This seems like a very clear attack on our monasteries. Geronta Ephraim left a rule that services in his monasteries would until the end of time be in Greek. This is for very good reason. I personally believe that the growth Orthodoxy has seen the last few years in this country is not the flourishing of Orthodoxy here that was prophesied. That time hasn’t arrived yet. I feel strongly that many of the converts of the last few years came to Orthodoxy for the wrong rieasons and don’t have an Orthodox fronima. If they did, the language of the parish/monastery wouldn’t even be a topic of conversation. People today are trying to change the Church. The Church cannot be changed. It is perfect as it is. The Greek language that the Bible and our Divine Liturgy was written in was/is perfect. This doesn’t mean that salvation is exclusive to Greeks. Quite the opposite is true. Fr. Josiah is wrong here. Very wrong. We are all human and wrong at times. It’s ok. Saint Paisios explains it best:
"The Greek tongue has within it the fiery Tongues of Holy Pentecost! No other language can render so adequately the dogmas of the faith. This is why the Good Lord even provided for the Old Testament to be translated into Greek by the Seventy (Septuagint), and for the New Testament to be first written in Greek. Anyone seeking to study the Christian doctrine without the knowledge of Ancient Greek is very likely to fall into serious error. And here, we have abolished the teaching of Ancient Greek in our schools! Soon we'll have Germans teaching Ancient Greek at our universities. That's what it will probably take for some people that realize the value of this language. But I suppose, unless they are embarrassed, they will not realize what they have done. Then they will say, "Can you believe that the church has been preserving and using ancient Greek all along!"
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Orthodox Church
"The Greek tongue has within it the fiery Tongues of Holy Pentecost! No other language can render so adequately the dogmas of the faith. This is why the Good Lord even provided for the Old Testament to be translated into Greek by the Seventy (Septuagint), and for the New Testament to be first written in Greek. Anyone seeking to study the Christian doctrine without the knowledge of Ancient Greek is very likely to fall into serious error. And here, we have abolished the teaching of Ancient Greek in our schools! Soon we'll have Germans teaching Ancient Greek at our universities. That's what it will probably take for some people that realize the value of this language. But I suppose, unless they are embarrassed, they will not realize what they have done. Then they will say, "Can you believe that the church has been preserving and using ancient Greek all along!"
https://youtu.be/joenTXGXGz0?feature=shared