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PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Karine Abalyan
Tel: (212) 686-0710; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.armenianchurch-ed.net
December 21, 2012
__________________________________________________ __
CHRISTMAS MESSAGE OF ARCHBISHOP KHAJAG BARSAMIAN
Primate of the Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church of America
A DIFFERENT PATH
Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they
knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests,
they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having
been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own
country by another path. (Matthew 2:11-12 NRSV)
It began with a star: one that had never been seen before in the night
sky, and so was by definition something mysterious and unexpected. To
the wise men, scanning the heavens far to the east of Bethlehem, the
appearance of this new star was a summons to embark on a journey -
although their final destination was something which would reveal
itself only later.
Perhaps it was the wise men's habit of seeking that allowed them to
perceive the star in the first place; to see it as something to
follow, where others missed its significance. But for whatever
reason, they were willing and ready to undertake this unexpected
journey. We can imagine that with the star as their guide, every step
along the way held a special meaning, a sense of anticipation,
precisely because of the mystery awaiting them at the end.
We who are so familiar with the Christmas story know where the wise
men's journey led them: to the infant Jesus Christ. We know from the
Gospel that, finding themselves in our Lord's presence, they knelt in
worship and opened their precious treasures to honor him.
And the Gospel also gives us a fascinating detail, which may resonate
with our own spiritual journeys. After being in Christ's presence,
the wise men were inspired to travel `by another path': a path
different from the one that they would ordinarily have chosen;
different from the one that had led them to Bethlehem. Just as there
had been a special significance in every step towards the star, so too
was there an urgent new meaning in every step of the return journey.
This time their destination was perfectly familiar, but the wise men
would arrive home changed, having taken a different road in response
to their encounter with Christ.
It's an experience many of us can relate to: of being led to some
situation we don't expect, and then realizing that the unexpected
event has changed us - taken us down a new path. My own path took
just such a turn this year, when I led a pilgrimage to one of the most
inspirational spots in historic Armenia: the Church of the Holy Cross
on the island of Aghtamar.
Celebrating the holy badarak at Aghtamar was something I had never
expected to do, given the realities of our time. And yet this summer,
I found that I would have the precious opportunity to do so, and the
sense of anticipation gave new meaning to every step of my pilgrim's
journey towards Aghtamar island.
During the badarak - every badarak - we find ourselves in the presence
of the Living Christ: we are, as it were, in the place of the wise
men, coming before the Lord to worship him. During the badarak at
Aghtamar, that feeling bore down upon me with extra force. And having
had this miraculous encounter, I came away from Aghtamar with new
eyes, seeing new paths open before me, and before all our people.
On my approach to the church, I found myself remembering all the
pilgrims of past ages who had come by the same path to worship there.
I thought of all the churches built by pious Armenians - from the
great monuments of centuries ago, to the sanctuaries that have
populated the world, wherever Armenian Christians have settled to live
and worship together. I thought of the feelings of faith and
foresight, and above all the feeling of love, that every Armenian
Church represents.
These were thoughts of the past. But as we sailed away from Aghtamar
island, my mind was focused on the future, symbolized by the open
horizon which lay ahead on Lake Van - a horizon filled with potential
and hope. I envisioned our communities in America; our miraculous
Republic of Armenia - realities of the present day that the pilgrims
of former generations could not even have imagined. And I wondered to
myself what other miracles the future might hold - new pathways that
we today have not even dreamed of, but that God, in His good time,
will make plain.
Such hopes are very much in the spirit of this season, beginning with
Advent - the time of anticipation - and continuing after our
celebration of Christmas, when we embark on a new year with renewed
life and energy. In the coming year, our Diocese will explore these
ideas through the theme, `Living the Gospel of Christ.' The
life-in-Christ can begin with a spirit of humble seeking, which
ultimately draws us into a deeper, personal encounter with our Lord.
And having had that encounter, we find ourselves changed, and open to
the unexpected new paths that now appear before us.
Like the wise men on the first Christmas, we should approach Christ's
Nativity with a sense of anticipation and excitement over the mystery
that lies ahead. When we reach our destination on January 6 - which
falls this year on the Lord's Day, Sunday - it will be a chance for us
to open the treasures of our hearts before him.
And it can also be a doorway to a new path: a path that may lead us to
familiar places, but that leaves us fundamentally changed, having
experienced the miraculous revelation of Jesus Christ - born in the
most unlikely of places, for the most unexpected and wonderful of
reasons: God's love for mankind. May we carry that precious miracle
in our hearts throughout the coming year, along with the joyous
refrain of the Armenian Church:
Krisdos dzunav yev haydnetzav! Orhnyal eh haydnootiunun Krisdosee!
Christ is born and revealed! Blessed is the revelation of Christ!
