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SPEECH BY DR. ANTRANIK ASHDJIAN,
Gibrahayer
European Parliament, Wednesday 14 April 2010
Chairman of the Executive Council of the Armenian National
Administration of Cyprus at the Dialogue Seminar on '~QReligious
freedom in the Republic of Cyprus'~R
First of all, on behalf of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church
in Cyprus I would like to thank the Representation of the Church of
Cyprus to the European Union, the Society Commission of the Conference
of European Churches and MEP Dr. Eleni Theocharous, for the invitation
to attend and address this Seminar.
The Republic of Cyprus has been, since its establishment in 1960,
a truly multicultural, multi-religious mosaic. The Constitution of
the Republic itself recognised the existence of two larger and three
smaller communities, and identified them on the basis of their ethnic
origin and religious background.
The Armenian community living on the island and having its own national
identity, cultural heritage, language and of course, its religious
identity and corresponding places of worship, was fortunate enough
to be included as one of these five groups. The Constitution of the
Republic granted the Armenians the right and privilege to co-exist
in harmony with the Orthodox Greek-Cypriots, Muslim Turkish-Cypriots,
Maronite and Latin Catholics. The Armenian community was also granted
the right to elect a Representative in the House of Representatives
with the status of an observer, but with the right of participation
in parliamentary proceedings dealing with the cultural, educational
and religious matters regarding the Armenian community.
Armenians have been a presence on Cyprus since 578 A.D., when the
first Armenian settlers were brought in by the Byzantines.
Many Cypriot, Armenian and foreign sources indicate that over the
next centuries, throughout the Byzantine period, as well as the
subsequent Frankish and Venetian Eras and the Ottoman occupation,
mass settlement of Armenians occurred on the island.
Even though the presence of the Armenian Church is not documented
in these historical reports, it is almost certain that these early
Armenian settlements were also accompanied by the establishment of the
first Armenian religious congregations on the island. It was later, in
973 A.D. that we encounter the appointment by Catholicos Khatchig I of
a Bishop to preside over these Armenian congregations. Records state
that in 1179 Bishop Thaddeus participated in the Synod of Hromkla,
as representative of Cyprus, and Bishop Nicholaos represented the
Armenian Church of Cyprus at the Synod of Sis, in 1307.
Furthermore, Armenian Church records indicate the existence of an
Armenian monastery in the city of Famagusta, in the 12th and 13th
centuries. This monastery is 2 documented as having been a theological
and scholarly centre, where Bishop Nerses Lampronatsi, a prominent
Armenian scholar and liturgical expert, studied and spent some years
of his life at this monastic centre.
During the Medieval period, the Armenian Church maintained a strong
presence on the island, with three churches in Nicosia, 3 in Famagusta
and at least 3 in other villages, while the Armenian settlements were
definitely more in number. None of these churches, except for the
chapel of the Ganchvor Monastery, dedicated to Virgin Mary, survived
the subsequent Venetian and Ottoman occupations of the island. The
Ganchvor Monastery became inaccessible when the city of Famagusta
was divided after the first inter-communal clashes of 1963.
Another monastic centre, founded in the 11th century and documented
as an Armenian sanctuary from the 15th century onwards, was the
monastery of St. Makarios the Hermit, also known as Sourp Magar or
Magaravank or Armenomonastero, located in the Pendadaktylos mountain
range. The monastery served as a pilgrimage site for centuries, until
it fell under the occupation of Turkish troops in the aftermath of
the invasion of July 1974.
After Cyprus was occupied by the Ottomans in the 16th century, the
Armenian community of Nicosia, deprived of its churches, was granted
the use of the 14th century church of the Virgin Mary, which was
the chapel of Notre Dame, a former Benedictine nunnery. This church
served as the seat of the Armenian Prelate of Cyprus until 1963, and
was located in the Armenian Quarter of Nicosia, as part of a complex
which also included the building of the Prelature, the Armenian School
and the Genocide Monument.
The mass killings and deportations of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire
in the late 19th and early 20th century, forced a huge wave of refugees
to seek refuge in the then British colony of Cyprus.
Many of these refugees went on to other countries in Europe and the
Americas, but a significant number of them also settled in Nicosia,
Larnaca, Limassol and Famagusta.
New congregations were established and churches erected in Larnaca
in 1909 and in Limassol in 1939, while the communities in Nicosia
and Famagusta were served by the existing churches in those towns.
The inter-communal clashes of 1963 and the subsequent segregation of
the main communities of the island forced the Armenian residents of the
Armenian Quarter of Nicosia and of Famagusta to flee from their homes,
abandoning their historical places of worship, as well as schools,
prelature, shops, houses and properties.
