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PRESS RELEASE
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
e-mail: [email protected]
Website: http://www.armenianprelacy.org
Contact: Iris Papazian
CROSSROADS E-NEWSLETTER - February 11, 2005
CATHOLICOS ARAM I ANNOUNCES 2005 THE YEAR OF THE
90TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, His
Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, issued an
encyclical that was read during the Divine Liturgy in all churches within
the jurisdiction of the Cilician See.
His Holiness notes in his encyclical that the Catholicate of Cilicia has
itself witnessed and lived the massacres its people were subjected to. For
ninety years the Catholicate helped to provide the physical and
psychological needs of the Armenians forcibly removed from their land,
played a crucial role in the formation of the Armenian communities
worldwide, built churches and schools, spread spiritual, moral and cultural
values, and became a staunch defender of the rights of its people.
His Holiness asked the Armenian people to embrace the message of the
90th anniversary with a united spirit, to commemorate the anniversary
appropriately, and to regard it as a time to strengthen the struggle for
justice. He also urged the faithful to participate in pilgrimages to Deir
Zor-site of the forced deportations and death marches-which is a reminder of
the struggle for survival.
PRELACY BEGINS SIX-WEEK LENTEN PROGRAM
The Prelacy's six-week Lenten program began yesterday, Wednesday,
February 9, with the traditional Husgoom service at St. Illuminator Armenian
Cathedral in New York City, presided by the Prelate, His Eminence Archbishop
Oshagan Choloyan. In his introductory remarks, His Eminence emphasized the
importance of the Lenten season for our spiritual journey. It is an
opportunity for us, sinful and fallen human beings, to turn to God and to be
with him in order to be ready to meet Him at the Resurrection, the Prelate
said.
Deacon Shant Kazanjian, Director of the Armenian Religious Education
Council (AREC), presented the first of his six-part Bible study on the
Passion narratives. The study focused on Matthew 20:17-28, Holy Monday
reading, which served as an introduction to the Passion Week. Dn. Shant
discussed how a suffering and crucified messiah seemed oxymoronic to the
first century hearers, the correct understanding of what it means to confess
Jesus as the Messiah-offering himself as ransom (prgank) to deliver humanity
from sin and wickedness and death, and, in light of all this, how then shall
we live.
Now that the stage is set, the next five sessions will focus on the main
acts of the Passion drama. The second Bible study, next Wednesday, February
16, will focus on the Last Supper that Jesus had with his disciples
(Matthew, Chapter 26:17-30).
During the fellowship hour, the participants enjoyed a light Lenten meal
prepared by the Prelacy Ladies Guild.
For information, contact the Prelacy office at 212-689-7810, or visit
the Prelacy web site at http://www.armenianprelacy.org/012805a.htm.
AMERICAN AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA WILL VISIT TOMORROW
John Evans, the U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, will visit Archbishop
Oshagan tomorrow morning. The Ambassador is making various visits to leaders
of the Armenian community as well as participating in a series of town hall
meetings in various cities. USAID Director in Armenia Robin Phillips and
Aaron Shirinian, assistant to the ambassador, will accompany him.
HEAD OF CHURCH OF DENMARK VISITS ANTELIAS
The leader of the Church of Denmark, Bishop Erik Norman Svendsen,
visited the Catholicate of Cilicia this week where he had a meeting with His
Holiness Aram I. The two spiritual leaders discussed issues related to
Christian education and ecumenical relations.
The Catholicos expressed his belief about the importance of renewing the
Ecumenical Movement and making it relevant to the lives of the people. They
emphasized the importance of the success of the peace process and bringing a
halt to the emigration of Christians.
The two spiritual leaders discussed the social service activities of the
Catholicate. His Holiness noted that it is thanks to the support of the
Danes that the Birds Nest Orphanage has provided shelter to thousands of
Armenian orphans. The orphanage is currently under the patronage of the
Cilician See, but the Church of Denmark continues to aid the institution.
PRELATE WILL VISIT CHICAGO THIS WEEKEND
FOR PILLARS RECEPTION AND CELEBRATION OF DIARENTARATCH
Archbishop Oshagan will travel to Chicago, Illinois, to be with the All
Saints Church parish in Glenview, Illinois.
Saturday evening His Eminence will attend a Pillars of the Prelacy
reception, hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Jack Mardoian, which is expected to
attract a number of faithful friends who have agreed to support the Prelacy
through this annual giving program.
On Sunday, the Prelate, will officiate at the Divine Liturgy and deliver
the Sermon. He will also preside over the Diarentaratch ceremony where
newborns are presented to the Church, as well as the traditional bonfire
ceremony.
DER VARTAN RECUPERATING AFTER SURGERY
We have been informed by members of the St. Gregory parish (North
Andover, Massachusetts), that their pastor, Rev. Fr. Vartan Kassabian, is
continuing his recovery from hip replacement surgery. We wish Der Hayr a
continued speedy recovery.
SPECIAL RELIGIOUS SERVICE FOR NEW CANADIAN PRELACY BUILDING
Under the auspices of Archbishop Khajag Hagopian, Prelate of the
Armenian Prelacy of Canada, a special religious service took place for the
newly built Prelacy building.
Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, Prelate of the Eastern Prelacy, and
Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, Prelate of the Western Prelacy, and all of
the clergy from the three Prelacies were present at the ceremony which
coincided with the commemoration of the Feast of St. Ghevontiants.
The official opening of the building will take place in May.
THIS WEEK WE COMMEMORATE DIARENTARATCH
(PRESENTATION OF THE LORD)
This Monday, February 14, the Armenian Church commemorates the Feast of
the Presentation of the Lord (Diarentaratach). This feast, which occurs
forty days after Theophany, is considered to be scriptural confirmation of
our Lord's revelation as God.
The tradition goes back to Jewish law, when a child was taken to the
temple on the 40th day and presented to God as a gift. In accordance with
this practice, forty days after the birth of Christ, his mother Mary took
the infant Jesus to the temple. A familiar figure during those days was a
man named Simeon. He was quite elderly and considered to be a just man. He
had prayed to God to give him an extended life so that he could see the
Savior. When Mary took Jesus to the Temple, Simeon was also present. Upon
seeing Mary and the child, Simeon declared: Lord, now you are dismissing
your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your
salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light
for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.
In the Armenian Church this feast has also taken on many old customs and
traditions from pre-Christian times. The traditions were taken and given a
Christian flavor. For example, according to tradition, the night before the
feast, wood and branches would be burnt in the courtyard of the Church, and
newly married couples would gather around the fire that was started with
candles brought out of the church. The atmosphere would be one of merriment
and celebration as young men jumped over the fire. Those present would light
a candle from the bonfire and take it home so that Light would prevail.
ST. VALENTINE
February 14 is also Valentines Day. St. Valentine was a priest in Rome
who was imprisoned for befriending persecuted Christians. He became a
convert and was eventually clubbed to death.
In modern times Valentines Day has become a Hallmark holiday and a good day
for florists and makers of chocolates.
REMEMBERING LINCOLN
And, of course, February 12 is the birthday of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th
president of the United States. Some of us old timers at Crossroads remember
when February 12 was a holiday. Now, since the advent of Presidents Day,
Lincoln and Washington, whose birthday is February 22, have been lumped
together in a holiday that is primarily marked by sales in shopping malls.
Mary Todd Lincoln, wife of the President, recalled the last thoughts
uttered by her husband in the theater the evening he was assassinated:
He said he wanted to visit the Holy Land and see those places hallowed
by the footprints of the Savior. He was saying there was no city he so much
desired to see as Jerusalem. And with the words half spoken on his tongue,
the bullet of the assassin entered the brain, and the soul of the great and
good President was carried by the angels to the New Jerusalem above.
