In the new show from Europe 1, "Historically yours", Stéphane Bern examines the roots of an expression of everyday life.
Friday, he is interested in the origin of "one of lost, ten of found", which like "to cry like a madeleine" or "the position of the missionary", is part of the locutions which draw their origin in the Catholic religion.
It's a classic, almost a cliché, that we use to console a friend who has just been dumped: the expression "one (s) lost, ten found"
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Stéphane Bern, who every day in
Historically yours
with Matthieu Noël, dissects an expression that we use every day without always knowing its origin, looks at this expression this Friday, which is not unrelated to the Bible ...
>> Find the shows of Matthieu Noël and Stéphane Bern in replay and podcast here
"We all have in mind the law of 1905 which, in France, put an end to the sacred union between the Catholic Church and the political power. Before it, the national convention suppresses the budget of the constitutional church in specifying that the Republic no longer pays any religion It was September 18, as today, in 1794. Two dates which mark the end of a relationship of which there are traces sometimes unknown in the French language.
Indeed, many expressions have a religious origin.
Thus, 'to cry like a madeleine', refers to Mary Magdalene, who threw herself at the feet of Jesus in tears.
'The cross and the banner' evokes processions that were difficult to organize.
Or the 'missionary position', on which I will not elaborate today ...
A story of money, then love
I would like to tell you about an expression directly taken from the Bible: 'one lost, 10 found'.
Or 'one lost, ten found', depending on the loves of the single person to be consoled.
In general, this is an opportunity to say that sometimes, we easily replace something that we have lost and that we thought precious.
In the 13th century, the expression 'one lost, two found' was commonly used.
Before going to ten, because of verbal inflation.
The formula comes from the Gospel according to Saint Luke and the parable of the lost coin.
A woman has ten drachmas, an ancient coin.
She loses one, searches the whole house for it and ends up finding it with joy.
This parable means that believers should do everything to find the lost sheep and to rejoice when a sinner is converted.
We are far from the consolation of an endured celibacy which would become an opportunity to multiply the conquests.
Besides, does this saying work?
Not sure.
It is better to make good heart against bad luck.
And never forget that when you love, you don't count. "