Skip to the content
Icon of Christ
› ›

When did “Rab ol-magd/رب المجد” change?

Daniel_Kyrillos
in Hymns Discussion
Hi everyone- a blessed feast of Nativity to everyone!
The Arabic Gospel response for Nativity (رب المجد دعى ولدً) has been a staple of our church for years. However, I was reading it on Coptic Reader and found that the words had changed, and that apparently we are talking about a different John.
In the “old” way (what’s on the site and in my memory), the Lord is called a Child according to the word of John “before he saw Him”- to me, a reference to John the Baptist’s famous “He who comes after me is preferred before Me, for He was indeed before me” line. However, the new translation (that is on Coptic Reader and the most recent search results) instead says that this is in John’s “ⲉⲩⲁⲅⲅⲉⲗⲓⲟⲛ"- his Gospel.

When did this change happen? Is this a Coptic Reader-only change or did the Synod decree the change?
Thanks!

Comments

  • mabsootamabsoota
    according to uncle mina, it is like this:
    (i consider tasbeha.org to be the authorative answer)
    :)
    :x
  • minatasgeelminatasgeel
    I haven't made any changes to it yet....but the change should be made. 

    @Daniel_Kyrillos...this part has always sounded wrong because the second half is very clear to be St. John's the Evangelist. Only until recently that some have done some research to discover that "before he saw him" in Arabic is supposed to be "in his gospel"... hence the change that makes so much sense. 
  • mabsootamabsoota
    glad that is cleared up, thanks for asking (and answering) the question
    :-)
  • Daniel_Kyrillos
    @minatasgeel does that mean the Arabic for this response came first, then Coptic, and then English?
  • ophadeceophadece
    @Daniel_Kyrillos
    Exactly.. Well deducted..
    Ⲟⲩϫⲁⲓ ϧⲉⲛ ⲡϭⲥ
  • minatasgeelminatasgeel
    Yes. If i am not mistaken, that verse is part of an old madeha, hence the rhyme. The Deacon's service book then took it as an arabic gospel response (may that was a specific church and cantor tradition). Somehow in that process, the arabic was changed, and that's where the confusion started.
Sign In or Register to comment.