by Mary Hammond, Plain Truth Editor
I’ve recently been looking at the origins of some of our everyday phrases and sayings. Terms many of us use regularly in our conversations without a second thought of how they became part of the English language.
Take for example, the term ‘barking up the wrong tree’ – meaning misdirecting one’s efforts or making a mistake or a false assumption in something you are trying to achieve. I wonder if you knew how this phrase originated? I didn’t. But apparently it was first found in print in a book in 1833 by American Congressman and folk hero Davy Crockett and relates to racoon-hunting. Being a nocturnal creature, the tree-climbing racoon – highly valued for its fur – was hunted at night. The dogs used for hunting the racoons were responsible for signalling to the hunters in which tree a racoon had hidden. But because of the lack of daylight the dogs were often prone to ‘barking up (at) the wrong tree’.
Here’s another – ‘busman’s holiday’. The phrase, as you probably know, is used to describe leisure time spent doing activities you’d usually do for your paid employment. But did you know its roots? Well, it’s said to derive from the days of horse-drawn buses when some of the drivers became so attached to their animals that they spent their ‘days off’ travelling as passengers on their own buses in order to keep their horses company!
All part of our history, these stories are not only interesting and informative, but can help us understand another dimension of perhaps previously misunderstood – or even unconsidered – events or phrases. Sometimes, however, there are surprises. On some occasions, things don’t actually mean what they appear to say. And this is the very topic John Halford talks about in his article Whose hope? What future? on page 10 of this Autumn issue when he takes an in-depth look at an event recorded in Jeremiah.
Surprises all round
And still on the subject of ‘our history’, we have a rather special article to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the King James Bible – starting on page 6 of this issue. In his article ‘Happy Birthday’ King James, Gethin Russell-Jones describes the history of the Bible as ‘a messy and murderous business’. But the resultant – and far-reaching –effects which the translation of the Authorised Version has had in our land, on its laws and even in broadcasting may surprise many of our readers. (We’ve used the formula for this issue of trying to inform our readers of something they don’t know about something they are interested in. And we hope this formula works well for those committed Christians as well as those who may not yet have embarked on their Christian journey.)
We know that the way in which Christianity should be communicated to those as yet without a Christian faith has to be in a humble, gentle, loving and caring manner. Delivering the Gospel in a way in which, as St Paul puts it, as being ‘all things to all men’1 – meaning seeking to preach the Gospel by appealing to different people in ways appropriate to their differences. Not a ‘one size fits all’ approach.
For some Christians in the medical profession, there may be an opportunity to share their faith – and hope – with their patients, if they should request it. Although this isn’t always as easy as it may appear. And you can read about how one GP has run into difficulties with the authorities in this respect in our article Faith on Prescription?
Did you know?
Another way in which the Gospel can be preached by ‘meeting people where they are’ is through music in general – and particularly on the radio. You may not know that one of our regular authors also appears frequently on a local radio station in the Wirral – can you guess who? (And to get you guessing further, the same author has set you a quiz on page 9 – all about common phrases derived from the King James Bible and used every day in the English language.)
We hope that in this issue, we have given our readers a variety of articles, many of which show the rich history of our nation and how Christianity has impacted on British life across the centuries. From language and literature to culture and communication, it’s a story of persistence as well as persecution. Sometimes the journey has seemed impossible, with insurmountable obstacles along the way. But little by little the Gospel has become accessible and has been preached to everyday people in a multitude of ways. But, as the saying goes: ‘Rome wasn’t built in a day’.
1 Corinthians 9:22
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