Antelias 22 February 2017. On Tuesday 21 February in the morning, two consecutive services were held at the St Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral in Antelias. The “Ghevontiants” feast commemorates the life of the clergy who committed their lives to protect the Armenian people and their Christian faith.

After the prayers, the members of the brotherhood of Cilicia Catholicosate and the married priests of the Diocese of Lebanon gathered at the conference hall of the Cilicia Museum to reflect on the vocation of priesthood in current times. The Very Reverend Vaghinag Meloyan delivered the keynote address on the theme “The True Shephard.” Rev Boghos Tinkjian continued with the topic, “The relationship between the Shephard and the Flock.” Following the question-answer and discussion period, Rev Shahé Panossian, Prelate of the Diocese of Lebanon, concluded the session by reminding the audience that the true vocation of the “Ghevontiants priests lay in their unconditional service to the people and the church even at the cost of martyrdom.

In all the Dioceses of the Catholicosate of Cilicia, the Feast of “Ghevontiants” is also a time to reflect on the vocation of priesthood in current times.