The work that words do among us is pretty amazing, maybe even miraculous. When we use words, we are able to make things present for others without those objects and experiences being actually present. A skilled writer is able to transport her reader to another place and time by deploying words that describe what is otherwise unavailable. When two people talk with one another and describe what they are thinking to each other, the thoughts in their own heads are made available to their conversation partner. I\u2019m typing words right now that are bringing to your attention some ideas that I\u2019ve been carrying around for the last few days in my own imagination. No one has had access to my thinking until right now and it\u2019s because of the words that I\u2019m writing and you are reading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What\u2019s more, the very act of putting words together into thoughts and sentences either to record them in writing or in an effort to communicate with another person can help us actually formulate our thoughts, feelings and beliefs about the world around us and the experience of our lives. This is one of the reasons that journaling can be so helpful. The act of writing provides us a way of organizing our thoughts in ways that they wouldn\u2019t be if we hadn\u2019t taken the time to write. Organized thoughts are almost always better for us than jumbles of impressions, ideas and feelings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWords are the way we make sense of the world.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
Having someone who practices active listening with us is another way that this can happen. As I use my words to share something with you and you paraphrase what you hear from me, it helps me think things through in ways that I probably can\u2019t do on my own. Your interpretation, shared back with me, even if it is inaccurate and I need to find other words to correct your misperception, all helps me find the right words to describe what\u2019s going on in my life. If we say to one another, \u201cno, that\u2019s not quite it, it\u2019s actually this way\u2026\u201d then we are further on the path to mutual understanding. All of it is made possible by words shared between two people, words that describe things as they are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nBut words can do more than merely describe reality. They can actually make reality.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
The English philosopher J. L. Austin described this phenomena In his 1955 book, How to Do Things with Words. <\/a>It\u2019s worth the read if you find this topic interesting. To summarize, Austin observed that sometimes when we use words, we aren\u2019t merely describing things that exist apart from the words, we are actually constructing new realities with those words. He called these words \u201cperformative utterances\u201d; later thinkers on this topic have used the label \u201cspeech acts\u201d or \u201cperformative speech.\u201d If I tell you, \u201cI promise to have lunch with you next week,\u201d my words are actually creating a relationship between us that didn\u2019t exist before. Even if I fail to take you to lunch, the promise (now unfilled and therefore, unhappy) still exists. If a boss says to a worker, \u201cyou\u2019re fired!\u201d those words don\u2019t just describe the worker\u2019s unemployment. They actually make that person unemployed!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is interesting in the context of our spiritual lives because much of what God says is actually in the category of performative speech. When the writer of the Letter to the Hebrews describes the word of God as \u201cliving and active\u201d<\/a> it\u2019s God\u2019s performative speech that they have in mind. When Genesis declares that God calls light into being out of the darkness<\/a> God\u2019s word is a speech act. The words themselves are actually making the light, not merely describing light that already exists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These words that do things mark Jesus\u2019 ministry as well. The Gospel according to John describes a miracle that Jesus does just by speaking<\/a>. A man of the royal court seeks out Jesus, hoping that Jesus will heal his son who is deathly ill. Jesus is in the town of Cana, the place where he had earlier turned water into wine. The boy lies dying in Capernaum, a town about 15 miles away. The man makes his request. Jesus\u2019 response is to tell him to return home to his son who he declares \u201cwill live.\u201d Jesus doesn\u2019t go anywhere. He doesn\u2019t touch anyone. He only uses words. The father heads for home and on the way his staff meets him and shares the happy news that his son is recovering. When the father asks when the boy\u2019s health began to improve, he is told that the fever broke at exactly the same time that Jesus announced the boy\u2019s recovery. The relieved father makes the connection. He interprets that it was Jesus\u2019 actual words that created health for his son.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
God\u2019s word makes things to be that were not there before God spoke. This isn\u2019t just true in the Bible stories. It\u2019s true for you and for me as well. Jesus calls us \u201cblessed<\/a>\u201d in spite of circumstances that suggest otherwise. He calls us \u201cforgiven<\/a>\u201d while we are still incapacitated. He calls us \u201cheirs of God<\/a>\u201d while we are still trying to unsuccessfully make a place for ourselves. God\u2019s word names us \u201cbeloved by God.<\/a>\u201d Jesus isn\u2019t just telling us how things are. When God makes declarations over us, we aren\u2019t being described, we\u2019re being made. It\u2019s miraculous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We can participate in God\u2019s performative speech acts for ourselves. When we say to a classmate or colleague, \u201cYou belong here,\u201d we aren\u2019t just describing things as they are. We are making things as they are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pr. Jim<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pastor Jim<\/a> and Pastor Kate<\/a> take turns writing weekly devotions for the Chapel of the Resurrection. Contact them here:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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