, 2008, pp. 28-29). Since 1971, there has been a call for bilingual church services, with for example doing the singing of the hymns in Frisian (Popkema, 2008, pp. 36-38). In the policy document of the Kristlik Frysk Selskip from 1981-1985 it was

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15 argued that when Frisian ministers were not confident enough in that they could correctly use the Frisian language in their services, a language course should be made available. In addition, the usage of Frisian in the simultaneous children’s service should be encouraged (Kristlik Frysk Selskip, 1981, p. 190). In 1983, Koen Zondag writes about the future for the Kristlik Frysk Selskip. He notices that despite the efforts made, the churches have not implemented Frisian in their services, not in the sermons nor in the songs. He argues that by not doing this the churches have deprived themselves of creating existential contact with the congregation (Zondag, 1983, p. 197). In 1986, Zondag argued for bilingual services to get familiar with the usage of Frisian in the church. This type of ‘practicing’ would gradually add a degree of sanctity to the Frisian language, which was needed after all these years (Zondag, 1986, p. 209; Fishman, 2006, p. 17).

From 1995 on forward, also the Kristlik Frysk Selskip realised that the monolingual ideology of completely Frisian churches was not reachable. They themselves changed their ideology to make a policy for a bilingual church, recognizing the province of Fryslân as a bilingual society in which Frisian should be equal to Dutch. Another shift in the ideology was that the focus should be more on inculturation; the relationship between culture and religion. Going forward, the previous involved language ideals should be of minor importance. Van der Ploeg (1995, p. 214) argues that there was a need for a more fundamental, structural and broader support for the usage of Frisian in religious life. The position of Frisian in the daily life of the society, as part of the Frisian culture, had become more and more established and van der Ploeg argues that the churches should work towards reaching that same level. Establishing a role for the Frisian language in the churches was long seen as an ideological battle. However, the implementation of Frisian in the church should be done in harmonic collaboration between the church and the society for it is this society who will be the recipient of the gospel in Frisian (van der Ploeg, 1995, pp. 214-218).

The last chairman of the Kristlik Frysk Selskip agreed with the bilingual policy. He argued that where people were used to Dutch in the church and were familiar with the texts, songs, and vocabulary it would be hard to force them into completely Frisian services. This should be a gradual change so that the people can get used to the Frisian translations. In addition, he mentions that the church should reflect the bilingual society that exists outside of the church (de Boer, 1998, p. 227).

To celebrate the 90th_{anniversary of the Kristlik Frysk Selskip, board members went to visit}

Frisian services throughout the province to write down reports of how such a service was done. An overall conclusion was that sometimes words were too difficult to understand, however, one could not expect the minister to explain everything. In addition, comments were made on small grammar mistakes and interferences from Dutch. These interferences could be due to the fact that the Frisian language has become influenced to some extent by the Dutch language and thus this could be considered as a more lenient, daily life, type of Frisian. Overall, the use of Frisian made that the visitors felt right at home in the church and that the use of a local variety of Frisian made the ministers stand closer to the congregation (Kristlik Frysk Selskip, 1998). However, the board members did agree upon the fact that

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16 the Frisian in the services should be of the same quality everywhere, mentioning certain standards to be met (Kristlik Frysk Selskip, 1998). This indicates that using the standard variety perfectly holds more importance than using the local varieties with Dutch influences coming from the bilingual community. Language demands should be met when using Frisian in the church. The inculturation approach had not been accepted by these board members.

Nowadays, the Frisian language is used both within the liturgy, as pastorally. Fully Frisian services are organised a couple of times a year at some locations and Frisian elements are incorporated in the services. In previous research done by Veenstra (2019) 1_{, 32 ministers filled in a questionnaire}

about when Frisian was used in church and what their congregation members thought of the usage of Frisian in the church services. It was shown that Frisian was used most in songs (68.8%), announcements (21.9%), when talking with and addressing the children (34.4%), and when spontaneous interruptions were done (28.1%). In this study seven levels of appreciation for the usage of Frisian in the church services were identified. These are displayed in table 1. These percentages show that the use of Frisian is definitely appreciated by part of the congregations. However, there is still a big part of the congregations that favour Dutch and are not actively advocating for the usage of Frisian in the church services.

