“Christianese: A communicable language within the Christian subculture with words and phrases created, redefined, and /or patented that applies only to the Christian sphere of influence.” Urban Dictionary

Here is an example I found on urbandictionary.com:

      Christianese: “The Lord works in mysterious ways.”

      Translation: “I’m totally clueless.”

Here is the deal…if you’re totally clueless, just say you’re totally clueless. I am getting really tired of Christianese. Sometimes I leave entire conversations and feel like I have no idea what was just said. Words are used like “sovereignty”,” blessed”, “rejoiced”, “anointed” and I know what these words mean as much as the next guy but good grief…I walk away and I have no idea what we were just talking about.

If you’re struggling with something, it’s okay to just say it like it is instead of trying to dress it up with Christianese. It’s not wrong to say that you’re “going through the fire” or that “the winds of temptation have been blowing hard” but I would relate a lot more to you if you just said, “Dude, it’s been rough lately.” I sometimes wonder if we worry that what we say won’t be as powerful or eloquent if we just put it in plain language. Maybe we use all the big “Christian” words sometimes just to mask the obvious reality that we really don’t know what we’re talking about. It is far more respectable to utter simple and honest truths than to doctor everything up to sound super spiritual.

Speak honestly. Speak from the heart and say what you mean to say. Really process the thoughts that you want to communicate and express them in words that most simply and directly articulate the heart of what you mean. It may not sound like it belongs in a devotional book or something but I guarantee you that people will be able to relate to you a whole lot better.

Also, be a catalyst for truthful dialogue. If you hear someone talking and it smells like Christianese, diffuse the conversation and ask them what they mean. For example:

Bob: “Dude, I have felt so blessed lately. My job has been tough but the Lord is really anointing me and he’s just been so sovereign. I’m really believing he’s about to part the waters of the red sea and bring resurrection to my marriage too.”

You: “So work is going well? How has your marriage been?”

This gives Bob the opportunity to really say what he means. If he is telling you that his marriage needs resurrection, don’t just smile and say, “Praise God.” If you do that then you are just adding to the level of Christianese in the conversation. Bob may not be lying or trying to be false in what he is saying, but the conversation is so lofty that it is hard to know what he is talking about. His marriage may actually be struggling and work may not be going so well. Guide Bob to bring it down to earth and talk to you about how things are really going.

I have found diffusing the Christianese in conversation to be incredibly beneficial. It has led me to have more authentic conversations where you walk away and actually know what was just talked about. We only have a short period of time on this earth and limited interactions with the people we care about. We don’t have time to fill our conversations with fluffy language that really masks the truths that we may or may not want to communicate.