The invasion and occupation of 36% of Cyprus by Turkish troops in
the summer of 1974 meant that the Armenian Church lost access to
the Monastery of Sourp Magar, as well as the 9,000 donums of land
surrounding it, with 30,000 carob and olive trees. Hence, the Church
lost its main source of income for the funding of its diakonia.
During the period between 1963 and 1981, the Armenian community
in Nicosia did not have a place of worship of its own; Liturgies
and sacraments were conducted in the Hall of the Armenian School,
in a small Greek-Orthodox chapel that was made available by the
late Archbishop Makarios III, as well as the Anglican cathedral
of the capital. In 1981 the new cathedral dedicated to the Virgin
Mary was erected adjacent to the school building, with the generous
contributions of the Government of Cyprus, the United Church of
Westfalia and members of the Armenian community. In 1984 the Seat of
the 3 Armenian Prelacy was established in the new Prelature building
erected within the same complex.
Today, the Armenian Church of Cyprus operates under the spiritual
leadership of His Holiness Aram I, within the jurisdiction of
the Armenian Orthodox Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia,
itself a Church in exile after the loss of its historical Seat on the
southern coast of Asia Minor. The Church is governed by a Diocesan
Council, comprising of 12 elected laymen and 2 clergymen, under the
Chairmanship of the Prelate.
Three churches operate under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Cyprus,
one each in Nicosia, Larnaca and Limassol. Services for Armenian
faithful living in Paphos are held in a Greek Orthodox chapel, kindly
made available by the Bishop of Paphos.
Apart from its pastoral mission, the Armenian Church operates Sunday
Schools, Ladies' Guilds, a department of Christian Education, while
it also participates in Ecumenical events, organises a variety of
cultural activities and publishes a monthly newsletter.
Having lost its main sources of income, the Church receives a yearly
state grant, which today amounts to the sum of ~@60,000, to cover the
expenses of its mission. Furthermore, the government of the Republic
of Cyprus pays the annual salaries of the clergy serving the Church.
The government of the Republic of Cyprus also funds the operation
of three Armenian schools, in Nicosia, Larnaca and Limassol, where
Armenian children are taught the Armenian language and history
and receive religious education. The government also sponsors the
activities of various cultural, youth, charity and sports societies.
Ever since 1963 and 1974, no Armenian hymn has been sung and no
Armenian prayer recited in the abandoned Armenian churches in
the occupied part of Cyprus. No priest, not even any member of
the Armenian community, had been allowed access to these religious
shrines, until the partial lifting of restrictions in crossing to the
occupied northern part of Cyprus in April 2003. This enabled members
of our community to visit the occupied churches located in Nicosia,
Famagusta and the Sourp Magar Monastery.
With mixed feelings, we have visited these sites to witness the effect
of three decades of neglect, abandonment and sadly, vandalism.
Unfortunately, the regime in the occupied north does not recognise
the ownership status of the Armenian Church on these sites, and
consequently we are denied the right to repair the wounds of time
that these places of worship bear and cannot practice worship in them.
Only Armenians are subject to restrictions in the free right to
worship, unlike Greek-Orthodox, Maronites, Latins and Anglicans.
In the past few years, the Armenian Church has been successful
in persuading the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), to
undertake the study, planning and financing of the restoration of
the Armenian church and complex in the now occupied Armenian Quarter
of Nicosia. The restoration process will primarily serve to save the
frail complex from further structural deterioration, and we are hopeful
that once completed, it will also be restored as a place of worship.
Under UN protection, our community has twice so far been allowed
to hold pilgrimages to the Monastery of Sourp Magar, on the First
Sunday of May in 2007 and 2009. The date was symbolic, as it coincided
with the traditional feast of the Monastery, but the pilgrimage and
subsequent assembly in the desecrated church of the Monastery 4 fell
short of the religious ceremonies that were performed during that
day prior to the Turkish invasion of 1974.
I have tried to give a picture of the life through the centuries of
the Armenian Church on the island of Cyprus. This short historical
overview is descriptive of the fate of the Armenian Church, as guardian
and leader of the Armenian People throughout history. A Church with
a mission and a flock, but often left without places of worship,
often persecuted and oppressed, but always able to survive and carry
on with its mission. In our case, we have survived and flourished over
and over again as a community because of the strong will of our people
to survive and the good will of the leadership and people of Cyprus.
