June 30, 2015

85th Commencement ceremony of the Catholicosate of Cilicia Seminary

23 June 2015. On Monday evening, the graduation ceremony was held in Bikfaya in the presence of members of the brotherhood, family and friends. The Rev. Shenorhk Ashekian, Director of Student Affairs, welcomed the guests to the newly renovated monastery.

After Dean Rev. Torkom Donoyan presented the 85th annual report, he invited the student speaker Rev. Hovaguim Panjarjian to address the gathering. His Holiness Aram I distributed the diplomas. He then spoke of the knowledge and qualification the graduates had gained while preparing for their ministry. He paid tribute to the late Catholicos Sahak II Khabayan, the visionary Catholicos who established the seminary 85 years ago, soon after the Genocide. His Holiness noted that since its establishment, the seminary has not only responded to the spiritual needs of the survivors, but has also helped them overcome temporal issues of survival. He then described the seminary as the temple of hope, the path to discovering God, the means to studying the Bible and entering into communion with the Saints, and the place where students are formed to serve. His Holiness then the thanked the directorate for their commitment and dedication. A cultural programme concluded the ceremony. Tenor Hagop Hadjian, a graduate of the seminary, sang spiritual and folk songs, accompanied by pianist Hasmig Kasparian.

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