We ask you to keep the Republic of Armenia in your prayers during these challenging days. Let us pray to the Almighty to grant His grace and wisdom upon the leaders and citizens of our nation, and bring them into His light where they will find understanding and reconciliation in their differences and recognize that His road is always the right road toward mutual respect, love, truth, and honor.
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103
rd
ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
COMMEMORATED IN TIMES SQUARE
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Archbishop Oshagan and Bishop Anoushavan attended the annual gathering in Times Square last Sunday marking the 103
rd
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. The annual gathering is sponsored by the Knights and Daughters of Vartan with the co-sponsorship and participation of more than twenty organizations. Sunny skies and spring weather encouraged a large turnout of Armenian Americans from the tri-state area and beyond.
Archbishop Oshagan delivered the invocation that ushered in two hours of remembrances, speeches, and artistic entertainment. In his invocation Archbishop Oshagan said, “On this day of remembrance of the sainted martyrs of 1915 we bow and pray before them seeking their intercession for the blessings of liberty and justice for all and the destruction of evil… May our sainted martyrs bless us on this day of solemn remembrance as we raise our voices for truth, justice, and recognition. . . . The world thought this was the end of Armenia and Armenians. However, as Anatole France has written, “A nation that does not want to die, will not die.” And so it was for the Armenian nation that had faith in tomorrow, and against all odds picked up the remnants and pieces of a ravished nation and, in the poetic words of Hovhaness Toumanian, “One by one lit the great candles of the land of Armenia.”
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GENOCIDE COMMEMORATION IN CONNECTICUT
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The Armenian community in Connecticut commemorated the 103
rd
anniversary of the Armenian Genocide on Saturday, April 21, in the Hall of the House of Representatives at the Connecticut State Capitol in Hartford. Professor Taner Akcam was the Keynote Speaker at the commemoration. Professor Akcam is recognized on one of the first Turkish scholars to write extensively on the Ottoman Turkish genocide of the Armenians. The event was sponsored by the Armenian Genocide Commemoration Committee of Connecticut that consists of members from the four Armenian churches in Connecticut: St. Stephen’s Church, St. George’s Church, Armenian Church of the Holy Ascension, and Armenian Church of the Holy Resurrection.
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DR. HELEN C. EVANS WILL SPEAK AT PRELACY
ABOUT FORTHCOMING ARMENIA! EXHIBIT
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Dr. Helen C. Evans, curator of the forthcoming
Armenia!
Exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, will speak at the Prelacy, 138 E. 39
th
Street in Manhattan, on Friday, May 4, at 7 pm. Dr. Evans’ presentation is entitled “
Armenia!
At the Met and the Great House of Cilicia.”
Dr. Evans is the Mary and Michael Jaharis Curator of Byzantine Art at New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art, one of the world’s top museums. She is the curator of the forthcoming major exhibition
“Armenia!”
that is dedicated to Armenian history and culture. The exhibit will open on September 21, 2018, and continue through to January 13, 2019. The exhibition—the first at the Met dedicated solely to Armenia—will present Armenian art of the 4
th
to 17
th
centuries, displaying 140 works from around the world.
Dr. Evans’ dissertation was on the Armenian manuscripts of Cilicia, and in each of the large exhibitions she has curated, there have been Armenian loans as an important element of the Eastern Christian world. She was also co-curator of the Morgan Library and Museum’s 1994 exhibition, “Treasures in Heaven: Armenian Illuminated Manuscripts.”
In November 1993, Dr. Evans was a participant and member of the organizing committee for the three-day international symposium on the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, organized by the Eastern Prelacy at the Alliance Francaise in New York City. Dr. Evans chaired the opening session devoted to “Links with Byzantium,” and delivered a paper in Session three on “The Inspiring Dove in Cilician Art.”
In 2007 Dr. Evans was decorated with the Mesrob Mashdotz Medal, one of the highest honor of the Holy See of the Great House of Cilicia in recognition of outstanding contributions to Armenian history, art, and culture.
Those wishing to attend the presentation on May 4 and hear interesting details about the exhibit should
RSVP BY CLICKING BELOW
or
CALLING THE PRELACY (212) 689-7810
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A Note about the Readings:
Beginning on Monday April 9 and continuing until Pentecost (May 20) each day the four Gospels are read in the following order: 1) Morning—Luke; 2) Midday—John; 3) Evening—Matthew; 4) Evening dismissal—Mark. By Pentecost the four gospels are read up to the passion narratives.
Bible readings for
Sunday, April 29
,
Apparition of the Holy Cross
, are: Readings for the Apparition of the Cross (morning) Galatians 6:14-18; Matthew 24:30-36. (1) Luke 11:33-12:12; (2) Acts 17:1-15; 1 John 1:1-10; John 7:14-23; (3) Matthew 13:53-58; John 19:25-30; (4) Mark 6:30-44.
May I never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither circumcision nor uncircumcision is anything; but a new creation is everything! As for those who will follow this rule—peace be upon them, and mercy, and upon the Israel of God. From now on, let no one make trouble for me; for I carry the marks of Jesus branded on my body. May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers and sisters. Amen.
(Galatians 6:14-18)
***
“. . .then will appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory; and he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates. Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away till all these things take place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.”
(Matthew 24:30-36)
For a listing of the coming week’s Bible readings
click here.
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APPARITION OF THE HOLY CROSS
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This Sunday (April 29) the Armenian Church commemorates the Feast of the Apparition of the Holy Cross (
Yerevoumun Sourp Khatchi
). The Apparition of the Cross is the first feast dedicated to the Holy Cross in the Armenian liturgical calendar. It is celebrated in remembrance of the appearance of the sign of the cross over the city of Jerusalem in 351 that remained in the sky for several hours. The apparition extended from Golgotha to the Mount of Olives (about two miles), and was brighter than the sun and was seen by everyone in Jerusalem. The Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cyril, used this occasion to remind Emperor Constantius of Byzantium of his father’s (Constantine the Great) orthodox faith. Cyril claimed the Apparition was further reason to return to orthodoxy.
Traditionally, the Armenian translation of Cyril’s message is read on this feast day during the Antastan service prior to the Gospel lection. The Apparition is celebrated by the Armenian and Greek churches. The Greeks observe it on the fixed date of May 7, while the Armenian date is moveable depending on the date of Easter. It is celebrated on the fifth Sunday of Easter.
Cyril is a revered Doctor of the Church and he is remembered in the Armenian Church’s liturgical calendar. Here is a short excerpt from Cyril’s letter about the apparition.
“In those holy days of the Easter season, on 7 May at about the third hour, a huge cross made of light appeared in the sky above holy Golgotha extending as far as the holy Mount of Olives. It was not revealed to one or two people alone, but it appeared unmistakably to everyone in the city. It was as if one might conclude that one had suffered a momentary optical illusion; it was visible to the human eye above the earth for several hours. The flashes it emitted outshone the rays of the sun, which would have outshone and obscured it themselves if it had not presented the watchers with a more powerful illumination than the sun. It prompted the whole populace at once to run together into the holy church, overcome both with fear and joy at the divine vision. Young and old, men and women of every age, even young girls confined to their rooms at home, natives and foreigners, Christians and pagans visiting from abroad, all together as if with a single voice raised a hymn of praise to God’s Only-Begotten Son the wonder-worker. They had the evidence of their own senses that the holy faith of Christians is not based on the persuasive arguments of philosophy but on the revelation of the Spirit and power; it is not proclaimed by mere human beings but testified from heaven by God Himself.”
(Excerpt from Saint Cyril’s letter about the Apparition of the Cross)
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REGISTER FOR DATEV SUMMER PROGRAM
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Plans are underway for the 32
nd
annual St. Gregory of Datev Institute Summer Program, a unique Armenian Christian educational program for youth ages 13-18 to enrich their knowledge of the Christian faith in a wholesome and nurturing environment, with recreational activities and daily church services.
Sponsored by the Armenian Religious Education Council (AREC), the Program is scheduled to be held at the St. Mary of Providence Center in Elverson, Pennsylvania, from July 1-8, 2018.
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NATIONAL REPRESENTATIVE ASSEMBLY
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The Eastern Prelacy’s National Representative Assembly will convene at St. Gregory Church in North Andover, Massachusetts, May 10 to 12. Friends near and far are invited to attend the Banquet that will take place Friday evening, May 11, at Harris’ Pelham Inn, Pelham, New Hampshire. Cocktail reception will begin at 6:30 pm with dinner at 7:30 pm. Tickets are $75 per person.
For more information about the National Representative Assembly
click here
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HONOR OUR MARTYRS BY SUPPORTING OUR HEROES
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ST. ILLUMINATOR’S CATHEDRAL RAISES FUNDS
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From left to right, Razmig Arzoumanian, Rev. Fr. Mesrob Lakissian, Armine Stepanyan, Bishop Anoushavan Tanielian, Sargis Stepanyan, Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, and V. Rev. Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan, Vicar General of the Eastern Diocese.
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A successful fundraiser hosted last Sunday by St. Illuminator’s Cathedral, the second in four months, raised over $21,000 to benefit the Armenian Wounded Heroes Fund (AWHF). The event featured inspiring speeches by H. E. Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, Prelate, Rev. Fr. Mesrob Lakissian, Pastor, and Major Sargis Stepanyan, a triple amputee and world champion, and a former ops soldier who lost his legs and right arm while retrieving his fallen comrades at the Karabagh front under enemy fire on July 29, 2014. All the speakers emphasized the importance of the Diaspora’s role in supporting and building Armenia’s self-defense forces. Cathedral parishioner Ms. Nora Baberian donated a smart wheel chair to Major Stepanyan.
Razmig Arzoumanian, co-founder of the Armenian Wounded Heroes Fund, provided an overview of the program to deploy U.S. Army first-aid kits and related training to troops protecting Armenia’s borders. This has already resulted in multiple lives saved on the front, which is constantly subject to Azeri aggression. To date, six out of ten regions of Artsakh have been fully outfitted with this advanced equipment, and fundraising efforts are underway to cover the entire Artsakh front by the end of this year.
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ST. SARKIS CHURCH HOSTS HEROES FUND
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St. Sarkis Church of Douglaston, New York and the AYF New York Hyortik chapter hosted an Armenian hero last Friday—Major Sargis Stepanyan, who is on a world tour to speak about his experiences. St. Sarkis Church had already raised $12,000 for the Armenian Wounded Heroes Fund that provides life-saving treatment to injured soldiers in Armenia and Artsakh.
Major Stepanyan was a special operations agent in Artsakh who benefited from the Wounded Heroes Fund. He lost both of his legs and one arm in a battle while helping other fallen soldiers. The event at St. Sarkis included a presentation of various projects in Artsakh and Armenia that are supported by the AYF, a performance of songs by St. Sarkis Saturday School students, a duet by Hovsep and Laurie Terterian, and a presentation by one of the founders of the Wounded Heroes Fund, Razmig Arzoumanian, who introduced Major Stepanyan and explained in detail the Wounded Heroes charity. Rev. Fr. Nareg Terterian addressed the gathering and made a surprise announcement of $1,000 for each of Major Stepanyan’s two sons by St. Sarkis Church and the Suzanne and Hovsep Hagopian Saturday School. Bishop Anoushavan Tanielian, Vicar of the prelacy, brought the evening to a close with a heartfelt speech.
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Death of Panos Terlemezian (April 30, 1941)
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Both an artist and a patriot, Panos Terlemezian made a remarkable contribution to Armenian fine arts in the first half of the twentieth century. He was born in Van, in the Armenian-populated suburb of Aygestan, on March 3, 1865, the son of a farmer. His love for painting was born during his studies in the local elementary school and then in the Central College of Van (1881-1886).
He graduated with honors and, afterwards, he taught drawing, aesthetics, and geography in the schools of Van from 1886-1889. Meanwhile, he became a member of the first Armenian political party, the Armenagan Organization, formed in Van. In 1890 he was arrested on charges of political activities against Sultan Abdul Hamid II, but was freed six months later for lack of evidence. In 1891 he was arrested again and sentenced to death, but two years later he was able to escape prison and go first to Persia and then to Tiflis. After doing menial jobs, in 1895 he went to St. Petersburg to follow studies at an art society school with a scholarship granted by Catholicos Mgrdich I (Khrimian Hayrig).
His studies were interrupted in 1897, when the Russian police arrested him in Reval (now Tallinn, the capital of Estonia) upon a request of the Ottoman government. He was transferred to half a dozen prisons until he was secretly exiled to Persia in 1898. He managed to escape again to Batum, in Georgia, and leave for Paris. In Paris he entered the famous Julian Academy, from which he graduated in 1904.
Upon his return to Eastern Armenia, Terlemezian, who had already participated in collective exhibitions in Paris, created various paintings inspired by his visits to Etchmiadzin, Sanahin, and other places. He settled in Tiflis, where he taught at the Nersessian and Hovnanian schools, and participated actively in cultural life from 1905-1908.
He traveled to Egypt and Algeria in 1908, and then resided in Paris for the next two years, where he continued painting. In 1910 he settled in Constantinople, where he would live until the beginning of World War I. Here he befriended some of the most prominent intellectuals of the period, and shared his residence with Gomidas Vartabed. In 1913 he gave his first individual exhibition in Constantinople and won the golden medal at the international exhibition of Munich. Returning to Van, he was one of the leaders of the resistance of April-May 1915 against the attack of Turkish regular troops. After the retreat of the Russian troops, he went to Etchmiadzin with the Armenian refugees and then to Tiflis. In 1916-1917 he became one of the founding members and organizers of the Society of Armenian Artists in Tiflis and its branch in Rostov-on-the-Don.
Terlemezian went abroad in 1920. He lived for a few years in Constantinople, Italy, and France, and in 1923 he settled in the United States, where he lived and presented individual exhibition in New York, Fresno, San Francisco, and Los Angeles during the next five years. He also participated in the Biennial of Venice (1924).
In 1928 he was invited by the government of Soviet Armenia to return. He would live in Yerevan until his death. He gave individual exhibitions in Yerevan and Tiflis. In 1930 he was given the title of Emeritus Artist of Soviet Armenia and became a member of the Society of Painters of the Soviet Union in 1932.
Panos Terlemezian passed away on April 30, 1941. The art school established in Yerevan in 1921 was posthumously named after him.
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PLEASE REMEMBER
SYRIAN ARMENIAN COMMUNITY NEEDS OUR HELP MORE THAN EVER
The crisis in Syria requires our financial assistance.
Please keep this community in your prayers, your hearts, and your pocketbooks.
PLEASE DO NOT FORGET OUR ONGOING RELIEF EFFORTS FOR THE ARMENIAN COMMUNITY IN SYRIA WHERE CONDITIONS ARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY MORE DIFFICULT.
THE NEED IS REAL.
THE NEED IS GREAT.
DONATIONS TO THE FUND FOR SYRIAN ARMENIAN RELIEF CAN BE MADE ON LINE.
TO DONATE NOW
CLICK HERE
AND SELECT SYRIAN ARMENIAN RELIEF IN THE MENU.
OR IF YOU PREFER YOU MAY MAIL YOUR DONATION TO:
Armenian Prelacy
138 E. 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Checks payable to: Armenian Apostolic Church of America
(Memo: Syrian Armenian Relief)
Thank you for your help.
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THE ARMENIAN LANGUAGE CORNER
(Prepared by Armenian National Education Committee)
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Don’t Build an Appointment
It is anyone’s guess: the word “appointment” must be related to “point,” right?
Indeed. As it would be expected, it comes from French. The original French verb
appointer
comes from
a point
(“to the point”).
How do you say “appointment” in Armenian?
It depends on the meaning, since there is not a single word.
If you are going with the original meaning of “assigning a position to someone,” then you have the word
նշանակում
(
nushanagoom
), whose root is the noun
նշանակ
(
nushanag
“sign; signal”), and has a structure similar to the French word
désignation
(
dé-sign-ation
“appointment”) and the English word “assignment” (
as-sign-ment,
which used to mean “appointment to office” starting in the fifteenth century).
If you are having a scheduled visit to a doctor’s office or some kind of official business, then you cannot say
Ես նշանակում մը ունիմ (Yes nushanagoom muh oonim
(“I have a …”), because that would be a clumsy attempt at translating the word with a dictionary without thinking about the meaning. The Armenian language has created a different word for that, combining the concepts of “time” and “fixing,” which is what an appointment is. The result is
ժամադրութիւն (jamatrootioon
), and then you may say
Ես ժամադրութիւն մը ունիմ ատամնաբոյժին հետ (Yes jamatrootioon muh oonim adamnapoojin hed
“I have an appointment with the dentist”), and everything will be all right, both your appointment and your command of the language.
Talking about clumsy attempts, if you want to make an appointment, please use your common sense. You cannot
build
an appointment in English (one of the meanings of “make”), right? Then, do not think that you are entitled to do it in Armenian and then you can happily say:
Ես ժամադրութիւն մը շինեցի
(
Yes jamatrootioon muh sheenetsee).
That does not mean “I made an appointment,” but “I built an appointment”! Unless an appointment is a Lego toy, rest assured that you have simply killed the language with a single shot…
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What does Jesus mean by “my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” In this week's Prelacy Reflection, Very Rev. Fr. Sahag Yemishian of Holy Trinity Armenian Apostolic Church of Worcester, MA uncovers the meaning behind a comforting passage from Matthew 11, while explaining the significance of this verse.
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SIAMANTO ACADEMY—
Meets every second Saturday of the month at the Hovnanian School, 817 River Road, New Milford, New Jersey. For information:
anec@armenianprelacy.org
or 212-689-7810..
April 29
—“History and Future of the Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) Conflict" -- Guest Speaker: Anna Astvatsaturian-Turcotte, Author of "Nowhere, A Story of Exile." Under the auspices of His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, Prelate. 1:30 p.m. St. Sarkis Armenian Church, 38-65 234th Street, Douglaston, NY. A book signing will take place after the lecture. For more information, please call 718-224-2275.
April 29
—The Armenian Martyrs’ Memorial Committee of Rhode Island will commemorate the 103
rd
Anniversary of the 1915 Armenian Genocide on Sunday, April 29, at 12:45 pm at the Martyrs’ Monument site in North Burial Ground, Branch Avenue, Providence. The clergy of the three Armenian churches will perform services in memory of the Holy Martyrs. Chris Bohjalian will be the keynote speaker. His newest book, “The Flight Attendant” is on the NY Times best- selling list. Federal, state and local officials will also be in attendance. The public is cordially invited to attend this important day in memory of our Holy Martyrs and survivors of the Armenian Genocide.
May 4
—Presentation by Dr. Helen C. Evans, the Mary and Michael Jaharis curator of Byzantine Art at the Metropolitan Museum in New York, and the curator of the forthcoming major exhibition at the Met, “Armenia!” Dr. Evans will speak at the Prelacy offices, 138 E. 39
th
Street, New York City, 7 pm, on “
Armenia!
At the Met and the Great House of Cilicia,” and will also discuss the exhibition in general.
May 6
—St. Stephen’s Armenian Church of Hartford-New Britain, Connecticut, Wine Tasting, 1 pm to 3 pm. An afternoon designed for fun and enjoyment. Wine presentations, appetizer, door prizes, silent auction. Tickets $20. Advance reservations suggested: Sandy Asadourian
(
sandyasadourian@gmail.com
)
or 860-622-9467 or 860-563-1251; Karen Fallo
(
karen@perfectprod.com
).
May 6
—Mothers Day luncheon by ARS Mayr Chapter of New York, at 2 pm. Featuring a performance by Hooshere. Proceeds will benefit the ARS Sosse Kindergarten Medz Tagher in Artsakh. Almayass Restaurant, 24 E. 21
st
Street. Donation $75. For more information contact Sonia (917-679-6992), Ani (516-784-0704) or Lalig (917-579-9248).
May 9-12
—Eastern Prelacy’s National Representative Assembly, hosted by St. Gregory Church, North Andover, Massachusetts. The one-day clergy conference and Conference of Yeretzgeens will take place on Wednesday, May 9. The full Assembly will convene on Thursday, May 10, at 11 am and will conclude on Saturday, May 12, at noon. The National Association of Ladies Guilds Meeting convenes during this time as well. For more information go to
www.saintgregory/nra-2018.
May 11
--National Representative Assembly Banquet Celebration hosted by St. Gregory Church, North Andover, Massachusetts, at the Harris Pelham Inn, 65 Ledge Road, Pelham, New Hampshire. Cocktail reception at 6:30 pm; dinner & program at 7:30 pm. Tickets $75. To purchase tickets online
click here.
May 28
—Providence ARF and ACAA-RI present a Special Concert to celebrate the 100
th
anniversary of the First Republic of Armenia. Maestro Konstantin Petrossian, conductor, featuring the Armenian Chorales of Rhode Island and Greater Worcester and Symphony Orchestra. Special appearance by famed soloist, Babin Boghosian, at the Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, 30 Fenner Street, Providence, Rhode Island, 4 to 5:30 pm. Net proceeds will be donated to the Armenian Relief Society’s “Wounded and Disabled Soldiers Project.” Admission is free.
June 24
--Ways to Wellness: A Panel Discussion on Mental Health -- 1:30 p.m. -- St. Sarkis Armenian Church, 38-65 234th Street, Douglaston, NY. For more information, please contact Anahid at anahide@aol.com (Lecture rescheduled from an earlier date).
July 1-8, 2018 – Datev Summer Program for youth ages 13-18--
The 32
nd
annual St. Gregory of Datev Institute Summer Christian Studies Program will take place at the St. Mary of Providence Center in Elverson, Pennsylvania, sponsored by the Armenian Religious Education Council (AREC). For information and registration, contact the AREC office – 212-689-7810 or arec@armenianprelacy.org or
click here.
September 21, 2018 to January 13, 2019
—“Armenia!” a large exhibition dedicated to the medieval period of Armenian history and culture at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City. The exhibit is the first at the Met dedicated solely to Armenia. Curated by Dr. Helen C. Evans.
October 20
—Armenian Friends America, Inc., Sixth Annual HYE KEF 5, featuring world famous Onnik Dinkjian and the All Stars including John Berberian, Mal Barsamian, Ara Dinkjian, and Jason Naroian. Double Tree Hotel, Andover, Massachusetts. Details to follow.
www.ArmenianFriendsofAmerica.org
.
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The Armenian Prelacy
Tel: 212-689-7810 ♦ Fax: 212-689-7168 ♦ Email: email@armenianprelacy.org
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