Brief Ruminations: Learning languages

And appreciating the mysteries of God

I just got back from a lengthy stay in Bogotá, Colombia. It’s easily the biggest city I’ve ever experienced, the next largest being Atlanta and Johannesburg—but unlike these cities, most people don’t speak English.

Bogotá from the summit of Monserrate

I spent the better part of a year beforehand working on learning Spanish, but I’m far from fluent. Speaking of which: are you learning any languages? Got any tips or recommended tools? Let me know! I’m getting there, but no where near where I need to be to effectively communicate with any level of complexity. Basically a half step beyond salutations and asking where the bathroom is.

I have high hopes for becoming fluent, but the struggles of muddying through conversations provide a certain kind of joy. Every day at breakfast, my wife and I would speak to the family that was hosting us, and they knew less English than I did Spanish so it was a complicated affair. Speaking of which: in my anecdotal experience, Colombian hospitality gives southern hospitality a run for its money! We gotta step it up.

Anyway, these difficult conversations ended up being some of my favorite parts of the trip. It’s rare I’m forced to listen so intently and strain so hard to pick out recognizable words and ideas. It’s rare I’m forced to think so carefully about rate of speech and vocabulary and whether turns of phrase translate directly. It’s rare I’m forced to accept that some kinds of conversations are still off limits from sheer difficulty in having them. And all that is fun for me.

Sometimes, there would be a piece of information too important to the trip’s plans to leave it to fate, and we’d have to break out the translate applications. Of course, those aren’t perfect either and have their own host of difficulties, but by and large they would instantly quintuple our ability to communicate. And that took the fun out of it.

It got me thinking about what I love about God and the Bible, the Word. God doesn’t give us Google translate; he gives us parables and stories and prophecies and riddles and lamentations. He doesn’t hand it to us on a silver platter; he does something better. He gives us the tools and the raw material.

I don’t want God to give me the cheat codes for life. How boring is that?!

Then the disciples came and said to him, “Why do you speak to them in parables?” And he answered them, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For to the one who has, more will be given, and he will have an abundance, but from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. This is why I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says:

‘“You will indeed hear but never understand,
and you will indeed see but never perceive.”
For this people’s heart has grown dull,
and with their ears they can barely hear,
and their eyes they have closed,
lest they should see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their heart
and turn, and I would heal them.’

Matt 13:10-15, ESV

Maybe there’s an analogous relationship between learning the language of other humans and learning the language of God. You don’t learn either from a textbook, not really. You have to immerse yourself, you have to take a leap. It can’t be done abstractly. If you hold yourself at arm’s length, it won’t make it to your brain or your heart.

I think Jesus’ closest companions had “the secrets of the kingdom of heaven” because they were doing it. Jesus said “follow” and they did. Only after this initial leap was taken could they begin to understand. It is only once grace has been “lavished upon us” that the “mystery” which is “set forth in Christ” is made known to us.¹

Learning languages is hard. I like that. I like learning about something so foreign to myself that I can’t appropriate it for myself. I like the work of communication through barriers. Google translate is bit of a killjoy.

1. Eph 1.