Theological Language in the Public Sphere: a Speech Act Approach to Institutional Christian Statements

Abstract

This article examines how Christian institutions formulate theological meaning when communicating within the public sphere, proposing a speech act-based framework for analyzing institutional statements. While public theology emphasizes engagement with society, the linguistic processes through which theological intentions are reshaped for non-ecclesial audiences remain underexplored. To address this gap, the article develops a three-stage model tracing the movement of theological language from ecclesial intention to public effect, focusing on illocutionary articulation, semantic adaptation, and perlocutionary resonance. The model is demonstrated through a comparative examination of institutional Christian statements released during a period of national disruption, highlighting how themes such as responsibility and communal ethics are expressed and received. Rather than evaluating doctrinal content or political positioning, the study offers a descriptive, non-normative approach to the public functioning of theological language.