Tiny History of the Word ‘Lord’

Beginning in about the 6th century and from the 3rd century BCE on, Israelites referred to god using the term elohim. Due in part to a growing belief that the divine name (YHWH) was too sacred to be uttered, it was replaced vocally in the synagogue ritual by the Hebrew word Adonai (”My Lord”), which was translated as Kyrios (”Lord”) in the Septuagint, the Greek version of the Old Testament. In ancient Greece, a woman’s dowry was given by her father or her kyrios to the husband and could be taken back if the marriage ended in divorce.

Every woman had kyrios or male guardian: when she was born it would be her father, and if he died, a male relative could take his place. After her marriage, her husband would become her kyrios. Any property or money that would be hers because of the death of a family member or through inheritance, became the property of her household, which was controlled by the kyrios.

There is no evidence from Athens that women were ever allowed to become kyrios. An Athenian woman could never have any real financial say in her life. Her dowry was in no legal sense her own, as it was given by her kyrios and she could not dispose of it herself. An Athenian woman could obtain a divorce, but only if her family and kyrios supported the decision, and in that case, the dowry had to be returned. Many men feared the possibility of divorce because the return of a dowry could bankrupt a family. Therefore, men may have treated their wives somewhat better than if there was no money to be considered. If the woman was young enough, her kyrios would use her dowry to marry her off again, and if not, the money was used for her future care.

Greek - kūrios, lord, master.

English - cu·ri·ous (kyr‘ē-us)

adj.

1. Eager to learn more
2. Unduly inquisitive; prying
3. Arousing interest because of novelty or strangeness
4. Archaic
   1. Accomplished with skill or ingenuity.
   2. Extremely careful; scrupulous.

[Middle English, from Old French curios, from Latin cūriōsus, careful, inquisitive, from cūra, care]

Given that the Greek ‘kurios’ referred to lord and master, one can conceptuialize how such meaning was embodied in the Latin, curiosus - careful, inquisitive and care. The master of the household exercised careful inquisitiveness while ensuring the care for those in his charge. In order to prosper, one must investigate beyond the borders defining that which one knows to be so.

The Latin cūra means -

1. concern, worry, anxiety, trouble, attention, care, pains, zeal;
2. cure, treatment, task/responsibility/post;
3. administration, supervision;
4. command

So, the Greek ‘kurios,’ which again means lord is related to being a curator, curious, care provider. At the same time, one finds that the Latin word for lord is dominus - owner, king, ruler, judge. Whereas the Greek perspective of ‘lord’ or ‘god’ is one of caretaker, the Romans ascribed the role of ruler. Of course one also finds that Latin uses dominus as a title for ecclesiastics, men of the church.

ec·cle·si·a (noun)

1. The political assembly of citizens of an ancient Greek state
2. A church or congregation

What was in Greece an assembly of citizens, became a church or congregation. The call of the body politic became the call of the body of christ. The political assembly in Greece was democratic in nature. The church took away the voices of those who might oppose and took up a dominant position to lord over, or dominate the populous. Did the church do this with the intention of caring for and curing the flock?

The cure for ignorance is curiosity, not domination. The future of humanity depends upon the promotion of curiosity and the avoidance of domination. Curiosity integrates care and cure. Domination integrates rule and judge. Dominus or Curious, which feels right to you?