"born again" and "rebirth" (n)

[Joel S. Berson]

At 9/14/2010 09:27 PM, Dave Wilton wrote:
>It's a different entry. The entry dating from 1961 is the adjective
>"born-again," which the etymology does cite as "after John iii.3".

Surely some of the instances in the 17th and 18th century belong
directly under "born-again (a)".  Or if not there then under "born
a." at 2.b., "born again".

>The biblical usage is under the entry for the participle and adjective
>"born." The theological phrase "to be born again," is dated to Wycliffe's
>1382 translation.

Yes I missed this previously -- "born, pple. and a.": sense 2.b.  But I note:

1)  What does the 1282 Wyclif use mean -- undergo a religious
experience, testify to it, and be admitted to the communion of some
church?  (In the Puritan, become a visible saint.)  I suspect not.

2)  Aside from the various translations of John, just one of which
uses "borne againe", none of the other quotations, which are 1593 to
1859, actually use the word "again"!

I suggest that at the least "born again" is not sufficiently
documented here, and belongs also under "born-again (a)".

A search in the OED for "born-again" yields 18 quotations before the
first (1961) of "born-again, a.", under various
head-words.  And  *none* of these instances are under "born pple., a.".

Joel



>-----Original Message-----
>From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On Behalf Of
>Joel S. Berson
>Sent: Tuesday, September 14, 2010 8:24 PM
>To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
>Subject: "born again" and "rebirth" (n)
>
>How can the OED (admittedly 2nd ed.) have under "born again" only
>from 1961 and "orig.U.S."?
>
>In the King James version of the Bible: "Jesus answered and said unto
>him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he
>cannot see the kingdom of God." (John 3).
>
>More pertinently:  From the late 17th-early 18th century (say George
>Fox and Jonathan Edwards) -- to Samuel Wright's "A Little Treatise of
>being Born Again" (actually cited in the OED under "raisedness"),
>which appeared in at least 4 editions from 1715 -- to the Methodists
>(John, Charles, and Samuel Wesley) and the Great Revival and George
>Whitefield of the 1730s-17450s.
>
>Many of these are surely not simply references to the resurrection of
>Christ, or to entering heaven, or metaphorical uses, but rather to a
>religious experience testified to by a mortal that qualifies as a
>"rebirth" or "conversion".
>
>Joel
>
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