And I end by indicating in a pictorial way the contrasts and
contradictions within this small island which we all call our common
home:
A flourishing Church with well-attended places of worship and an active
flock practicing full freedom of worship in the government-controlled
part, and
Centuries' old abandoned and desecrated shrines, void of sanctity
and empty of flock, where entry regulations are imposed, customs
checks performed and free practice of one's faith is disallowed on
the Turkish-occupied part.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Gibrahayer
European Parliament, Wednesday 14 April 2010
Chairman of the Executive Council of the Armenian National
Administration of Cyprus at the Dialogue Seminar on '~QReligious
freedom in the Republic of Cyprus'~R
First of all, on behalf of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church
in Cyprus I would like to thank the Representation of the Church of
Cyprus to the European Union, the Society Commission of the Conference
of European Churches and MEP Dr. Eleni Theocharous, for the invitation
to attend and address this Seminar.
The Republic of Cyprus has been, since its establishment in 1960,
a truly multicultural, multi-religious mosaic. The Constitution of
the Republic itself recognised the existence of two larger and three
smaller communities, and identified them on the basis of their ethnic
origin and religious background.
The Armenian community living on the island and having its own national
identity, cultural heritage, language and of course, its religious
identity and corresponding places of worship, was fortunate enough
to be included as one of these five groups. The Constitution of the
Republic granted the Armenians the right and privilege to co-exist
in harmony with the Orthodox Greek-Cypriots, Muslim Turkish-Cypriots,
Maronite and Latin Catholics. The Armenian community was also granted
the right to elect a Representative in the House of Representatives
with the status of an observer, but with the right of participation
in parliamentary proceedings dealing with the cultural, educational
and religious matters regarding the Armenian community.
Armenians have been a presence on Cyprus since 578 A.D., when the
first Armenian settlers were brought in by the Byzantines.
Many Cypriot, Armenian and foreign sources indicate that over the
next centuries, throughout the Byzantine period, as well as the
subsequent Frankish and Venetian Eras and the Ottoman occupation,
mass settlement of Armenians occurred on the island.
Even though the presence of the Armenian Church is not documented
in these historical reports, it is almost certain that these early
Armenian settlements were also accompanied by the establishment of the
first Armenian religious congregations on the island. It was later, in
973 A.D. that we encounter the appointment by Catholicos Khatchig I of
a Bishop to preside over these Armenian congregations. Records state
that in 1179 Bishop Thaddeus participated in the Synod of Hromkla,
as representative of Cyprus, and Bishop Nicholaos represented the
Armenian Church of Cyprus at the Synod of Sis, in 1307.
Furthermore, Armenian Church records indicate the existence of an
Armenian monastery in the city of Famagusta, in the 12th and 13th
centuries. This monastery is 2 documented as having been a theological
and scholarly centre, where Bishop Nerses Lampronatsi, a prominent
Armenian scholar and liturgical expert, studied and spent some years
of his life at this monastic centre.
During the Medieval period, the Armenian Church maintained a strong
presence on the island, with three churches in Nicosia, 3 in Famagusta
and at least 3 in other villages, while the Armenian settlements were
definitely more in number. None of these churches, except for the
chapel of the Ganchvor Monastery, dedicated to Virgin Mary, survived
the subsequent Venetian and Ottoman occupations of the island. The
Ganchvor Monastery became inaccessible when the city of Famagusta
was divided after the first inter-communal clashes of 1963.
Another monastic centre, founded in the 11th century and documented
as an Armenian sanctuary from the 15th century onwards, was the
monastery of St. Makarios the Hermit, also known as Sourp Magar or
Magaravank or Armenomonastero, located in the Pendadaktylos mountain
range. The monastery served as a pilgrimage site for centuries, until
it fell under the occupation of Turkish troops in the aftermath of
the invasion of July 1974.
After Cyprus was occupied by the Ottomans in the 16th century, the
Armenian community of Nicosia, deprived of its churches, was granted
the use of the 14th century church of the Virgin Mary, which was
the chapel of Notre Dame, a former Benedictine nunnery. This church
served as the seat of the Armenian Prelate of Cyprus until 1963, and
was located in the Armenian Quarter of Nicosia, as part of a complex
which also included the building of the Prelature, the Armenian School
and the Genocide Monument.
The mass killings and deportations of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire
in the late 19th and early 20th century, forced a huge wave of refugees
to seek refuge in the then British colony of Cyprus.
Many of these refugees went on to other countries in Europe and the
Americas, but a significant number of them also settled in Nicosia,
Larnaca, Limassol and Famagusta.
New congregations were established and churches erected in Larnaca
in 1909 and in Limassol in 1939, while the communities in Nicosia
and Famagusta were served by the existing churches in those towns.
The inter-communal clashes of 1963 and the subsequent segregation of
the main communities of the island forced the Armenian residents of the
Armenian Quarter of Nicosia and of Famagusta to flee from their homes,
abandoning their historical places of worship, as well as schools,
prelature, shops, houses and properties.
