In response to this translation, 34 years later an Orthodox synod in Jerusalem declared that the Scriptures “should be read, not by just anyone, but only by the ones peering into the deep things of the spirit after having done appropriate research.” This meant that the Scriptures should be read only by the educated clergymen.

In 1703, Seraphim, a Greek monk from the island of Lesbos, tried to publish a revision of the Maximus translation in London. When promises for financial help from the English court failed, he printed the revision using his own money. In a fiery prologue, Seraphim stressed the need for “every godly Christian” to read the Bible, and he accused the high-ranking clergymen of the church of “desiring to cover up their misbehavior by keeping the people in ignorance.” As might have been expected, his Orthodox opponents had him arrested in Russia and exiled to Siberia, where he died in 1735.

Commenting on the deep spiritual hunger of the Greek-speaking people during that time, a Greek clergyman made the following statement regarding a later revision of the Maximus translation: “The Greeks received this Holy Bible, along with the others, with love and with craving. And they read it. And they felt the pain within them soothed, and their faith in God . . . flared up.” However, their spiritual leaders feared that if people were to understand the Bible, then the clergy would be exposed for their unscriptural beliefs and deeds. Therefore, in 1823 and again in 1836, the patriarchate of Constantinople issued an edict to burn all copies of such Bible translations.

A Courageous Translator

Against this backdrop of fierce opposition and earnest yearning for Bible knowledge, there emerged a prominent figure who would play a key role in the translation of the Bible into modern Greek. This courageous person was Neofitos Vamvas, a distinguished linguist and noted Bible scholar, generally regarded as one of the “Teachers of the Nation.”

Vamvas clearly saw that the Orthodox Church was to blame for the spiritual illiteracy of the people. He strongly believed that in order to awaken the people spiritually, the Bible needed to be translated into the spoken Greek of the day. In 1831, with the help of other scholars, he began translating the Bible into literary Greek. His complete translation was published in 1850. Since the Greek Orthodox Church would not support him, he collaborated with the British and Foreign Bible Society (BFBS) on the publication and circulation of his translation. The church labeled him “a Protestant,” and soon he found himself an outcast.

Orthodox priests warned the people against such translations. In the city of Athens, for instance, Bibles were confiscated. In 1833, the Orthodox bishop of Crete committed to the flames the “New Testaments” he discovered at a monastery. One copy was hidden by a priest, and the people in the nearby villages hid their copies until the prelate left the island.

Some years later on the island of Corfu, Vamvas’ translation of the Bible was prohibited by the Holy Synod of the Greek Orthodox Church. Its sale was forbidden, and the existing copies were destroyed. On the islands of Chios, Síros, and Mykonos, the hostility of the local clergy led to Bible burning. But further suppression of Bible translation was yet ahead.

A Queen Takes an Interest in the Bible

During the 1870’s, Queen Olga of Greece realized that the Greek people in general still had little knowledge of the Bible. Believing that knowledge of the Scriptures would provide solace and refreshment to the nation, she sought to have the Bible rendered into a simpler language than that of the Vamvas version.

Unofficially, the archbishop of Athens and the head of the Holy Synod, Prokopios, encouraged the queen in this undertaking. When she applied to the Holy Synod for official approval, however, she was turned down. Nevertheless, she persisted, submitting a new application, only to receive a second refusal, in 1899. Ignoring the disapproval, she decided to publish a limited edition at her own expense. This was accomplished in 1900.

Die-Hard Opponents

In 1901, The Acropolis, a prominent Athenian newspaper, published the Gospel of Matthew rendered in the Demotic Greek by Alexander Pallis, a translator working in Liverpool, England. The apparent motive of Pallis and his colleagues was to ‘educate the Greeks’ and to “help the nation recover” from decline.

Orthodox theology students and their professors called the rendering “a ridiculing of the nation’s most valuable relics,” a desecration of Holy Writ. Patriarch Joakim III of Constantinople issued a document disapproving the rendering. The controversy took on political dimensions, and it was used in a devious way by warring political camps.

An influential part of the Athenian press started attacking the Pallis translation, labeling its supporters “atheists,” “traitors,” and “agents of foreign powers” who were bent on destabilizing Greek society. From November 5 to 8, 1901, at the instigation of ultraconservative elements of the Greek Orthodox Church, students rioted in Athens. They attacked the offices of The Acropolis, marched against the palace, took over the University of Athens, and demanded that the government resign. At the climax of the riots, eight people were killed in clashes with the army. The next day, the king demanded the resignation of Archbishop Prokopios, and two days later the whole Cabinet stepped down.

One month later the students demonstrated again and publicly burned a copy of the Pallis translation. They issued a resolution against the circulation of this translation and asked for severe punishment for any such attempt in the future. This served as an excuse to prohibit the use of any modern Greek version of the Bible. A dark moment indeed!

“The Saying of Jehovah Endures Forever”

The prohibition against using the Bible in modern Greek was repealed in 1924. Since then, the Greek Orthodox Church has suffered a complete defeat in its efforts to keep the Bible from the people.