3 ms·
TIL "ecumenical" I assume you mean this in a sense of people from disparate backgrounds coming together on a common ground? Is this even used in the context y
by mattsfrey 9y ago
TIL "ecumenical"
I assume you mean this in a sense of people from disparate backgrounds coming together on a common ground?
Is this even used in the context you meant it? Can you cite a text using it in a non-christian context? Just curious how the hell you ended up using this word lol.
- ghaff 9y agoI have seen it used as something akin to universal. See e.g. https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/ecumenical https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/ecumenical But it definitely tends to be used in the religious sense.
- kijin 9y agoIn Ursula Le Guin's Hainish Cycle, the confederation of planets is called the Ekumen. It's a good ol' Greek word with no inherent religious meaning, so it's nice to see it getting reclaimed in a secular context. I think the fact that it tends to have a religious connotation imparts a sense of solemnity to it that is quite appropriate in the current context. "Ecumenical" also avoids the grandiosity and detechedness of "universal" or "global". Perhaps because its meaning derives from "home", it feels a lot more down to Earth and closer to heart than either of those common alternatives.
- thedailymail 9y agoSimilar trajectory for "catholic," meaning broadly inclusive. (e.g., She has catholic taste in music.)
- hprotagonist 9y agoI assume you mean this in a sense of people from disparate backgrounds coming together on a common ground? Exactly. Diners and bodegas are common spaces for people from every slice of life -- and everyone plays nice, or else the waitress takes your matzoh away and nobody wants that!
- enraged_camel 9y ago“No matzoh for you!”