I know it's not likely, but is there any chance that one of our Greek-speaking forum members could translate this into English as a labour of love?
Greek Document
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George Australia
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Re: Greek Document
Justin Kissel wrote:I know it's not likely, but is there any chance that one of our Greek-speaking forum members could translate this into English as a labour of love?
Justin,
I have only now seen this request. You'd think being greek, I'd check this section more often! I will start working on translating as best I can it tomorrow after Liturgy.
It sounds beautiful, but the language used is a little complex- I forsee many textual notes in my feeble translation!
George
"As long as it depends on Monothelitism, then Miaphysitism is nothing but a variant of Monophysitism."
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George Australia
- Sr Member
- Posts: 671
- Joined: Sat 17 January 2004 9:26 am
- Location: Down Under (Australia, not Hades)
Dear in Christ Justin,
Here is my feeble translation- I told you there would be plenty of textual notes.
I found one paragraph particularly difficult to translate, it is in red together with my poor translation, hopefully someone will help.
Archimandrite Justin Popovitch (1894-1979)
Twenty years have been completed since the passing to the Lord of the Blessed Fr. Justin Popovitch, the well known Serbian Orthodox cleric and Theologian, was loved, honoured and continues to be honoured by the Orthodox independently of their ethnicity and origin. And this, because he was shown forth as a catholic, contemporary, un-beguiled teacher, director, and champion of the Faith who lived and described with unparallelled dynamism the Way of man to God-man (theanthropos), from created to uncreated, from mortal to Deathless, from transitory to eternal.
All his life and works are nothing else other than, according to his own blessed words, a “Witness/martyrdom of the apostolic-patristic Orthodoxy of the Theanthropic Mystery of Christ and the mystery of the Salvation of the cosmos in His Body, the Church.” (letter 6/8/1978)
His martyric/witnessing love for Christ, the Saints and the Church perfuse every word and thought of his, because he acquired the “mind (nous) of Christ” and a unique Christ-sense (“Christo-aisthisi”) regarding the purpose, the end and the “payment/value/worth” of all things and all creation, seen and unseen, which were created by Christ and to Him they will all inevitably be led (i.e. return).
With all the power of his soul, the Christ-desiring Fr. Justin stresses that the salvific Truth of Christ which is preserved within His Body, the Holy Orthodox Church, rebirths and transfigures those who accept it with humility and simplicity and live mystically cultivating simultaneously the Gospel/Evangelical virtues, and, of course, faith, humility, repentance, prayer, love for all, and patience in trials/temptations; because in this way, they are united to Christ- they become “Christ-created”.
For this reason Fr. Justin struggled (ED: word used is “agonisthike”- which means “competed the way an athlete competes”) against sects and observed a critical stance towards deviations from the Gospel Truth and even (towards) highly ranked Church individuals when he saw alteration to tradition.
Fr. Justin was born on the 25th of March of 1894, the feast of the Annunciation (literally “Evangelisation”) of the Theotokos in Vranie in the country of Serbia, and was named “Evangelos” in Holy Baptism in honour of the Most Holy Theotokos.
From 1905 to 1914 he studied in the Ecclesiastical School of St. Savva in Belgrade and was connected at that time with his Spiritual Father, the then Heiromonk and teacher of the School, and later Bishop of Achridon and Zitsi, Nicholas Velimiovitch (+1956), that contemporary Chrysostom (“Golden Mouth”) of the Church, who lead him into the depths of the life according to Christ and inspired him with (literally: “caused him to breathe in”) the great love and desire for the Eternal things.
From that period, even until the end of his life, Fr. Justin would meditate every day on, among other things, three chapters of the New Testament.
In 1916 he became a monk and received the name Justin in honour of the Holy Martyr Justin the Philosopher.
In 1920 he was ordained a Deacon and in 1922, a Priest by the Patriarch of Serbia, Demetrios.
The young Heiromonk Justin, with extraordinary mental and spiritual charisms, full of life and activity, natural restlessness, lover of learning and philosopher, completed his studies in Russia, England and Greece where in 1926, he submitted his thesis “The Mystery of Personality According to St. Mark the Egyptian” and was declared a Doctor of Theology. He became familiar with, among other things, both the greek language and nourished unlimited love and piety/respect for anything truly orthodox and greek.
He taught Patrology, Dogmatics, Liturgics and Hagiology in the Seminaries of Karlovich and Prizren, and in the years 1930-1931 worked with Bishop Vitaly Joseph for the organization of the Orthodox Church of Czechoslovakia which was threatened by Uniatism.
