I cruise through a couple of news and information websites weekly. Good articles help continue my education and a variety of commentary allows me to keep up with current issues. A few sites I read point out quirky things in the church world. One particular headline caught my attention a few months back. It was nothing new, however, a video of the whole thing iced the cake. A church somewhere had decided that saying “amen” was leaving out the fairer sex and so instituted the practice of saying “awoman” at the end of their prayers. Several years back, a state representative made waves by saying “amen and awoman” to end his prayer before the state house chamber.
Perhaps you remember learning languages in high school and having those pesky vocabulary quizzes. Cognates, or words shared across various languages, made for easy study. Some words are exactly alike in spelling with only pronunciation differences. Chocolate, explosion, and animal come to mind as I remember learning Spanish. I am one of those educated beyond my intelligence, and having had to learn Hebrew and Greek for ordination to ministry, cognates in those two languages were most helpful.
Amen in our English Bibles is a near perfect match to several ancient languages, including Biblical Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. By reading amen in the scriptures, we are meant to understand the meaning of truly, yes, or to express agreement. When the congregation of Israel gathered to hear God’s word, they responded in unison with a hearty amen. (Nehemiah 5, 8), expressing corporate agreement with their God. Jesus often used the word truly or amen before he made statements. (John’s Gospel) Today, the word used in the church often indicates an end to prayer or we say it when the preacher has rightly condemned “those other people”. Amen is a near universal word in modern languages used by Christians all over the world. If you attend a service in another land and in another language, you would be familiar with musical tunes and a handful of words as amen and Jesus.
How do we rightly use this biblical word? Is it a masculine word? When we conclude the Lord’s Prayer with “amen”, what do we mean? We are simply finishing our prayer begun in faith with a final word of faith. We adore God, confess our sins, give thanks, and place our needs before God, believing that he is able. When we give an amen to something said or sung or prayed in church, we are using an ancient and universal word that expresses our belief that God hears and acts.
Scriptures speak of God being steady, unchangeable, and trustworthy. (1 Timothy 2, Revelation 3) All of this of God is wrapped up in the person and work of Jesus. (2 Corinthians 1) “For all the promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory”