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THE MOST IMPORTANT ARMENIAN NATIONAL SYMBOL
Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Aug 20 2013
20 August 2013 - 2:15pm
On August 18, the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) celebrated the
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This is the fourth of the five
great feasts of AAC and the oldest of the seven feasts dedicated to
the Mother of God. On this day, the church consecrates grapes.
According to legend, after the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the
Virgin Mary lived in Jerusalem and visited the grave of her beloved
son for 12 years. During one of the visits to the tomb of Jesus
Christ, the angel Gabriel appeared to her and brought the good news
of her meeting in heaven with her son. The Virgin Mary had reported
the news to her family and to all Christians and bequeathed to be
buried in Gethsemane. Shortly before the death of the Mother of God
all the apostles gathered in her home. Holy Mary bequeathed to the
apostle John to serve holy liturgy and to take the sacrament for
the last time. While the liturgy took place, the apostle John gave
the board to Virgin Mary and asked her to capture her image on it,
so that people using this board were cured of their ailments. Then
the apostles surrounded the bed of a dying Dame. Suddenly, the room
began to shine a divine light, and Jesus Christ himself came down
from heaven, surrounded by angels, and took his mother's soul. Her
body was buried in the cave of the apostles, the entrance to which
was closed by a large stone. The end of the earthly life of St. Mary
is called the "Assumption", not death.
According to tradition, the Apostle Bartholomew, who was absent at
the burial, having returned to Jerusalem, for the last time wanted
to see the Mother of God. The apostles decided to open the entrance
to the cave, so that he could bow to the body of the deceased. When
they took away the stone, they saw an empty cave. The apostles, to
console Bartholomew, gave him a board with Dame's image on it. The
first educator of Armenia brought the board to Armenia and placed
it in a place called Darbnots (forge), where in the future, to honor
the Virgin, a convent and church were founded.
After the liturgy, in the day of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, in
the church the rite of blessing of grapes brought by the parishioners
is committed, and the harvest for the whole year is sanctified. In
Armenia, it is assumed that the grapes can be eaten only after the
consecration of the harvest.
The feast of the Assumption is rooted in pagan times; it inherited
the characteristics of Navasard (Armenian New Year), during which the
people expressed gratitude to the patron of fertility and motherhood,
the goddess Anahit giving her bundles of wheat, symbolizing the
beginning of the harvest. The feast of the Assumption, as well as
Navasard, marks abundance and is celebrated during ripening grapes
on Sunday which is the nearest to August 15.
During the period of paganism and Christianity, together with the
rising of the sun, people prepared for the festival: they sacrificed
animals, covered tables, where there were loads of fruit. All of this
was accompanied by songs, dances and games. During the consecration
people asked the God to bless the grape seed and make the berries
bring people to mental and physical health and allow to atone for sins.
In ancient times, grapes were endowed with divine value. During the
Christian period, Armenian Church has chosen grapes as the subject
of blessing because Christ consecrated wine made of grapes and gave
it to his disciples as a symbol of his blood. It was believed that
the consecrated grapes turn into consecrated wine, and a small part
of already consecrated grapes was stored until the next blessing
ceremony as a symbol of wealth and abundance.
According to the Bible, Noah came out of the ark on Mt Ararat and
planted a vine from the harvest of which he made wine.
According to scientists, the grapes have a certain Christian meaning,
but for the ancient Armenians, they were a symbol of labor, wealth,
prosperity, fertility, and joie de vivre. "This holiday was one of the
most favorite holidays of the Armenian people and enjoyed the greatest
popularity among farmers, as Armenians considered grapes the noblest
of the fruit. The Lord's Son is often compared with the vine. Over
time, this holiday got a Christian coloring and was entrenched in
the church calendar. The ceremony of consecration brought together
notions of work, rest and divine praise. In regions of Armenia this
holiday is also called Grape Easter (Musaler)", anthropologist Samvel
Lazarian says.
Now grapes remain one of the most important elements of national
symbols. It was depicted on the coat of arms of the Armenian Soviet
Socialist Republic, in relief of Armenian churches and on the famous
cross-stones. Since independence, the Armenian national symbolism
has acquired new elements, more attention has been paid to the
interpretation of symbols and the attitude of ancient Armenians to
them. And the symbolism is intertwined with the traditions, which,
along with religion, language and culture, play an important role in
preserving the national identity of a small nation.
http://vestnikkavkaza.net/articles/society/44077.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Aug 20 2013
20 August 2013 - 2:15pm
On August 18, the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) celebrated the
Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This is the fourth of the five
great feasts of AAC and the oldest of the seven feasts dedicated to
the Mother of God. On this day, the church consecrates grapes.
