My Virtual Reading Room

It's a bit late, I know, but this was just posted by kortan this past Sunday, April 12th, for the Orthodox Easter, and I wanted to show you...
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«Христос воскрес», — поют во храме;
Но грустно мне... душа молчит:
Мир полон кровью и слезами,
И этот гимн пред алтарями
Так оскорбительно звучит.

Когда б Он был меж нас и видел,
Чего достиг наш славный век,
Как брата брат возненавидел,
Как опозорен человек,

И если б здесь, в блестящем храме
«Христос воскрес» Он услыхал,
Какими б горькими слезами
Перед толпой Он зарыдал!

Пусть на земле не будет, братья,
Ни властелинов, ни рабов,
Умолкнут стоны и проклятья,
И стук мечей, и звон оков, —

О лишь тогда, как гимн свободы,
Пусть загремит: «Христос воскрес!»
И нам ответят все народы:
«Христос воистину воскрес!»

Дмитрий Мережковский 1887

"Christ has risen"--they chant in the temple,
But I feel sad...my soul is silent;
The world is full of blood and tears,
And this hymn in front of the altars
Sounds so insulting.

If He were among us and could see,
What our glorious age has achieved,
How brother has gotten to hate brother,
How humans are disgraced,

And if here, in this luxurious temple,
He heard, "Christ is risen",
How bitter would be the tears He would shed
In front of the crowd!

Oh brethren, let it come to pass
That in this world there would not be any masters or slaves,
The groans and curses would fall silent,
And so would the clatter of swords, and the ringing of shackles,--

Oh, then, and only then, as a hymn of freedom,
Let it thunder: "Christ has risen!"
And all the peoples will answer us:
"Christ has risen indeed!"

(Dmitry Merezhkovsky, 1887)