Boston and God

Supposedly I have a Boston accent. I really disagree. I have friends from Boston and I don't sound like them at all. Obviously, this is a limited questionaire and did not involve anyone actually listening to me speak. The next two choices DO match correctly.

What American accent do you have? Your Result: Boston You definitely have a Boston accent, even if you think you don't. Of course, that doesn't mean you are from the Boston area, you may also be from New Hampshire or Maine.
The West
The Midland
North Central
Philadelphia
The Northeast
The Inland North
The South
What American accent do you have? Take More Quizzes

So from this I have two questions:

1. Does this accent quiz match for you?
2. For those of you who know me, does it match for me?

Your help in this matter will be greatly appreciated

Why do accents matter?

Or do they matter at all? Accents generally show where a person is from and to what influences they may have been exposed. Accents do not impact the veracity of the speech or the importance of it. So why do we bother with accents? Some may sound pleasing or seductive, but is that because the accent is different from ours or are we programmed to be pre-dispositioned to certain accents?

I know that I prefer to listen to an Australian or British accent: I find the accent alluring and I rather enjoy listening even if the speech has no real content. I also know that I do not lot like to listen to the "Valley" (is that an accent or a different language??) and North Central accents. I find both of those distracting and thereby I struggle to extract the content of the communication.

In this I am not referring to the "filler" words such as "like," "um," "uh," "well," "you know," or the regionalisms such as "bubbler" or "ya'll." Though they, too, alter our perception of the person and the message they are communicating.

Accents are not limited to our "modern" age. Peter was identified during Jesus' trial as being a disciple from the way he spoke. He was identified as a Galileans, who were not expected to be highly educated. When Peter and John were called before the Sanhedrin the members were shocked that the undeducated men could speak substantively with courage. They could not do or say anything negative against them (such as being drunk, possessed) only because of the miracles that took place. My guess is that if it were not for the miracles, they would have been dismissed as uneducated and therefore ignorable.

How many of us dismiss what people have to say just because we think that they are uneducated? Do we do that based on accents? God does not choose His messengers do to education or lack thereof. Nor does He choose them by how they speak. Do not reject or accept the content of a message just because of level of education or type of accent.

In closing, Happy Veterans Day to everyone: both to those of us who make it possible and to those of you who can enjoy its benefits.