Which way to the future?

Here is a fun example of how different languages can think about the same topic differently. Think for a moment about how English speakers understand the future in relation to our bodies. A parent may say to a child that “You have your entire future in front of you” and a commencement speaker tells the […]

Metaphors and God

The Bible contains over fifty different metaphors for understanding who God is and our relationship to God. Some of these are: husband, woman, shepherd, potter, bear, eagle, and rock. The metaphors structure how humans construe the types of relations and expected behaviors we have with God. For instance, thinking of God as a father involves […]

Truth has many meanings

English has a number of ways to understand truth. We speak of “discovering,” “distorting,” or “twisting” the truth. This uses the truth is an object metaphor in which truth is a physical object that we can “grasp” and do things with. We also think of truth as a journey so that we pursue truth and […]