Level of appreciation

%

Beautiful

14

Appreciative

22

Valuable

6

Not very fanatic

17

Mostly Dutch

22

Not important

8

A mix/differs per person

11

Table 1. Levels of appreciation indicated by the ministers in Veenstra, 2019.

In addition to the relatively small role of Frisian in the church services nowadays, the practice of reading the Bible in Frisian as part of one’s daily religious practices has diminished over the years (Born, 2019). In 2018 the first thoughts were put into making a new Frisian Bible translation. The chairman of the Yntertsjerklike Kommisje foar de Fryske Earetsjinst (Interdenominational Commission for the Frisian Service), Lútsen Kooistra, addresses that the Bible has gotten a different function in people’s lives. It is now seen as a cultural book, that should be placed within the daily life of the people,

1_{The Frisian Language in Religion Protestant Ministers and their use of Frisian. Unpublished raw data, collected}

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17 using the contemporary Frisian language. In addition, the new translation should be scientifically approved and appropriate for use within the church and education (Kooistra, in Born, 2019). Looking at the Bible as more of a cultural book puts it within the practice of inculturation. The translation framework that fits best within the inculturation principle is the functionalist approach, where the targeted audiences language and culture is the base for the translation.

The position of the Frisian language within the religious domain has thus not been a common practice throughout history. Many different ideologies and language practices have been the cause of this. With the new Frisian Bible translation that should be published in 2024, the Frisian language might become more established within the religious domain of Fryslân.

5. Statement of purpose

So far, a brief overview has been given of the general connection between language and religion both on an evident level as well as on a more abstract level. Furthermore, several frameworks for Bible translations have been given. In addition, several minority language speaking communities and their history with the link to Christianity have been presented to show the diversity within this field. Moreover, the Frisian context has been explained in order to set the scene for the current research. Accordingly, the main research question in this thesis is: “How do protestant ministers in the province of Fryslân experience and interpret the connection between language and religion?” To answer this research question, several sub-questions have to be answered within the results section.

1- Are these ministers aware of the connection between language and religion?

2- What do the ministers find important for the Bible translations from different perspectives and for different purposes?

3- Is there a need for guidelines regarding language use within the religious domain? First of all, the awareness of the connection between language and religion of the ministers will be looked at. This helps in answering the main research question as it looks directly at how the ministers use their languages and how they see the link and influences between these two factors. It is expected that there is a high awareness of the connection between language and religion as religion is mostly performed through language in the Christian Protestant community and the usage of one’s mother tongue can create existential contact between the ministers and the congregation members (Zondag, 1983; Edwards, 2009; Downes, 2010; Woods, 2004; Spolsky, 2006; Fishman, 2006). Secondly, the importance of the Bible translations from different perspectives and for different purposes will be analysed. This sub-question will look at different uses of language in different contexts and what this might mean for the use of Frisian in the religious domain and the Frisian used in the new Bible translation. What is expected here is that many will opt for the translation that uses contemporary

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18 language and that can thus be placed in the functionalist approach. Lastly, the need for guidelines regarding language use within the religious domain is the subject of research. With this question, more light will be shed upon how languages are actively part of the religious domain and whether there should be a form of regulation on language use. Here it is expected that many participants will indicate a non-preference for guidelines regarding the diversity in languages within the province (Zondag, 2013).

