2012 YEAR OF THE ARMENIAN BOOK

11/13/2011 

On Sunday 13 November 2011, following the Holy Liturgy, His Holiness Aram I inaugurated the 33^rd Annual Armenian Book Fair. The fair exhibits major works published in Armenia and the Diaspora on language, music, arts, history and literature.

In his message, Catholicos Aram I said, “the titles exhibited in this tent are evidence of a living language responsive to current thought. As I watch students and parents buying books, I remain assured that along with the Armenian schools the Armenian family is the guardian of our rich intellectual heritage. He then continued, “UNESCO has declared Yerevan as 2012 City of Armenian Books; I am declaring 2012 the Year of Armenian Books for all our people.”

“TAKING THE CHURCH TO THE PEOPLE”:

THE TITLE OF THE LATEST BOOK OF HIS HOLINESS ARAM I

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Click here to view a few pages taken from the book

This timely book has been published through the generous contribution of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation. The book prepares the ground for the forthcoming pastoral visit of His Holiness Aram I to the United States of America. The concerns the Catholicos highlights apply both to Armenia and the Diaspora. In his introduction His Holiness Aram I writes, “I chose this title because the Church is the people.”

The book consists of three parts. In the first part, Catholicos Aram I describes the nature of the church, its mission and its institutional expressions, including the parish, the dioceses and the wider Armenian community in Armenia and the diaspora. While describing the organization of each, he proposes ways in which they should be renewed.

In the second part the Catholicos identifies the core issues that the Armenian Church is currently facing. He starts with the Bible as the foundation of Christian faith and its interpretation; he then discusses the family, the school and Christian education. At the end of this section, His Holiness Aram I explains the meaning of the term ‘people of God’ and explains why Armenian women, youth and children, who have been marginalized in the Church and all community organizations, should participate in building their communities.

In the final part of the book, the Catholicos includes certain pastoral letters and messages that he has previously addressed to youth in order to prompt a meaningful dialogue with them.

The book is a basic reader for all Armenians who want to learn about the Armenian Church and its faith, mission and organization. It is an invitation to the people in Armenia and the Diaspora to equip themselves with the legacy of the past and build Armenian communities responsive to the challenges of globalization. Finally, it is a guide to Being the Church as the people of God both in Armenia  and Diaspora.

ARMS WIDE AROUND US—UNDERSTANDING UNITY: A JOURNEY OF FAITH, HOPE AND VISION: THE ECUMENICAL JOURNEY OF HIS HOLINESS ARAM I

(A REVIEW)

                                                                                    Arsen Danielian, LL.D., Esq.

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"A JOURNEY OF FAITH, HOPE AND VISION"

His Holiness Aram I

As the title of the book collated by His Holiness Aram I suggests, A Journey of Faith, Hope and Vision:  The Ecumenical Journey of His Holiness Aram I, this volume of autobiographical writings traces the development of the author within the aims and principles of the ecumenical movement.  In short, the ecumenical movement, since its inception, has been fueled by the energy of visionaries who believed “that the churches’ quest for unity could be enhanced only by bringing together different streams of ecumenical expressions under one umbrella” (Forward, p. I).  The forward to the book goes on to explain, the Armenian Church has been ecumenical since its inception. 

In the opening passage of the volume, the author reflects on his own life and remembers the salient moments of his own ecumenical journey, marking the beginning of this journey to the time, when he was a young seminarian in the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia in Antelias, Lebanon in the early 60’s.  There His Holiness witnessed the efforts at unity, as people from different churches gathered to pray and reflect together. He writes “[t]his very fact of togetherness affected me profoundly” (emphasis in original,

p. 1).

A Journey of Faith, Hope and Vision is structured as a series of titled subsections.  Each of these sub-sections are relatively brief, and do not classify as traditional chapters.  Rather, as I read through the volume, these sections struck me as ruminations on a variety of topics, both historical as well as personal and autobiographical in nature.  A separate section in the volume (which closes the work), offers testimonials from prominent religious leaders and scholars on the importance of the work, and the contributions of His Holiness Aram I to the energies of the ecumenical movement itself.

Although the current volume is a compilation of the personal account of a small group of prominent ecumenists, overall, the work is structured by the phases of His Holiness’ ecumenical journey, as described by his previously published works and speeches, indeed his memories. At times, the reader might get the feeling, that they are in the presence of His Holiness as he processes through the evolution of the ecumenical movement to this day, and at the end of the volume, reflects on the future of the movement in a dynamic world. The reader almost gets the feeling that His Holiness is “thinking out loud,” as the saying goes, before the reader.  This aspect of the work, is one of the unexpected pleasures of the book: the sense of immediacy that His Holiness is able to create with the reader, through his writing.

In effect, one might think of the book as a collage, as within the pages there are  myriad voices.  However, these voices do not speak in isolation, but rather to each other, to the individual reader, as well as to the larger community of mankind.  Interestingly enough, the volume physically resembles a collage as well, since the individual pages are almost always composed of text as well as photographs—both historical and personal in nature—of the life journey of His Holiness.  Rarely is there a page that does not contain a photograph; indeed, at times, the reader might think S/he has been privileged and been allowed a glimpse into a personal photo album of His Holiness.  Although one might be tempted to be lost in the photographs, or read the various sections sporadically, not methodically from start to finish (a list of subjects addressed by the volume is presented at the end), the reader will find that there is a logical structure at work which addresses the larger themes inherent to the ecumenical movement.  These themes emerge out of the subsections, and lend coherence to the journey that is traced by His Holiness.  I identify these larger topics in the passages that follow, and present a brief summary of each.

