www.byzcath.org Forums Mysteries: The Life of Worship Vespers, Matins & the Divine Liturgy The Revised Divine Liturgy Melkite Church Announces Plans For New Liturgy Translation

I just got the latest issue of Sophia, the magazine of the Melkite Eparchy, in the mail. It has a very interesting article about the Melkite Church's plans on releasing a new Liturgy translation soon and the process they've gone through doing this. The magazine specifically states that there is no copyright on what is published in the magazine. So, I've made a PDF of the article and it can be downloaded from this download site:

Download Link for Sophia Article on New Translation of Melkite Liturgy [filesend.net]

Once you are there, look towards the bottom and you'll see a countdown. Once it gets down to zero you can then download the PDF. It's about 410 kilobites.

I thought it would be interesting to compare the Melkite experience with our own.

Nec

This sounds positive, and certainly respectful of the masterful work Archbishop Joseph of blessed memory labored so hard for. I was especially pleased to see that Fr. Lawrence Cross is on the committee.



How wonderful - testing the sensus fidelium and involving the clergy before promulgation.



Yessss - pastoral prudence is trusted to freely take the antiphonal variations based on parochial circumstances. Economia and not mandated abbreviations.

It's enough to make one cry.

Thank goodness for Antioch and Kiev.

There is a quote from Father David Petras here somewhere that around six or seven years ago the Council of Hierarchs felt the same way. They were not going to mandate new music because it would disturb the prayer life of the people unnecessarily. Metropolitan Judson was also leaning towards not making any changes in the people�s texts. Ask any of his personal friends for verification. It is a shame he died because so much of the change has been falsely attributed to him.

Hopefully, the Melkites won't follow the example of the Rusyns, with "inclusive language". I think we'd get rid of a lot of this problem of politically-correct "inclusiveness" by "deep sixing" the English language altogether. My Irish ancestors (by way of both grandmothers-I also have some German, Anglo, and Polish ancestry-if I were a dog, they'd call me a "mut" ), preferred not to speak English. Now, I'm beginning to understand why. This is not even an issue in most, if not all, other languages.

Dn. Robert

Any hope of a 'common' translation for all the Greek Catholic, Byzantine Catholic, Melkite Catholic, etc. Catholic Churches in this country? Isn't that what Rome asked for anyway. It might be a way of getting rid of these terrible new books?

Nick

I think in the end a common translation for all texts might be impossible because of the differing chant systems. For example there may be several appropriate choices to translate a given troparia but one might suit Prostopinje while another would work better in Byzantine Chant. What might be more feasible is a common translation of the ordinary parts that are chanted recto tono.

I do wish the procedure the Melkites are using had been followed.

I agree with the above comment, as because of the metre of different chant systems it is practically impossible to make one text fit all. This is especially true when looking at a Greek-Arabic-Byzantine chant style compared to a harmonized Galician, Kyivan, etc. chant. Accents and stresses are totally different. While the texts are different the general approach used by the Melkites (as described in the article) is very similar to that of the UGCC when developing the Synodal text, albeit separated by 20 years.

Yeah to this day, I will be in Church singing the Divine Liturgy, though it is the same, I find myself going off in the wrong direction. 20 some years later, I still forget which Church I am in. I love them both! Glory to God!

As I have written in various places already, producing a common English translation of the liturgical books (and bear in mind that a complete set of liturgical books runs to nearly two dozen heavy volumes) is by no means an impossible task. Here's the recipe:

Step 1: produce a common, agreed, scientifically accurate translation of the LXX Psalter. This is the basic liturgical text, without which no definitive translation of the rest of or liturgical material can be established.

Step 2: elaborate a set of criteria for a scinetifically accurate translation of the rest of the material.

Step 3: produce a pilot project of such a translation of at most one volume of the collection (perhaps the Horologion).

Step 4: [now the fun begins] - taking the result of that pilot project invite each Local Church which is interested to elaborate a variant translation, departing from the pilot translation as little as reasonably possible, but providing for such matters as verifiable differences between the Greek text and the Church-Slavonic texts (Old Rite, Kyivan, Nikonian and whatever else), the Romanian texts, the Arabic texts, and so on. , keeping a careful journal of each change from the pilot text and the reason for it [while bearing in mind that "I like it" is not a reason].

Step 5: invite each concerned Local Church to apply those portions of the text which are to be sung, so as to conserve each musical tradition (and bearing in mind that a much broader variation is legitimate in producing texts set to music). But this should not be done until the pilot text is produced, so that it is clear that some particular text is a variation from the pilot text for musical reasons.

Step 7: within each Local Church, organize experimantal use of the texts developed, with recordings available - and sung by good chanters and/or choirs - for criticism.

EVERY STEP OF THE WAY: circulate what is happening over the Internet, inviting all those interested to contribute - because the liturgical text belongs to the totality of the Church.

Eventually, out of this effort, the definitive common text emerges from the criticism and review of the pilot text, and the specific text for each Local Church emerges from the secondary process in that Local Church.

Voila! Yes, it can be done.

As to the article in Sophia, I had no luck in attempting to read it - couldn't find the "countdown" on the lead-in. Technology is not my forte, alas.

Fr. Serge

to read it - couldn't find the "countdown" on the lead-in. Technology is not my forte, alas.[/quote]

Bless Father -

No technological forte required - only about 30 seconds of patience. Once you access the link, go to the bottom left of the page. You will observe a message that says something to the effect of "your download will appear in XX seconds" - do nothing.

Once the time (about 30 seconds) has elapsed, a BRIGHT yellow rectangular button saying "DOWNLOAD" will appear in that same spot - click it and the file will upload to your PC.

Many years,

Neil

Its a good article. I can't wait to see the translation.

Dear Fr. Serge,

I appoint you to head up this project. Go for it!

Dn. Robert