Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin Opposed the Translation of Liturgical Texts into Modern Colloquial Language

Fr Vsevolod Chaplin (1968- ), the chairman of the MP Department for Church and Public Relations

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Fr Vsevolod Chaplin, the chairman of the MP Department for Church and Public Relations, thinks that the translation of liturgical texts from Church Slavonic into modern Russian is inappropriate. “I don’t think that we need to translate the language of worship, which was formed in ancient Russia, into the language of music videos or SMS-messages”, he said on Thursday at a press conference in Moscow. Fr Vsevolod went on to say that most people don’t experience distress because of the use of Church Slavonic in worship. “If someone really wants to understand the services and they put all of their heart into it, then, after three or four weeks of regular attendance at worship, they begin to understand it all”, he said. “The Church does speak in different ‘languages’. There are also Orthodox blogs and Orthodox music videos. However, the liturgical texts are a special case. Even if you translate them into modern Russian, it wouldn’t be easy to understand them. They’re high philosophy, understandable only to those who are enlightened by the teachings of Orthodoxy”. At the same time, Fr Vsevolod thought that the texts themselves educate us; they teach us what we need to pray for. “After all, we don’t always know what to pray for. We pray about money, our careers, or our family’s welfare. Maybe, that’s bad for us”, he said.

1 April 2010

Interfax-Religion

http://www.interfax-religion.ru/?act=news&div=34944

Editor’s Note:

In simple and understandable terms, Fr Vsevolod shoots down the cacodoxy taught by SVS and New Skete; he exposes Andrei Psaryov and Vassa Larina as fatuous overeducated boobs. We mess with traditional liturgical language at our own peril… that’s clear to babies… but not to “scholars”, “academics”, and the “credentialed”. Note well what Fr Vsevolod said, “They’re high philosophy, understandable only to those who are enlightened by the teachings of Orthodoxy”. Amen! Hmm… does that mean that Vassa Larina, Jonas Paffhausen, and Chad Hatfield have to bow in repentance before all other Orthodox for their defence of the Jesuit Uniate pig Robert Taft? After all, he’s not “enlightened by the teachings of Orthodoxy”. He’s a four-square and unashamed papal supremacist. To think that Orthodox were taken in by such a phoney! I’ll say this… Vladyki Laurus wouldn’t have allowed such! Fr Vsevolod’s words are bracing… it should warn you to stay away from frauds such as Paul Meyendorff and Bradley Nassif. I wonder what Fr Vsevolod thinks of the aforementioned gentlemen’s notion of “liturgical fundamentalism”… perspirin’ minds want to know!

BMD