Unity

This concept of unity, as it is embraced and theorized and understood by the ecumenical movement, is one of primary interest to the aims of the volume.  Furthermore, the evolution of that concept, as traced by the book, is expressed in myriad forms throughout the volume, and various topics that enable such a conceptualization, becomes a subject of critical inquiry.  In fact, the titular references to several of the sub-sections of the book, have the word unity in the title:  “Visible Unity,” “Unity and Mission,” and “Identity: A Source of Unity and Division.”

As stated in the volume, “[u]niformity is alien to the Christian faith” (p. 25).  But, as the text would suggest, this is the very essence of the ecumenical struggle for unity.  As this particular reflection continues, we read: “Our vision of unity is ‘unity in diversity and diversity in unity’” (p. 25).  This inherent duality in the ecumenical mission, is further discussed in the text as an essential quality of the identity of the faithful themselves.  The reader might be surprised at the level to which the text engages in the complexities of identity in our contemporary world.  As one of the contributors to the volume writes: “If we limit our choice to either assimilation or rejection, we fail to develop an integrated understanding of multiple identities.  … A blind sense of identity makes us the prisoners of ourselves” (p. 79).  

Thus we can see, that the title of the latter section in that list, “Identity: A source of Unity and Division,” also takes on a critical importance, as it seems to me, that much of the volume is concerned with the notion of ‘unity’ as that concept is mediated by the converse dynamic of division, and even further, how such a dynamic plays out in a very complex world.  To his credit, the words that we have on ‘unity” as a theological concept and material aim, from His Holiness Aram I, do not remain within the discrete province of religious theocracy or history, but rather take the discussion to the larger province of culture. 

Culture

Once again, the individual titles of many of the subsections in the volume, reiterate the emphasis on ‘unity’ as it plays out in the larger world and in the lives of people.  There is a continual understanding of a “beyond” an actual, alive, “out there” that lies outside the discrete confines of the proverbial ‘church walls’.  Consider, for example, the following sub-sections: “For a Church Beyond its Walls,” “Catholicity and Local-Universal,” “Orthodoxy in a New World Context,” “Faith and Order Before New Horizons”.  Even beyond such an attempted understanding of a dynamic and living faith, A Journey of Hope, Faith and Vision, engages the immediacy of many of the contemporary, cultural crisis that plays out (indeed, is playing out) in our world today.  Subsections such as “Faith and Order Before New Horizons,” “Cultures in Crisis,” “Overcoming Violence by Combating Intolerance,” and “Living as Neighbors” bear witness to the immediacy of living culture and the ways in which concepts such as faith, tolerance and unity are processed by human beings, of all faiths and persuasions, in such an arena. 

The contributors to the volume, as well as the words of Aram I himself, reveal His Holiness’ acute understanding of the ecumenical movement as it is positioned in the 21^st century.  Again, what may be surprising for the reader, is the level of complexity engaged in the volume for dealing with the tangled realities of our living world.  No longer can we rely on simplistic binaries that had obtained, for example, during the cold war: the fight between communism and democracy, or even the contemporary fictional divisions we continue to create, such as seeing the world divided between ‘those terrorists (and ‘terrorist nations’), and a mythical ‘us’.  His Holiness is to be commended for resisting such simplistic and unproductive binaries, that only disrupt the innate unity of human beings in destructive ways.  As the forward to the volume suggests, “His [His Holiness’] engagement with the Islamic world and the interfaith movement in exchange and dialogue is broadening and deepening his concept of ecumenism …” (p. v).

A Vision for the Future

The last two sections of the book entitled: “Is Another World Possible?” and “A Journey of Faith, Hope and Vision” (echoing the title of the book), offer ruminations on the future.

In this part of the volume, one could fairly say that His Holiness engages his vision of the future, and he lets his visionary angels fly!  As he reminds us, the church is the earthly representation of the possibility of God’s transformation of the world, “therefore,” he concludes, through belief, “another world is possible” (p. 105).  His Holiness goes on to provide, what we might call a series of “guidelines” (although they are doctrines of his faith in humanity as well), that would enable this ‘other world’: Another world would be possible when churches stopped insisting on their separateness; when might does not oppress right; when nations combat injustice, poverty and racism in all its forms (p. 105).  His Holiness sums up his ‘Journey of Faith, Hope and Vision’, by offering what he calls his ecumenical “commandments”, which defines, for him, what being ecumenical means, namely: engaging in a common mission and diakonia; praying, working, suffering, sharing and witnessing together; perceiving that our essential identity is not in those matters that distinguish us; affirming our diversity at the same time transcending them through Christ; being a church that fulfills its missionary realities; and being committed to, and responsibly involved in a common journey of faith and hope.

            In a volume that is a compilation of the words of multiple writers, the reader can sometimes feel overwhelmed by competing voices, even though they may be addressing similar issues.  Such is not the case with A Journey of Faith, Hope and Vision.  For in this case, the ecumenical journeys of the various authors are ultimately guided and structured by the voice of His Holiness himself.  And interestingly, such an approach actually reiterates the essential message of Aram I himself, that in our diversity lies unity.  Although the contributions compiled in the volume trace individual and diverse journeys, a common faith and mission in their quest for unity clearly emerges from that diversity.

            Another aspect of the volume that was of particular interest and value for this reader, was the way in which the text manages to engage personal visions of faith and/as unity, in universal ways.  As I mentioned before, the book is consciously aware of the material world, with all its problems and complexities, in which any act of faith must occur, and indeed be redeemed. This book does not turn away from those realities to articulate an alternative reality in which faith is easy, and God’s vision is but a wish away.  In fact, the volume continually reiterates the hard work that lies before us, if we are to achieve the kind(s) of unity that His Holiness believes is possible.  The reader is reminded, in no uncertain terms, that our individual ‘cultures’ need not separate us.  In fact, when the concept of ‘culture’ is often used as an euphemism for that which marks us as ‘different’, the volume insists that an understanding of diverse cultures enables unity.

