MichaelJFast - PS302 - Review of de Mesa

8/13/2019 MichaelJFast - PS302 - Review of de Mesa

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published in the Philippines, The Doctrina Christiana of 1593,7 to show how early Spanish

missionaries were able to express the Our Father in Filipino cultural terms.

He begins by discussing some of the issues that inculturation has faced in the Philippinesin the past, not the least of which was the fact that for Western Christians, Western Christianity

was seen not as a form of Christianity, but simply as Christianity.8However, according to de

Mesa, the earliest missionaries to the Philippines were not plagued by the same problem. In fact,they made the local culture their primary guide rather than the Tradition.9 The example de

Mesa uses in his argument is the translation of the Ama Namin10

that is contained within the

Doctrina Christiana. De Mesa explains that this translation shows the early missionariesexceptional respect and appreciation for Philippine culture.11

De Mesa begins by pointing out the difference in the use of voice between thecontemporary translation

12 and the Doctrina Christiana especially with regards to Gods

actions in the prayer. The contemporary translation states things in a passive voice while theDoctrina Christianauses an active voice.

13

De Mesa continues by looking at how the Ama Namin resonates with Filipinos in twoareas, namely Relationships and Food. Under Relationships, de Mesa looks at three word choices

used by the translators of the Doctrina Christiana: loob, mauwi, and huwag iiwan. UnderFood he looks at the word kakanin.

Loobis the essentially relational concept.14

Gods will and the meaning of forgiveness.UP Diksiyonaryong Filipino defines loobas dalisay at taal na diwa ng pagkatao(the pure and

real essence of humanity). De Mesa translates this as most authentic self. He sees loobas thepoint of connection between the Divine and the human; as humans we are transformed to

become as God is. Gods will and our forgiveness are thus intertwined.Mauwireflects the Filipino notion of homecoming. It connects the basic Filipino urge to

go home with Gods basic desire for us to share in his home, or kingdom.Huwag iiwanrefers to the common Filipino desire for companionship. Its usage here

is especially poignant since it is in the midst of our struggle against sin that we truly needcompanionship. God is truly in solidarity with us as we struggle against sin.

Kakanin. The common translation here is bread but the original word can also be usedto refer to simply food. This is the direction theDoctrina Christianatakes when it assigns the

7. The Doctrina Christiana en la lengua Espanola y tagala. Manila: 1593. Availableonline at http://ia700504.us.archive.org/6/items/doctrinachristia16119gut/16119-h/16119-h.htm

(accessed 20 August 2013).8. Jose De Mesa,"The Ama Namin in the Doctrina Christiana of 1593: A Filipino

Cultural-theological Reading," in John Suk, ed.Doing Theology in the Philippines(Quezon City,Philippines: Asian Theological Seminary; Manila, Philippines: OMF Literature, 2005), 151.

9. De Mesa, 151.10. Otherwise known as the Lords Prayer, the Ama Namin (Our Father) as seen in the

Doctrina Christiana is found in Matthew 6:9-13. The same prayer in slightly different form canbe found in Luke 11:2-4.

11. De Mesa, 152.12. This contemporary translation is not identified by name in this article.

13. Eg. sambahin ang ngalan mo (holy be your name) vs ypasamba mo ang ngalanmo (make your name be worshipped).

14. De Mesa, 155.


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word kakanin to this phrase. Of course bread is not the staple food of the Philippines rice is.Therefore it is appropriate, in de Mesas estimation, to use a rice-related word here, since it is the

word that will most connect with the Filipino worldview.De Mesa concludes by saying that the Doctrina Christianas translation of the Ama

Namin exemplifies how inculturation should take place.15

He goes on to conclude that culture

guided the fresh interpretation causing new and meaningful categories for understanding thegospel to become available.16

De Mesa shows us a great example of inculturation. The paper does, however, raise

questions about how inculturation is governed. The classical understanding of the relationshipbetween religion and culture is, as de Mesa states, equivalent to saying that culture and religion

are the same. The message being translated is governed by the culture that it comes from. In thecase of inculturation, however, the governing culture changes from that of the sender to that of

the recipient. How does one ensure that the essence is transmitted in culturally relevant ways?In this regard, two aspects of de Mesas article bear further study. The first is his

discussion of the change of voice in the first part of the prayer. While it does representinculturation it does raise one issue: How much is too much? When do inculturation efforts go

too far? In this specific instance, can this translation be defended grammatically? This translationmoves from the possibility/uncertainty that is present in the Greek verbs to the stronger position

of God himself, through his participation, ensuring that these things come to pass. The questionis, does this accurately reflect the meaning-intent of the original author or does it change the

meaning-intent? It depends upon how broad we want to understand the concept of translation.On the one hand, translation can simply be providing a gloss for a word in one language for a

word in another language. Translation, however, must be much deeper than that. In light ofFilipino emphasis on relationship, rendering the uncertain certain in this way does accurately

reflect the understanding present in the prayer God and humanity participating together in arelationship.

