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PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr. Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web: http://www.cathcil.org/
PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon
Armenian version: http://www.cathcil.org/v04/doc/Armenian.htm
THE ANTELIAS THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY;
A COMMITTED SERVICE TO THE CHURCH
The Seminary of the Catholicosate of Cilicia has successfully completed its
75th academic year under the guidance of His Holiness Aram I and due to the
cooperation between the administration, staff and students.
The Seminary started its 2004-2005 academic year on 10 October, 2004. "The
Seminary's 75th anniversary: an opportunity for reform" was chosen as the
theme of the academic year during the opening ceremony. True to this theme,
the Seminary's staff and students worked on becoming "renewed people through
reformed thoughts."
"Throughout the year we tried to renew our old selves, to become new beings
through Christ, our fathers' spirits, the Seminary's and its generations'
75-year-old rich heritage, their values and the noble objective of
dedicating oneself to the church and nation," writes Fr. Bartev Gulumian,
the Dean of the Seminary in its annual report.
The Seminary started its 75th academic year with 63 students, of whom five
were expelled after receiving several warnings for their inappropriate
behavior. The Seminary concludes its academic year with 58 students and an
average of 81.67 during the first semester and 82.20 during the second
semester. The Seminary had six students from Turkey, Iran and Syria in the
Deacons' class this year.
"It has always been said that the Seminary is not a school in the usual
meaning of the word, it's not only an institution that delivers education;
the Seminary is all these, but it is also an institution that shapes and
forms characters with faith, Armenian cultural and values; it is to follow
the path of our ancestors, the path of faith and love, light and hope,
service and holiness, and integrity and hard work," says Fr Gulumian.
This is what distinguishes the Seminary from other schools, states the Dean,
and continues: "The Seminary is an institution that shapes character and its
students are strong shields against assimilation, loss of faith, and the
danger of forgetting the mother language. They are the strong and brave
soldiers who guard the Armenians' faith, language, culture and homeland,
which our fathers have won through with their blood and prayers."
During the 2004-2005 academic year, the faculty of the Seminary was composed
of 26 professors, of which 15 were spirituals and 11 were secular. His
Holiness Aram I was the highest member of the faculty. The professors worked
in an atmosphere of warm collaboration with the administration and students.
"Our Seminary became a school of light due to its professors," says the
Dean, assuring that the professors realize the importance of their job, are
responsible for their missions and do not approach their duties with an eye
on their own interests.
The administration of the Seminary was composed of four people at the start
of the academic year: Fr. Bartev Gulumian, the Dean, Kevork Kandaharian, the
internal Dean, Fr Stepanos Pashaian and Fr Taniel Garabedian.
"The administrative body is the spirit coordinating the work being achieved
in the Seminary. The role of the educator is the alpha and the omega of the
Seminary. Forming untainted characters, characters that are distinguished by
their love for God, humanity, nation, hard work and service, is the primary
mission of the administration," says Fr Gulumian.
"The life of the Seminarian is above anything else, a lived prayer. If food
secures the physical well-being and development of humans, knowledge
nurtures their minds, it is equally true that prayer, frankincense and
candle, Armenian hymns and readings from the bible, mold the human soul and
enrich it with eternal values," says the Dean.
Believing in the above statement, the administration, students and staff
punctually attended the morning and evening services of the church, as well
as the Friday masses in Bikfaya. The students practiced reading the Psalm in
groups and singing the hymns. The students also participated in the Holy
Masses held on Sundays and holydays, as well as the Lent services in all the
Churches in the Diocese.
The Seminary students made it a habit to read the Psalm everyday before
breakfast, to read about Saints on their days and various other holy books.
A day of meditation was held on the first day of Lent and the students
listened to lectures, participated in discussions and sang hymns,
concentrating on the message for renewal that the 75th anniversary of the
Seminary carries with it.
Throughout the year the students also had the opportunity to present
lectures about several saints, as well as about the Seminary's 75th
anniversary and the Catholicosate of Cilicia. They sometimes presented plays
about the lives of various saints.
"All these, as well habitual prayers and visits to holy sights created a
very rich spiritual atmosphere, contributing to the development of the
students' collective experiences and spiritual growth, and forever
enshrining the love of God and His mercy in their souls," believes Fr
Gulumian.
Extra curricular activities and especially cultural life were also active
throughout the academic year. According to the Dean, "these activities
catered to each and every student's preferences, revealed their hidden
skills and developed their minds' and spirits' creativity."