Visit our website at www.armenianprelacy.org
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
e-mail: [email protected]
Website: http://www.armenianprelacy.org
Contact: Iris Papazian
CROSSROADS E-NEWSLETTER - February 11, 2005
CATHOLICOS ARAM I ANNOUNCES 2005 THE YEAR OF THE
90TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, His
Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, issued an
encyclical that was read during the Divine Liturgy in all churches within
the jurisdiction of the Cilician See.
His Holiness notes in his encyclical that the Catholicate of Cilicia has
itself witnessed and lived the massacres its people were subjected to. For
ninety years the Catholicate helped to provide the physical and
psychological needs of the Armenians forcibly removed from their land,
played a crucial role in the formation of the Armenian communities
worldwide, built churches and schools, spread spiritual, moral and cultural
values, and became a staunch defender of the rights of its people.
His Holiness asked the Armenian people to embrace the message of the
90th anniversary with a united spirit, to commemorate the anniversary
appropriately, and to regard it as a time to strengthen the struggle for
justice. He also urged the faithful to participate in pilgrimages to Deir
Zor-site of the forced deportations and death marches-which is a reminder of
the struggle for survival.
PRELACY BEGINS SIX-WEEK LENTEN PROGRAM
The Prelacy's six-week Lenten program began yesterday, Wednesday,
February 9, with the traditional Husgoom service at St. Illuminator Armenian
Cathedral in New York City, presided by the Prelate, His Eminence Archbishop
Oshagan Choloyan. In his introductory remarks, His Eminence emphasized the
importance of the Lenten season for our spiritual journey. It is an
opportunity for us, sinful and fallen human beings, to turn to God and to be
with him in order to be ready to meet Him at the Resurrection, the Prelate
said.
Deacon Shant Kazanjian, Director of the Armenian Religious Education
Council (AREC), presented the first of his six-part Bible study on the
Passion narratives. The study focused on Matthew 20:17-28, Holy Monday
reading, which served as an introduction to the Passion Week. Dn. Shant
discussed how a suffering and crucified messiah seemed oxymoronic to the
first century hearers, the correct understanding of what it means to confess
Jesus as the Messiah-offering himself as ransom (prgank) to deliver humanity
from sin and wickedness and death, and, in light of all this, how then shall
we live.
Now that the stage is set, the next five sessions will focus on the main
acts of the Passion drama. The second Bible study, next Wednesday, February
16, will focus on the Last Supper that Jesus had with his disciples
(Matthew, Chapter 26:17-30).
During the fellowship hour, the participants enjoyed a light Lenten meal
prepared by the Prelacy Ladies Guild.
For information, contact the Prelacy office at 212-689-7810, or visit
the Prelacy web site at http://www.armenianprelacy.org/012805a.htm.
AMERICAN AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA WILL VISIT TOMORROW
John Evans, the U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, will visit Archbishop
Oshagan tomorrow morning. The Ambassador is making various visits to leaders
of the Armenian community as well as participating in a series of town hall
meetings in various cities. USAID Director in Armenia Robin Phillips and
Aaron Shirinian, assistant to the ambassador, will accompany him.
HEAD OF CHURCH OF DENMARK VISITS ANTELIAS
The leader of the Church of Denmark, Bishop Erik Norman Svendsen,
visited the Catholicate of Cilicia this week where he had a meeting with His
Holiness Aram I. The two spiritual leaders discussed issues related to
Christian education and ecumenical relations.
The Catholicos expressed his belief about the importance of renewing the
Ecumenical Movement and making it relevant to the lives of the people. They
emphasized the importance of the success of the peace process and bringing a
halt to the emigration of Christians.
The two spiritual leaders discussed the social service activities of the
Catholicate. His Holiness noted that it is thanks to the support of the
Danes that the Birds Nest Orphanage has provided shelter to thousands of
Armenian orphans. The orphanage is currently under the patronage of the
Cilician See, but the Church of Denmark continues to aid the institution.
