The Vatican has just released the official Latin text of Anglicanorum Coetibus here. Latin is and remains as the official language of the Catholic Church and is considered as the definitive version. Anglicanorum Coetibus was first published in English and the Latinists have had a field day starting to see where the English meaning of the words and phrases and the Latin ones diverge.
I'm no Latinist and never have been or pretend to be one. My only exposure to Latin is not in the Latin Mass (for I am truly a Novus Ordo baby. I was christened in the same year the NO was introduced!) but in doing my biodiversity PhD where I had to learn Latin in order to read Linnaeaus' descriptions of species. A kind old Jesuit priest and an Oxbridgian Anglican campus chaplain who read Latin tutored me. The good priests gave me a tough assignment and that is to read the Biblia Vulgata!
Nonetheless I find in the Latinists' comments and interpretations on the AC's words interesting. I have only met some of the words in 1) my Ichthyology anatomy and 2) Botany classes!
Take for instance "glomeratim" which I met in its previous incarnation as "glomerulus" when we were studying kidneys and the like!
"Anglicanismus" sounds like some word I met in an undergrad class in political science!
But the my unforgettable Latin phrase is "levator arcus palatini" a muscle in a fish's mouth which expands its buccal cavity. This is the reason why groupers are easily hooked!
Latin remains as relevant to science as it is to the Church!
A blog promoting Anglican history, culture and spirituality in the Catholic tradition and in communion with Rome.
Showing posts with label Latin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Latin. Show all posts
Thursday, September 9, 2010
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