It’s Greek to me

K is a surprisingly hard letter to find words to say I’m thankful for. I expected a challenge with Q and X (though I’ve already thought of a some for those), but the letter K? Of course, I am thankful for my kidneys and my knees, but I can’t think of much to say about them. (And my left knee has been a bit unreliable ever since that bicycle accident 24 years ago.)

Keyboards and knives are also useful tools, but they don’t rate especially high on my list of things I’m thankful for. My kids? Of course! But they get a special mention each, on the letters for their first names. There’s Kyra … but I’ll be more thankful when she learns to stop trying to bite at our clothing (she has already put holes in two pairs of pants and who knows how many socks – not from chewing but just grabbing hold of whatever walks by).

I looked at the history of the letter K, and learned that it comes from the Greek letter K (kappa), but Latin for the most part replaced it with the letter C, which accounts for the scarcity of K words in romance languages (such as French, the source of a large part of our vocabulary thanks to the Norman invasion of England in 1066). The Celtic languages did likewise, and Old English followed suit.

So instead I decided to look at K words borrowed from Greek. Perhaps borrowed isn’t quite the right word, as they are not in common use in the general English-speaking population. But the words from the Greek New Testament are commonly used, at least at some evangelical churches, for concepts that are not effectively conveyed by their English translations.

Koinonia
It is generally translated fellowship (in the NASB, 12 out of the 19 times the word occurs in the New Testament), but it means something much richer and deeper than the casual conversation over coffee and donuts or potluck suppers that constitute “fellowship” at many churches. It is certainly associated with shared meals – but the shared meals referred to by its use in the New Testament are known now by another word – Communion.

Today Communion is too often a ritual in which each Christian meditates on his intimate link to God through Christ, but in most churches I have attended there is little shared between the people sitting in the pews except that they are saying and doing the same thing at the same time. I don’t mean to minimize the value of that, but I appreciate more the special occasions when the Communion service is made an opportunity for people to gather in small groups to pray for and with each other.

The entry in Wikipedia describes the features of koinonia:

Fellowship is never passive in the meaning of koinonia, it is always linked to action, not just being together, but also doing together. With fellowship comes a close and intimate relationship embracing ideas, communication, and frankness, as in a true, blessed interdependent friendship among multiple group members.

Some churches I have attended have a real concern about developing this intimate relationship among their members. Small groups meet to study the Bible and pray together. Sometimes they also get together for meals, for special occasions (holidays, birthdays, anniversaries), and for fun social activities. When people in the group feel “safe” enough to admit their needs, group members may provide not only emotional support but also practical (including sometimes financial) help when someone is sick, going through a loss (of a job or family member), or other difficult situations.

At least that’s what our groups aspire to do. Between everyone being busy and many people being uncomfortable asking for help, no doubt too many needs go unmet. But by the grace of God we are learning to practice koinonia more. And I am very thankful for the strong emphasis in our church on developing this important aspect of church life.

Kerygma
The word basically means proclamation or preaching. Over the course of scholarly debate about the literary significance of the New Testament, kerygma came to be used in theological circles “to denote the irreducible essence of Christian apostolic preaching.” C.H. Dodd summarizes this in six points, taken from Peter’s sermons in Acts:

1. The Age of Fulfillment has dawned, the “latter days” foretold by the prophets. 
2. This has taken place through the birth, life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 
3. By virtue of the resurrection, Jesus has been exalted at the right hand of God as Messianic head of the new Israel. 
4. The Holy Spirit in the church is the sign of Christ’s present power and glory. 
5. The Messianic Age will reach its consummation in the return of Christ. 
6. An appeal is made for repentance with the offer of forgiveness, the Holy Spirit, and salvation.

I’m thankful that I heard this kerygma, and that I responded at the opportune time (kairos).

Kairos
This word is used less commonly - except by people (like my husband) with the benefit of a seminary education, or people (like myself) who have been taught by someone like my husband. (I suppose it also helps to have a love of words and languages and to want to remember such things.) Just as Greek has multiple words that are all translated “love” in English, Greek also has two words for time. Chronos (sometimes spelled kronos or khronos) is chronological or sequential time, as measured by the clock. Kairos is a time in which something special happens.

Unlike chronos, kairos cannot be measured in minutes or days or years. It is the right time, the opportune time for something to happen. But it can be missed, if we’re not ready and watching for it. In the New Testament, kairos is “the appointed time,” the time when God acts. If we’re caught up in chronos time, trying to squeeze so many activities into a day, or watching the clock (or the calendar) waiting for something to happen, we can easily miss the time when God wants to act in us or through us.

I can think of times in my life that would qualify as kairos, when I did respond to the call of God. I don’t know how many times I’ve missed such an important moment. I’m thankful for the Greeks having the wisdom to distinguish between those two kinds of time, to remind me not to lose sight of kairos in the midst of chronos.