Language and Chant
Why are parts of the service in English?
English is used in the service because the Church must teach and pray with the people who are actually present. In an American parish, English often allows children, converts, inquirers, and neighbors to hear Scripture, understand the prayers, and respond with attention.
English is a pastoral language of mission and formation. It helps the inherited Coptic worship become intelligible without replacing the faith, mysteries, priesthood, prayers, or rite that the Church has received.
Understanding Belongs To Worship
We hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.
The Church does not choose between reverence and understanding. Scripture, litanies, readings, and teaching should reach the faithful who are standing in the nave. When English is used well, it opens the inherited worship rather than flattening it.
This is especially important for readings and teaching. The Liturgy of the Word forms the faithful through the Pauline Epistle, Catholic Epistle, Praxis, Synaxarium, Psalm, Gospel, and homily. The people should be able to hear the Word of God and receive the meaning of the Church's prayer.
English And Inherited Language Together
A healthy parish teaches the old language and also speaks to the people present now. That may mean English readings, English explanations, bilingual hymn texts, projected responses, parish classes, or clear deaconal leadership.
The aim is shared prayer. English helps the local parish understand, while Coptic, Arabic, and Greek keep the parish connected to the concrete history through which the Church received and preserved her worship.
- Language Balance in Deacon Responses and Hymns, Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States Q&A. Pastoral answer encouraging English for participation while keeping a balanced use of Coptic and other languages in parish worship.
- Coptic Hymns and English Understanding, Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States Q&A. Pastoral answer on translated hymns, English participation, and the spiritual value of retaining Coptic hymnody.
- The Divine Liturgy of St. Basil, CopticChurch.net. Service text and introduction for the most commonly used Coptic Divine Liturgy.
- Visiting an Orthodox Church, Coptic Orthodox Diocese of Los Angeles. Diocesan visitor guide welcoming non-Orthodox guests and directing questions to the parish priest.
Mysteries: The Orthodox name for the sacraments, calling attention to God's grace given through visible rites such as Baptism, Chrismation, Confession, and the Eucharist.
Praxis: The Acts reading in the Coptic Liturgy, showing the life and witness of the apostolic Church after the Resurrection and Pentecost.
Synaxarium: The liturgical book of saints' lives and commemorations read in church so the faithful remember the witnesses who lived the Gospel before them.