The second aspect of de Mesas article that bears further study is his discussion of TheTradition. The Tradition is identified as the transmission of received teaching or practice

the genuine preservation of the apostles faith.17De Mesa also uses gospel as a synonym fortradition. The problem with using the word tradition to identify something that is being

inculturated implies its universal nature. It implies that it is something that is beyond culture,that it is beyond context, that it is something that can be translated but is not a translation itself.

In reality, Tradition is something that has already been inculturated it is already a partof the basic structure of a culture. There are many Traditions within the world of Christianity,

each of which is a valid expression of how one can relate to God.18

One of the major

15. De Mesa, 158.

16. De Mesa, 158.17. From Donald K. McKim, Westminster Dictionary of Theological Terms. (Lousiville,

Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 1966), in de Mesa, 2003, 151.18. Apart from the major Christian Traditions of Roman Catholic and Protestant

commonly known among Filipinos, there is also another major tradition known as Orthodoxy.These three major traditions are themselves divided into countless other Traditions, each with

their own distinct and unique qualities. Apart from these three traditions is the whole world ofso-called Insider Movements, which are groups of followers of Jesus who have almost

spontaneously formed with little or no influence from the three main Christian traditions.


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confrontations of the early church was, as mentioned above, when non-Jewish people began tobelieve the message about Jesus Christ. Being non-Jews they had none of the tradition of the

early church. A meeting was held in Jerusalem to discuss how to deal with these new membersof their faith community. Some advocated forcing these newcomers to adopt the Jewish

Tradition for their lives.19

Others argued that they be allowed to form their own traditions, using

the Holy Spirit as their guide.

20

In the end, the church decided to let the non-Jewish believersform their own traditions rather than submit themselves to Jewish ones.21

In this one decision,the Jerusalem Council set aside all of the traditions of Judaism, that they themselves firmly

believed in, and allowed a group with a different cultural background to create their owntradition. They didnt translate the old tradition, they didnt inculturate the old tradition, and they

didnt contextualize the old tradition. Instead they created a new tradition for themselves. Is deMesas understanding of inculturation as it relates to translating the Tradition therefore too

restrictive?De Mesas article provides hope for those who look at recent Philippine history and dont

see a lot of good news. One would hope that the cultural sensitivities shown by these earliestmissionaries would have been carried on to a greater extent. Anyone looking for a good example

of inculturation would benefit from reading this article.

19. See Acts 15:1,5 which reads, Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch andwere teaching the believers: Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by

Moses, you cannot be saved. . The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep thelaw of Moses. The issue on the table was circumcision, which can be interpreted to symbolize

the entire Mosiac Law.20. Acts 15:7-11. For more on the Holy Spirits participation see Jose M. de Mesa, Why

Theology is Never Far From Home (Manila: De La Salle University Press, 2003), 2.21. See Acts 15:23-29 for the Jerusalem councils letter to the non-Jewish believers in

Jesus.


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BIBLIOGRAPHY

de Mesa, Jose M. Why Theology is Never Far From Home. Manila: De La Salle UniversityPress, 2003.

de Mesa, Jose M. "The Ama Namin in the Doctrina Christiana of 1593: A Filipino Cultural-theological Reading." in John Suk, ed. Doing Theology in the Philippines/contributers,

E. Acoba ... [et al.]; Quezon City, Philippines: Asian Theological Seminary; Manila,Philippines: OMF Literature, 2005.

Ileto, Reynaldo ClemenaPasyon and Revolution: Popular Movements in the Philippines, 1840-1910. Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press, 1979.

McKean, Erin, et al, eds. New Oxford American Dictionary 2nd edition. Oxford UniversityPress, Inc., 2005.

Taber, Charles R. The World is Too Much With Us: Culture in Modern Protestant Missions.

(Macon, Georgia: Mercer University Press), 2003, 174-179.

The Doctrina Christiana en la lengua Espanola y tagala. (Manila: 1593). Accessed 20 August2013. http://ia700504.us.archive.org/6/items/doctrinachristia16119gut/16119-h/16119-

h.htm.

Walls, Andrew F. The Ephesian Moment, in The Cross-Cultural Process in Christian History:

Studies in the Transmission and Appropriation of Faith. Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 2002.

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MichaelJFast - PS302 - Review of de Mesa