6. Method

6.1 The participants

A total of 38 ministers and church workers participated in this study. Church workers hold an important position within the Protestant Church Community. A church worker is active in the fields of ministry, church building, spiritual education, and missionary or diaconal work. In order to become a church worker and be allowed to do this work, one must have finished a BA degree in Religion-Pastoral Work at one of the recognized universities of applied sciences (Protestantse Kerk, n.d.a.). The majority of the participants were in the 50-59 age group, and the next greatest number being in the 60-69 age group. The division between age groups can be seen in Figure 1. Most ministers, sixteen (42.1%), started employment in a congregation in the province of Fryslân in the years 2010-2019. The second biggest group started in the years 2000-2009 with 9 (23.7%) ministers. The next biggest group started in the years 1990-1999 with 8 (21.1%). Three (7.9%) participants started in the years 1980-1998. There was one (2.6%) who started in the year 2020. Four of the participants have been given emeritus status.

A little more than a third of the participants (39.5%) indicated having Frisian as their mother tongue. Out of the other participants, ten (26.3%) did not indicate Frisian as a language that they know, thirteen

(34.2%) wrote Frisian down as a language in which they were proficient out of which three specified that their knowledge was small. However, because language proficiency has not been tested within this research, differences within this group cannot be checked and therefore, these three are part of the group that has Frisian as another language than their mother tongue. The distribution of mother tongues can be seen in Figure 2.

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Figure 1. Age distribution of participants.

Figure 2. Distribution of mother tongues of the participants.

6.2 Materials

In order to investigate language use, views on the influence of language, and attitudes towards Bible translations, a questionnaire was designed with a total of 25 questions divided into four main areas. The questionnaire was written in Dutch since previous research (Veenstra, 2019) had shown that not all ministers working in the province of Fryslân speak, write, or read Frisian. Table 2 provides an overview

13% 8% 37% 34% 8% 30-39 40-49 50-59 60-69 70-79 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20

Frisian Dutch Kamper dialect English Franekers (City Frisian)

Zeeuws & Dutch

Frisian & Dutch

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20 of the different sections included in the questionnaire with a short description and the number of questions included in each part. The questionnaire can be found in Appendix I. Previous experiences and publications on the use of the Frisian Bible translation and the use of Frisian within the church services posed as a starting point for the questions.

Section Description Question number

1 Demographics Age, place of birth, current place of employment, mother tongue, etc.

1-7

2 Language and Religion General questions about the connection between language and religion and the changing characters of language

8-11

3 Religion and Frisian Attitudes and views towards the use of Frisian within the religious context

12-17

4 Frisian Bible translations

Attitudes and views towards the Frisian Bible translations and its use

18-25

Table 2. Details of the questionnaire.

Section 1 consists of 7 questions about demographics. This section is included to obtain relevant information about the participants, such as age, mother tongue, other known languages, time of employment in a Frisian congregation, and place of employment. The answers to these questions were used to provide an overview and were used to make connections to the other questions asked in the following sections. All questions in this section are open questions, since the answers could differ to large extents.

Sections 2 to 4 consist of the questions that were analysed quantitatively and where possible qualitative analysis has been added. Every question was designed as a closed question with multiple answer possibilities. In addition, the participant could choose to also write an explanation to elaborate on their choice.

The questions in section 2 (questions 8 to 11) were based upon the literature discussed in chapter 2 about the historic connection between language and the spread of religion, and the continues changing characters of both language and religion (Ferguson, 1982; Fishman, 2006; Spolsky, 2006). In addition, a question about the language proficiency of the congregation was added in order to see if this might affect the language choices of the ministers and make the religious thoughts understandable (Downes,

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21 2010). These questions were asked and created to find out how and if the ministers were aware of their use of language and the impact this might have within their congregation.

The questions in section 3 (questions 12 to 17) were based upon literature written on the use of minority languages in religion (Woods, 2004; Fishman, 2006; Marfany, 2005), the documentation of actions by the Kristlik Frysk Selskip (Popkema, 2008; Popkema 2014), and the reports of the listening committee from 1998 (Zondag, 1999) that has been presented in chapters 3.2 and 4. Within this section the personal link between religion and language use was made, both on an intimate and professional level. A reason for this is that, as can be read in the literature (Popkema, 2008; Popkema, 2014; Wagenaar, 1999), the Frisian language has not been a big part of the religious life, neither in church as at home, as it was considered to be not divine enough for the religious domain. It is interesting to find out what the ministers themselves use in their intimate religion, and whether this is in correspondence with their mother tongue.

