Oh, Tabernacle!

[Babbler]

Church reclaims sacred words
Cheeky ad campaign aims to remind Quebecers of meaning behind curses

LES PERREAUX
CP

Monday, May 15, 2006

Montreal's Catholic churches are trying to take back the tabernacle and the chalice, reminding Quebecers that the common French-language cuss words are still sacred objects to the church.

The churches launched a cheeky publicity campaign during the weekend to teach the true meaning of words that roll so easily off the tongues of many francophones when they stub a toe or strike a thumb with a hammer.

Several Montreal churches were festooned with gigantic black posters with the names of religious objects in blood-red letters and the true definition in smaller white type.

"Tabernacle!" shouted one example. "Small cupboard locked by key in the middle of the altar containing the ciborium."

Another explained that "ciboire" (ciborium, in English) is a container that holds the hosts for communion.

Both words, along with "calisse" (chalice), "sacristie" (sacristy) and "sacrement" (sacrament) have also become curses in popular Quebecois French.

While some of the words were used in a blasphemous fashion all the way back to the 1800s, they became especially common as francophones turned

their backs on the Roman Catholic church during the past 40 years.

"There are a lot of people in our society who don't even know what these words mean anymore," said Jean Boyer, a Montreal priest who was visiting Notre Dame Basilica yesterday.

"We're hoping once the shock passes, people will think more about the true meaning of the words. There are many young people who don't even know that in old times this was blasphemy."

It's a uniquely Quebec problem for the church, says Monique Carmel, a linguist and professional translator.

"These words were used as blasphemy and a form of rebellion when the church held a great amount of power in Quebec society," Carmel said in an interview yesterday. "France has been a secular society since Napoleon, so you don't see this there."

Boyer said church officials were hesitant when an advertising firm suggested the campaign for an annual fundraising drive.

But the idea presented a great opportunity to grab attention and remind people of some sacred definitions.

"It's strange, isn't it?" Boyer said.

"These are words that shouldn't be shocking to anyone, and somehow today they are."
© The Gazette (Montreal) 2006

This is just too funny.

 

[Masquerouge]

At least the Quebecois use something else than sexual body parts for cursing

 

[Xanikk999]

They are being serious but its humourous because they are serious!

 

[Babbler]

At least the Quebecois use something else than sexual body parts for cursing

Or bodily fluids!

 

[Raisin Bran]

It is funny ....... so true its a Quebec thing!

I always known what the words meant, I asked my parents when I was younger. I agree that younger people dont know the meaning of the words, but do you really want the youngsters to associate the words with the real thing? I mean these words are only used to swear, the youngnsters dont care about the real meaning of the words anyways.

From my point of view the swear words and the real thing are 2 seperate things..... Tabarnack is a different word than Tabernacle. When someone talks to me about Osties (hosts) I dont get offended even though I use the word other ways usually.

Vocabulary is not a thing for the church to try and correct ........ we have the "ministere de la langue francaise"for that.

If the church wants us to know what is the real meaning of typical quebec swear words they should work on refreshing Church insted of trying to educate the people on what a word means.

This is my opinion on this particular subject. Dont be offended its just how I think.

 

[sysyphus]

sacre bleu!

 

[7ronin]

Language can not be legislated, influenced or controlled in any way. It is too dynamic.

 

[Bill3000]

Language can not be legislated, influenced or controlled in any way. It is too dynamic.

Standardized languages say different.

 

[Marla_Singer]

Standardized languages say different.

I would be glad to learn how. If you take French for instance, the Académie can only publish recommandations, but they are not necessarily followen. It may work for official vocabulary, but certainly not for common use of words.

Some example are actually pathetic when it goes about the Académie Française. For instance, the world "e-mail" is commonly shortened as "mail" in French. At the opposite of English, "mail" is strictly used for internet messages, as for postal mail we use the french word of "courrier". Quebeckers, in their own side, generally abbreviate the French expression "courrier électronique" into "courriel", which can make sense, even if it could sound weird to certain ears. Did the French academy decided to translate "mail" as "courriel", no it didn't. It liked better to change the spelling of the word mail, which should be written as "mél". As it's totally counter-intuitive, no one uses that recommendation from the Académie.

However, the Académie Française isn't always ridiculous. Sometimes it comes up with nicely thought recommendation which quickly spreads into the vocabulary. For instance, the words "ordinateur" (aka computer) or "logiciel" (aka software) have very fastly spread into French vocabulary.

Before I hear people attacking the French Academy as a necessarily anti-American tool invented by the evil French, I will simply remind you that this institution exists since the 16th century, at a time when French was, by the way, fairly used as an international language in Europe.

Furthermore, the more it goes and the more French people are using english acronyms to designate what can be designated with already existing French words. And that's getting really irritating. For instance, in the business vocabulary, it's trendy to talk about the "CEO" (Chief Executive Officer), when the word "PDG" (Président Directeur Général) already exist for the same job. Those kinds of examples are numerous, and there's no other purpose to use the English word instead of the French one than to sound "more in the move".

 

[De Lorimier]

Furthermore, the more it goes and the more French people are using english acronyms to designate what can be designated with already existing French words. And that's getting really irritating. For instance, in the business vocabulary, it's trendy to talk about the "CEO" (Chief Executive Officer), when the word "PDG" (Président Directeur Général) already exist for the same job. Those kinds of examples are numerous, and there's no other purpose to use the English word instead of the French one than to sound "more in the move".

This is so true. I work at the airport and I talk to businessmen/women from France on a daily basis and they scare the living crap out of me. They're not here for Affaires, they're here for business. They don't have a réunion, they have meetings. They don't take the escalier-roulant to get downstairs, they take the escalator. From someone who has to defend the French language all the time in his life, it sounds very weird.

On-topic: Silly Catholics! Those swear words became slang terms a long time ago. We're never giving them back ostie d'calisse de st-ciboire de tabarnak!!

 

[Raisin Bran]

On-topic: Silly Catholics! Those swear words became slang terms a long time ago. We're never giving them back ostie d'calisse de st-ciboire de tabarnak!!

Ciboire que j'te comprends mon ostie d'calisse toé

 

[De Lorimier]

Come to think of it. Our language would now suck without those words. It's not something to use all the time, unless you want to sound like a lumberjack, but they are essential. Depending on the context, they have became more than mere onomatopoeic words. They are adjectives, nouns, verbs, adverbs. They are everything!

 

[YNCS]

Language can not be legislated, influenced or controlled in any way. It is too dynamic.

L'Académie Française would disagree with this.

 

[Babbler]

Language can not be legislated, influenced or controlled in any way. It is too dynamic.

To put what Marla Singer simple put: The Académie Française makes recommendations, and the French ignore it.

 

[SoCalian]

Come to think of it. Our language would now suck without those words. It's not something to use all the time, unless you want to sound like a lumberjack, but they are essential. Depending on the context, they have became more than mere onomatopoeic words. They are adjectives, nouns, verbs, adverbs. They are everything!

you mean like awesome?

 

[Urederra]

@Marla: Good post, I agree with you.

you mean like

 

[SoCalian]

yeah, thats the word

 

[Evie]

Ciboire que j'te comprends mon ostie d'calisse toé

Maudit, vous avez raison en sacrament, les gars.

I mean, there's a reason why the Québec word for "swearing" is "sacrer" :-D

 

[The Yankee]

Moderator Action: SoCalian and Urederra warned for language. Language will be removed.
Please read the forum rules: http://forums.civfanatics.com/showthread.php?t=422889

 

[The Last Conformist]

At least the Quebecois use something else than sexual body parts for cursing

Swedish cursing involves alot of words for "devil".