YOUCAT: LIETUVIŠKAS JAUNIMO KATEKIZMAS. Vilnius: Katalikų pasaulio leidiniai, 2011, 306 p.

AUŠRA RIMKUTĖ

Žemaitija College

In 2011, the publishing house of the Lithuanian Bishops’ Conference published 10,000 copies of a catechism for young people, Catholic World Publications YouCat: Lithuanian youth catechism (hereafter, YouCat). The publication is regarded as a remarkable and perhaps the largest Christian publishing project, whose implementation was helped by bishops from around the world, at the urging of Pope John Paul II. The clergy’s main task was to write a catechism of the Catholic Church in a relevant, new style and in the language of young people. The preparation of the youth catechism was led by the Archbishop of Vienna, Christoph Schönborn. YouCat, published by the Austrian bishops (in English, Youth Catechism of the Catholic Church), was prepared by more than 200 theologians and religious education teachers, priests and laypeople. They were assisted by young people aged 16–26—school pupils and students. The book has already been published in 25 languages; Teresėlė Danguolė Šniūrevičienė translated the catechism from German into Lithuanian.

YouCat consists of a preface—a letter from Pope Benedict XVI to young people—and four parts of the catechism: 1. What We Believe; 2. How We Celebrate the Christian Mysteries; 3. How We Live in Christ; 4. How We Should Pray. At the end of the book there is a subject index showing where to find definitions of religious terms and explaining the abbreviations used in the catechism for books of Scripture, the docu-

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ments of Ecumenical Councils and other sources. As is customary for catechisms, the youth catechism is arranged in the form of questions and answers (PR 2007: 472), but it differs from traditional and conventional catechisms in that its margins are filled with illustrations, definitions of religious terms, and quotations from saints, teachers of the faith, writers, philosophers, and others, as well as various commentaries, which should help young people better understand each question and its answer.

In the preface to the youth catechism, Pope Benedict XVI writes that “not only are continents and the cultures of their peoples different, but within every society there are separate ‘continents’: a worker thinks differently from a farmer, a physicist differently from a philologist, a businessperson differently from a journalist, a young person differently from an old person. Therefore, our language and way of thinking had to rise somewhat above all these differences; we had to seek what different ways of thinking have in common, their points of contact. And it became clear to us that this text would have to be carried into different worlds, as if translated into their language, so that, having understood people’s ways of thinking, we could answer their questions” (pp. 8–9).

A comparison of YouCat with the Catechism of the Catholic Church, published in 1997, reveals terminological differences. For example, the youth catechism lists these gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, fear of God (p. 176), whereas the Catechism of the Catholic Church has knowledge, not recognition (CCC 1997: 388). The catechism published in 2011 lists the following deadly sins: pride, greed, lust, anger, envy, lack of moderation, sloth, and utter indifference (p. 179), whereas the Catechism of the Catholic Church uses not the term lack of moderation, but excess in eating and drinking (CCC 1997: 392). The fruits of the Holy Spirit are also named differently. YouCat states that there are nine fruits of the Holy Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (p. 76). The Catechism of the Catholic Church lists twelve: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, tenderness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, chastity (p. 387). These differences show that the content and scope of some religious concepts remain unsettled even at the beginning of the 21st century, and are subject to disagreement.

The youth catechism uses the verbal noun -imas formed with the suffix nu puolimas (p. 49), which does not occur in the Catechism of the Catholic Church; instead, it uses the term nuopolis (CCC 1997: 27). This term is also absent from the Dictionary of Religious Studies (RŽ 1991).

