... just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. Matt20:28
Qui maior est vestrum, erit minister vester. Matt23:11 (He that is greatest among you shall be your servant.)
... For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. Matt23:12
Latin and the Bible... aahh... food for my mind, soul and spirit.
In principio - Verbum: In the beginning - the Word.
Learning Latin is not easy, but extremely rewarding. It has a logical and systematic structure and grammar. And it opens up a world of thought and meaning behind many words and expressions because English was much influenced by Latin. It is used liberally in law, science, literature.
Eg. the legal dictum: nemo dat quod non habet means no one gives what he does not have. It is used in the law of transfer of title and property to show that if one is not the legal owner of a property, he cannot transfer its title to another. So a purchaser of a car or house from a thief or fraudulent party gains no title and the title remains with the true owner. The purchaser's remedy would be to sue the seller, if of course he can find him and if not, he bears the loss.
How about common phrases like semper fidelis, status quo, in toto, homo sapiens, mea culpa, modus operandi, alma mater, magnum opus, post mortem, carpe diem, alter ego, anno Domini, et tu Brute, et cetera, ad infinitum, ad nauseum?
Of course, Latin is still used in the Vatican city by the Roman Catholic Church. When recently, the new Pope was elected, the phrase was Habemus Papam! (We have a Pope.)
This is the Lord's Prayer in Latin:
Pater noster qui es in caelis, sanctificetur nomen tuum:Lingua latina est pulchra. Intellegis?
adveniat regnum tuum:
fiat voluntas tua sicut in caelo et in terra.
Panem nostrum cotidianum da nobis hodie:
et dimitte nobis debita nostra, sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris:
et ne nos inducas in temptationem:
set libera nos a malo.
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