Translation of Megalynarion of the Annunciation & of the Elevation of Holy Cross

herron.samuel

Ieropsaltis
Could anybody provide me a reliable, liturgical use translation of this megalynarion:

Νῦν εὐαγγελίζεται Γαβριήλ, τὸ χαῖρε κραυγάζων, μετὰ δέους τῇ Μαριάμ. Ὢ τοῦ ξένου τρόπου! ἐν μήτρᾳ γὰρ ἀχράντῳ, συνείληπται ὁ Πλάστης σῴζων ὃν ἔπλασε.

I've only found it in Greek (obviously), and I need it in English for the Paraklesis service in August.
 

romanos4

Παλαιό Μέλος
Could anybody provide me a reliable, liturgical use translation of this megalynarion:

Νῦν εὐαγγελίζεται Γαβριήλ, τὸ χαῖρε κραυγάζων, μετὰ δέους τῇ Μαριάμ. Ὢ τοῦ ξένου τρόπου! ἐν μήτρᾳ γὰρ ἀχράντῳ, συνείληπται ὁ Πλάστης σῴζων ὃν ἔπλασε.

I've only found it in Greek (obviously), and I need it in English for the Paraklesis service in August.

I would similarly enjoy a translation of the same for Holy Cross for the same reason:

Σήμερον ἡ κτίσις πᾶσα Σωτήρ, πόθῳ ἀνυψοῦσα, τὸν πανάγιόν σου Σταυρόν, τὴν φωνήν σοι αἴρει, καὶ πίστει ἐκβοᾷ σοι· Δώρησαι τῷ λαῷ σου, Λόγε τὴν χάριν σου.
 

Panagiotis G.

Μέλος
Could anybody provide me a reliable, liturgical use translation of this megalynarion:

Νῦν εὐαγγελίζεται Γαβριήλ, τὸ χαῖρε κραυγάζων, μετὰ δέους τῇ Μαριάμ. Ὢ τοῦ ξένου τρόπου! ἐν μήτρᾳ γὰρ ἀχράντῳ, συνείληπται ὁ Πλάστης σῴζων ὃν ἔπλασε.

Try this...

Gabriel announceth "Rejoice" with fear * crying out glad tidings * to the Virgin Mariam. * O, the strange direction * for in a pure mother * conceived is the Creator * saving that which He made.
 

goldengreek25

Μέλος
"Σήμερον ἡ κτίσις πᾶσα Σωτήρ, πόθῳ ἀνυψοῦσα, τὸν πανάγιόν σου Σταυρόν, τὴν φωνήν σοι αἴρει, καὶ πίστει ἐκβοᾷ σοι· Δώρησαι τῷ λαῷ σου, Λόγε τὴν χάριν σου."

Here's an attempt, the italicized words are added to make it fit rhythmically:

Today, all creation lifts up its voice * with fervor, at the lifting high of Your All-holy Cross, * O Savior, and it cries out to You in faith: "O Logos, * Your grace's great abundance, unto Your people grant.
 

GabrielCremeens

Music Director at St. George, Albuquerque, NM
"Σήμερον ἡ κτίσις πᾶσα Σωτήρ, πόθῳ ἀνυψοῦσα, τὸν πανάγιόν σου Σταυρόν, τὴν φωνήν σοι αἴρει, καὶ πίστει ἐκβοᾷ σοι· Δώρησαι τῷ λαῷ σου, Λόγε τὴν χάριν σου."

Here's an attempt, the italicized words are added to make it fit rhythmically:

Today, all creation lifts up its voice * with fervor, at the lifting high of Your All-holy Cross, * O Savior, and it cries out to You in faith: "O Logos, * Your grace's great abundance, unto Your people grant.

A considerably long time after the original post, but this is the translation in use at Holy Cross Seminary in Boston (courtesy of Fr. Seraphim Dedes):

Savior, all creation today exalts
with great love and longing
Your all-holy and precious Cross
and with faith it raises
its voice to You and cries out,
"O Logos, to Your people
grant your abundant grace.
 

joel

Νέο μέλος
I am grateful to find the translation here of the Megalynarion of the Annunciation. However, I am confused about one word: "direction". Can anyone help me understand the meaning of the word "τρόπου" in this context? The best I can think of, given the translation "direction", is that it refers to a "turn of events" or the "direction things took". Am I on the right track?
 
Κ

Κωσταντής1

Guest
5. Stratagem, decoy. Theoph. Cοnt. 15, 11 (synt. τοῦ τρόπου is an attribute of σῴζων)
Greek lexicon of the Roman and Byzantine periods (from B.C. 146 to A.D. 1100)
by Sophocles, E. A. (Evangelinus Apostolides)
Theophanes Continuatus [oἱ μετὰ Θεοφάνην], ὅπου: [...] ἀκριβολογῆσαι τρόπῳ παντὶ τίς τε εἴη οἰκία τοῦ βασιλεύσοντος [...](σελ. 22)
 
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Κ

Κωσταντής1

Guest
ps. The translation would ideally reproduce the repetition Πλάστης-ἔπλασε, something like...the Creator saving whom He created. It must belong to a period when the identity of the Father and the Son was emphasized.
1637001428766.png
 

goldengreek25

Μέλος
Could anybody provide me a reliable, liturgical use translation of this megalynarion:

Νῦν εὐαγγελίζεται Γαβριήλ, τὸ χαῖρε κραυγάζων, μετὰ δέους τῇ Μαριάμ. Ὢ τοῦ ξένου τρόπου! ἐν μήτρᾳ γὰρ ἀχράντῳ, συνείληπται ὁ Πλάστης σῴζων ὃν ἔπλασε.

I've only found it in Greek (obviously), and I need it in English for the Paraklesis service in August.

Megalynarion
Now doth Gabriel cry aloud “Rejoice”, * the Annunciation with great fervor to Mariam. * O what strange a manner! For in her womb most spotless, * conceived is the Creator, saving creation all.
 
Κ

Κωσταντής1

Guest
p.s. Also, beware of the verb εὐαγγελίζομαι. Why "cry oyt loud" and not simply "exclaim"? Perhaps, this megalynarion is put in between the reading of the Gospels. Because
2. Mid. εὐαγγελίζομαι(a) to write a Gospel. Eus. H. E. 1, 7 day- εὐαγγελιζόμενοι, in the Gospels written by them. —(b) to read the Gospel of the day. Euchol. p. 54 Εἰρήνη σοι τῷ Εὑαγγελιζομένῳ.
To put it in general terms, in order to make a translation one must be sure of the meaning first. Perhaps the poem is a sort of comment, and the verb εὐαγγελίζομαι is a sort of word-play with the Gospel (Eὐαγγέλιον) the Reader has in front of him.
 
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goldengreek25

Μέλος
I by no means am an expert, so feel free to alter to something that may have a better rendering.

I am translating “εὐαγγελίζεται”, which is used as a verb here, as a noun “the Annunciation”. I use “cry aloud” to translate “κραυγάζων”.

I think a more difficult part to translate is “σῴζων ὃν ἔπλασε”, more literally, “saving those He had fashioned.” I couldn’t find an simpler way to help it meet the meter, but maybe someone else can. I rendered it as “saving creation all”, which I feel gets across the same essential message, as Christ is the Creator and Fashioner of all things.

And has been discussed in plenty of other places, translation of byzantine music for liturgical use is always a balancing act between accuracy and poetic meter in order to allow proper expression of the chant. Here is one stab at it, but again, feel free to alter if anyone has a better version.
 
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