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Praying with Amen
Posted on 10 May 2012 04:10 PM
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I am an SDA Christian and I recently visited the British Museum where I saw a tablet with the name of an Egyptian god Amen. I was startled by this and did some research. I discovered it does in fact refer to this god. Why do we use it in prayer, and what is the correct pronunciation and use of this word? Some people seem to think we have been duped into worshiping this god. Is it true that the word AMEN is derived from AMEN-RA an Egyptian God!?
I think the god you are speaking of is Amun. Amen is a variant spelling of this name, but should not be considered the same word as the Hebrew אמן, or amen.
The word amen does not praise Egyptian deities, nor is it a hidden code to praise another god. The Oxford English Dictionary defines amen this way: amen: /aamen, aymen/ The word Amen (Hebrew: אָמֵן, Standard Amen Tiberian 'Amen ; Arabic: آمين, 'Āmīn ; "So be it; truly") is a declaration of affirmation found in the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament. It has always been in use within Judaism. It has been generally adopted in Christian worship as a concluding formula for prayers and hymns. In Islam, it is the standard ending to Dua (Supplication). Common English translations of the word amen include: "Verily", "Truly", "So be it", and "Let it be". It can also be used colloquially to express strong agreement, as in, for instance, amen to that. In fact, the word amun has a totally different meaning in the hebrew language. Check out Strong's H0528: Amon or Amun = "to nourish: to be faithful" 1) an Egyptian god, originally the local god of Thebes, later head of the Egyptian pantheon The words amen and amun have two totally distinct meanings. The word amen is biblical and can be used freely. | |
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