The Seminary's student committee organized lectures and discussions on
various issues every Friday evening, theatrical productions dedicated to the
apostles who founded the Armenian Apostolic Church and other Saints.
On the occasion of the 1600th anniversary of the discovery of the Armenian
alphabet, the Seminary students prepared interesting religious, national,
cultural, musical, scientific, sports' and other articles for the boards
hung on the walls of the Seminary.
The editorial committee of "Klatsor", the Seminary's yearbook, has already
prepared the book's new edition which will soon be published by the
Catholicosate's publishing house.
The 75th anniversary of the Seminary presented opportunities to the Seminary
's Choir to put out several performances both during events organized in the
Catholicosate and in separate performances.
The students visited Armenian schools on various occasions, delivering
lectures on a wide range of issues. Students also participated in interviews
on "Radio Voice of Van" around several social and youth issues, inter-school
poetry and essay contests and the LEVAM games organized by HMEM.
The Seminary was also active ecumenically. As an active member of the Middle
East Council of Churches' Association of Seminary Students, the Seminary of
the Catholicosate frequently participated in meetings and conferences.
Fr Gulumian expresses his gratitude and thanks all who contributed to the
growth and success of the Seminary. He thanks God for giving the
administration, staff and students the necessary strength to successfully
complete the year; His Holiness Aram I, who made the Seminary the center of
his attention and realized its important role; old and new, as well close
and far friends and philanthropists, who believed and continue to believe in
the essential role of the Seminary; and finally all those who financially or
morally contributed to the Seminary.
"We are proud with the Seminary's 75-year-old history. But As His Holiness
Aram I wrote in the Encyclical dedicated to this anniversary, the 75th
anniversary should not only be a reason for being proud, but should also
become an opportunity for the renewal of challenges and achievements in this
ever-changing world," says Fr Gulumian in his report.
Speaking about the students, the Dean says: "From the Seminary they
indefinitely embark on serving their nation, but they will always keep the
Seminary in their hearts as the place where their character was formed,
where they received the spirit for service, education, spiritual and
physical development,"
"Now it is time to justify all this, in order to be worthily called the
generation of the 75th anniversary."
##
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the Seminary,
you may refer to the web page of the Catholicosate, http://www.cathcil.org/
The Cilician Catholicosate, the administrative center of the church is
located in Antelias, Lebanon.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Contact: V.Rev.Fr. Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web: http://www.cathcil.org/
PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon
Armenian version: http://www.cathcil.org/v04/doc/Armenian.htm
THE ANTELIAS THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY;
A COMMITTED SERVICE TO THE CHURCH
The Seminary of the Catholicosate of Cilicia has successfully completed its
75th academic year under the guidance of His Holiness Aram I and due to the
cooperation between the administration, staff and students.
The Seminary started its 2004-2005 academic year on 10 October, 2004. "The
Seminary's 75th anniversary: an opportunity for reform" was chosen as the
theme of the academic year during the opening ceremony. True to this theme,
the Seminary's staff and students worked on becoming "renewed people through
reformed thoughts."
"Throughout the year we tried to renew our old selves, to become new beings
through Christ, our fathers' spirits, the Seminary's and its generations'
75-year-old rich heritage, their values and the noble objective of
dedicating oneself to the church and nation," writes Fr. Bartev Gulumian,
the Dean of the Seminary in its annual report.
The Seminary started its 75th academic year with 63 students, of whom five
were expelled after receiving several warnings for their inappropriate
behavior. The Seminary concludes its academic year with 58 students and an
average of 81.67 during the first semester and 82.20 during the second
semester. The Seminary had six students from Turkey, Iran and Syria in the
Deacons' class this year.
"It has always been said that the Seminary is not a school in the usual
meaning of the word, it's not only an institution that delivers education;
the Seminary is all these, but it is also an institution that shapes and
forms characters with faith, Armenian cultural and values; it is to follow
the path of our ancestors, the path of faith and love, light and hope,
service and holiness, and integrity and hard work," says Fr Gulumian.
This is what distinguishes the Seminary from other schools, states the Dean,
and continues: "The Seminary is an institution that shapes character and its
students are strong shields against assimilation, loss of faith, and the
danger of forgetting the mother language. They are the strong and brave
soldiers who guard the Armenians' faith, language, culture and homeland,
which our fathers have won through with their blood and prayers."
During the 2004-2005 academic year, the faculty of the Seminary was composed
of 26 professors, of which 15 were spirituals and 11 were secular. His
Holiness Aram I was the highest member of the faculty. The professors worked
in an atmosphere of warm collaboration with the administration and students.