            Because of the reasons above, the present volume invites a readership beyond those interested in matters of faith, or even more specifically in the ecumenical movement or the role that the Armenian church has played in such a movement.  The message of inclusion and understanding that pervades the volume, makes it a work that many a reader can gain insight from.  And this generous invitation to the reader, offered by the volume, is made possible through the unique voice of His Holiness that comes through in the pages.  From the very beginning of his ecumenical journey, as a young seminarian in Lebanon, Aram I was concerned with those qualities which bring human beings together, as opposed to those that separate us—‘unity in diversity’ as this reflective work advocates.  And the tenacity with which His Holiness has pursued this vision of unity—both on the level of faith, as well as material activism—makes him a truly unique figure not just among the faithful, but in our world itself.

TO CELEBRATE THE 2011 YEAR OF THE ARMENIAN CHILD,

THE CATHOLICOSATE OF CILICIA PRODUCES A KARAOKE DVD WITH ARMENIAN CHILDREN’S SONGS

On Palm Sunday, the Catholicosate released a Karaoke DVD reproducing 17 old and new Armenian children’s songs, with the backup singer ten-year old Nayira. The highlighted lyrics of the songs on the screen, will help the children to sing the songs. The DVD also includes the “Cilicia” anthem of the Catholicosate and a hymn honoring the Catholicos. These two songs are sung by the faithful after all major church gatherings.

THE NEW TESTAMENT AND PSALMS RECORDED ON DVD AND MP3

THE NEW PROJECT OF THE CATHOLICOSATE OF CILICIA

A new series of recordings, entitled “Let us Listen to the Word of God,” has just been completed by the Communication Department of the Catholicosate. The project is sponsored by two Deacons, Mark Shirinian and Raffi Der Simonian. The aim of the current recordings is to make the New Testament and the Psalms fully accessible to individuals and groups.

By supplementing the daily church services and Bible readings established by Early Church Fathers, this new resource enriches the spiritual and meditative experience of Armenians.

For more information click here

"A JOURNEY OF FAITH, HOPE AND VISION"

His Holiness Aram I

Click here to read a review of the book by Arsen Danielian, LL.D., Esq.

This book is composed of two parts. In the first part, the phases of the ecumenical journey of His Holiness Aram I are described by excerpts taken from his published books, speeches, articles and photos. The second part includes the personal account of a small group of prominent church leaders and ecumenists who accompanied the ecumenical journey of Catholicos Aram I in the past forty years. Apart from being faithful witnesses of the ecumenical movement, the contributors represent the different confessions and geographic regions.

The book is published by the Ecumenical Relations' Committee of the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia. The Foreword is written by Teny Pirri-Simonian, on behalf of the Committee and the Introduction by Dr. K. M. George.

List of Subject:

•     ECUMENISM: A QUALITY OF BEING CHRISTIAN

•     ETRE CHRETIEN, C'EST UN COMBAT SPIRITUEL

•     UNDERSTANDING THE TRUE NATURE OF THE CHURCH

•     FOR A CHURCH BEYOND ITS WALLS

•     THE EMERGENCE OF ECCLESIO-CENTRIC ECUMENISM

•     CATHOLICITY AD LOCAL-UNIVERSAL

•     NEW WAYS OF BEING CHURCH

•     MISSION: THE ESSE OF THE CHURCH

•     CATHOLICITY: A CALL FOR A RENEWED MISSIONARY ENGAGEMENT

•     CONTESTUALIZATION OF MISSIO DEI

•     VISIBLE UNITY: A GREAT CHALLENGE BEFORE THE CHURCHES

•     CONCILIAR FELLOWSHIP" A MODEL OF UNITY

•     UNITY AND MISSION ARE INTERRELATED

•     DIAKONIA IS PARTICIPATION IN GOD'S SALVATION

•     THE ECUMENICAL MOVEMENT AT THE CROSSROADS

•     ORTHODOXY IN A NEW WORLD CONTEXT

•     WCC-ROMAN CATHOLIC COLLABORATION

•     THE ARMENIAN CHURCH BEYOND THE 1700th ANNIVERSARY

•     WCC: A GLOBAL FELLOWSHIP OF CHURCHES

•     FAITH AND ORDER BEFORE NEW HORIZONS

•     A FIRM ATTACHMENT TO THE MIDDLE EAST

•     REFORMATION: A CONTINUOUS PROCESS

•     CULTURES IN CRISIS

•     FOR A TEHOCENTRIC HUMANIZATION

•     OVERCOMING VIOLENCE BY COMBATING INTOLERANCE

•     LA VERITE EFFRAIE MAIS RECONCILIE

•     CONFESSING SINE QUA NON FOR FORGIVING

•     POWER AS A DOMINATING AND LIBERATING FORCE

•     TOWARDS NEW ECO-THEOLOGICAL PARADIGMS

•     MULTILATERALISM

•     IDENTITY: A SOURCE OF UNITY AND DIVISION

•     A VISION OF TRUE PEACE

 •    CHALLENGES FACING RELIGIONS

•     LIVING AS NEIGHBOURS

•     SALIENT FEATURES OF CHRISTIAN-MUSLIM RELATIONS

•     THE LEGACY OF THE 20th CENTURY FOR THE ECUMENICAL MOVEMENT

•     YOUTH: THE GENERATOR OF A NEW COURSE IN ECUMENISM

•     IS ANOTHER WORLD POSSIBLE?

