Lost in Translation

by Tom Goodman

Mistranslations can be funny, but not always.

The Wall Street Journal reported on some signs at overseas businesses.  The signs were translated into English for American tourists, but the signs lost their meanings in the translations.

Here's one from a Swiss restaurant:
"Our wines leave you nothing to hope for."

Then there's the posted notice in front of a Budapest zoo:
"Please do not feed the animals.  If you have any suitable food, give it to the guard on duty."

One dental office boasted:
"Teeth are extracted by the latest Methodists."

In Copenhagen at least one airline was up front in how it handled luggage.  Its sign read:
"We will take your bags and send them in all directions."

Or here's another from a Japanese hotel, which led to some misunderstandings, I imagine:
"You are invited to take advantage of the chambermaid."

That's like the laundry in Rome that advertised:
"Ladies, leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon having a good time."

Finally, there was the sign at a Paris hotel that advised:
"Please leave your values at the front desk."

Those signs are good for a chuckle.  But it's tragic when things get lost in the translation between Christ's vision for his church and actually seeing the church in action.

That's why we've started a new sermon series called "The Church You've Always Longed For."  We're looking at six challenges from the Gospel of Matthew; and if we rise to those challenges, we can be a better church.  Last week we began the series by looking at how to place divine truth ahead of human tradition (listen here).  This week we continue our series with a lesson on how to let love overcome prejudice.  You can prepare for the message by reading Matthew 15:21-39.

This series is for your seeking friends as well as for believers.  Some start to consider Christ and then give up their examination of Jesus because a certain Christian or a particular church has disappointed them.  But isn't that like rejecting Beethoven's genius because your kid's middle school orchestra performed his work so poorly?

Christ's vision for his church is an ideal worth realizing.  To love Jesus means loving what he loves -- and, according to Scripture, Jesus "loved the church and gave himself up for her" (Ephesians 5:25).  Let's get together and figure out how to love the church as he did.  Join us this Sunday at 10!