Yes dear, you are my liver. No… not in the Hannibal Lecter way, but in the sweet-talking Middle Eastern style. Referring to one’s sweetheart as one’s liver is another way of saying “you are my heart.” Surely, when I write that “you are my heart,” no one reading is thinking of the inferior and superior vena cavae, its four chambers, tri- and bi-cuspid valves, etc. We are using the organ of the heart as a code to convey an inner-feeling we regularly associate with love or other endearing emotions. That’s our code.
Languages are fundamentally codes for the interaction of one mind with another. Humans have developed language as an exceptional way to bridge themselves with those who understand them. I have found in language learning that if we focus on the communicative aspect of language—that is to say the code used to know the other and have the other know us—it is far easier to acquire skill in a foreign language than it would be if we focus our attention on matters such as grammar and vocabulary. Isn’t that how we communicate as children before we are able to read and write or speak of language abstractly?
Keep this advice in mind when you set out to study a foreign language, or if you ever think about communicating with someone who cannot speak in the same language as you. If you’ve always discouraged yourself or felt discouraged when you tried to learn a language in the past, let this be an encouragement. If you’re focused on being with people and communicating with those people, you’ll find yourself speaking a new language without realizing it. And don’t be surprised if your lack of immediate perfection in the new language that you’re learning becomes an enjoyable starting point for your interaction with the foreign language speaker.
This clip is taken from a conversation between Dr. Michael Wingert and Fr. George Bassous in regards to learning Middle Eastern languages--specifically Syriac (Aramaic). Many Eastern Christians are functional polyglots (speakers of multiple languages), and perceiving language as a code is regularly lost in the learning of grammar and vocabulary. In short, languages are exercises that humans use to convey mental intention from one person to any other(s).
NOTE: Dr. Wingert refers to Father George as "Abouna," which is Arabic and dialectical Aramaic for "our father," and is a term of endearment used for priests in the Arabic speaking world. Fr. George is a priest from Jerusalem in the Syriac Orthodox Church , an ancient Christian community from the Middle East. This community is known for its large collection of polyglots and its use of Aramaic as its major language of worship (among others).