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    "result": {"data":{"numPublished":{"books":{"en":184,"es":58}},"audioBooks":{"totalCount":66},"mdx":{"body":"var _excluded = [\"components\"];\nfunction _extends() { _extends = Object.assign ? Object.assign.bind() : function (target) { for (var i = 1; i < arguments.length; i++) { var source = arguments[i]; for (var key in source) { if (Object.prototype.hasOwnProperty.call(source, key)) { target[key] = source[key]; } } } return target; }; return _extends.apply(this, arguments); }\nfunction _objectWithoutProperties(source, excluded) { if (source == null) return {}; var target = _objectWithoutPropertiesLoose(source, excluded); var key, i; if (Object.getOwnPropertySymbols) { var sourceSymbolKeys = Object.getOwnPropertySymbols(source); for (i = 0; i < sourceSymbolKeys.length; i++) { key = sourceSymbolKeys[i]; if (excluded.indexOf(key) >= 0) continue; if (!Object.prototype.propertyIsEnumerable.call(source, key)) continue; target[key] = source[key]; } } return target; }\nfunction _objectWithoutPropertiesLoose(source, excluded) { if (source == null) return {}; var target = {}; var sourceKeys = Object.keys(source); var key, i; for (i = 0; i < sourceKeys.length; i++) { key = sourceKeys[i]; if (excluded.indexOf(key) >= 0) continue; target[key] = source[key]; } return target; }\n/* @jsxRuntime classic */\n/* @jsx mdx */\n\nvar _frontmatter = {\n  \"title\": \"Modernization\",\n  \"path\": \"/modernization\",\n  \"description\": \"Although early Quakers wrote in what is technically considered “early modern English,” their writings don’t seem very modern to most readers today. In fact, it has been our experience that very few are able or willing to overcome the obstacles presented by the grammar and vocabulary of 17th and 18th century English. Because we strongly believe that these writings deserve the widest audience possible, and that early Friends would never have wanted the evolution of language to become a stumbling block in the way of future generations, we have worked hard to provide minimally and carefully modernized versions of each of the documents offered on this website.\"\n};\nvar makeShortcode = function makeShortcode(name) {\n  return function MDXDefaultShortcode(props) {\n    console.warn(\"Component \" + name + \" was not imported, exported, or provided by MDXProvider as global scope\");\n    return mdx(\"div\", props);\n  };\n};\nvar Lead = makeShortcode(\"Lead\");\nvar layoutProps = {\n  _frontmatter: _frontmatter\n};\nvar MDXLayout = \"wrapper\";\nreturn function MDXContent(_ref) {\n  var components = _ref.components,\n    props = _objectWithoutProperties(_ref, _excluded);\n  return mdx(MDXLayout, _extends({}, layoutProps, props, {\n    components: components,\n    mdxType: \"MDXLayout\"\n  }), mdx(Lead, {\n    mdxType: \"Lead\"\n  }, \"Although early Quakers wrote in what is technically considered \\u201Cearly modern English,\\u201D their writings don\\u2019t seem very modern to most readers today. In fact, it has been our experience that very few are able or willing to overcome the obstacles presented by the grammar and vocabulary of 17th and 18th century English. Because we strongly believe that these writings deserve the widest audience possible, and that early Friends would never have wanted the evolution of language to become a stumbling block in the way of future generations, we have worked hard to provide minimally and carefully modernized versions of each of the documents offered on this website.\"), mdx(\"h2\", null, \"About our Modernization\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Our core philosophy in modernization is to change as little as possible in order to make\\nthe text clear in today\\u2019s English. Wherever possible, we try to retain the original\\nlanguage and phrasing. The vast majority of changes involve simply updating pronouns\\n(\", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"thee\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"thou\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"ye\"), \"), verb endings (know\", mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"est\"), \", would\", mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"st\"), \", do\", mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"th\"), \"), and making\\ncareful substitutions for words that have changed meaning or are no longer used.\\nSometimes, however, changes in word order and phrasing are also very helpful in clarifying\\nthe original intent of the author.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Modernizing is not a simple or straightforward task, and can easily be done poorly.\\nAttempts to modernize Quaker documents without a deep understanding of their context,\\nvocabulary, religious culture, and peculiar testimonies have led to some\\n\", mdx(\"a\", {\n    parentName: \"p\",\n    \"href\": \"http://www.qhpress.org/texts/barclay/apology/appendix.html\"\n  }, \"very unsatisfactory results\"), \".\\nFor this reason, we approach the task with the greatest care and seriousness, and trust\\nthat we are in measure qualified for the work by a true intimacy with the body of\\nliterature, having read and re-read many thousands of pages (in their original format) for\\nour own personal edification and enjoyment; also by a heartfelt agreement with the\\nspiritual views contained in them; by a very real sense of loving esteem and respect for\\nthe original authors; by an admittedly imperfect but sincere attempt to live by the same\\nlight and grace to which the Quakers testified; and by a measure of the fear of the\\nLord\\u2014believing that the Spirit of God is the true source of much of what is presented in\\ntheir writings.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"It is extremely important to us to make clear that every bit of modernization represented\\non this site was undertaken with the goal of clarifying for modern ears what the original\\nauthors were trying to communicate. No attempts whatsoever have been made to alter or\\nupdate any sentiment or doctrine expressed. Quite the opposite is actually the case. It is\\nonly because of our great love and respect for the men and women who wrote these works,\\nand our firm belief in the biblical soundness and essential truth of the doctrines and\\ntestimonies of the original Society of Friends, that we have attempted the work of\\nmodernization in the first place.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"We have tried to do all of our modernization with a high degree of transparency. We always\\nmake the original, un-modernized versions of these writings available alongside the\\nmodernized ones, and we heartily welcome and encourage anyone to read these original\\nversions, or to compare the two texts to see the nature of our changes.\"), mdx(\"h2\", null, \"About the Editions\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"You will find three different \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"editions\"), \" of books in various places throughout this\\nwebsite. Editions labeled \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"Original\"), \" are untouched except for an occasional modernization\\nof spelling, and the basic formatting of paragraphs, headings, footnotes, etc.\\n\", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"Modernized\"), \" editions have had pronouns, verb endings, and some archaic words updated, but\\nare otherwise essentially the same as the original versions and are unabridged. Finally,\\nsome of our favorite works are available in what we call an \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"Updated\"), \" edition. We use the\\nterm Updated to indicate that these editions contain further editing beyond the modernized\\nversion. Examples of the types of edits made to updated editions include:\"), mdx(\"ul\", null, mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, \"Extracting a stand-alone book from a longer work.