On a recent trip I saw this pair of Latin phrases tattooed on the back of a flight attendant’s arms:
Left: Deo absente. Right: Deum culpa.
I took Latin in middle school, and could guess what the combination might mean. It’s not a common construction, and a search seems to confirm my guess. Both Google and Bing take you to a couple of Reddit posts in r/Latin.
Would this be the correct translation?
A song I like, Deus in absentia by Ghost, has that line in it intending to mean “In the absence of God”, so I was looking into alternate translations/syntax of the phrase intending to mean “In the absence of God; Blame/Fault God”. Would this make sense: “Deum in absente; Culpa Deus” or “Deus Culpa”?
Does the phrase “Deus In Absentia, Deus Culpa” make sense?
I’m using this for a tattoo and want to be absolutely sure it works in the sense of ‘In the absence of God, blame God’. All help appreciated!
Is that the same person I saw? If so, the responses in r/Latin seem to have guided them to the final text inked on their arms. And if so, the message is essentially what I had guessed. The intent of the message, though, is open to interpretation. I’m not quite sure how to take it. What do you think it means? Would it have been rude to ask?
One answer to the problem of evil is that God is weak or incompetent. Taking vacation while the garden festers?
> God is weak or incompetent
Yeah I get that, it’s the “blame God” coda that I can’t quite resolve. I like it! Just not sure how to explain it.
> Taking vacation
Yep. Visiting daughter and grandson in Silver Spring, then three glorious days on an island in a lake in Maine.
Funny you found the r\Latin sub-reddit and FOUND someone asking about this phrase in the context of a tattoo. Reminds me of a story Alan Levine tells of a story where he traveled to Australia on sabbatical to spend time as a visiting lecturer on Ed Tech. And in a workshop he did a search on copyright and photos and how he tracks the use of his photos. And found a web page re-using one of his photos. And Lo’ and Behold! The page was made by someone in Australia. That’s pretty cool,…
But then one of the attendees raised their hand. And said, that’s me. That’s my web page. And began to explain the process by which the needed and came to find and re-use the photo. So the Internet, the Web, the Fediverse, the Social Media, it’s all on this one tiny little blue speck in that Voyager photo looking back towards the Sun.
I think curiosity will out. And asking ‘what does that tattoo say’ is non-threatening. You’re not trying to correct it, question it. And even if it isn’t right, at least you know what they intended. And by way of that curiosity you’re asking what did it MEAN.
> That’s my web page.
The internet has its magical moments!