Fallen Christ of the Via Crucis

[Daniel_Sierra]

Hello,

First of all, I have to apologise if the name of the thread sounds kind of bad, and if I’m skipping any of the rules here.
Now; I’m a translation student in Colombia, and we happen to have a devotion to El Señor Caído. It is this depiction of our Lord, and it is very common here in Colombia. I need to translate this into English, and I’m just wondering if anybody, ever, anywhere, uses or knows the term of “The Fallen Lord” or “The Fallen Christ” I also want to know if it sounds bad to talk about the Fallen Lord in English.
There is no context, really, so I can’t provide that. If you really do not use it normally in English, I’ll just use a foot note.
I’m sorry I asked here; I didn’t know where else to ask. And I chose Catholic Forums, 'cause, well, for such a question I thought you’d be the ones to come to.

Thank you very much!

 

[yinekka]

I have only heard of the term “fallen Lord” or something like it in the context of the Way of the Cross. I don’t think that there is anything bad about the term as long as we are not meaning that Christ stays fallen. He rises, carrying the weight of our sins, and continues on his journey to be crucified and thus redeem us.

 

[amsjj]

Hello, Daniel,

like yinekka, the only time I’ve seen/heard of Jesus fallen in English is in the Via Crucis. I have heard of it in Spanish however.

take care!
amsjj

+++
Jesus, God and man,
imprisoned by love in Thy most holy Sacrament,
have mercy upon us.
– Blessed John Henry Newman, December 22, 1851

Tú y yo sabemos por la fe que oculto en las especies sacramentales está Cristo,
ese Cristo con su Cuerpo, con su Sangre, con su Alma, y con su Divinidad,
prisonero de amor.
– San Josemaria Escriva, 1 junio 1974

 

[Daniel_Sierra]

Thank you both very much!!
I didn’t reply right away to yinekka right away to thank her, but I did read it and it actually helped! I am sorry it took me three days, but finals at school are being hectic. But seriously, thank you both for your help. Thanks amsjj.
If you were wondering, I left the term in Spanish and decided to go with a footnote to explain it better. Just translating it as “the Fallen Lord” would not have created the same image in the reader’s mind.

Take care and God bless you all! A hug from Colombia.

 

[rowlands]

If you were wondering, I left the term in Spanish and decided to go with a footnote to explain it better. Just translating it as “the Fallen Lord” would not have created the same image in the reader’s mind.

That seems like a good solution and illustrates well the problems faced by translators where the structure of the languages and differences in idiom and concepts become paramount.

In English English (US, Australasian and other forms may differ) ‘fallen angel’ has a negative connotation and ‘fallen woman’ a very negative connotation. A ‘fallen man’, however may ellicit feelings of sympathy or may be seen as a rather humorous description - although ‘fallen man’ in religious and theological texts has quite a different meaning . ‘The Fallen’, referring to soldiers who died in war is positive.

In this instance a change of tense, from past to present - particularly as the phrase is a title - might be acceptable: ‘The Lord Falls’. Others might go so far as to substitute an entire phrase such as ‘The Lord falls beneath the Cross’ or ‘The Lord**,** fallen beneath the weight of the Cross’ to make sure the meaning is clear.

I think the fact that this particular imagery is rare in the English-speaking world but well known to the Hispanic nations also contributes to the difficulty in translating verbatim.