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Words are known to have two main types of meaning: the denotative meaning which is the factual objective meaning of a word and the connotative meaning which is the deeper meaning that a word conveys, and this may arouse either positive or negative emotions.Emotion-laden words are therefore those words whose connotative meanings create a strong emotional response from the audience. This class of words, which is predominant in

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advertising, print media, and politics, is also found in the Catholic bishops‘ pastoral letters.

Examples are flirt, charlatans,pillar, mainstay, truth, bastion, unique, rich sacred, piety, victim, comforting, conjure, peeping, warn, threat, masquerading, false, impostors, rapacious, wolves, self-proclaimed, self-acclaimed, etc. The bishops have selected these judgemental words for the purpose of making an emotional impact on the faithful, to create distaste for non-Catholic faith andattractions for the Roman Catholic faith. The use of some of these words is exemplified by texts 117-119.

In text 117, the audience is advised and warned against identifying with non-Catholic Churches which are described in negative terms.

Text 117:

Do not be a victim of the self-professed churches…you may only endanger your faith and destroy your inner harmony. (IYHF, p.33)

In the text above, the words victim, self-professed, endanger, and destroy all have negative connotations. Victim here refers to a person subjected to another‘s trickery or something bad;

self-professed means making claims about oneself without the approval of others; endanger, which is synonymous with risk, means to expose to harm, damage, or destruction; and destroy is synonymous with damage. Thenon-Catholic Churches are described negatively asself-professed and capable of endangering the harmony of people who identify with them. In order not to be their victim, the audience is warned against identifying with them. The essence of choosing these negative words is to create a negative impression of these Churches in the minds of the audience to discourage them from patronising the Churches.

Text 118 contains both positive and negative emotion-laden words used to refer to the Roman Catholic Church and the non-Catholic Churches respectively.

Text 118:

The Catholic Church playing its role of being the pillar and mainstay of the truth remains the bastion of Christianity against the corroding influence of Christians who want to waterdown the gospelor to fashion a popular gospel, the gospel that releaseseverybody from obligation and gives them “Christianity Made Easy” Just believe! … (FFF, p.91)

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The positive words used to refer to the Roman Catholic Church arepillar,mainstay,truthandbastion.Pillar and mainstay are synonymous here and mean strong support; truth in this context refers to the genuine doctrine about Christianity; while bastion means defender of a principle. On the other hand, the negative words referring to the non-Catholic Churches are corroding and waterdown, in addition to the sarcastic expressions releaseseverybody from obligation and Christianity Made Eeasy.Corroding in this context means destructive, andwaterdown is a phrasal verb which in this context means to reduce the value of something to make it cheap and to attract patronage, hence, the description of the Churches‘ teachings as Christianity made easy which releases everybody from obligation. This strategy of positive self-presentation and negative other-presentation is meant to create attractions for the Roman Catholic Church and distaste for non-Catholic Churches. The intention is to discourage defection of the audience to the non-Catholic Churches and encourage loyalty to the Roman Catholic Church.

Text 119 is a warning against the influence of Pentecostalism and a call for loyalty to the Roman Catholic Church.

Text 119:

…we warn against the threat of Pentecostalism and restate that the Catholic Church encourages all her children to remain under her comforting shade since it is the will of God that all her children should be one sheepfold under one shepherd. (GCTR, p.14)

The warning is associated with negative words such as warn and threat.Warn means to make someone aware of an impending danger, while threat means danger or risk. Pentecostalism is thus portrayed as unpleasant and capable of causing danger, and so should be avoided. The invitation, on the other hand, is associated with positive terms such as encourageandcomforting.Encouragemeansto urge or give support, while comforting means warm, protective, loving or caring.The Roman Catholic Church is presented as beneficial, accommodating, and loving, and so should be embraced. Choice of negative words amplifies the bishop‘s contempt for non-Catholic groups while choice of positive words amplifies his pride in the Roman Catholic Church. These feelings of contempt for non-Catholic faith and

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pride in the Roman Catholic faith are exactly what the Roman Catholic bishops intend to arouse in the audience by their choice of emotion-laden words.