Aleksander Gomola

The article addresses the problem of the Christian discourse, and more specifically conceptual blends with “shepherd”, “sheep” and related concepts in an input space in the writings of Ignatius of Antioch, St Augustine, Cyprian of Carthage and others. The analysis of selected blends shows their importance in Christian discourse and their role in the creation of the doctrine and practice of the early Church. The article shows that conceptual blends are a flexible tool for conceptualising different notions in accordance with the aims of their authors. The overall objective of this article is to show the role of language in the formation of the Christian identity and doctrine, and the usefulness of the blending theory in the description of these phenomena.

The Bible, considered by many a normative and patriarchal text, poses a serious challenge to feminism. Feminist theology offers alternative interpretation and aims to restore female dignity and social prestige to the biblical text through its translation. This article presents selected examples of the feminist interpretation of the Bible. It also analyses English and German translations to comment on inclusive language as the principle of feminist translation, now part of the mainstream biblical studies. Moreover, non-feminist inclusive translations into English and Polish are discussed.

The article discusses selected problems encountered by the translator working on the
first complete translation of a classic work of medieval English mysticism, Revelations
of Divine Love by Julian of Norwich, into Polish. The most characteristic features
of the original as well as the differences between English and Polish devotional
literature are examined. Some semantic and syntactical problems as well as their
solutions are presented.

MIŁOSZ – MERTON: A BINARY SYSTEM
During his life in America Czesław Miłosz met numerous people, but few were more important to him than a man whom he saw only twice – Thomas Merton. Miłosz and Merton corresponded regularly for almost ten years (1959–1968) and their letters, published in Polish and English, display two great minds involved in a deep and sincere dialogue which reveals their most intimate thoughts as well as hopes and fears. Although close, the two remained independent in their thinking and free from false flatteries. The article presents their exchanges on political issues such as the Cold War,
the Civil Right Movement or the communist Russia as well as the transformations in the Catholic Church initiated by the Second Vatican Council. Intriguing similarities between their biographies are also mentioned.

During his life in America Czesław Miłosz met many people but few of
them were more important than a man whom he saw only twice – Thomas Merton.
Miłosz and Merton corresponded regularly for almost ten years (1959–1960) and their
letters, published in Polish and English, show two great minds involved in a deep and
sincere dialogue, revealing their most intimate thoughts as well as fears and hopes.
Close to each other, they nevertheless remained independent in their thinking. This
article presents their exchanges on political issues such as the Cold War, the Civil Right
Movement or communist Russia. It also describes how each of them perceived the
changes in the Catholic Church initiated by the Second Vatican Council. Interesting
parallels in their biographies are also mentioned.

Feminist Thought in Bible Translation

The Bible, seen by many as a normativeand patriarchal text, poses a serious challenge to feminism. Feminist theologians strive to restore to it female dignity and equality. The article presents selected examples of the feminist interpretation of the Bible. It also analyses the English and German translations. Instances of inclusive language, evident in the feminist translation of the Bible, are examined. Moreover, non-feminist inclusive translations of the Bible into English and Polish are investigated.