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Oxford University Press, USA
What Christians Believe: The Story of God and People in Minimal English
What Christians Believe: The Story of God and People in Minimal English
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Many people today, both Christians and non-Christians, are confused about or unaware of the essentials of Christian faith. In this book, Anna Wierzbicka takes a radically new approach to the task of communicating what Christians believe to the widest possible audience. The Story of God and
People, the heart of the book, sets out the core tenets of Christian faith in narrative form using simple language that is accessible to anyone, even those with no familiarity with Christianity or Christian vocabulary. The Story is not only simple but also universal: though written in English, it is
not phrased in full English -- English as we know it today, shaped by history, culture, and tradition -- but in Minimal English. Minimal English contains only those 400 or so English words that can be translated into any other language; essentially, it corresponds to the shared core of all
languages. In the introduction to the book, Wierzbicka explains Minimal English and minimal languages in general, and in The Story of God and People that follows, she demonstrates the effectiveness of Minimal English as a tool for global understanding. At the same time, the use of Minimal English allows her
not only to retell the Christian story in a strikingly new way, but also to rethink its meaning, bringing into relief its internal cohesion, logic and beauty.
Author: Anna Wierzbicka
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Published: 03/28/2019
Pages: 248
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.45lbs
Size: 9.40h x 6.10w x 1.30d
ISBN: 9780190855284
Review Citation(s):
Choice 05/01/2020
People, the heart of the book, sets out the core tenets of Christian faith in narrative form using simple language that is accessible to anyone, even those with no familiarity with Christianity or Christian vocabulary. The Story is not only simple but also universal: though written in English, it is
not phrased in full English -- English as we know it today, shaped by history, culture, and tradition -- but in Minimal English. Minimal English contains only those 400 or so English words that can be translated into any other language; essentially, it corresponds to the shared core of all
languages. In the introduction to the book, Wierzbicka explains Minimal English and minimal languages in general, and in The Story of God and People that follows, she demonstrates the effectiveness of Minimal English as a tool for global understanding. At the same time, the use of Minimal English allows her
not only to retell the Christian story in a strikingly new way, but also to rethink its meaning, bringing into relief its internal cohesion, logic and beauty.
Author: Anna Wierzbicka
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Published: 03/28/2019
Pages: 248
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.45lbs
Size: 9.40h x 6.10w x 1.30d
ISBN: 9780190855284
Review Citation(s):
Choice 05/01/2020
About the Author
Anna Wierzbicka is Professor Emerita at Australian National University, Canberra. Her work spans several disciplines, including linguistics, anthropology and religious studies.
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