Monday, October 27, 2008

Where's my Secret Decorder Ring?

Spending what seems like forever on translating one Greek sentence into English/Italian only to find that the meaning is "The virgins confide in the Master" makes me feel like Ralphie as he excitedly received his Orphan Annie Secret Decoder Ring only to discover the message "Drink more Ovaltine".

I guess such sentences have to be translated well first before opening the Greek New Testament.

4 comments:

Fr. Stephen M. Koeth, C.S.C. said...

GREAT reference, Michael. When I had Latin in high school that's exactly how I felt - I can only imagine the feeling is magnified at your level. Just make sure you don't shoot your eye out!

Anonymous said...

One of the undergraduate Classics advisors once said to us: "The first ten years of Greek are always the hardest--after that, it's easy." So, you know, no worries or anything!

(Seriously, don't worry, the New Testament seems a good bit easier than the stuff I'm translating right now...Aeschylus is brutal reading.)

Muse-ical Mystagogue said...

Michael, I need to sign up for one of the Ovaltine decoder rings--I'm taking the plunge into Advanced Greek next semester. As one of the professor emeriti would say, "Oh my!"

Did you know that The Christmas Story was filmed in a Cleveland neighborhood and that the Cleveland Renaissance Hotel (the same building where the Santa scene was filmed) has a replica of the leg lamp? :-D

Hope all is well with you. :)

Fr. Michael Wurtz, CSC said...

MKW,

I knew it was filmed in Cleveland but didn't know the city show its "Christmas Story Pride" that way.

Good luck with the Advanced Greek. Today an American liturgy prof here said "Oh I got an A+ when I first started to take Greek, but then barely passed at the end."

He's a respected liturgist - such stories make me feel better - give me hope.