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Combinations with the word faith vary particularly widely in the reviewed dictionary; cf. faith in the Mother of God (p. 57), faith in God the Father (p. 29), faith in Jesus Christ (p. 69), and faith in the Holy Trinity (p. 29)¹, among others. These inconsistencies apparently arose because two variants are used in the language: I believe God and I believe in God. In the YouCat Catechism, we also find both accusative constructions and constructions with the preposition in: believing in Him [God] (p. 25), believe God (p. 26), I believe the Church (p. 30), we believe in one God (p. 33), and I believe in God the Father (pp. 13, 31), I believe in God the almighty Father (p. 29), I believe in Jesus Christ (pp. 13, 51), I believe in the Holy Spirit (pp. 13, 29, 30, 73), we believe in one God (pp. 30, 33), believe in the Creator (p. 37), Christians believe in God (p. 28), and so on. It should be noted that for more than a hundred years there has been disagreement over which form is preferable, or whether both should be used. In 1909, the first Commission for the Correction of Prayer Texts, which met in Seinai—priests Juozas Laukaitis, Alfonsas Petrulis, and Aleksandras Dambrauskas (Adomas Jakštas)—also considered this question together with expert linguists Kazimieras Būga, Juozas Balčikonis, Jonas Jablonskis, and Jurgis Šlapelis. The linguists proposed dispensing with the preposition in, since in the Latin original it had appeared not on the basis of the Latin credo in Deum², but under the influence of Polish³. However, seeking a compromise with the older clergy, the Commission for the Correction of Prayer Texts decided to retain word combinations with the preposition in (PMT 1909: 19, PP 1909: 109).

As Father Vaclovas Aliulis states, “from the very beginning of the 20th century, prominent Lithuanian linguists repeatedly expressed disapproval of the form I believe in what, regarding it as an influence from the neighboring Slavs. After all, Poles, without the slightest distinction in the object, have: Ja wierzę tylko w Pana Boga, a ty w każde głupstwo wierzysz (literally: I believe only in the Lord God, while you believe in every foolish thing). In Church Slavonic, vieruju v is used of all sacred things indiscriminately, whereas in the living languages of Russian, Belarusian, Ukrainian, and other Slavic peoples, vieriu / vieriu v and the like are used of both sacred and banal things. Since they saw no consistent distinction in meaning in Lithuanian usage between I believe in what and I believe what, the founders of our modern standard language decided to regard the form without a preposition as authentic and required the use of I believe God, but not I believe in God” (Aliulis 2000: 47–49; 2008).

¹ In his article The Language of the Catechism—A Catechism of Language, J. Klimavičius briefly discusses the usage of the verb to believe and the abstract noun faith in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (Klimavičius 2002: 108–109).

² The preposition in most likely appeared in Latin through translation from Greek, and in Greek from Hebrew (Aramaic) (Zinkevičius 2000: 36).

³ Plačiau apie Poterių kalbos taisymo komisiją žr. Zinkevičius 2000: 176–189; Rimkutė 2006: 154–155.

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Another debatable issue is the use of the term offering. In his article Sacrifice, Apiera, Offering: Historical and Usage Features, linguist Jonas Klimavičius writes that the term offering is “a calque replacing the Polish (though Latin in origin) apiera (although it arose when sacrifice already existed), but an inaccurate and even defective one: it jumps from Latin offero, obtuli, oblatum, offerre ‘to carry before; put forward; hold out; show’ to ‘bring,’ the paronym affero, attuli, allatum, affere” (Klimavičius 2005: 44; cf. Klimavičius 2002: 109). These terms should therefore be corrected: offering (=sacrifice) (pp. 126, 127), holy offering (=sacrifice) (p. 127), prayer over the offering (=sacrifice) (p. 127), the bread and wine offerings (=sacrifices) (p. 127), preparation of the offerings (=sacrifices) (p. 176).