PRELATE WILL VISIT CHICAGO THIS WEEKEND
FOR PILLARS RECEPTION AND CELEBRATION OF DIARENTARATCH
Archbishop Oshagan will travel to Chicago, Illinois, to be with the All
Saints Church parish in Glenview, Illinois.
Saturday evening His Eminence will attend a Pillars of the Prelacy
reception, hosted by Mr. and Mrs. Jack Mardoian, which is expected to
attract a number of faithful friends who have agreed to support the Prelacy
through this annual giving program.
On Sunday, the Prelate, will officiate at the Divine Liturgy and deliver
the Sermon. He will also preside over the Diarentaratch ceremony where
newborns are presented to the Church, as well as the traditional bonfire
ceremony.
DER VARTAN RECUPERATING AFTER SURGERY
We have been informed by members of the St. Gregory parish (North
Andover, Massachusetts), that their pastor, Rev. Fr. Vartan Kassabian, is
continuing his recovery from hip replacement surgery. We wish Der Hayr a
continued speedy recovery.
SPECIAL RELIGIOUS SERVICE FOR NEW CANADIAN PRELACY BUILDING
Under the auspices of Archbishop Khajag Hagopian, Prelate of the
Armenian Prelacy of Canada, a special religious service took place for the
newly built Prelacy building.
Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, Prelate of the Eastern Prelacy, and
Archbishop Moushegh Mardirossian, Prelate of the Western Prelacy, and all of
the clergy from the three Prelacies were present at the ceremony which
coincided with the commemoration of the Feast of St. Ghevontiants.
The official opening of the building will take place in May.
THIS WEEK WE COMMEMORATE DIARENTARATCH
(PRESENTATION OF THE LORD)
This Monday, February 14, the Armenian Church commemorates the Feast of
the Presentation of the Lord (Diarentaratach). This feast, which occurs
forty days after Theophany, is considered to be scriptural confirmation of
our Lord's revelation as God.
The tradition goes back to Jewish law, when a child was taken to the
temple on the 40th day and presented to God as a gift. In accordance with
this practice, forty days after the birth of Christ, his mother Mary took
the infant Jesus to the temple. A familiar figure during those days was a
man named Simeon. He was quite elderly and considered to be a just man. He
had prayed to God to give him an extended life so that he could see the
Savior. When Mary took Jesus to the Temple, Simeon was also present. Upon
seeing Mary and the child, Simeon declared: Lord, now you are dismissing
your servant in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your
salvation, which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light
for revelation to the Gentiles and for glory to your people Israel.
In the Armenian Church this feast has also taken on many old customs and
traditions from pre-Christian times. The traditions were taken and given a
Christian flavor. For example, according to tradition, the night before the
feast, wood and branches would be burnt in the courtyard of the Church, and
newly married couples would gather around the fire that was started with
candles brought out of the church. The atmosphere would be one of merriment
and celebration as young men jumped over the fire. Those present would light
a candle from the bonfire and take it home so that Light would prevail.
ST. VALENTINE
February 14 is also Valentines Day. St. Valentine was a priest in Rome
who was imprisoned for befriending persecuted Christians. He became a
convert and was eventually clubbed to death.
In modern times Valentines Day has become a Hallmark holiday and a good day
for florists and makers of chocolates.
REMEMBERING LINCOLN
And, of course, February 12 is the birthday of Abraham Lincoln, the 16th
president of the United States. Some of us old timers at Crossroads remember
when February 12 was a holiday. Now, since the advent of Presidents Day,
Lincoln and Washington, whose birthday is February 22, have been lumped
together in a holiday that is primarily marked by sales in shopping malls.
Mary Todd Lincoln, wife of the President, recalled the last thoughts
uttered by her husband in the theater the evening he was assassinated:
He said he wanted to visit the Holy Land and see those places hallowed
by the footprints of the Savior. He was saying there was no city he so much
desired to see as Jerusalem. And with the words half spoken on his tongue,
the bullet of the assassin entered the brain, and the soul of the great and
good President was carried by the angels to the New Jerusalem above.
Visit our website at www.armenianprelacy.org