•     A JOURNEY OF FAITH, HOPE AND VISION

List of contributors:  His All Holiness Bartholomew, His Holiness Ignatius I Iwas, His Beatitude Daniel, His Eminence Card. Walter Kasper, Dr. Emilio Castro, Dr. Konrad Raiser, Dr. Samuel Kobia, His Grace Bishop Heinz Joachim Held, His Grace Dr. K.G. Hammar, Dr. Aharon Sapsezian, Dr. Norman Shanks, Dr. Zacharias Mar Theophilus, Justice Sophia, Dr. Setri Nyomi, Dr. Peter Lodberg, Dr. Jonas Jonson, Dr. Peter C. Bouteneff, Dr. John B. Taylor, Dr. George Tsetsis, Dr. Clifton Kirkpatrick, Dr. Lewis S. Mudge, Dr. paul A. Crow, Dr. Dwain C. Epps, Dr. Diane C. Kesslerv≤ Dr. Fernando Enns, Dr. Angelique Walker-Smith, Dr. Reinhild Traitler, Dr. Munib A. Younan, Dr. Rolf Koppe, Dr. Alan Falconer, Dr. Ninan Koshy, Dr. Thomas F. Best, Dr. Wolfgang Huber, Dr. Ishmael Noko, Mr. Gabriel Habib, Dr. Leopoldo J. Niilus, Dr. Günther Gassmann, Dr. Hans Gerny, Dr. Hector Mendez, Dr. Joan Brown Campbell.

“LET US CHERISH OUR ANCESTRAL GOLDEN TREASURE, THE ARMENIAN BOOK”

Declared Aram I during the opening of the Book Fair

10/31/2010

On Sunday 31 October 2010, after the Holy Liturgy, His Holiness Aram I, the clergy and the seminarians, accompanied by the faithful walked in procession towards the pavilion for the official opening of the Book Fair.

After cutting the ribbon, His Holiness Aram I invited Armenians to continue treasuring the print literature. He said, “current technologies are discouraging people from reading printed materials and making our functional language irrelevant. Many people, including clergy, teachers and students have lost the full grasp of the richness of our language. We established the annual event of ‘Month of Armenian Books and Literature’ to encourage our people to read in Armenian, to keep remembering the ‘Golden Treasures’ of our forefathers, and continue to be inspired by those values. Technology offers many possibilities to our young generation, however, that should never be at the cost of denying our own books and literature.”

The annual Book Fair will be exhibiting old and new publications in Armenian from the Diaspora, the printing house of the Catholicosate as well as works of individual authors.

THE “PREFACE” TO HAWATOV KHOSTOVANIM [“WITH FAITH I CONFESS”]

BY ST. NERSES THE GRACIOUS (1102-1173)*

Translated by Abraham Terian

ADMONITORY PREFACE TO THE PRAYER WRITTEN BY LORD NERSES

THE BROTHER OF CATHOLICOS GRIGOR OF THE ARMENIANS

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A prayer of every Christian, to the old and the young, which all ought to learn and to teach one another: priests to the people, fathers to sons, mothers to daughters, and friend to friend. And they should pray using this [prayer] five times a day, kneeling down twelve times at the hour [of prayer], that is: on the morning, at noon, in the afternoon, in the evening and when retiring. But if one becomes slothful and lazy to pray five times, let him pray four times, or three times, or two times, or once a day; at least to realize that one is a Christian, and to come to know oneself that he is a creature of God and worshiper of Him. And if one is slow to learn every word of the prayer (there are those who learn demonic songs with much eagerness), let him learn half of it or less. If they were to learn three of its stanzas and to pray kneeling down three times at the hour [of prayer], it would be acceptable to God. But if any Christian is indifferent about learning and praying this, he should be rebuked and [deemed] as of the company of the Gentiles. Those who teach this prayer to others shall not succumb even in war, much less in peace.

As for our people, they never mention the name of God outside a place of worship, for they do not care about the orders of prayer as befits worshipers of God; rather, they prefer vain talk over prayer. And if at times some were to come to pray before the priest, they either stand with their mouths shut or chatter with one another; for they neither know the words of prayers nor allow the priests to concentrate on psalms and worship. For this reason we wrote this prayer in simple and clear words, so as to be easily understood, for the dull are slow to understand. In not too many words, it has twenty-four stanzas, in accordance with the hours of day and night and the number of prophets, and it is conceptually powerful – since it encompasses more than the needs for which we petition God.

And we offer it to our people to learn, that every Christian may learn this. And wherever they meet at the hour of prayer, they may speak with God through it – whether in church or at home, whether at rest or at whatever work, or when traveling. And all those who learn it and pray attentively, with a passionate heart and with tears, they shall have every request written in it fulfilled to them in life as well as after death. But those who despise it and neither learn nor pray, they shall themselves see the harm done to themselves. We have exhausted our reasons for coming up with this prayer – so that they will no longer make excuses that “we don’t know a prayer’s words, therefore we don’t pray”. Let such people know that Satan makes no greater effort to prevent our various acts of benevolence as [he does to prevent] prayer, for he knows that only through prayer he is chased away from us and God comes to dwell in us. We shall therefore ask the benevolent God to open the eyes of your minds, that you may willingly learn and pray this, and be loved of God.

And when you pray, remember Grigor the Catholicos of the Armenians and his brother Nerses, the author of this prayer, before Christ. And those of you who copy this prayer in writing, copy also these words of admonition. And those who copy this shall be registered in the book of eternal life. And those who shall learn and pray shall receive mercy from Christ. Those who teach their friends shall be rewarded by God. And those who copy it, let them not confuse any letter or word, departing from the original copy, or omit [anything] when copying, lest the words become distorted. Rather, let all [copies] be alike, whenever copied. As for those not skilled in lettering, let them give it to those trained in orthography to copy.

Glory to Christ, forever. Amen.

__________________________

*The Armenian text of this rarely encountered preface is found in several ancient manuscripts, and in print at the end Girk’ Saghmosats’ Dawt’i [The Psalms of David] (Jerusalem: St. James Press, 1873), pp. 341-344.