The Catechism contains more than 100 term definitions in all. It defines not only religious terms but also terms from psychology, politics, medicine, sociology, and other fields that are needed to explain the fundamental truths of faith. This is highly commendable, since it makes the Catechism easier to read. Terms are set in bold type to make them easier to find. Unfortunately, not all the definitions provided adequately convey the essence of the concepts or are clear, concise, and understandable, especially to younger readers. Some definitions could be refined; for example, the term spirituality (Latin spiritualitas, “spirit”): forms of devotion in the Church, arising from the life practices of various saints, imbued with the Holy Spirit. The spirituality of the Benedictines, Franciscans, or Dominicans is discussed (p. 273). The term spirituality should first and foremost be defined as a particular characteristic of a believer, rather than as a form or forms of devotion. The definition of the term parousia (Greek parousia, “personal presence”) could also be refined: the coming of Christ at the Last (=Last) Judgment (p. 72), since this term is used only in the New Testament and early Christian literature (RŽ 1991: 284). The definition of creationism (Latin creatio, “creation”) is confusing: understanding (better: conception—author’s note), that God created the Earth at once through direct action, as though the Book of Genesis were a record of the events and facts of Creation (p. 37); cf. creationism: a conception asserting that God created the world (VaitkTŽŽ 2003). The explanation of what a catechumen is (Greek kat’echein, “to teach”) is rather odd: even in the early Church, those wishing to receive adult Baptism—the catechumens—underwent a three-stage preparation—the catechumenate—a teaching in the truths of faith accompanied by the Liturgy of the Word (p. 117). The description of what Confirmation is (Latin confirmatio, “strengthening, confirmation”) is very extensive: like the sacraments of Baptism and the Eucharist, Confirmation too is a sacrament of Christian initiation in the Catholic Church. At Pentecost, the Holy

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That same Spirit descended upon the community of disciples; so too does She come to every baptized person who asks the Church for the grace of the Holy Spirit, and strengthens them so that they may bear witness to Christ through their lives (p. 120). The meaning of tabernacle (Latin tabernaculum ‘little house, tent’) is inaccurately defined: analogous to the Ark of the Covenant in the Old Testament, the tabernacle came into use in the Catholic Church as an honorable, prominent place for keeping the Blessed Sacrament (Christ in the form of bread) (p. 131). The Dictionary of Religious Studies states that it is a fixture in a Catholic church—a cabinet in the middle of the altar (usually the high altar) for keeping the Blessed Sacrament (RŽ 1991: 371). This definition is much clearer. The definition of the term exorcism (Greek exorkismos ‘to force away’) should also be clarified: a prayer that protects a person from or delivers them from the evil one (p. 156). Exorcism is not a prayer; it is a rite for driving out evil spirits (RŽ 1991: 111). As the terms and their definitions presented here show, not every definition captures the essence of the term, and not all are logical, clear, and understandable.

The catechism’s editors undertook the difficult task of explaining the origins—and sometimes the meanings—of international words and loanwords. It is regrettable that the origins of international religious terms are described inconsistently. For example, the origin of the Latin-derived international term religion (p. 15) is not explained, whereas the origins of the terms mission (Latin missio ‘sending’) (p. 18), Parousia (Greek parousia ‘personal presence’) (p. 72), and others are explained. A reader of the catechism may become confused when the origin of a term is discussed more than once, as with the old loanword church. One passage reads: ‘Church (Greek ekklesia) means “those who have been called together”’ (p. 77); another reads: ‘The Church (Greek kyriake—belonging to the Lord; Old Church Slavonic boznica—house of prayer) consists of those called together (Greek ex kaleo, ekklesia) from all nations who, through Baptism, belong to the Body of Christ’ (p. 77).

Other inaccuracies were also noted in the course of reading, for example, variation between definite and indefinite forms: eternal life (p. 48) and the eternal life (p. 94) (= the eternal life); the Last Judgment (p. 72) and Last Judgment (pp. 42, 98) (= Last Judgment); in some cases a definite form would be required, for example, cardinal (=cardinal⟧) virtues (p. 173), cf. theological virtues (p. 172), human virtues (p. 172), grave (mortal) (=mortal) sin (p. 178). The same thing is not named consistently, for example: the Immaculate Conception of Mary (p. 57), the Immaculate Conception (p. 57), and the Immaculate Conception (p. 57) (= the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary); the Last Supper (p. 115), the Supper (p. 124), and supper (p. 124) (= the Last Supper). It is recommended to use the genitive form rather than the suffix -inis adjective

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adjective, for example: Easter (= Paschal) Lamb (p. 64), cf. Lamb of God (p. 105). The word order, which is uncharacteristic of Lithuanian, should be corrected: Preface by Pope Benedict XVI (=preface by Pope Benedict XVI) (p. 3). In addition to all the inaccuracies mentioned, typographical errors were also noted: Laškas (=Laiškas) efeziečiams (p. 23), Hiteriui (=Hitleriui) (p. 69).

