can refer in a quite general sense to the language spoken in a particular ecclesiastical, theological, liturgical (Liturgical languages), or religious context. To that extent, a certain vagueness attaches to the term itself, whose semantic content can then only be determined more clearly through an analysis of its concrete use. Such analysis distinguishes strategically between descriptive, critical, and constructive levels, though in certain contexts all three levels may be interwoven.
The expression is used descriptively when it describes the context o…