According to legend, after the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the
Virgin Mary lived in Jerusalem and visited the grave of her beloved
son for 12 years. During one of the visits to the tomb of Jesus
Christ, the angel Gabriel appeared to her and brought the good news
of her meeting in heaven with her son. The Virgin Mary had reported
the news to her family and to all Christians and bequeathed to be
buried in Gethsemane. Shortly before the death of the Mother of God
all the apostles gathered in her home. Holy Mary bequeathed to the
apostle John to serve holy liturgy and to take the sacrament for
the last time. While the liturgy took place, the apostle John gave
the board to Virgin Mary and asked her to capture her image on it,
so that people using this board were cured of their ailments. Then
the apostles surrounded the bed of a dying Dame. Suddenly, the room
began to shine a divine light, and Jesus Christ himself came down
from heaven, surrounded by angels, and took his mother's soul. Her
body was buried in the cave of the apostles, the entrance to which
was closed by a large stone. The end of the earthly life of St. Mary
is called the "Assumption", not death.
According to tradition, the Apostle Bartholomew, who was absent at
the burial, having returned to Jerusalem, for the last time wanted
to see the Mother of God. The apostles decided to open the entrance
to the cave, so that he could bow to the body of the deceased. When
they took away the stone, they saw an empty cave. The apostles, to
console Bartholomew, gave him a board with Dame's image on it. The
first educator of Armenia brought the board to Armenia and placed
it in a place called Darbnots (forge), where in the future, to honor
the Virgin, a convent and church were founded.
After the liturgy, in the day of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, in
the church the rite of blessing of grapes brought by the parishioners
is committed, and the harvest for the whole year is sanctified. In
Armenia, it is assumed that the grapes can be eaten only after the
consecration of the harvest.
The feast of the Assumption is rooted in pagan times; it inherited
the characteristics of Navasard (Armenian New Year), during which the
people expressed gratitude to the patron of fertility and motherhood,
the goddess Anahit giving her bundles of wheat, symbolizing the
beginning of the harvest. The feast of the Assumption, as well as
Navasard, marks abundance and is celebrated during ripening grapes
on Sunday which is the nearest to August 15.
During the period of paganism and Christianity, together with the
rising of the sun, people prepared for the festival: they sacrificed
animals, covered tables, where there were loads of fruit. All of this
was accompanied by songs, dances and games. During the consecration
people asked the God to bless the grape seed and make the berries
bring people to mental and physical health and allow to atone for sins.
In ancient times, grapes were endowed with divine value. During the
Christian period, Armenian Church has chosen grapes as the subject
of blessing because Christ consecrated wine made of grapes and gave
it to his disciples as a symbol of his blood. It was believed that
the consecrated grapes turn into consecrated wine, and a small part
of already consecrated grapes was stored until the next blessing
ceremony as a symbol of wealth and abundance.
According to the Bible, Noah came out of the ark on Mt Ararat and
planted a vine from the harvest of which he made wine.
According to scientists, the grapes have a certain Christian meaning,
but for the ancient Armenians, they were a symbol of labor, wealth,
prosperity, fertility, and joie de vivre. "This holiday was one of the
most favorite holidays of the Armenian people and enjoyed the greatest
popularity among farmers, as Armenians considered grapes the noblest
of the fruit. The Lord's Son is often compared with the vine. Over
time, this holiday got a Christian coloring and was entrenched in
the church calendar. The ceremony of consecration brought together
notions of work, rest and divine praise. In regions of Armenia this
holiday is also called Grape Easter (Musaler)", anthropologist Samvel
Lazarian says.
Now grapes remain one of the most important elements of national
symbols. It was depicted on the coat of arms of the Armenian Soviet
Socialist Republic, in relief of Armenian churches and on the famous
cross-stones. Since independence, the Armenian national symbolism
has acquired new elements, more attention has been paid to the
interpretation of symbols and the attitude of ancient Armenians to
them. And the symbolism is intertwined with the traditions, which,
along with religion, language and culture, play an important role in
preserving the national identity of a small nation.
http://vestnikkavkaza.net/articles/society/44077.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress