People in the United States are not the only ones on earth who have an anxiety about learning another language. It is a common problem all over the world. Some of it is due to educational attempts that do not work real well to teach foreign languages. Some of it is due to a strong nationalism and identity with a mother-language. Anxiety or fear of learning a foreign language is often called “linguaphobia”.
The real problem develops when linguaphobia develops into a linguacentrism; the idea that one particular language should be the only one spoken. This is becoming more prevalent in the United States in recent years as a result of the rise in immigration and in particular the rise of Spanish-speaking illegal immigrants. More and more, one hears the angry declaration, “They live in America now. They should speak English!” As if, somehow crossing a boarder grants one the magical and immediate power to learn a foreign language.
The cultural tension becomes greater when xenoglossophobia develops among the mother-language speakers – English, in the case of the United States. This is the fear of foreign language speakers. It can also be called xenophobia; the fear or dislike of people different than your self. I believe this is a growing problem in the United States. It is a problem created more from “group-think” than any actual threat.
The fact of the matter is that the United States has always been an nation of immigrants. As such, it has always contained within its borders people who speak many different languages. Early on, it began mainly with European languages – German, French, Dutch, Italian, Russian, Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish among many others. This explain the complexity of the American English language. It is a compound of many additional foreign words!
Another fact that is often overlooked today is that English language acquisition has often taken immigrants a generation or two to assimilate so that it is no longer a foreign or second language to them. In the Midwest for example, many community churches retained their ethnic language identities in German and Scandinavian languages up until a few decades ago! There are still a few who use the original mother-tongue language occasional in their church services.
Indian Heaven Wilderness Stream, Summer 2002 ©Weatherstone/Ron Almberg, Jr. (2010)
My Swedish grandfather came from Sweden as a child, struggled to learn English, but still retained and spoke Swedish until his death. It was not until his children came along that English was the mother-tongue language. As his grandchild, I know and understand no Swedish. I suspect that for recent immigrants – legal or illegal – to the United States it will take the same amount of time. Our own experience as immigrants should make us more tolerant and patient with new arrivals to this land of opportunity.
It is particularly shameful for those within the Church to be intolerant or xenophobic. Since the Great Commission compels us to be witnesses to every ethnic group on earth, they should see this as a golden opportunity. Instead of needing to go to foreign lands to the people of the world, the people of the world are coming to our communities and neighborhoods! This saves the Church thousands of dollars in sending missionaries overseas. Now the mission field is settling around us in small ethnic conclaves that can be easily reached by many Christians and churches.
The final picture of the Bride of Christ – the Church – we have in The Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ should also motivate us to welcome and embrace people of different cultures and languages. The vision presented to us (7:9) is a multi-ethnic, multi-language celebration gathered around the Lamb’s throne. They will be singing and dancing – each according to their cultural and language – to the words, “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne and to the Lamb!” (7:10). I really do not think that at that glorious and holy moment some xenophobe American is going to yell out, “Hey, speak English!”
©Weatherstone/Ron Almberg, Jr. (2010)
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