Update on translation variations of Abp D'Errico's interview regarding the Medjugorje commission
Final Update: A literal translation was provided to me of the two sentences in question by a native Croatian. What I had previously has been replaced with this translation. Notes no longer needed have been cleaned up to allow readers to focus on that portion of the text which is problematic. In the interest of transparency, here is a snapshot at freezepage of my post prior to the cleanup)
This will have to hold until we see if my request to the Apostolic Nuncio in BiH yields an official translation, which could take time.
None of what I have seen thus far, takes away from the fact that words were added by medjugorje.hr which convey a different meaning than what Abp D'Errico stated.
It takes only two sentences, mistranslated to include words not said by Archbishop Allessandro D'Errico when the Papal Nuncio addressed the people of Bosnia & Herzegovina with regards to the new Medjugorje commission, to change the meaning of what he was saying.
His Excellency would be disappointed to learn how a pair of sentences, made into one, came across to English speaking readers as a result of the fabrication that was made. I think he will want to look it over and perhaps check translations of his address into other langauges showing up on Medjugorje.hr. and copied to perhaps dozens of other sites.
In this part of the address, he began talking about how the Holy Father understood well about the phenomenon of Medjugorje from his many years at the CDF. What follows are two sentences in Croatian (I am separating them clarity):
Zna za velika dobra koje se čine na ovome području od strane svećenika, redovnika, franjevaca, laika.
A druge strane pita se kako dolaze tako suprotstavljene informacije o tome fenomenu.
Update at 1:15pm March 23, 2010 - below in blue is a literal translation provided to me by a native Croatian. It supercedes my own working translation which contained an error in "a druge strane", but was NOT the central problem.
Literal Translation
He knows about great deeds which are done in this territory by the priests, religious, franciscans, lay people.
On the other side he asks himself how come there are such opposed information about that phenomenon.
How did Medjugorje.hr translate it?
He is aware of huge amount of positive and good influence of local priests, religious, Franciscans, lay people, and therefore, it is very difficult for him to perceive that there can be so many opposing information about the same matter.
HUH?
Here are the problems:
- Two sentences were unncessarily blended into one (we will set aside the other embellishments found in the first part).
- There is no way to derive the words: "it is very difficult for him to percieve...." from the original two Croatian sentences.
- There is no way to derive, "that there can be so many opposing information abou the same matter"
Number (3) is a manipulation which cannot be made without the fabrication (2). It is made in such a way as to make it look like the Holy Father can't understand why anyone would oppose Medjugorje!
This is an injustice to Archbishop D'Errico, and to the unsuspecting Medjugorje devotees who are being fed bad information straight from the main Medjugorje website.
I would invite the many sources using this translation to edit what they are showing, because what is being propogated on the web are words which do not belong to Archbishop D'Errico.
Unsuspecting Medjugorje devotees were misled
The devotees of Medjugorje in the english speaking world have been duped by a false translation which altered the intended message by the Apostolic Nuncio. Here are examples of reactions:
Wow! This seems hugely important. It shows the Holy Father is well disposed towards Medjugorje (as was his predecessor) despite the campaign of disinformation by the detractors ... (Source: post by "Totus Tuus" Mon Mar 22, 2010 9:43 am)
The Pope ain’t stupid. He knows a good tree when he sees one. (same source: post by "bluecross": Mon Mar 22, 2010 12:14 pm)
Paul Baylis makes my point perfectly in his blogpost about this news when he isolates the fabricated part of the translation. In part, he writes:
The speech made the pertinent remark:Here is a headline which reacts to this fabricated sentence:
it is very difficult for him [Pope Benedict] to perceive that there can be so many opposing information about the same matter
Pope Benedict XVI Already Positive on Medjugorje Apparition Site? (I am using my Freezepage version here, as well)I have already made efforts to reach Archbishop D'Errico to share with him what readers are getting in the English translation provided by official website of the Medjugorje phenomenon. I would encourage others to do the same. Feel free to send him a link to this post. I do not have an international calling card, otherwise I would call his office. Perhaps some of my European readers can help in this regard.
It would be nice if we could have an approved, or official, translation. I'm working on it!
Related Links:
- Abp D'Errico's address in Croatian at Medjugorje.hr (official site in Medjugorje)
- Abp D'Errico's address in English at Medjugorje.hr
- English version of the above link when reference on March 22, 2010 at 4:32 pm GMT (snapshot at freezepage.com since live webpage can change)
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