I used to be very opinionated and that was quite against my conscience. That is, what the British speak is English, and what the Japanese speak is Japanese. Since I am a common person, what I speak is the language that I received from the time I was born!
Although reasoning tells me that my stubbornness is a bit unreasonable, I have, for many years, never blown it while speaking behind the pulpit - of course, this is because I live in my hometown and there are no "outsiders".
I attended a meeting in which the participants came from all over China. I thought they spoke strangely because of their accents and dialects. When I completed speaking, a brother who was a very tall and outgoing guy greeted me: "Brother Xu, you spoke very well!" I was quick to show my modesty as a Chinese person: "Not so well, not so well..."
He added an unexpected transitional remark: "Unfortunately, we didn't understand a word..."
I calmed down and analyzed my own "commonly received speech" that its application components and level should be regarded as "a local dialect". This is not surprising because I am a farmer who deals with the land every day. I am rustic and speak in a dialect. Naturally so! But the tall brother’s comment was a major blow, so I couldn't help but recognize the fact that I am "local".
True, it's nothing special for me to speak in a local dialect to my fellow peasants in our rural church. However, it is more normal for workers in the new era to travel hundreds of miles by train or car to communicate. Therefore, your dialect, which is standard only in a local area, will be extremely nonstandard and will cause discomfort or even confusion to people from different places. Only authentic Mandarin meets the standard for real speech.
And when you serve in a local area the elderly believers don’t find your speech unusual. A young believer, however, when listening to your "local accent" may find it awkward and even despise your speech because they have experienced the wider world by working outside of their hometown.
Certainly, rural pastors should have a good command of Mandarin, but that good command is pretty hard to achieve. First, being born and raised in my hometown, the dialect has been deeply rooted in me for decades. I even dream in our local dialect. To suddenly speak standard Mandarin is almost like starting from scratch. Even if I am transformed like an eagle and find myself renewed, and can speak very standard Mandarin, I still can't speak in it as freely as I want. My neighbors will say that I’m "pretentious when all the time I’m still just a peasant". That will allow them to laugh at me...
In many cases, you speak Mandarin only in the church pulpit, but when you are away from the pulpit or church, you’ll have to be down to earth and be rustic, talk in the local accent, speech, and dialect...
Tongues in the Bible have multiple functions. One of them is to make foreigners understand a local dialect in order to benefit the hearers. My "dialect" (or tongue; ‘dialect’ and ‘tongue’ are the same word in Chinese, translator’s note), on the contrary, makes people wonder what I have said. Paul required God’s servants to be "faithful and wise". Speaking Mandarin is not a sign of wisdom, but knowing an unusually ordinary local dialect is an embarrassment and so it is wisdom.
I was not dumb since I was a child, but when I became old, I suddenly couldn't speak a "human language" (sarcastically refers to Mandarin) and I couldn't help but feel ashamed. It is popular nowadays to be a "worker of the times". I’m not that "trendy", but as a "common man who can't speak the standard speech (or Mandarin)" is at least against the trend.
Many elderly brothers and sisters have learned to use smartphones when they stay at home during the pandemic. They are listening to songs, surfing the Internet, and listening to sermons when they wish. Look at them, I will too learn till I die. A common man vows to speak standard Chinese although it is a challenge and not a small one. Today, as a worker of God, "a worker of the times" of God, even if you serve in the countryside, the challenges that await you are lined up from far away!
Then I will go into battle starting with the ability to speak a "human language" i.e., common people speak a common language (Mandarin), because after all, pastors use languages as instruments, and if they have a good command of Mandarin, it’s as if they have a nuclear club!
(The original article is published by Gospel Times.)
- Translated by Charlie Li
曾经我有一种非常固执己见，相当对抗良心的看法，那就是英国人说的话就是英国话，日本人说的话就是日本话，我是一个普通人，所以我讲的话就是普通话！
虽然理性告诉自己，这种自以为有点不像话，但这么多年，讲台一站，也从没翻过船——当然，这是因为我所处的都是本乡本土，也没什么“大海”。
有一次参加一次会议，与会者来自天南海北，我感觉他们说话怪怪的，因为南腔北调。等我发完言，有一位个子特高，性格特爽的弟兄，当面称贺：“徐弟兄，你讲得真好！——”我急表谦卑：“哪里、哪里……”
他后面又加上了一句不该有的转折：“可惜我们一句没听懂——”
我冷静下来，分析一下自己的“普通话”，其应用成分和所属级别，当算“土话”——这不奇怪，因为我是个农民，天天和土地打交道，一身土气，满嘴土话，是很纯天然的事！但是高个头的弟兄，给我高级别的打击，让我不能不“土人”惊醒，痛定思痛！
是的，在我们农村讲台一站，满口本地普通人的普通话，这没啥，但新时代的工人，乘车或自驾，出到个几百里外，做些分享交流，很正常。你那只有在本地很正统的普通话，就极不普通了，会让当地会众听来别扭，甚至不懂。唯有达标的正宗普通话，才算真币。
而即便在本地侍奉，你一口本地话，老年人听来没啥，年轻的因为东跑西跑，甚至在外或城里有职业的，再听你这“乡音”，虽然有几分亲切，但更多的是别扭，甚至是轻觑……
