Re: USAGE: 2nd pers. pron. for God

bnathyuw wrote:
> but do many people actually use 'thou' for talking to
> their god ? it strikes me as a written ( and therefore
> read or recited ) form, which might be used by people
> who want to use a formal and archaised register in
> their impromptu religious language, but would hardly
> constitute part of the current tongue
Probably depends on your religion and the traditions. I suppose some
congregations will encourage their members to use "thou" while others won't
specify.

> i suspect even many devout christians wouldn't be able
> to give the old second person singular form of the
> verb ( even with a reasonable knowledge of the
> language i can't remember whether the subjunctive
> keeps the -st ending )
If you read the KJV Bible a lot, I suppose you learn the rules just be
repeated exposure. But you're right; I'm sure there are many people who
would like to use "thou" but are not sure of which forms to use.

I'm not sure about the subjunctive (especially since it isn't used that much
in standard English anyway), but I think it keeps the endings. For example,
I'd say "Wilt thou bless us with ...".

> what do some of the non-atheists on the list have to
> say on this ?
As far as I know, English-speaking Mormons are encouraged to address God as
"thou" in their prayers. I also remember an article in the church magazine,
about twenty years ago, which had a short tutorial on those forms for those
who were interested :). It included things such as the difference between
"dost" and "doest", as well.

I suspect that the old third person singular forms in -th are less used than
"thou" forms.

Cheers,
Philip
--
Philip Newton <Philip.Newton@...>
All opinions are my own, not my employer's.
If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate.

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