"Our Seminary became a school of light due to its professors," says the
Dean, assuring that the professors realize the importance of their job, are
responsible for their missions and do not approach their duties with an eye
on their own interests.
The administration of the Seminary was composed of four people at the start
of the academic year: Fr. Bartev Gulumian, the Dean, Kevork Kandaharian, the
internal Dean, Fr Stepanos Pashaian and Fr Taniel Garabedian.
"The administrative body is the spirit coordinating the work being achieved
in the Seminary. The role of the educator is the alpha and the omega of the
Seminary. Forming untainted characters, characters that are distinguished by
their love for God, humanity, nation, hard work and service, is the primary
mission of the administration," says Fr Gulumian.
"The life of the Seminarian is above anything else, a lived prayer. If food
secures the physical well-being and development of humans, knowledge
nurtures their minds, it is equally true that prayer, frankincense and
candle, Armenian hymns and readings from the bible, mold the human soul and
enrich it with eternal values," says the Dean.
Believing in the above statement, the administration, students and staff
punctually attended the morning and evening services of the church, as well
as the Friday masses in Bikfaya. The students practiced reading the Psalm in
groups and singing the hymns. The students also participated in the Holy
Masses held on Sundays and holydays, as well as the Lent services in all the
Churches in the Diocese.
The Seminary students made it a habit to read the Psalm everyday before
breakfast, to read about Saints on their days and various other holy books.
A day of meditation was held on the first day of Lent and the students
listened to lectures, participated in discussions and sang hymns,
concentrating on the message for renewal that the 75th anniversary of the
Seminary carries with it.
Throughout the year the students also had the opportunity to present
lectures about several saints, as well as about the Seminary's 75th
anniversary and the Catholicosate of Cilicia. They sometimes presented plays
about the lives of various saints.
"All these, as well habitual prayers and visits to holy sights created a
very rich spiritual atmosphere, contributing to the development of the
students' collective experiences and spiritual growth, and forever
enshrining the love of God and His mercy in their souls," believes Fr
Gulumian.
Extra curricular activities and especially cultural life were also active
throughout the academic year. According to the Dean, "these activities
catered to each and every student's preferences, revealed their hidden
skills and developed their minds' and spirits' creativity."
The Seminary's student committee organized lectures and discussions on
various issues every Friday evening, theatrical productions dedicated to the
apostles who founded the Armenian Apostolic Church and other Saints.
On the occasion of the 1600th anniversary of the discovery of the Armenian
alphabet, the Seminary students prepared interesting religious, national,
cultural, musical, scientific, sports' and other articles for the boards
hung on the walls of the Seminary.
The editorial committee of "Klatsor", the Seminary's yearbook, has already
prepared the book's new edition which will soon be published by the
Catholicosate's publishing house.
The 75th anniversary of the Seminary presented opportunities to the Seminary
's Choir to put out several performances both during events organized in the
Catholicosate and in separate performances.
The students visited Armenian schools on various occasions, delivering
lectures on a wide range of issues. Students also participated in interviews
on "Radio Voice of Van" around several social and youth issues, inter-school
poetry and essay contests and the LEVAM games organized by HMEM.
The Seminary was also active ecumenically. As an active member of the Middle
East Council of Churches' Association of Seminary Students, the Seminary of
the Catholicosate frequently participated in meetings and conferences.
Fr Gulumian expresses his gratitude and thanks all who contributed to the
growth and success of the Seminary. He thanks God for giving the
administration, staff and students the necessary strength to successfully
complete the year; His Holiness Aram I, who made the Seminary the center of
his attention and realized its important role; old and new, as well close
and far friends and philanthropists, who believed and continue to believe in
the essential role of the Seminary; and finally all those who financially or
morally contributed to the Seminary.
"We are proud with the Seminary's 75-year-old history. But As His Holiness
Aram I wrote in the Encyclical dedicated to this anniversary, the 75th
anniversary should not only be a reason for being proud, but should also
become an opportunity for the renewal of challenges and achievements in this
ever-changing world," says Fr Gulumian in his report.
Speaking about the students, the Dean says: "From the Seminary they
indefinitely embark on serving their nation, but they will always keep the
Seminary in their hearts as the place where their character was formed,
where they received the spirit for service, education, spiritual and
physical development,"
"Now it is time to justify all this, in order to be worthily called the
generation of the 75th anniversary."
##
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the Seminary,
you may refer to the web page of the Catholicosate, http://www.cathcil.org/
The Cilician Catholicosate, the administrative center of the church is
located in Antelias, Lebanon.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress