| CHRISTMAS
ISSUE
CHRISTMAS
2007
Tomorrow, Friday, January 5, is Christmas Eve and the next day is Christmas,
the day Armenians celebrate the birth and baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Most Prelacy parishes will have services Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Check with your local parish for the exact schedule.
The Prelate, Archbishop Oshagan, will preside over Christmas Eve services
at St. Sarkis Church in Douglaston, New York. On Saturday His Eminence
will officiate at Christmas services at St. Illuminator’s Cathedral
in New York City.
The Vicar, Bishop Anoushavan, will celebrate Christmas Eve and Christmas
Day services at St. Gregory the Illuminator Church in Philadelphia.
The Armenian Church has remained faithful to the original January 6th
date for the celebration of the Nativity and Baptism. Following the Christmas
Divine Liturgy, a special ceremony of the Blessing of the Water (Chrorhnek)
takes place. The cross is immersed in water, which has been blessed with
Holy Oil (Muron), symbolizing the baptism of our Lord. During
the early centuries the baptism ceremony took place, with great splendor,
on the shores of a river. In modern times, especially here in the United
States, the Blessing of the Water service takes place in the church immediately
following the Divine Liturgy. Prayers are said, passages from the Gospel
are read, and the dove-shaped vessel containing Holy Oil is ceremoniously
brought forward and the officiating clergyman pours the Muron into the
basin of water at the altar. The priest dips the cross (symbolizing Jesus)
into the blessed water while reciting special prayers. A member of the
congregation usually serves as the Godfather—a coveted honor. At
the conclusion of the ceremony the faithful come forth to kiss the cross
and take a small portion of the blessed water home.
SUNDAY JANUARY
7 IS MEMORIAL DAY
In the tradition of the Armenian Church the day following each of the
five major feasts (Nativity, Easter, Transfiguration, Assumption, Holy
Cross) is a memorial day. On memorial days the faithful go to the cemetery
to have the graves of their loved ones blessed and to offer prayers for
the souls of the departed. This year the day after Christmas is a Sunday.
On Sunday, January 7, the Prelate will preside over the Divine Liturgy
at Sts. Vartanantz Church in Ridgefield, New Jersey.
PRELATE’S
ANNUAL CHRISTMAS RECEPTION
On Saturday evening, January 6, Archbishop Oshagan will host his annual
Christmas open house reception at the Prelacy offices in New York City,
from 7 to 9 pm. The traditional home blessing will take place.
LIVE TV BROADCAST
OF CHRISTMAS MASS FROM ANTELIAS
The Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation International (LBCI) will broadcast
live via satellite the Christmas Mass presided over by His Holiness Aram
I, Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, from the Cathedral of St.
Gregory the Illuminator in Antelias, Lebanon (3 a.m. EST).
CATHOLICOS
ARAM ISSUES CHRISTMAS MESSAGE
His Holiness Aram I issued his annual Christmas message, “Bethlehem—the
beginning of the New World,” which concentrates on the message of
St. Paul in his letter to the Colossians to forget their old lives and
deeds and become new (Colossians 3:10).
His Holiness ends his Christmas message in the spirit of Bethlehem with
greetings to the President of Armenia, Robert Kocharian, to His Holiness
Karekin II, Catholicos and Supreme Patriarch of All Armenians, to His
Beatitude Archbishop Torkom Manoogian, Patriarch of Jerusalem, to His
Beatitude Archbishop Mesrob Mutafian, Patriarch of Constantinople, to
the Prelates serving the Catholicosate of Cilicia, the members of the
clergy, the lay leadership of the Armenian Church, and all of the faithful
of the Church. “We pray that the eternal light of Bethlehem will
bring warmth to your lives and illuminate your road,” the Catholicos
said.
CATHOLICOS
ARAM AND MEMBERS OF THE BROTHERHOOD
BEGIN NEW YEAR WITH VISITS TO THOSE IN NEED
His Holiness Aram I and members of the Cilician Brotherhood ushered in
the New Year with visits to orphans, patients in hospitals, senior citizens,
and prisoners. Visits were made to the Birds’ Nest orphanage, the
Azounieh Armenian National Sanitarium, and Armenian prisoners in Lebanon
prisons.
2007 IS YEAR
OF THE ARMENIAN LANGUAGE
His Holiness Aram I declared 2007 as the “Year of the Armenian Language.”
In his message His Holiness emphasizes the importance of the Armenian
language as an expression of self-identity, as a keeper of faith and culture,
and as a means of survival. His Holiness goes on to describe the importance
of using the Armenian language accurately, keeping the language pure,
and teaching the language properly.
Starting next week Crossroads will present short anecdotes and interesting
facts about the Armenian language each week in celebration of the “Year
of the Armenian Language.”
A
MINI CHRISTMAS SERMON BY REV. FR. VARTAN KASSABIAN
Just the other day I heard the words of a Christmas song: “So it
is Christmas and where have you gone?” The person who wrote the
words to that song perhaps said it best. Where has Christmas gone? Christmas
is, indeed, a time of not only joy and miracles, but a time to remember
the reasons for those miracles and the unexplainable joy that is beyond
anything the human mind can fathom.
Where are you Christmas? The answer is simple. You, too, have fallen victim
to those who seek to turn our society into a Godless one. As we search
for the true meaning of this most holy of holies we are again reminded
of just how we have become more concerned with political correctness rather
than truth.
Saint Luke tells us, “The truth shall set you free.” Who is
that truth and why do we have such a difficult time searching for it?
The truth is Jesus Christ, and if you stop for a moment to look at the
place where Christ was born you will realize why God chose this site to
bring His only Son into this world of darkness and iniquity, and in that
manger, which although cold and dark, brings light and warmth to the hearts
and souls of those willing to open their hearts.
Where you will not find it, is in a department store, a movie theatre,
or anything that the world has to offer. You will find it in Christ Jesus
who was born for all of us. A Blessed and Merry Christmas.
Rev. Fr. Vartan Kassabian
Pastor, St. Gregory Church, North Andover, Massachusetts
AND FINALLY…
We end with one of our favorite quotes from G. K. Chesterton (1874-1936):
“The object of a new year is not that we should have a new year.
It is that we should have a new soul.”
And, our nomination
for the best quote of 2006, by a spokesman for the Amish in response to
the schoolhouse shooting of young Amish girls in Pennsylvania: “Even
though there’s been this terrible thing happen, we don’t need
to think about judgment, we need to think about forgiveness and going
on.”
DAILY BIBLE
READINGS
Reading for today, Thursday, January 4: “Hence we can confidently
say, ‘The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid; What can man
do to me?” (Hebrews 13:6)
For this week’s Bible readings click
here. |
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CALENDAR
OF EVENTS
January
6—St. Gregory the Illuminator
Church, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, first Episcopal Badarak in Philadelphia
by Bishop Anoushavan Tanielian.
January
6—Sts. Vartanantz Church, Ridgefield, New Jersey, annual
Christmas luncheon hosted by the Ladies’ Guild following church
services on Saturday, January 6. Adults $15; children 12 and under $10.
For reservations/information, 201-943-2950.
January
6—St. Sarkis Church, Douglaston, New York, Christmas party
and special program for Saturday and Sunday school students.
January
28—Annual Membership Meeting, Soorp Khatch Church, Bethesda,
Maryland, at 1 pm.
February
4—St. Sarkis name day, celebrating the patron saint of
the church and requiem service for Archpriest Rev. Fr. Asoghik Kelejian,
St. Sarkis Church, Douglaston, New York.
February
11—General Membership meeting and elections, St. Sarkis
Church, Douglaston, New York.
February
17—St. Gregory Church, North Andover, Massachusetts, Annual
Membership Meeting.
February
18—Poon Paregentan, Eve of Great Lent, International Cuisine
Night, St. Sarkis Church, Douglaston, New York.
March
25—Musical Armenia 2007, Weill Recital Hall, Carnegie Hall,
2 pm. Featured artists: Aleksandr Nazaryan (viola) and Serge Barseghian
(basso).
Items in Crossroads
can be reproduced without permission. Please credit Crossroads as the
source.
Parishes of the
Eastern Prelacy are invited to send information about their major events
to be included in the calendar. Send to: info@armenianprelacy.org
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