The invasion and occupation of 36% of Cyprus by Turkish troops in
the summer of 1974 meant that the Armenian Church lost access to
the Monastery of Sourp Magar, as well as the 9,000 donums of land
surrounding it, with 30,000 carob and olive trees. Hence, the Church
lost its main source of income for the funding of its diakonia.
During the period between 1963 and 1981, the Armenian community
in Nicosia did not have a place of worship of its own; Liturgies
and sacraments were conducted in the Hall of the Armenian School,
in a small Greek-Orthodox chapel that was made available by the
late Archbishop Makarios III, as well as the Anglican cathedral
of the capital. In 1981 the new cathedral dedicated to the Virgin
Mary was erected adjacent to the school building, with the generous
contributions of the Government of Cyprus, the United Church of
Westfalia and members of the Armenian community. In 1984 the Seat of
the 3 Armenian Prelacy was established in the new Prelature building
erected within the same complex.
Today, the Armenian Church of Cyprus operates under the spiritual
leadership of His Holiness Aram I, within the jurisdiction of
the Armenian Orthodox Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia,
itself a Church in exile after the loss of its historical Seat on the
southern coast of Asia Minor. The Church is governed by a Diocesan
Council, comprising of 12 elected laymen and 2 clergymen, under the
Chairmanship of the Prelate.
Three churches operate under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Cyprus,
one each in Nicosia, Larnaca and Limassol. Services for Armenian
faithful living in Paphos are held in a Greek Orthodox chapel, kindly
made available by the Bishop of Paphos.
Apart from its pastoral mission, the Armenian Church operates Sunday
Schools, Ladies' Guilds, a department of Christian Education, while
it also participates in Ecumenical events, organises a variety of
cultural activities and publishes a monthly newsletter.
Having lost its main sources of income, the Church receives a yearly
state grant, which today amounts to the sum of ~@60,000, to cover the
expenses of its mission. Furthermore, the government of the Republic
of Cyprus pays the annual salaries of the clergy serving the Church.
The government of the Republic of Cyprus also funds the operation
of three Armenian schools, in Nicosia, Larnaca and Limassol, where
Armenian children are taught the Armenian language and history
and receive religious education. The government also sponsors the
activities of various cultural, youth, charity and sports societies.
Ever since 1963 and 1974, no Armenian hymn has been sung and no
Armenian prayer recited in the abandoned Armenian churches in
the occupied part of Cyprus. No priest, not even any member of
the Armenian community, had been allowed access to these religious
shrines, until the partial lifting of restrictions in crossing to the
occupied northern part of Cyprus in April 2003. This enabled members
of our community to visit the occupied churches located in Nicosia,
Famagusta and the Sourp Magar Monastery.
With mixed feelings, we have visited these sites to witness the effect
of three decades of neglect, abandonment and sadly, vandalism.
Unfortunately, the regime in the occupied north does not recognise
the ownership status of the Armenian Church on these sites, and
consequently we are denied the right to repair the wounds of time
that these places of worship bear and cannot practice worship in them.
Only Armenians are subject to restrictions in the free right to
worship, unlike Greek-Orthodox, Maronites, Latins and Anglicans.
In the past few years, the Armenian Church has been successful
in persuading the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), to
undertake the study, planning and financing of the restoration of
the Armenian church and complex in the now occupied Armenian Quarter
of Nicosia. The restoration process will primarily serve to save the
frail complex from further structural deterioration, and we are hopeful
that once completed, it will also be restored as a place of worship.
Under UN protection, our community has twice so far been allowed
to hold pilgrimages to the Monastery of Sourp Magar, on the First
Sunday of May in 2007 and 2009. The date was symbolic, as it coincided
with the traditional feast of the Monastery, but the pilgrimage and
subsequent assembly in the desecrated church of the Monastery 4 fell
short of the religious ceremonies that were performed during that
day prior to the Turkish invasion of 1974.
I have tried to give a picture of the life through the centuries of
the Armenian Church on the island of Cyprus. This short historical
overview is descriptive of the fate of the Armenian Church, as guardian
and leader of the Armenian People throughout history. A Church with
a mission and a flock, but often left without places of worship,
often persecuted and oppressed, but always able to survive and carry
on with its mission. In our case, we have survived and flourished over
and over again as a community because of the strong will of our people
to survive and the good will of the leadership and people of Cyprus.
And I end by indicating in a pictorial way the contrasts and
contradictions within this small island which we all call our common
home:
A flourishing Church with well-attended places of worship and an active
flock practicing full freedom of worship in the government-controlled
part, and
Centuries' old abandoned and desecrated shrines, void of sanctity
and empty of flock, where entry regulations are imposed, customs
checks performed and free practice of one's faith is disallowed on
the Turkish-occupied part.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress