HOLD ON. Gregory the Great & "bad" puns:
The story goes Pope Gregory saw some English boys for sale in Rome & asked where they were from:
Anglia : "More like Angels!" says Greg
Who's their king? Ælla : "More like Alleluia!" says Greg
What's their neighborhood? Deira : "More lik+
The story goes Pope Gregory saw some English boys for sale in Rome & asked where they were from:
Anglia : "More like Angels!" says Greg
Who's their king? Ælla : "More like Alleluia!" says Greg
What's their neighborhood? Deira : "More lik+
Deira? "More like they will be delivered *from the wrath* (de ira) of God when they become Christians!" says Gregory
This is the semi-mythological origin story for the Roman mission to Christianize England, which seems inspired by "bad puns" but PUNS ARE Very IMPORTANT +
This is the semi-mythological origin story for the Roman mission to Christianize England, which seems inspired by "bad puns" but PUNS ARE Very IMPORTANT +
Gregory (or his hagiographer) in the first instance was probably modeling his "puns" on Jesus's words to Peter: "Simon? Imma call you Peter because you're gonna ROCK the church yo!" (Petros = Greek "rock"; was Jesus speaking Greek? +
Prob not. Gospel of John says Jesus called him "Cephas" which it says is the Aramaic equivalent of "Petros" i.e. "Rock." Tricky? A bit. But slippery etymological wordplay, especially concerning proper names, is a essential element in the Bible. Genesis is FILLED with this stuff+
& in the Hebrew Bible, like Gregory, they are often "bad puns" in that they do not work linguistically. They are aural connections which are (sometimes obviously) philologically dubious, e.g., Adam, Eve, Cain, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Moses+
but "getting" the puns is essential for interpreting the text. Once you're tuned into this tho, you could start (over)-interpreting every single name in the Bible, cause why not? This is why Jerome wrote/translated the "Book of Hebrew Names"+
every single name is potentially fodder for exegesis. & Gregory LOVED this type of exegesis; & Bede (his #1 fan) loved it even more. So connecting a people (the English) to salvation history by means of of bad puns actually enfolds them deeply in the longest tradition
& thanks @Calthalas for reminding me about Gregory's Day! This thread is constantly simmering in my soul; **everyone** calls them bad puns :D
