Subject: latin phrases

From: "Mr. Helge Evensen" <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 28 May 1997 19:34:04 -0700

I know this is a little bit outside of the area of TC, but I do not know
of a better place than this list to get exact knowledge of the following:

I have many weaknesses, and here is one of them: I cannot read Latin very
well! I am looking for the exact Latin equivalents to the English
expressions: "perpetual preservation" and "continual preservation".

There may be several alternatives. I am looking especially for the exact
*word order* in the Latin expressions. Is one possible alternative
"preservatio continuae"??

I do not know. Do you?

Thanks ahead.

-- 
- Mr. Helge Evensen

---

From: Matthew Johnson <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 28 May 1997 17:09:55 -0700 (PDT)

> "preservatio continuae"??
Yes, I do know.  You are close.  "Preservatio continua" is (I think) what you
want.  But it still sounds too much like a stilted translation from
English.

Probably better: "salvatio perpetua" or "salvatio ad perpetuum", although
these have a definite Medieval flavor.  As you proposed, there are
several alternatives.

NB: "salvatio" does not mean _only_ salvation, although this is usually
the first sense to come into mind when reading the Old Latin, the Vulgate,
or the Latin Fathers.

I would need to consult a lexicon to come up with better classical
expressions.  By the time I do so I expect several other responses to
your question!

Finally, Latin is almost insensitive to word order.  There is a certain
word order that is considered good Ciceronian, classical style, but
it is not a _grammar_ rule, and is frequently disregarded even by good
authors.

So for the above example "salvatio perpetua" or "perpetua salvatio" are
exactly the same.

Matthew Johnson
Waiting for the blessed hope and the appearance of the glory of our 
great God and Saviour Jesus Christ (Ti 2:13).