Fr. Justin decisively resisted the proposal and pressure of Bishop Joseph and the Holy Synod of Serbia to be ordained a Bishop to the newly-formed diocese of Carpathorussia as a reward for his work and struggle during this period, citing (his) unworthiness, insufficiency and lack of spiritual and charismatic experience and wisdom!
He maintained spiritual ties and friendship with Metropolitan Antony Krapovitsu (+1936) First Heirarch of the Russian Church of the Diaspora which was given hospitality on Serbian ground at the time, and with the Charismatic Fr. John Maximovitch, later the Saint Archbishop of Shanghai and San Francisco (+1966).
Fr. Justin, known also for his talent as an author, completed in 1932 the first volume of his three volume Dogmatics, and in 1934, he was assigned to teach Dogmatics at the Theological School of Belgrade.
During this period, he authored numerous books and articles. With his fiery preaching and texts, he presented the greatness of our Faith and directed crowds of faithful to conscience and repentance, from that time, he was distinguished as an enlightened and discerning spiritual guide and excellent confessor.
His theology was not “academic”, but always living, charismatic, liturgical and prayerful, because he himself did not theologise scholastically but prayerfully, and with tears of repentance and joyful-sorrow of Christ, he had literally “passed over” (“Pascha-ed”) to the Divine.
After the end of the great war and the rise of communism in his country, he was removed from his Chair at the University as an enemy of the status quo, and after some wanderings, in 1948 finally took on the a position as chaplain and Spiritual (director) at the Sacred Convent of the Archangels of Chelije in Valievo, which took place under the watchful eye and strict/severe observation of those in power.
There for thirty entire years, he liturgised daily, because, as he himself said, he drew all his strength fom the Holy Mysteries, and lived with strict ascesis, prayer and fasting, he meditated, he wrote and translated, he guided and confessed the Sisterhood and his innumerable spiritual children (who came) from throughout Serbia and beyond. This had the result, among others, to make the Convent of Chelije a model of monasticism for all the monasteries of Serbia.
The most considerable of his many writings, apart from his eminent Dogmatics, can be considered his Hermeneutical Notes on the Gospel According to Matthew and John, the Epistles of the Apostle Paul, and the Catholic (Epistles) of John, and his twelve volume Synaxarion.
In 1974 his celebrated work: “The Orthodox Church and Ecumenism” was published through which exposes the teachings concerning the Church and contrasts this with the humanism of the spirit of the West in which the panheretical ecumenism was born.
(I’m finding the next paragraph difficult to translate into english- can somebody help please?)
Ο π. Ιουστίνος κατεφέρθη μέ ειδικά Ύπομνήματα (1970 και 1977) κατά της προετοιμαζομένης ύπό τών Οικουμενιστών αρχιερέων του Φαναριου «Αγίας καί Μεγάλης Συνόδου» καί κάτα της συμμετοχής Σερβικής Εκκλησίας στό «Παγκόσμιο Συμβούλιο Εκκλησιών» (13.11.1974)
So far, whatl I can come up with is:
Fr. Justin protested with special Memoranda (1970 and 1977) against the attendance of the Serbian Church at the “World Council of Churches” prepared under the Ecumenist Archbishops of the “Holy and Great Synod” of the Phanar.
It is a great blessing that many of his works circulate in the Greek language also.
He fell asleep venerably, and again (Ed- i.e. as he was born) on the Feast of the Annunciation of the Theotokos in 1979 and since then his tomb constitutes a place of pilgrimage not only for the much suffering Serbian people, but for all of Orthodoxy.
Fr. Justin is seen by many as the greatest Orthodox theologian of our time.
He lived and faced the contemporary problems of the Church in a patristic way, and equally, with the Theanthropic methodology of the Holy Fathers. Employing contemporary problem solving and terminology in facing the various challenges of his time, he transported to our time (Ed- made topical?) the timeless and revolutionary message of the Holy Fathers, The God-man Christ, and salvation in repentance in the Church as the only exit from all impasses.
He imitated the Holy Fathers in all the details of his life, because he greatly loved them and systematically contemplated them, the same as Great Anthony, the Sacred Chysostom, the Holy John Damascene, the Venerable Simeon the New Theologian, St. Mark the Egyptian and Abba Isaac the Syrian, and for this reason, we can classify him in their blessed choir as a living extension of their lives and teachings.
Besides which, God has already Glorified His genuine, faithful, humble servant, Abba Justin, even with miracles which circulate in relevant collections and reports.
May his prayers accompany and support us!
"As long as it depends on Monothelitism, then Miaphysitism is nothing but a variant of Monophysitism."