DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.17561892
title: He Uncovered The Bottom of the Deep - A Liturgical Translator's Manual for Theophany, Ode 1, Canon 1, Hiermos

description: This exegetical commentary is a Liturgical Translator's Manual for a 9th century Greek Byzantine hymn for the feast of Theophany, Ode 1, Canon 1, Heirmos (the first troparion). 

This version served as the training material for translator-participants in the author's research. The study evaluated whether such manuals could improve the quality of Byzantine Rite liturgical hymn translations—specifically for contemporary services like Orthros (Matins)—when produced by non-native English speakers who are unable to work directly from the Greek source.

Revisions of this manual will be made available in the future.

The author's research on improving translation quality via translator manuals originated from a request by Archbishop Makarios (Tillyrides) of Nairobi, Exarch of Kenya. Upon learning of the author's extensive experience with the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL) and Wycliffe Bible Translators, the Archbishop invited the author to develop a liturgical translation quality assurance (QA) process modeled on the QA frameworks used by international Bible translation agencies. The immediate intention was to pilot this new process in Nairobi, a center for the publication of liturgical texts into numerous local African languages. These translations were intended for eucharistic communities of worship within the jurisdiction of the Greek Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa.

Although the author was able to provide this work pro bono, to cover reimbursement of expenses incurred (e.g. travel) and to have an institutional affiliation, the author, entered into an agreement with the Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC) for affiliation with it as a self-funded Mission Specialist in Linguistics and Translation, and as means for expenses incurred during his pro bono work in Africa to be  reimbursed by funds donated to OCMC for that purpose.  

The online digital version of the manual was created by the author using software extensions he made to the Online Liturgical Workplace™ (aka OLW), copyright 2015-2025 Michael A. Colburn, John Daly, Paul F. Blattner, Jr., licensed Eclipse Public License, Version 2.0 (EPL-2.0), trademark Michael A. Colburn. 

The primary tools in the Online Liturgical Workplace (OLW) allow users to tag and annotate the original source text to build a digital exegetical commentary.

In addition to this core function, the OLW can computationally generate a PDF version of the commentary. This export process is customizable and utilizes XeLaTex as an intermediate format. A server-side processor compiles the generated *.tex file into a PDF, after which the user is given download links for both the *.tex source and the final document.

To clarify the institutional role of the Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC) regarding the Online Liturgical Workplace (OLW):



Development: OCMC was not involved in the conception, direction, funding, or technical development of the OLW.

Hosting: OCMC’s current contribution is limited to funding the Linux servers and URL subdomain that host the web application.

Status: This hosting arrangement is temporary and subject to change in the near future.


The author gratefully acknowledges the Greek Metropolis of Denver and St. Catherine Greek Orthodox Church (Greenwood Village, Colorado) for providing funding for the acquisition of research materials.

Gratitude is also extended for the assistance of the hierarchs of the Archdiocese of Nairobi (Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa), the Eastern Orthodox Metropolis of Korea (Ecumenical Patriarchate), and the Diocese of Alaska (Orthodox Church in America). The author also thanks the test participants in each location and all others who offered their support.