The questions in section 4 (questions 18 to 25) were based upon the written literature about the Frisian Bible translations and the strategies on Bible translations (de Haan, 1978; Popkema, 2008; Wilt, 2003) as described in chapters 3.1 and 4. The questions covered the use of the Bible and what the ministers found important for the Bible translation from different perspectives and for different purposes. A division was made between the importance of the source text, the general translation for readers, and a translation for the personal understanding and a possible guiding factor of the gospel. These are different aspects of how one can see, read, and believe the Bible.

6.3 Procedures

The questionnaire was sent out to all of the ministers and church workers within the Protestant Frisian community via email. This was done with the help of the secretary of the classis Fryslân. The classis is responsible for the regional administration of the Protestant Church community. There are eleven classis in the Netherlands where in the classical assembly the representatives of each parish in the region of said classis are present. They direct the works of the classis and take the responsibility of the church towards the parishes and of the parishes towards each other (Protestantse Kerk, n.d.b). It was an online questionnaire which the participants could enter through a link that was enclosed in the email. In this email a quick introduction was done, an explanation of the reasoning behind the research was given, it was explained how to enter the questionnaire, and gratitude in anticipation of the participation in this research was expressed. The link lead to a questionnaire made in the Qualtrics software (Qualtrics, Provo, UT). Thus, the participants were able to choose themselves if, where, and when they would fill in the questionnaire. In the first slide, the participants could again read the purpose of the research, an explanation on how to fill in the questionnaire, and were again thanked in advance for their participation. With the arrow buttons, the participants were able to navigate through the questionnaire in their own time. It was also possible to go back to the previous section in order to present the possibility of adding

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22 and changing something without having to start the questionnaire again. For every new category, a few introductory lines were presented in order to activate the participants to already start thinking about the category presented. In addition, some questions came with a more elaborate text to place the question in a clearer context. In order to make sure that the participants did not forget to submit the questionnaire, entering the last page automatically submitted their answers. Here, they were thanked again for their participation and for any further questions or comments referred to the researchers’ email address.

6.4 Design and analyses

The data obtained in all four sections were used to answer the research question: “How do protestant ministers in the province of Fryslân experience and interpret the connection between language and religion?” And the three sub-questions;

1- Are these ministers aware of the connection between language and religion?

2- What do the ministers find important for the Bible translations from different perspectives and for different purposes?

3- Is there a need for guidelines regarding language use within the religious domain?

The questions posed in the questionnaire were all closed questions with, in general, three or four answer options. This was done in order to receive as many responses as possible. However, for every question, the option was given to write an explanation. The participants were thus not forced to spend a lot of time on the questionnaire, but were allowed and encouraged to give an explanation for their given answer. The design of the questionnaire ensured that participants did not leave the questionnaire due to a heavy load of open questions. However, many participants did take their time and gave explanations providing a deeper understanding of the motives regarding their language use and view on language. By doing this, qualitative data could be gathered that has provided deeper insights on the topic generating a broader understanding of the views and opinions of the ministers and church workers in the province of Fryslân regarding language and language use within the church services and the Bible.

The data analysis for this research was generated using Qualtrics software, Version 2020 of Qualtrics (Qualtrics, Provo, UT). Different categories were looked at and put into contrast to each other, creating a relational design with cross-tabulation of categories (Mayring, 2014, p.12). In addition to the quantitative data, the qualitative has also been added to the analysis, creating a mixed-method design.

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7. Results

In examining the results several links were made between the questions from the questionnaire that formed the base for answering the general research question.

