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San Francisco Interfaith Council Condemns Arson Attacks at
St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Apostolic Church Community Center
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September 18, 2020
Photo courtesy of Alex Bastian
To our Beloved Community:
Today, the San Francisco Interfaith Council lifts the voices of our City's 800 communities of faith and religious institutions as we grasp to absorb the devastating news and send our prayers to all those impacted by the horrific acts of arson, which destroyed the church's Armenian Cultural Center, the headquarters of numerous Armenian charitable and cultural organizations, as well as home of the Sunday School and parish offices of the St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Apostolic Church on Commonwealth Avenue in San Francisco. The building itself was an historical treasure of the Jordan Park neighborhood.
Tragically, it was just two months ago on July 24, 2020, that we decried the hateful graffiti and vandalism intended to intimidate the students, faculty, staff, and Greater Bay Area Armenian Community affiliated with the Krouzian Zekarian Vasbouragan (KZV) Armenian Day School on Brotherhood Way.
As people of faith, we once again stand in solidarity with our Armenian sisters and brothers to reject such destructive acts of hatred and intimidation, demonstrate our collective resilience, and call for increased vigilance on the part of our local authorities to prevent such violent expressions in the future.
Just as the flag of our great City of San Francisco depicts a phoenix rising from the ashes of the great fires of the 1850s, we pray that the St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Apostolic Church and Greater Bay Area Armenian community will emerge from theses ashes transfigured, united and hopeful.
The San Francisco Interfaith Council
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