It just seemed one of those words which is hard to describe when you read it in the Psalms, or maybe a Hebrew word which is relevant to the Jews. I attended the dedication of a baby girl named Selah and that's when I started wondering what it meant! A translation says that it means to "pause and think about that". There are some words that come unthinkingly and we speak them out. I thought about them and found the origins of some of them and thought of pausing and thinking about it with you:
Touch Wood To touch wood or knock on wood is a superstitious act to ward off evil or bad luck ("I've never broken a leg, touch wood"). The origin is pre-Christian and involves the spirits of sacred trees such as oak, ash, holly or hawthorn and their magical properties to prevent ill-fortune. The British version was first heard in 1899 and the American in 1905 and been Christianized to mean touching the wooden Cross in a superstitious way to prevent evil.
Shucks To express disappointment; and/or used in a reaction to an unfortunate event, as in "Aw shucks, we've run out of eggs!"; or embarrassment in something valueless. First heard in 1847 amongst the African American workers in plantations.
Jeez/Geez/Gee/Crikey Actually the person is saying Jesus as a profanity and Crikey for Christ. This is derived from saying Jesus Christ, expressing anger, disappointment, frustration, e.g. "Jeez, that was awful!". It is amazing how lightly people can use Jesus Christ or Jeez/Geez/Gee/Crikey. Should it have been Buddha or Krishna or Muhammad or Allah, what a furore that would create.
Hell/Heck/Bloody/Damn Profanities that have been in use since the 17th century. Heck is a form of saying hell. These are all part of common communication these days. 'Damn it' and 'Bloody hell' are used frequently today and this limerick brings it out humorously on the use of 'h' in the English language:
Letter aitch, in some tongues, you can tell,
Is pronounced not at all, or not well.
By the Brits it is rated
Their second-most hated,
Right after, of course, "Bloody 'ell"!
There are many such words used in our conversation today but most of them are profanities connected with the Christian faith. In John 15:18, Jesus Christ said, "If the people of this world hate you, know that they hated me first." To make trivial or light of that which is holy, shows the sad state this world is in, but Jesus had warned His followers much earlier. Thankfully, Jesus taught us to love our enemies and show them that the Kingdom of God is here and all that He has said in the Bible is coming to pass. Even the end of the age.
Touch Wood To touch wood or knock on wood is a superstitious act to ward off evil or bad luck ("I've never broken a leg, touch wood"). The origin is pre-Christian and involves the spirits of sacred trees such as oak, ash, holly or hawthorn and their magical properties to prevent ill-fortune. The British version was first heard in 1899 and the American in 1905 and been Christianized to mean touching the wooden Cross in a superstitious way to prevent evil.
Shucks To express disappointment; and/or used in a reaction to an unfortunate event, as in "Aw shucks, we've run out of eggs!"; or embarrassment in something valueless. First heard in 1847 amongst the African American workers in plantations.
Jeez/Geez/Gee/Crikey Actually the person is saying Jesus as a profanity and Crikey for Christ. This is derived from saying Jesus Christ, expressing anger, disappointment, frustration, e.g. "Jeez, that was awful!". It is amazing how lightly people can use Jesus Christ or Jeez/Geez/Gee/Crikey. Should it have been Buddha or Krishna or Muhammad or Allah, what a furore that would create.
Hell/Heck/Bloody/Damn Profanities that have been in use since the 17th century. Heck is a form of saying hell. These are all part of common communication these days. 'Damn it' and 'Bloody hell' are used frequently today and this limerick brings it out humorously on the use of 'h' in the English language:
Letter aitch, in some tongues, you can tell,
Is pronounced not at all, or not well.
By the Brits it is rated
Their second-most hated,
Right after, of course, "Bloody 'ell"!
There are many such words used in our conversation today but most of them are profanities connected with the Christian faith. In John 15:18, Jesus Christ said, "If the people of this world hate you, know that they hated me first." To make trivial or light of that which is holy, shows the sad state this world is in, but Jesus had warned His followers much earlier. Thankfully, Jesus taught us to love our enemies and show them that the Kingdom of God is here and all that He has said in the Bible is coming to pass. Even the end of the age.