LISTENING TO THE BIBLE ON CD

THE NEW PROJECT OF THE CATHOLICOSATE OF CILICIA

The first series of CD with oral readings of the Bible has just appeared. The CDs include readings of the four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

The project was implemented with the blessings of His Holiness Aram I by two former graduates of the Seminary in Antelias, now residing in Fresno California, Deacons Mark Shirin and Raffi der Simonian. The goal of the project is to record the whole Bible on CD.

Mark Shirin and Raffi der Simonian decided to initiate this project in order to make the Bible available to people who do not have the time to read the Bible, pray or meditate regularly.

“THE CONFISCATION OF ARMENIAN PROPERTIES... by the Turkish Government said to be abandoned”

by Dr. Kevork K. Baghdjian

Translated and Edited by Dr. A. B. Gureghian

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This book is the English version of the original one, in French, authored by Dr. Baghdjian, which investigates in great detail the juridical aspect of the question related to the confiscation of Armenian properties by Turkey following the Armenian genocide of 1915.

The important topic analyzed by Dr. Baghdjian is believed to be highly relevant to an eventual resolution of the Armenian nation’s financial and territorial claims from Turkey, i.e., a subject of crucial importance in the years ahead.

The publication of this book was made possible through the contributions from the K. Babikian Foundation of the Armenian Catholicossate of Cilicia. 

ST. NERSĒS THE GRACIOUS AND CHURCH UNITY

- A New book in English by His Holiness Aram I -

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Because of its unique political, cultural and ethnic environment, the Cilician period of Armenian history presented the Armenian people with new horizons, perspectives, opportunities and concerns. The impact of this pluralist environment can be clearly seen in almost all aspects and spheres of Armenian life, including the Armenian Church. Church unity became one of the core issues and challenges facing the Armenian Church. The efforts towards unity (1165-1173) conducted by Catholicos Saint Nerses the Gracious, the Ecumenical Patriarch Michael and Byzantine Emperor Manuel are of critical importance within the broader context of the history of the church in the East. In this book, which was written as a dissertation for the degree of S.T.M. in 1974, His Holiness Aram I spells out the complex nature of church unity in its theological, ecclesiological, political  and ecumenical implications. Hence, this study may significantly help the modern ecumenical movement in its continuous striving for visible unity. Further, it could open a new dimension in the context of bilateral theological dialogue among the Oriental Orthodox and Eastern  Orthodox   Churches.

His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Holy See of Cilicia, is an internationally known spiritual leader and ecumenical figure. He served for two terms (1991-2005) as Moderator of the World Council of Churches. Since 2006 he has been a honorary president of the World Religions for Peace and a president of the Middle East Council of Churches.

BOOK LAUNCH DEDICATED TO ARMENIAN GENOCIDE IN ARABIC

06/11/2010 

Friday 11 June 2010, under the auspices of His Holiness Aram I, the book launch on Armenian Genocide in Arabic took place in the presence of a large audience.

His Grace Bishop Norayr Achekian welcomed the guests and reminded them of the Catholicosate of Cilicia’s commitment to historical truth and the Armenian Genocide.

Following the introduction, the author Dr. Zahreddine took the floor. He said that the book was an expression of his respect to the Armenian people and the product of his long commitment to human rights and justice. The author thanked the Catholicosate in the person of His Holiness Aram I for sponsoring the publication of the book.

At the end of the ceremony, after a short cultural programme, Archbishop Komitas Ohanian read the message of His Holiness Aram I in Arabic, in which the Catholicos wrote: “This book in Arabic will be adding to the historical facts that confirm the Armenian genocide, and which the international community keeps denying by condoning impunity.”  

PRESENTATION OF THE FACSIMILE OF

THE BOOK OF LAMENTATIONS OF ST.GREGORY OF NAREG

05/27/2010

On Thursday 27 May 2010, His Holiness Aram I presided over the ceremony presenting to the public the facsimile of the manuscript of the “Book of Lamentations” by St. Gregory of Nareg written in 1173, in Cilicia. The manuscript that is currently at St. Mashdotz National Library in Erevan (Armenia) was reproduced through the financial support of Mr. Gabriel Chemberjian and his wife Dr. Angel Chemberjian.

The Director of the National Library Mr. Hratchia Tamrazian was the guest speaker. Mr. Tamrazian spoke of the deep spirituality of St. Gregory the monk and the way he transmits his spirituality through the Book. Mr. Tamrazian also spoke of the exceptionally beautiful miniatures in the book, which reflects the unique art form developed in Cilicia.

After thanking the sponsoring couple for making this limited edition of facsimile available to Armenian families, His Holiness Aram I declared that the income from the sale of this reproduction would become the basis of a new ‘Fund for the Seminary’.

The evening was concluded by a cultural evening during which the seminary students recited the poem His Holiness Aram I had written on the occasion of the 100^th anniversary of the birth of Gregory of Nareg.

“GIVING MEANING TO LIFE THROUGH VALUES”,

A NEW BOOK IN ARMENIAN BY HIS HOLINESS ARAM I

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The latest book in Armenian by His Holiness Aram I, entitled “Giving Meaning To Life Through Values”, has just appeared. As the Catholicos writes in his introduction, “the book reflects the pastoral concern of a Church Leader”. In the book, His Holiness invites the reader to reflect upon moral and ethical values; it is both a message for a meaningful life and a challenge for transformation. The book was sponsored by the Gulbenkian Foundation.

The book provides a framework for Armenians in the 21^st Century. In its 492 pages and eight sections, His Holiness explores the following themes: living a God-centered life, seeking spiritual values, following the path of service - the path to faith and love, affirming rights and demanding compensation, nurturing gospel values, working for human development – the axis of the Armenian Community, and facing the challenges to staying Christian Armenian.