The response rate to this questionnaire was rather low, out of the 185 approached ministers and church workers, 38 have fully filled in the questionnaire. This is a response rate of 20.5%. In addition, a small percentage of the inhabitants of the province of Fryslân, 24.4%, are members of the Protestant Church Community. Moreover, little over half of the Frisian inhabitants are Frisian mother tongue speakers. However, 93.7% has indicated that Frisian is a language that they can understand well to very well (Provinsje Fryslân, 2015, p.5). What needs to be kept in mind when reading the results to this study is that only a rather small part of the Frisian community fits within the framework of this study, being a Frisian speaker, with membership to the Protestant Church community and more specifically a minister or church worker who represent their congregation. However, even though the study covers only a small community, it has the ability to display general opinions and language attitudes and practices.

Since the questionnaire was sent out by the overarching organisation of the protestant church community in Fryslân, the contact between participants and the content of the research was limited. This might have caused resistance to fill out the questionnaire. Because of the low response rate, any detailed statistical analysis has not been done; however, the qualitative data gathered by allowing the participants to explain their answers on a voluntary basis provided additional valuable insights into the viewpoints of the ministers and church workers of the Protestant churches in Fryslân.

The previous division in mother tongues has been made less specific for the sake of this analysis. The participants that indicated both Frisian and Dutch as their mother tongue have been put in the category of Frisian mother tongue speakers, so has the Franeker speaking participant, it being a City Frisian dialect. The speaker of the Kamper dialect has been included in the Dutch mother tongue speaking group, this also goes for the minister who indicated English as his mother tongue but is also highly proficient in Dutch. The qualitative data presented in this section has not been translated in the text into English. This has been done since the research is about language use and translating them for in-text use would not do justice to the language choices made by the participants. However, translations can be found in Appendix II.

7.1 Connection between language and religion

To answer the first sub-question, are the ministers aware of the connection between language and religion?, the following questions and connections will be analysed : Q8, Q6-Q13, Q9, Q6/7-Q14, and Q17.

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24 Q8 asked the participants whether or not they were aware of the influence of language in their job. All 38 participants answered this question with yes. Non-Frisian speaking participants signalled:

Emoties laten zich verbinden met de keuze van de taal waarin deze uitgedrukt worden. (P21) Taal is grotendeels het medium waardoor een predikant zijn/haar werk doet. (P15)

Ook al ben ik het fries niet machtig, ik probeer mijn taalgebruik wel aan te passen aan de doelgroep. In de dorpen betekent dat: geen tale Kanaäns, geen academische taal. (P34)

Most of the explanations signal how language can touch the heart, as the medium in which emotions are transferred, and how religion is practiced in the church. Mother tongue speakers of Frisian indicated that:

Ik ben me bewust dat taal een grote rol speelt in de vorming van een mens en menselijke identiteit en geloof. Ben ook al lang bezig met besef van 'memmetaal'. (P36)

Taal is het voertuig van de Geest in de kerk. (P13)

Als kerkelijk werker voer ik veel gesprekken. Als die in de moedertaal gedaan worden is het persoonlijker en meestal dieper. (P5)

Taal raakt het hart. (P2)

A non-mother tongue speaker of Frisian signalled that:

Woorden kunnen iets open breken of juist afsluiten. Veel gaat in mijn werk over taal. (P19) That language is closely related to their jobs is made clear by all participants. Some participants already signal the role of the mother tongue within the religious domain.

This brings us to the next question of whether or not the usage of the mother tongue can bring the religion closer to the people (Q12) will be analysed. All participants answered this question with ‘yes’. However, there was one that also opted for adding ‘no’ to the answer:

Dat wordt verschillend ervaren - niet iedereen vindt het gebruik van Fries in de eredienst prettig. (P12)

The participants explained their choice for yes with phrases like:

Geloof raakt een diepere gevoelslaag - taal is daarbij van essentieel belang. (P29)

Zaken van groot belang, zoals emotionele uitingen en geloofsgesprekken, kunnen eigenlijk alleen in de eigen taal goed verwoord worden. (P15)