You’ve probably come across a church, temple, or mosque in your life. What crucial features have you ever noticed? Of course, almost everyone has seen a church with a cross in books, movies, or real life. If you’re not a Christian, you might think that a cross is just a sign indicating a place of worship. However, such an assertion contradicts Christians with the lens of faith. According to them, a cross on or in a church symbolizes the mystery and transcendence that is the Lord. Without incorporating symbolic language in theological papers, it might not achieve the intended goal(s), specifically perpetuating spirituality in the modern world.
Analysis of symbolic languages used in writing religious papers
The use of allegory
Considering that people of varying faiths might read your publications on a certain denomination, you should consider incorporating allegory. When you utilize this literary device, you can communicate complex ideas that touch on contemporary societal and political realities without facing a lot of criticism. However, if you’re unsure of the techniques you can use to distance yourself from the issue communicated on your paper, you can seek term paper writing services from the Internet as their experts mimic allegory incorporated in the Bible in crafting essays and assignments.
For example, in the holy Bible, foretelling later events or explaining spiritual truths depends on the application of allegory. In particular, parables of Jesus incorporate happenings and characters depicting righteous life and certainty about the Kingdom of God. Matthew 13:3-9 talks about the sowing of seeds in different environments (soil). In this case, the seed and soil represent the word of God and people’s responses to teachings, respectively. This allegory emphasizes the prerequisite of relating the spiritual world with real-life situations. However, such a technique might only be possible with the incorporation of symbolic language.
The use of allusion
When you want your paper to connect with the audience spiritually, you should consider using this literary device. The underlying rationale for choosing allusion in writing theological papers concerns hypothesizing connections with well-known works besides framing storylines and developing characters. For example, you can choose to reference the Bible or any holy book(s) in your writing to communicate spiritual messages to readers. Rather than over-explaining some faith-based concepts, you can use allusion to communicate a standpoint view quickly.
For example, you might want to write theological papers about the plight of unemployment in a particular setup. In this case, you can illustrate limited vacancies and a lack of skills that match the existing job market. Such a paper would be more business-related than theological. For that reason, incorporating allusion from a holy book would be necessary. You can quote a biblical character, job, to emphasize the need for “the patience of job.” In particular, you can relate the plight of unemployment to the suffering the job endured for many years.
The use of hyperbole
If you want your text, regardless of the discipline, to catch readers’ attention, you should consider incorporating literary devices used in day-to-day conversations. The incorporation of hyperbole can help you achieve this goal. In real life, people often overstate some phrases or statements to make their discussions impressive and colorful. Even though a person you’re speaking to can identify and translate the exaggeration unconsciously, it doesn’t distort the message or idea communicated.
Considering many people’s impartiality from theological language and culture, they most likely overlook hyperbole used to convey spiritual lessons and teachings. However, if you incorporate the overstatement in your academic papers, you will foster an in-depth understanding of texts. To be a pro in this type of writing, you need to acquaint yourself with the techniques of differentiating literal statements from hyperboles. You take the following examples from the Bible as a starting point of your learning.
According to 2 Kings 18:5, “There was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him,” the author overstates the devotion of King Hezekiah. In this case, you can choose to quote specific texts from the Bible or formulate your hyperboles on the basis of Christian beliefs. What’s more, when the Bible says the King of kings, it helps you visualize His superiority. In other words, this exaggeration portrays the Lord as having incomparable power in the world.
Whereas many believers advocate for neither adding nor reducing ideas, statements, or words in the scriptures, they can take advantage of symbolism to perpetuate the holy word. The same applies to writers or scholars of theological papers. In particular, they should consider using hyperboles, allusions, and allegories to not only catch readers’ attention but also communicate the intended messages. When you understand the meaning of these literary words in the holy books, you stand a good chance to impact the readers spiritually.