SPIRITUAL HYMNS OF HOLY WEEK OF THE

ARMENIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH ON CD AND BOOK

Each year during the Great Lent, the faithful deepen their spiritual journey through the centuries old hymns of the Armenian Church. Recently, 8 CDs were released, which included spiritual hymns of the church starting with the Raising of Lazarus, including Palm Sunday, the Holy Week and concluding with Easter Sunday celebrations. Two former graduates of the Seminary, Deacons, Mark Shirin and Raffi Der Simonian sponsored the project.

The CDs were produced in harmony with the music book published in Antelias in 1991. The book and the CDs are meant to become resources in religious education classes, for church choirs and other church activities. The book and most importantly the CDs are expected to communicate the spirituality of the church to the faithful and accompany them in their daily lives.

HIS HOLINESS ARAM I ANNOUNCES THE BEGINNING OF A NEW SERIES OF PUBLICATIONS IN ANTELIAS

03/17/2010 

“Deepening The Communion With Our Church Fathers” is the title of the new series of publications of the Catholicosate. These new books will include the theological writings and interpretative works of Armenian Church Fathers translated from classical Armenian into modern Armenian. “Archbishop Sempat Lapadjian Fund” of the Catholicosate will sponsor the project. The aim of this project is to make available the Patristic literature of the Armenian Church to scholars and the laity who cannot read classical Armenian. When announcing the project, His Holiness Aram I said: “Our Patristic Literature is an important source of Christian edification of the faithful, and affirmation of the  Spirituality of the Armenian church.

THE FIRST VOLUME OF THE SERIES OF PUBLICATIONS ON THE “ADANA TRAGEDY” APPEARS

During the commemorative events of the Adana massacres, His Holiness Aram I announced the publication and reprinting of documents on the tragedy in a special series. The first volume has just appeared. It is a reprint of the book, Cilician Tragedy, written by Souren Bartevian and published in Constantinople in 1909.

2009 YEARBOOK OF “HASK” ARMENOLOGICAL JOURNAL IS DEDICATED TO ARMENIAN CILICIA

This year’s issue is devoted to the proceedings of the International Conference commemorating the 100^th anniversary of massacres in Adana, organized by His Holiness Aram I. The volume includes documents on the geography, theology, culture, politics and military history of the period, published in their original languages.

The Gulbenkian Foundation made the publication of this volume possible.

HIS HOLINESS ARAM I IN DIALOGUE WITH THE YOUTH

11/21/2009 

Rev. Karnik Koyounian, the parish priest of St. Hagop Church in Montreal, presented His Holiness Aram I with the collection of his dialogues with the youth, published in a book in Armenian, English and French.

The book is a collation of the statements and letters His Holiness Aram I has written to the youth during the past two years in an attempt to respond to their concerns within the framework of ‘being church today’.

Rev. Koyounian said that the book explains to the youth the mission of the Armenian Church today.

THE TRADITIONAL ANNUAL BOOK FAIR OPENS IN ANTELIAS

“AS OF 2010 THE CHURCH WILL ORGANISE PAN-DIASPORA BOOK FAIR”

ARAM I

11/01/2009 

On Sunday November 1 2009, after the Holy Liturgy the clergy and laity walked in procession from the Cathedral Gregory the Illuminator to the big tent erected in the middle of the Courtyard of the monastery housing the Annual Book Fair. Annually, Armenian publishers, organizations, media, producers of DVDs and CDs all over from the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and other regions are invited to exhibit their books, documents, music and other cultural artefacts for a whole month. The Publishing House of the Catholicosate that publishes hundreds of volumes annually sponsors the Book Fair. This event is an occasion to sensitise the Armenian public on the spiritual, literary and cultural achievements of the Diaspora.

In His opening speech His Holiness Aram I welcomed the participating organizations and thanked them for their work in sustaining Armenian language and culture in the Diaspora. He then showed the first print of the book that included essays by Armenian Students in the Diaspora who had won the Essay competition. His Holiness had announced the competition during the Book Fair in 2008. At the end of his speech Catholicos Aram I announced that as of 2010 all the communities in Diaspora would be invited to take part in Book Fairs.

CATHOLICOSATE PUBLISHES SPIRITUAL RESOURCES

TO ACCOMPANY 2009 YEAR OF ARMENIAN YOUTH

07/21/2009 

The declaration by His Holiness Aram I of 2009 as the Year of the Armenian Youth coincided with the crisis in the World Economic Order. Like youth everywhere, Armenian youth are facing the consequences of the credit crisis. Unemployment is a real threat to everyone. Youth are disillusioned with the concept of materialism as a ‘source of happiness,’ and many of them, particularly those in all religious traditions, are seeking spiritual enforcement.

The year of youth in the Armenian Orthodox Church is, therefore, not a declaration of intent; it is a task to be implemented in all dioceses in the diaspora with the cooperation of the clergy, laity and youth. While every century or decade has brought a new challenge to the Armenian Church and faithful, our religious literature, as a relevant source of spirituality, has always accompanied the nation during difficult periods.

The recently published religious education book, “The Road to Heaven,” is a vivid example. The book is a biblical interpretation of the meaning of Christian life. It was written by the scholar, Manouk Gagossian, in Gürün and printed for the fourth time in 1907. The book has been translated from classical Armenian to western Armenian by the young priest, Rev. Fr. Varant Kortmossian.

The Youth Department of the Catholicosate offers “The Road to Heaven” to Armenian youth, hoping that it will help them to understand Christian life and to view their lives from a new perspective.   

THE LATEST VOLUME OF RELIGIOUS EDUCATION TEXTBOOKS

FOR 14 YEAR OLD STUDENTS IS PUBLISHED

07/15/2009 

Two years ago the Religious Council of the Catholicosate endorsed the Project of publishing religious education textbooks for Church related schools and Sunday Schools proposed by His Holiness Aram I. Since then the books for 8 and 12 year olds have appeared. Last week the book for 14-year-old students appeared. It includes introductions to: the Bible, the lives of Saints, the Feasts of the Church, and prayers. The book uses pedagogical approaches that make the topics comprehensible and learning a pleasant experience.

