Fr. Sashy Translates the Syrian Mass

Syrian Mass Translation Completed In Jacksonville

Jacksonville Journal 1955 Sep 17 Page 16

The first English translation of the Holy Syrian Mass has been completed here in Jacksonville. At the request of the Rev. Andrew Shashy, pastor of the Syrian people at Holy Rosary Catholic Church, the translation was undertaken by Joseph Redlinger, local scholar.

The translation is intended to help the Syrian and American born to understand the Rite of the Holy Mass in its original spirit and beauty, according to Rev. Shashy.

“We call it the Syrian Mass because it was the only Rite being used in Syria in the patriarchate of all Antioch. This patriarchate was one of the four largest areas of the church. Its bishop was known as the head of the Christian people in Syria in the early century after the Lord's birth. Constantine then divided the Rom-an empire into two sections, the Western part had Rome for its capitol. the Eastern part had for its capitol Byzance or Constantinople. Antioch, at that time, and for 500 years pre-viously, was the capitol of Syria”, Rev. Shashy said.

"The Patriarch, being the head of the Syrian church, caused the populace of Syria, the majority being Christians, to submit with their church to the Pope at Rome. Thus, the situation remained until the heresy split the Church of Syria from Rome. But the Rites of the Mass was kept the same in the two divisions, Catholic and Jacobite keeping the liturgy in town and village. The Mass was celebrated in the Syrian language with the exception of the towns where the Greek language was predominate.

"This little book has the text of the Holy Mass prevalent in the early centuries. It contains the Rite of the Liturgy of Antioch, which the Syrians conserved after their separation from the church of Rome. These people clung zealously to this Rite of Antioch in the 16th and 17th centuries. "If you should make exacting confrontation between the Liturgy of Antioch and the records of the Apostolic Constitution, you will find the difference very infinitesimal. Thus from the authenticacy of the findings we arrive at the conclusive proof of the antiquity of the Syrian Rite of Antioch.

"The script of this Holy Mass was printed for the first time in Rome in 1900 in Syriac then translated into Arabic. The second edition was printed in Lebanon in 1922. Even the Jacobites and Syrian Catholics have conserved their liturgy as much as the Holy Bible, the Jacobites have not put their liturgy into print.

"With this book the layman may follow the ancient Rite of Antioch, just as did Jesus. It contains the prayers of the Priest, the Bishop and Deacons, the prayer of the public or faithful.

"The purpose of the new translation is to render service to our fellow Americans who have a taste for things rare and ancient." the pastor said. "Those who desire a copy of the translation can call me at 240 West 9th St.

The story continues with more information on the translator:

Local Language Expert Translates Ancient Syrian Liturgy

The Florida Times Union 1955 Jul 31 Page 49 

By JAMES M. CALLOWAY Times-Union Church Editor

Accomplishment Caps Career of Scholar Joseph Redlinger

Joseph Redlinger, scholar and language master par excellence, has done it again.

This time the 80-year-old Redlinger, who has been a student of languages and a collector of dictionaries and other works on languages for more than 60 years, has accomplished a translation which holds a promise of material as well as academic results.

Jacksonville is one of the few cities in America where divine services are held in the very language spoken by Christ and the Apostles nearly 20 centuries ago. Worshippers hear the Lord's Prayer pronounced in the same words as taught by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount.

Syriac Language

Each morning at 6:30 o'clock in Holy Rosary Catholic Church, 2049 Laura St., the Rev. Andrew Shashy says Holy Mass in the ancient Syriac language, according to the liturgy of Antioch. The liturgy is derived from the Apostle James. According to the Bible, it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians.

Because there has been no English translation of the service available, Father Shashy, a priest of the pure Syrian rite, prevailed upon Redlinger to undertake the task of producing it. Begun in 1952. the translation is intended as a service to the many Syrians living in Florida and also to make known to the public the great beauty of this divine service.

From Earliest Era

The ritual and text has persisted from the earliest Christian era, and is clearly described in the Apostolic Constitution and also in the works of St. Hippolytus (230 A. D.) and St. Cyril of Jerusalem (347 A.D.).

Explaining the ancient Syriac language. Redlinger said: “In the Palestine of the Apostolic Age, Hebrew was no longer spoken. The Jews had acquired the Aramaic language during the Babylonian Captivity of 85 years, and this had developed into the West Aramaic or Syriac vernacular speech during the ensuing five centuries.

"Syriac then became the vehicle for a large early Christian literature. The oldest early Bible in existence, the Peskitto Text in manuscript and dated 464 A. D., is in this language. Yet the study of Syriac has been so neglected that I made the translation with the aid of a chrestomathy published in Germany a hundred years ago."

Young at 80

A chrestomathy is a collection of passages, with notes, etc., which students use in acquiring language.

Redlinger, a vigorous man whose appearance belies his 80 years, makes a visitor feel like an old friend and drags out musty volumes to display items of interest.

And he has volumes by the thousand. Most of them are authoritative works on languages, but he also has several shelves of modern books of all kinds. It is these authoritative works that he depends upon as sources when he is troubled by an evasive passage or word.

Translation Approved

Chor-Bishop Gabriel Khouri-Sarkis (1898–1968)

His translation has full ecclesiastical approval. It was obtained from Bishop Khouri-Sarkis of Paris, France, with the sanction of Cardinal Tappouni, Patriarch of Antioch. The title of Cardinal carried by the Patriarch of Antioch was bestowed as an honorarium by the Roman Catholic Church. Actually, the Roman Church has no authority over the Patriarch. Here in Jacksonville, the adherents of the Eastern Church hold their services at Holy Rosary Church through the friendship and courtesy of the parish's priests and members.

The work of Redlinger is being printed by the Convention Press of Jacksonville, and publication date is Aug. 15.

From the sale of the book, which will be about the size and have the appearance of a prayer book, Jacksonville's Syrians hope to gain funds with which to build their own church. The book is expected to have a wide distribution throughout Florida and later in other parts of the nation. It will be printed in stylized type, including the Syriac and Arabic responses transliterated into Roman letters.

Long Adventure

Redlinger's latest effort is but another episode in his long adventure in languages, an adventure which began some 63 years ago when he was a 17-year-old youth in Chicago.

A handbill was thrust into his hand on a street where the window signs in the stores were written in peculiar characters. Stuffing the handbill in his pocket, he took the afternoon off and visited the public library, searching out everything that pertained language on the handbill.

Before the afternoon was over, had discovered the language was Yiddish, a Hebrew dialect. and had deciphered for himself the words on the handbill. It turned out to be a political advertisement of small importance, but it set his feet on a path that has had many strange turnings, but which always led toward the single goal of languages.

Amusing Adventure

Redlinger said his first taste of his adventure was "rather amusing.” He said:

"In my home town of Freeport, much German was spoken and could converse rather well in that language. I soon discovered that with that background, Yiddish was easy and I had a lot of fun talking to shopkeepers and other people in their own language.”

For more than 40 years Redlinger represented the Westfield Manufacturing Co., makers of bicycles, and traveled to 22 countries. He had a great deal of business in Latin America and learned Spanish in order to carry on his work more easily.

He learned French from his father, and had picked up a working knowledge of German in his home town, and that, with English, made him quite a linguist.

Studied Latin

Redlingers says his language adventure started with the handbill in Chicago. Actually, it began earlier than that. when he was 10 years old. At that time, he and a companion spent a couple of afternoons a week with a high school student, studying Latin under a crabapple tree in a Freeport pasture.

It seems this high school student was a morose, dreamy type, but real shark at Latin, and the youngsters - or at least Redlinger--got full value for their “tuition” a nickel a week each.

But whatever started Redlinger on his language adventure, the result, has been a never ending thrill of finding some obscure dialect to probe, of a translation to accomplish. Both Redlinger and many others have benefited from his adventures.