Grammar

I never paid much attention to English grammar until I sat through a PSAT prep class. Before that, I would would just memorize a few rules and say the sentences out loud to hear if they sounded correct. I would say and write things like "everyone has their own book" and "the council made their decision" not realizing that it was wrong. the class taught me that "everyone" is singular while "their" is plural, thus the noun and verb didn't fit. Also, that when a group of people act as one, they are considered singular. This may seem like a basic grammar lesson, but it helped me understand the nature of the Godhead better.

I've always believed that the Godhead is made up of three separate beings, after all, Joseph Smith saw the Son standing on the right side of the Father. But some scriptures are worded funny and talks about them being one in a way that can be interpreted as being one being. I knew alternate explications, but it was still hard to reconcile the scriptures in my mind. Then I learned about the grammar rule that a group acting as a single entity is singular and all the doctrine clicked in my head: God is not God are. They are singular because they act as one so the Godhead can be referred to as He.

Grammar is important; it's there so meaning is clear. Note "Let's eat, grandma" verses "Let's eat grandma". The meaning completely changes. But, grammar should not be an obstacle rather than the map it is meant to be. That's partly why I hate capitalization rules. If it's the name of some one or something important, why shouldn't be capitalized? Why should the categories that some dead guys declared were "proper" be the only things that are capitalized besides for the first word of the sentence? Many nouns are proper in some cases and not in others.

A classmate of mine once asked me if God should be capitalized. I told him that it depended on what God was referring to. Was he writing about the God of Israel whom many people believe in; or was he writing about an idol, one of many images that some people believe or believed are divine? Capitalization in this situation is a tool that shows respect. That's how I think of capitalization: a way to show that something or someone is important and worthy of being considered proper.

Grammar, I've found, is a window to understanding. Without it, words would be useless. If language is music, words are notes and grammar is theory and suture, but sometimes for the stake of making a point, traditional theory isn't used. I will always remember a Churchill quote: "Grammar is something we must up with put".