With prayers,
Archbishop Khajag Barsamian
Primate
January 2013
# # #
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Karine Abalyan
Tel: (212) 686-0710; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.armenianchurch-ed.net
December 21, 2012
__________________________________________________ __
CHRISTMAS MESSAGE OF ARCHBISHOP KHAJAG BARSAMIAN
Primate of the Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church of America
A DIFFERENT PATH
Entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they
knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests,
they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having
been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own
country by another path. (Matthew 2:11-12 NRSV)
It began with a star: one that had never been seen before in the night
sky, and so was by definition something mysterious and unexpected. To
the wise men, scanning the heavens far to the east of Bethlehem, the
appearance of this new star was a summons to embark on a journey -
although their final destination was something which would reveal
itself only later.
Perhaps it was the wise men's habit of seeking that allowed them to
perceive the star in the first place; to see it as something to
follow, where others missed its significance. But for whatever
reason, they were willing and ready to undertake this unexpected
journey. We can imagine that with the star as their guide, every step
along the way held a special meaning, a sense of anticipation,
precisely because of the mystery awaiting them at the end.
We who are so familiar with the Christmas story know where the wise
men's journey led them: to the infant Jesus Christ. We know from the
Gospel that, finding themselves in our Lord's presence, they knelt in
worship and opened their precious treasures to honor him.
And the Gospel also gives us a fascinating detail, which may resonate
with our own spiritual journeys. After being in Christ's presence,
the wise men were inspired to travel `by another path': a path
different from the one that they would ordinarily have chosen;
different from the one that had led them to Bethlehem. Just as there
had been a special significance in every step towards the star, so too
was there an urgent new meaning in every step of the return journey.
This time their destination was perfectly familiar, but the wise men
would arrive home changed, having taken a different road in response
to their encounter with Christ.
It's an experience many of us can relate to: of being led to some
situation we don't expect, and then realizing that the unexpected
event has changed us - taken us down a new path. My own path took
just such a turn this year, when I led a pilgrimage to one of the most
inspirational spots in historic Armenia: the Church of the Holy Cross
on the island of Aghtamar.
Celebrating the holy badarak at Aghtamar was something I had never
expected to do, given the realities of our time. And yet this summer,
I found that I would have the precious opportunity to do so, and the
sense of anticipation gave new meaning to every step of my pilgrim's
journey towards Aghtamar island.
During the badarak - every badarak - we find ourselves in the presence
of the Living Christ: we are, as it were, in the place of the wise
men, coming before the Lord to worship him. During the badarak at
Aghtamar, that feeling bore down upon me with extra force. And having
had this miraculous encounter, I came away from Aghtamar with new
eyes, seeing new paths open before me, and before all our people.
On my approach to the church, I found myself remembering all the
pilgrims of past ages who had come by the same path to worship there.
I thought of all the churches built by pious Armenians - from the
great monuments of centuries ago, to the sanctuaries that have
populated the world, wherever Armenian Christians have settled to live
and worship together. I thought of the feelings of faith and
foresight, and above all the feeling of love, that every Armenian
Church represents.
These were thoughts of the past. But as we sailed away from Aghtamar
island, my mind was focused on the future, symbolized by the open
horizon which lay ahead on Lake Van - a horizon filled with potential
and hope. I envisioned our communities in America; our miraculous
Republic of Armenia - realities of the present day that the pilgrims
of former generations could not even have imagined. And I wondered to
myself what other miracles the future might hold - new pathways that
we today have not even dreamed of, but that God, in His good time,
will make plain.
Such hopes are very much in the spirit of this season, beginning with
Advent - the time of anticipation - and continuing after our
celebration of Christmas, when we embark on a new year with renewed
life and energy. In the coming year, our Diocese will explore these
ideas through the theme, `Living the Gospel of Christ.' The
life-in-Christ can begin with a spirit of humble seeking, which
ultimately draws us into a deeper, personal encounter with our Lord.
And having had that encounter, we find ourselves changed, and open to
the unexpected new paths that now appear before us.
Like the wise men on the first Christmas, we should approach Christ's
Nativity with a sense of anticipation and excitement over the mystery
that lies ahead. When we reach our destination on January 6 - which
falls this year on the Lord's Day, Sunday - it will be a chance for us
to open the treasures of our hearts before him.
And it can also be a doorway to a new path: a path that may lead us to
familiar places, but that leaves us fundamentally changed, having
experienced the miraculous revelation of Jesus Christ - born in the
most unlikely of places, for the most unexpected and wonderful of
reasons: God's love for mankind. May we carry that precious miracle
in our hearts throughout the coming year, along with the joyous
refrain of the Armenian Church:
Krisdos dzunav yev haydnetzav! Orhnyal eh haydnootiunun Krisdosee!
Christ is born and revealed! Blessed is the revelation of Christ!
With prayers,
Archbishop Khajag Barsamian
Primate
January 2013
# # #