Ch 29 · Lesson 10Esperanto · Chapter 29 · Lesson 10 · Grammar primer
Esperanto and the religions: Protestants and the Bible
Dia in 1908, in 1911, the Londona Biblio of 1926, and the Quaker, Buddhist, Jewish and atheist associations.
The short version
The magazines came before the unions
.
Why?Hide
first appeared in 1903; the Catholic union IKUE was founded in 1910. The Protestant magazine Dia began in February 1908; the league followed in 1911. In both churches the readers came first and the organisation afterwards.
The Protestants, and the magazine that predates them
The same pattern again. Dia (God's Kingdom) was founded in February 1908 by a German engineer, Paul Hübner. The league, (KELI), followed in 1911, founded in Antwerp during that year's World Congress. Its members are mostly Protestant, with some Catholics and Orthodox (ortodoksuloj).
Dia 1908.- The magazine Diahas appeared since 1908.
For fifty years the two leagues also met together. The first joint Ekumena - was held in 1968, made possible by the Second Vatican Council's opening to other Christians. None met from 2019 to 2024, and for 2025 to 2027 IKUE and KELI chose separate congresses. KELI met in Görlitz in 2026.
The Bible
The complete Esperanto Bible is the Londona Biblio of 1926, published by the British and Foreign Bible Society with the National Bible Society of Scotland. Zamenhof translated the Old himself. The New was the work of a committee of English and Scottish clergy, completed in 1910 and published in 1912.
Dictionaries treat it as a model of good Esperanto: the big dictionary PIV cites it constantly. The reading list puts it on the shelf of great translations.
The smaller shelves
| Body | Founded | What is known |
|---|---|---|
| Buddhist league | 1925 | by A. C. March and Edgar Grot; refounded 1948 and 2002 |
| Quaker society | 1921 | first president Ralph Eliott; now mainly online |
| Jewish association | 1925 | first president Izrael Lejzerowicz; no longer active |
| ATEO | 1987 | atheists; working with UEA since 1990 |
The Buddhist league's own name, Budhana , uses budh- with an h. The word page leads with the buda- spelling, , and both are in use.
An atheist association on a page about faiths proves the point about neutrality from the other end: the language belongs to all of them, and to none.
Going further: kristano, kristanismo: the words of faith and the rest of the guide, when you want them. This lesson does not need them.
Practice
Practise this lesson
8-question session
One question at a time, mixed across the exercises in this lesson. Miss one and it comes back round before the end.
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