Two more volumes are under publication, those for 6-year and 10-year old students. These two books also include handbooks for the teachers. 

THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF ARMENIA

PRAISES THE ARMENIAN CATHOLICOSATE OF CILICIA

FOR ITS PUBLICATIONS PROJECT

07/10/2009

On 10 July 2009, the Armenian Writers’ Association and the National Library in Erevan jointly organized the book launch of the 68^th Kevork Melidentsi Award winning book published by the Catholicosate of Cilicia. The launch of the book “Orhnerkoutium Medzazkanch” (Glorious Blessings) was held at the Main Hall of the National Library in the presence of more than a hundred members of the Association.

The Director of the Library, who is also a member of the Governing Board of the Association, welcomed the guests and praised the Catholicosate of Cilicia, and particularly His Holiness Aram I for sponsoring the publication of treasures of Armenian literature. He said that the Catholicos was not only publishing manuscripts, but he himself was contributing to the thinking of our time through his writings. He then continued: “In addition to the seventy volumes of literary treasures that the National Library had received, we just added two more books to our collection, “For a Church Beyond its Walls” and “Pour un Monde Transforé” both written by His Holiness.”

Following the speech of the Director, and after the book was introduced by several other speakers, the President of the Writers’ Association thanked the editor of  “Orhnerkoutium Medzazkanch” Sarkis Guiragossian, who had done an excellent job in editing and arranging the book. He described the Lebanese Armenian writer as a bridge builder between Armenian and Diaspora authors. As a sign of their appreciation, he decorated him with the “Hagop Meghabard” prestigious Medallion.

In the end, the members of the Armenian Writers’ Association recommended that “Orhnerkoutium Medzazkanch” be reprinted in Armenia and made available to all teachers of armenian language and literature as a companion to their teaching materials.

KHATCHIK BABIKIAN FOUNDATION FOR PUBLICATIONS LAUNCHES ITS FIRST VOLUME

06/05/2009 

On Friday 5 June 2009, in the evening the Foundation launched its first publication under the auspices of His Holiness Aram I. Mr. Yervant Pamboukian presented the book entitled “Ethnographic Study of the Religious and Cultural Achievements of Armenians within the Turkish Republic (1923-2005), a theses written by Garin Khanlarian from Iran.

After the presentation of the book, His Holiness Aram I thanked the members of the Board for their choice of the work, because he said: “Political Science was the preferred academic disciple of late Khatchik Babikian. Khatchik Babikian had bequeathed the Fund to the Catholicosate in order to promote scientific research on the Armenian people in this field. The current volume sets the precedence for the future work of the Board.

A NEW BOOK IN FRENCH BY HIS HOLINESS CATHOLICOS ARAM I:

“POUR UN MONDE TRANSFORMÉ” (FOR A TRANSFORMED WORLD)

12/24/2008 

This new volume written by His Holiness treats issues pertaining to inter-church and inter-religious dialogue, ecumenism, church and society relations and human rights. Most of the articles included in the book have already appeared in Aram I’s previous volume, “For a Church Beyond Its Walls”. The preface of the book is written by Dr. Jean-Arnold de Clermont, President of the Conference of European Churches. The publication of this volume is made possible through a generous contribution from the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.

Hereunder some excerpts from the last chapter of the book:

Un autre monde est-il  possible?

Un autre monde est possible lorsque les églises articulent concrètement leur fidélité aux impératifs de l'Évangile en détruisant tous “murs de séparation” (Eph. 2:14) et en devenant signe et anticipation de l'unité de l'humanité, au sein de la fragmentation et de la polarisation, lorsqu'ils deviennent un phare d'espérance dans un monde de désespérance et d'incertitude; lorsqu'ils se font l'écho, dans leur vie et leur témoignage, de la voix des sans voix, donnant des moyens aux impuis-sants  et  incarnant  Jésus  Christ  comme  Lumière  et  Vie  du  monde.

Un autre monde est possible lorsque la force ne prime pas le droit, lorsque les religions s'engagent les unes avec les autres dans un dialogue franc et une collaboration étroite; lorsqu'elles s'acceptent et se respectent mutuellement comme partie intégrante d'une seule humanité dans un seul monde; lorsqu'elles rejettent toutes expressions d'exclusion et tout fon-damentalisme, et embrassent la tolérance, consolidant la confiance mutuelle pour bâtir des communautés de diversités réconciliées; lorsqu'elles promouvoient la non-violence et les valeurs morales communes pour soutenir  et  gouverner  la  vie  de  nos  sociétés.

Un autre monde est possible, lorsque les nations luttent contre l'injustice, la pauvreté et le racisme sous toutes leurs formes; lorsqu'elles investissent dans l'éducation plutôt que dans l'armement, dans les droits de l'homme plutôt que dans la sécurité nationale, dans le développement socio-économique plutôt que dans la consommation, dans des politiques de prévention multilatérales plutôt que dans des interventions militaires unilatérales; lorsqu'elles développent une gouvernance globale soutenue par des principes éthiques et par les droits de l'homme; lorsqu'elles travaillent ensemble pour une paix juste et complète enracinée  dans  la  justice.

La transformation du monde appelle à la repentance et au pardon; elle appelle à une réconciliation basée  sur  l'acceptation  de  la  vérité  et  la  restauration  de  la  justice.

Aram I

THE 30^TH ANNIVERSARY OF BOOK EXHIBITION HELD IN ANTELIAS

11/31/2008 

The 30^th annual book fare of the Catholicosate of Cilicia was launched this Sunday in the Catholicosate’s headquarters in Antelias.

Following the Holy Mass in the Cathedral, the procession of Cilician Brotherhood members and Seminary students headed by His Holiness Aram I walked towards the Cilicia Museum’s surroundings, where the exhibition was set up a in huge tent put up for this purpose.

Religious officials, intellectuals, students and book lovers, a large number of believers and journalists attended the opening. The Catholicosate’s Seminary and Sunday School students delivered a beautiful cultural program venerating Armenian culture.

The exhibition includes several publications from Lebanese Armenian and foreign publishing houses, as well as individual authors and publishing houses within the Catholicosate.

In his opening remarks for the event, Lebanese Armenian poet, intellectual and Seminary professor Sarkis Giragossian spoke about the Catholicosate of Cilicia’s cultural mission of the past decades particularly in the field of supporting the publication and promotion of Armenian books.

In his address on this occasion, His Holiness spoke about the commitment Armenians should have towards their cultural values and particularly towards Armenian books. His Holiness stressed that the absence of Armenians from such cultural events is unacceptable and is a sign of their disengagement from their Armenian roots. The Pontiff praised the growing scope of the annual exhibition over time, adding that the preservation of Armenian culture in the Diaspora is an indivisible part of the Catholicosate of Cilicia’s mission. His Holiness remembered that Armenian book fare launched for the first time by the late His Holiness Karekin II of Cilicia, who enthusiastically supported the recurrence of the event year after year.

Referring to the spiritual and intellectual values of Armenians, His Holiness considered the Armenian book to be our spiritual intellectual bread. In a graphical comparison, he spoke about the long queues that used form in front of bakeries, pointing out that the queues in front of the “value” bakeries have started to recede. The number of individuals reading Armenian books and concerned with the state of the Armenian book has decreased.

The Pontiff commended all the organizations and individuals supporting the Armenian book. He pledged that the Holy See of Cilicia will continue its mission with the same commitment not only in Antelias but also in all the dioceses, preserving Armenian cultural and spiritual values and the heritage of our ancestors.

The exhibition showcases spiritual, philosophical, literary, pedagogical books and books on the church, literary criticism, music and culture. The exhibition will remain open until December 21, 2008, from 9 AM in the morning till 7 PM in the evening.

THE CATHOLICOSATE OF CILICIA RELEASES THE DVD

OF THE BLESSING OF MURON

09/01/2008

The Communications Office of the Catholicosate of Cilicia announced today it has released a DVD documenting the historic Blessing of the Muron (Muronorhnek) service held on 7 June 2008 in the Saint Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral in Antelias.

Attending the ceremony performed by His Holiness Aram I were the representatives of the Holy Sees of the Armenian Church- the Catholicosate of All Armenians in Etchmiyadzine, The Orthodox Seat in Jerusalem and the Patriarchate in Istanbul. Also present alongside the Pontiff were the Primates of the Catholicosate of Cilicia and the members of the Cilician Brotherhood.

His Holiness Aram I addressed the entire Armenian nation during his Sermon on this holy occasion, greeting all Armenians worldwide from the Catholicosate’s Antelias headquarters. A huge crowd of believers attended the ceremony in addition to representatives from sister churches, as well as government and diplomatic officers.

Click to see product details.

THE NEW CONTRIBUTION OF THE ANTELIAS PUBLISHING HOUSE:

A UNIQUE VOLUME ON THE ARMENIAN LANGUAGE

04/08/2008 

A new volume on Armenian Literature, “Orhnerkoutyoun Medzaskantchin” was published recently in Antelias as part of “Kevork Melidintsi” Literary Award administered by the Catholicosate of Cilicia. Comprised of 632 pages, the book brings together several works of Armenian literature, including prose, poems and memos.

The volume, published on the occasion of the Year of the Armenian Language, was in press for some time as new writings were being added to it constantly. Works dedicated to the Armenian Language starting from the Golden Age until recent times and authors are included in this comprehensive book, which has been edited by Lebanese Armenian intellectual and teacher of Armenian Language and Literature at the Catholicosate of Cilicia’s Seminary, Sarkis Giragossian. In his introduction to the book, Giragossian engages in a well-written praise of the Armenian Language from the Golden  Age to present times.

Catholicos Aram I’s Pontifical message announcing 2006 as the “Year of the Armenian Language” is printed at the beginning of the book. An article by the Pontiff also looks at the various threats facing Eastern and Western Armenian today with a realistic and analytical approach. In addition to diagnosing the problem, His Holiness proposes solutions in the form of new projects to ensure the healthy survival of the Armenian Language as a precondition for the survival of the Armenian nation itself.

With this book Antelias places a goldmine of Armenian Language in the hands of Armenian teachers, students and the general Armenian public to enjoy and further strengthen their Armenian roots.

Click here to purchase.

ANTELIAS RELEASES CD AND DVD ON

 “SUNRISE AND VESPERS HYMNS”

02/28/2008 

The Christian Education Department of the Catholicosate of Cilicia has published a CD and DVD on “Sunrise and Vespers Hymns” for use during the Great Lent period.

The hymns, written and composed by Saint Nerses Shenorhali and Saint Gregory Naregatsi are a collection of highly popular religious songs that cause great satisfaction to the faithful.

Driven by the concern to preserve the purity of Armenian religious music, the Christian Education Department released these audiovisual materials thanks to the collective efforts of the Cilician Brotherhood members. The DVD also includes the lyrics of the hymns, providing an opportunity for those who would like to learn them through karaoke practices. A video clip has been prepared for one of the hymns with Sunday School children in mind. All the other hymns on the DVD are accompanied by slides of Armenian manuscripts and architectural monuments.

The CD and DVD can be obtained from the Catholicosate of Cilicia’s bookstore in Antelias.

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