The tradition of publishing Catholic catechisms in Lithuanian dates back to the late sixteenth century: the first catechism for Catholics in Lithuania Major was prepared by Mikalojus Daukša (1595, Vilnius). To this day, for more than four and a half centuries, catechisms have been translated into our mother tongue from Latin, Polish, German, and other languages. As already mentioned, YouCat was translated from German. It is regrettable that the translator had almost no resources to draw on—even though religious terminology dictionaries have been published, for example: Dictionary of Religious Studies (1991), Česlovas Kavaliauskas’s Concise Dictionary of Theology (1992), Dictionary of Christian Iconography (1997), Gintaras Beresnevičius’s Dictionary of Religious Studies: Key Concepts (2003), and Herbert Vorgrimler’s New Dictionary of Theology (2003)⁴—they are insufficient; the dictionaries need to be updated, some concepts are explained from an atheistic perspective, and they do not provide equivalents in other languages, among other shortcomings.

“Our language must be continually refined, and everything imperfect removed from it,” YouCat: A Lithuanian Youth Catechism states (p. 16). This applies equally to the language of believers, which must be not only understandable to everyone—young and old alike—but understood in the same way by all. Through these comments and the minor shortcomings noted—which in no way diminish the translator’s painstaking work—the intention was to show that there are still things to improve, and that the language of believers, including the terminology through which they communicate linguistically with God, should be free of “everyday rubbish and sins” (Maceina 1982: 129).

LITERATŪRA

Aliulis V. 2000: Tikėti ką, tikėti į ką? – Sandora 3, 47–49.

Aliulis V. 2008: Tikėjimo išpažinimas: „tikėti Dievą“ ir „tikėti į Dievą“? Prieiga per internetą: www.vlkk.lt/lit/naujienos/naujiena.1092.html.

Beresnevičius G. Religijotyros žodynas: pagrindinės sąvokos. Vilnius: Tyto alba, 2003.

Kavaliauskas Č. Trumpas teologijos žodynas. Vilnius: Logos knyga, 1992.

KBK 1997: Katalikų Bažnyčios katekizmas. Kaunas: LKB Tarpdiecezinė katechetikos komisijos leidykla.

Klimavičius J. 2002: Katekizmo kalba – kalbos katekizmas. – Kalbos kultūra 75, 105–119.

Klimavičius J. 2005: Leksikologijos ir terminologijos darbai: norma ir istorija. Vilnius: Lietuvių kalbos instituto leidykla.

Krikščioniškosios ikonografijos žodynas. Vilnius: Vilniaus dailės akademijos leidykla, 1997.

4 Iš vokiečių kalbos išvertė Gediminas Žukas.

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Maceina A. 1982: Iš minties pasaulio. – Aidai 2, 128–132.

PP 1909: Pataisy tieji poteriai. – Vadovas 14, 107–129.

PMT 1909: Prie maldų taisymo. – Vadovas 9, 17–37.

PR 2007: Pasaulio religijos: naujas populiarus žinynas. Vilnius: Alma littera.

Rimkutė A. 2006: Religijos terminijos tvarkyba Draugijoje. – Terminologija 13, 149–159.

RŽ 1991: Religijotyros žodynas. Sud. R. Petraitis. Vilnius: Mintis.

Šventasis Raštas: Naujasis ir Senasis Testamentas. Vilnius: Katalikų pasaulio leidiniai, 2009.

VaitkTŽŽ 2003: Vaitkevičiūtė V. Tarptautinių žodžių žodynas. Vilnius: Fotonija (e. leidimas).

Vorgrimler H. Naujasis teologijos žodynas. Kaunas: Katalikų interneto tarnyba, 2003.

Zinkevičius Z. 2000: Lietuvių poteriai: kalbos mokslo studija. Vilnius: Mokslo ir enciklopedijų leidybos institutas.

Gauta 2012–11–04

Aušra Rimkutė Žemaitijos kolegija Muziejaus g. 29, LT-87356 Telšiai E. paštas [email protected]

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