Faith & Spirit Quote by Walter Lang

The line joins a modest observation about human speech to a sweeping claim about reality. Language, Lang says, expresses thinking. Words do not merely decorate thoughts; they make inner reasoning public, allowing minds to meet, test, and refine ideas. From there he moves to theology: creation itself begins and endures by a Word. The capital W signals the biblical Logos, the creative speech of Genesis and the personified Word of John 1, with Hebrews adding that the world is sustained by that same powerful word. Human speech and divine Word stand in relation: our words echo, however faintly, the generative and ordering power of the Word.

As a mid-20th-century Lutheran pastor and creationist advocate, Walter Lang sought to defend the intelligibility and stability of the world as grounded in God. If reality is spoken by a rational Word, it is not chaos but ordered, understandable, and therefore open to inquiry. That outlook gives a metaphysical basis for science and for moral accountability in communication. Lies and manipulative rhetoric do more than misstate facts; they damage the social world because words do things. Speech-act theorists would say that commands, promises, and declarations are not only descriptions but actions. Scripture claims something stronger: divine speech calls being from nonbeing and holds it together.

The emphasis on expression also carries an ethical charge. Since language reveals thought, corrupt language signals corrupt thinking, and truthful language nurtures sound thought. In public life, the health of discourse becomes a measure of the health of the community. If the world is preserved by a Word, preservation at the human level involves guarding the clarity, honesty, and courage of our words. Lang thus ties the mystery of creation to the daily practice of speaking well. Reality is not merely matter in motion; it is meaning spoken and sustained, inviting minds and mouths to align with truth.