‘Sticks and
stones will break my bones but words will never hurt me.’
Anyone of my vintage will have either heard
this schoolyard retort or resorted to it themselves when words did, indeed, did
hurt. Closer to the truth might be this:
‘Sticks and stones will break my bones, but
words will break my heart.’ Or heal it. Or motivate it. Or captivate it. Or
inspire it. Or teach it.
Anyone who
writes or reads knows of the power of words—of language—to move the world. As Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein
has written, “The limits of my language mean [or define] the limits of my
world.” Scholar Hugh Nibley has
observed, “[Consider] the really marvelous things that writing does: the
astounding feats of thought-stimulation, thought-preservation, and
thought-transmission. . . . Language [organized words] is mankind’s other
world, the dream world, a playing field, the parade ground, the shady retreat,
the laboratory, the theater, the forum, the mirror of the cosmos.”
I remember a
discussion in a social-psychology class I took at my university that explored
the notion of words, themselves, being the mother of thoughts, and thoughts as
actions. That is, it posed the
question, “Would one even be able to
think (at least think more profoundly than simple reactive or self-preservational
thoughts of animals) without words to provide structure for action or direction
or introspection or analysis?
My experience
and response to this question is, no; we would not be able to think or at least
not very deeply. In fact, I do not
think, in general, that ‘a picture is worth a thousand words.’ The only way
that could be a truism is if the picture were very carefully chosen and framed
and the words came from an introductory children’s primer.
I find it of
interest that my Bible (King James Version) has over 20 scriptural citations in
the Old Testament and over 50 in the New Testament regarding the power of
words. They range—as a sampling—from:
·
“.
. . man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord [i.e.,
revelation] . . . . “ (Deuteronomy 8:3)
·
“How
forcible are right words.” (Job 6:25
·
“Thy
word is a lamp unto my feet and a
light unto my path.” (Psalms 119:105)
·
“A
word fitly spoken is like apples of
gold in pictures of silver.” (Proverbs
·
25:11)
·
“In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” (John 1:1)
·
“For the word
of God is quick and powerful . . . “ (Hebrews 4:12)
·
“Write,
for these words are true and
faithful.” (Rev. 21:5)
Words are
absolutely foundational to progress and the quality of life of sentient beings;
they are mankind’s chief tool of communication.
Words are such a great blessing to humankind that it pains me to hear
them sloppily used. What would life be
without the lyrics to some of our most powerful music (think Handel’s
Hallelujah Chorus), the words of the
great English poets, scripture, and the insights and wisdom of the world’s
great literature?
This is why I
find the words of such genius’s as Emerson, Lincoln, Brigham Young, George MacDonald, C. S. Lewis,
and Neal Maxwell and a few others so influential in my life. They were word-masters and consequently
thought masters.
I can
understand Jesus’s wrap-up to his Sermon on the Mount that If his foregoing
counsel did not impact or at least stir the reader in some powerful way, that
his disciples should “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast
ye your pearls before swine. . . .” (Matt. 7:6)
If you have read this far I know you are not of these species.
So I end
with just a few memorable lines from a few of these word ‘masters’:
- · “Every revolution was first a thought in one man’s mind . . . every reform was once a private opinion . . . the creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn.” (R.W. Emerson, History essay)
- · “Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet and hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, to assure the survival and the success of liberty.” (J. F. Kennedy “Ask not what your country can do for you. . .” speech, January 20, 1961)
Seek words out of the best books and enrich your life and others’ immeasurably.