\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, \"Combining two smaller works that address the same subject/s and complement each other.\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, \"Omitting some material because of obscure historical references, repetition, political\\ncontexts, lengthy travel logs, etc.\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, \"Producing a shorter work that contains selections from an original document.\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, \"Careful rewording of difficult or confusing sentences.\")), mdx(\"h2\", null, \"Examples of Modernization\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"To give you a better idea of exactly what we do to modernize these documents, below are a\\nfew examples of the major types of changes we make.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"As mentioned previously, a large portion of our modernization is simply a matter of\\nupdating spelling and word endings. The following is a short list of antiquated spellings\\nthat have been changed in our modernized versions: \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"dost\"), \" has been changed to \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"do\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"hast\"), \"\\nto \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"have\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"burthen\"), \" to \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"burden\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"whilst\"), \" to \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"while\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"durst\"), \" to \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"dared\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"wert\"), \" to\\n\", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"were\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"betwixt\"), \" to \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"between\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"shew\"), \" to \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"show\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"hither\"), \" to \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"here\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"thither\"), \" to\\n\", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"there\"), \", \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"mayest\"), \" to \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"p\"\n  }, \"may\"), \", etc.\"), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Other words may look identical to English words used today, but their meaning or usage has\\nactually changed over time. These can be particularly confusing to modern readers. Some\\nexamples are below:\"), mdx(\"ul\", null, mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"suffer\"), \" - often meant \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"allow\"), \" or \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"permit\"), \", i.e. \\u201CI will not suffer him to enter.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"want\"), \" - was almost always used to mean \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"lack\"), \" or \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"need\"), \", i.e. \\u201CHe died for want of\\nfood.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"conversation\"), \" - often meant \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"conduct\"), \" or \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"manner of life\"), \", i.e. \\u201CHe was a man of\\nclean conversation\\u201D\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"meet\"), \" - was used to signify \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"fit\"), \" or \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"fitting\"), \", i.e., \\u201CI will go wherever the Lord\\nsees meet to lead me.\\u201D\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"moment\"), \" - sometimes meant \", mdx(\"em\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"importance\"), \", i.e. \\u201CThis issue is of great moment.\\u201D\")), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Still other words are simply no longer used in contemporary English. In our modernized\\nversions, each of these words is looked at in its context, and a present-day equivalent is\\ncarefully chosen. The following are a just few examples:\"), mdx(\"ul\", null, mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"physic\"), \" - means medicine\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"wonted\"), \" - means customary, normal, or characteristic\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"vouchsafe\"), \" - means to grant or graciously give\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, \"an \", mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"assizes\"), \" - is a court session\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"victuals\"), \" - means food\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"Popery\"), \" - means Roman Catholicism\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"loth\"), \" or \", mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"loath\"), \" - means reluctant or unwilling\"), mdx(\"li\", {\n    parentName: \"ul\"\n  }, mdx(\"strong\", {\n    parentName: \"li\"\n  }, \"gaol\"), \" - is the old word for jail\")), mdx(\"p\", null, \"The following sentence from Isaac Penington\\u2019s works is a good example of the type of\\ntransformation that a sentence may undergo. The original text reads:\"), mdx(\"blockquote\", null, mdx(\"p\", {\n    parentName: \"blockquote\"\n  }, \"Thou takest up Cain\\u2019s weapons, and fain wouldst thou kill thy brother, because his\\nsacrifice in the faith testifies against thine.\")), mdx(\"p\", null, \"Our modernized sentence reads:\"), mdx(\"blockquote\", null, mdx(\"p\", {\n    parentName: \"blockquote\"\n  }, \"You take up Cain\\u2019s weapons, and you would eagerly kill your brother, because his\\nsacrifice in the faith testifies against yours.\")), mdx(\"p\", null, \"As you can see in this example, the meaning of the Penington\\u2019s original sentence has not\\nbeen lost or obscured. But by updating some pronouns and verb endings, substituting the\\narchaic word fain for its modern equivalent eagerly, and slightly changing the order of\\nwords, we have constructed a sentence that is significantly more approachable for readers\\nof today.\"));\n}\n;\nMDXContent.isMDXComponent = true;","frontmatter":{"title":"Modernization","description":"Although early Quakers wrote in what is technically considered “early modern English,” their writings don’t seem very modern to most readers today. In fact, it has been our experience that very few are able or willing to overcome the obstacles presented by the grammar and vocabulary of 17th and 18th century English. Because we strongly believe that these writings deserve the widest audience possible, and that early Friends would never have wanted the evolution of language to become a stumbling block in the way of future generations, we have worked hard to provide minimally and carefully modernized versions of each of the documents offered on this website."}}},"pageContext":{}},
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