当然，农村传道人要有一口过关的普通话，那关是相当难过的。首先，生于斯长于斯，几十年耳濡目染，先天性的家乡话，已根深蒂固，连说梦话都这味。要他突然咬文嚼字的普通话，那近乎一切推倒重来，从零开业。而即便他如鹰蜕变，自我更新，能讲一口很正统的普通话了，他也不能想说就说，否则左邻右舍会说你“庄户人还拿腔撇调”，害对方笑掉老牙……
很多情况是你在教会讲台上讲普通话，出得教堂门，甚至下得讲台，你就要接地气，变土气，与乡人，用乡音，说土语，用方言……
《圣经》上的“方言”有多重功效，其一是叫外地人听懂当地话，是为造就人。而我的“方言”与此恰恰相反，叫人不知道我说啥。保罗要求神家工人“忠心又有见识”，会说普通话算不得一种见识，可知道不“普通”的普通话，是一种尴尬，就是一种见识。
从小不是哑巴，但年纪一大把，却突然不会说“人话”了，不能不汗颜三分。大家常说要做“时代的工人”，自己不一定多么“时代”，但“普通人不会说普通话”，起码与这种精神“违和”。
很多老年弟兄姐妹，疫情守家的时候，学会了智能手机，什么听歌、上网、听讲道，都如鱼得水。看看他们，我也要活到老学到老，一个普通人，誓要说“普通话”，虽然是一种挑战，并且不小。但今天，作为神家的工人，神家“时代的工人”，即便你是农村的，那挑战你的挑战，也列队老远！
那我就披挂上阵，先从会说“人话”——普通人会说普通话开始吧，因为毕竟传道人就是以话语为器械的，自己如能自如讲普通话，那就核武装备了！
农村讲道人的尴尬：普通人不会说普通话
I used to be very opinionated and that was quite against my conscience. That is, what the British speak is English, and what the Japanese speak is Japanese. Since I am a common person, what I speak is the language that I received from the time I was born!
Although reasoning tells me that my stubbornness is a bit unreasonable, I have, for many years, never blown it while speaking behind the pulpit - of course, this is because I live in my hometown and there are no "outsiders".
I attended a meeting in which the participants came from all over China. I thought they spoke strangely because of their accents and dialects. When I completed speaking, a brother who was a very tall and outgoing guy greeted me: "Brother Xu, you spoke very well!" I was quick to show my modesty as a Chinese person: "Not so well, not so well..."
He added an unexpected transitional remark: "Unfortunately, we didn't understand a word..."
I calmed down and analyzed my own "commonly received speech" that its application components and level should be regarded as "a local dialect". This is not surprising because I am a farmer who deals with the land every day. I am rustic and speak in a dialect. Naturally so! But the tall brother’s comment was a major blow, so I couldn't help but recognize the fact that I am "local".
True, it's nothing special for me to speak in a local dialect to my fellow peasants in our rural church. However, it is more normal for workers in the new era to travel hundreds of miles by train or car to communicate. Therefore, your dialect, which is standard only in a local area, will be extremely nonstandard and will cause discomfort or even confusion to people from different places. Only authentic Mandarin meets the standard for real speech.
And when you serve in a local area the elderly believers don’t find your speech unusual. A young believer, however, when listening to your "local accent" may find it awkward and even despise your speech because they have experienced the wider world by working outside of their hometown.
Certainly, rural pastors should have a good command of Mandarin, but that good command is pretty hard to achieve. First, being born and raised in my hometown, the dialect has been deeply rooted in me for decades. I even dream in our local dialect. To suddenly speak standard Mandarin is almost like starting from scratch. Even if I am transformed like an eagle and find myself renewed, and can speak very standard Mandarin, I still can't speak in it as freely as I want. My neighbors will say that I’m "pretentious when all the time I’m still just a peasant". That will allow them to laugh at me...
In many cases, you speak Mandarin only in the church pulpit, but when you are away from the pulpit or church, you’ll have to be down to earth and be rustic, talk in the local accent, speech, and dialect...
Tongues in the Bible have multiple functions. One of them is to make foreigners understand a local dialect in order to benefit the hearers. My "dialect" (or tongue; ‘dialect’ and ‘tongue’ are the same word in Chinese, translator’s note), on the contrary, makes people wonder what I have said. Paul required God’s servants to be "faithful and wise". Speaking Mandarin is not a sign of wisdom, but knowing an unusually ordinary local dialect is an embarrassment and so it is wisdom.
I was not dumb since I was a child, but when I became old, I suddenly couldn't speak a "human language" (sarcastically refers to Mandarin) and I couldn't help but feel ashamed. It is popular nowadays to be a "worker of the times". I’m not that "trendy", but as a "common man who can't speak the standard speech (or Mandarin)" is at least against the trend.
Many elderly brothers and sisters have learned to use smartphones when they stay at home during the pandemic. They are listening to songs, surfing the Internet, and listening to sermons when they wish. Look at them, I will too learn till I die. A common man vows to speak standard Chinese although it is a challenge and not a small one. Today, as a worker of God, "a worker of the times" of God, even if you serve in the countryside, the challenges that await you are lined up from far away!
Then I will go into battle starting with the ability to speak a "human language" i.e., common people speak a common language (Mandarin), because after all, pastors use languages as instruments, and if they have a good command of Mandarin, it’s as if they have a nuclear club!
(The original article is published by Gospel Times.)
- Translated by Charlie Li
The Embarrassment of a Rural Pastor: Unable to Speak Mandarin
