I received some friendly ribbing for incorrectly assuming "God save the queen" was imperative, since Christians would never presume to make demands of the deity. But wait a minute! Don't they address all kinds of imperatives heavenward? The first lines of the "Pater Noster" are subjunctive: * Hallowed be thy name * Thy kingdom come * Thy will be done But what about the next four? * Give us this day our daily bread * Forgive us our trespasses * Lead us not into temptation * Deliver us from evil And grace before meals: * Bless us, O Lord, and these thy gifts... And the sailor's hymn: * Oh hear us when we cry to thee/ For those in peril on the sea And "De Profundis": * Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord./ Lord hear my voice!/ O let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleading. And Janis Joplin: * I’m counting on you, Lord, please don’t let me down./ Prove that you love me and buy the next round. So (Lord, have mercy!) it wouldn't surprise me a bit if more than a few Brits on the street are also thinking imperative when they sing their national anthem. Dick Veit -----Original Message----- Subject: Re: Subjunctive You mean you thought it was direct address: God, bless the queen. Do it now. Hurry. Faster. On Mar 14, 2008, at 2:44 PM, Veit, Richard wrote: > And all these years I have been incorrectly assuming "God bless the > queen" was imperative. I learn a lot from this list. > > Dick To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html and select "Join or leave the list" Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/