honoring God in the arts ...

[HelenaZF]

For those wondering why the tetragrammaton is often pronounced "Adonai", it is an attempt to make a way to say the unsayable Name, the Name considered so holy that it cannot be spoken aloud.



The word "Adonai" is said to have been constructed from the vowel points used in the tetragrammaton. But since the Hebrew language was out of use for centuries and was reconstructed only in modern times, it could be argued that the word Adonai is a modern invention of the Hebrew language. But it is a word that is acceptable to speak, and is recognized as a standard in speaking "the Name" in Jewish culture. In deference to that sensitivity, it is appropriate, I think---that Christians are also cognizant of the proper treatment of the tetragrammaton, if for no other reason than to not make it a stumbling block between us and the other branches on the vine.