For example, the word Lord has a tangled past in both religion and politics. Originally a Germanic word for someone in charge of bread and food - literally, a "loaf-keeper" - the word grew along with the feudal system to denote the local landowning political authority. When theologians needed an equivalent for the Greek Kyrie and the Latin dominus, the Germanic/English lord seemed to fit the bill, because in its feudal usage, it combined both authority and friendly provision. The word's use as a piece of feudal jargon was established before the year 1000 A.D., although the spelling would still undergo considerable change; it was solidly in place as a synonym for God by the 1300's. While the word stuck in religious usage, its political context changed. The feudal system faded away, and the main political use of lord was in reference to the British Parliament's upper house, the House of Lords. This newer political sense of lord does not harmonize with the spiritual idiom. While God as Lord shares with the British parliamentarian a sense of power and authority, the spiritual Lord has an affection and an emotional intimacy which the member of parliament lacks. When Scripture is translated into other languages, the Greek and Hebrew words which are rendered into English as Lord are rendered into German as der Herr, into French as monsieur, and into Spanish as el Señor. The common elements among these words include: owner, master, administrator, rank, high position, and nobility.
Less obvious, but still essential, is the political element in the word Christ. This Greek word is a rendering of the Hebrew Messiah, which has a root meaning of 'anoint' - an ancient ceremony in which oil is poured onto the head of man, indicating that he is to become king. The notion represented is one of a person who has been appointed, chosen, or designated.
Non-political is the history of the name Jesus, which was produced by successive transliterations from the original Hebrew Yeshua into Greek, then into Latin, subsequently into German, and finally into English. The Hebrew name Yeshua is also the name rendered as Joshua, the successor to Moses in the Old Testament. The name itself has an etymological meaning of save. Consider that both Joshua and Salvador are still common given names, as is Jesus is some Spanish-speaking cultures.
Given the consideration of the words above, fresh possibilities exist for rephrasing the churchly-sounding "Lord Jesus Christ," a phrase which has been spoken and heard, written and read, so often that one, in the colloquial phrases, "simply doesn't hear it any more" or "reads right past it." To get an idea of how that phrase sounded when it was fresh, when it hadn't been use ritualistically for two thousand years, consider a couple of synonymous constructions: "Joshua, appointed as director" or "Salvador, designated as chairman" - how different! This is not disrespect or irreverence, but rather an attempt to understand how this phrase would have sounded two thousand years ago, when it was new. What impact would this have had on listeners and readers? "Jesus, the one chosen to be the authoritative yet caring Master of the universe!"
