August 25

TOP STORY   

Feast day of the Discovery of the Belt of the Holy Mother of God

We can only imagine the joy of finding the possessions of the Holy Mother. This Sunday, August 27, the third Sunday after Assumption, is the feast of the Discovery of the Belt of the Theotokos. Because there are no relics of the Holy Mother’s earthly body (she was assumed into Heaven), her personal belongings became the object of devotion and veneration. During the time of the early Church, when Christians were persecuted, her possessions were kept hidden and secret. Her belt was the first item to be discovered in Jerusalem in the fifth century.

This discovery is the basis for one of the eight feast days in the Armenian liturgical calendar devoted to the Holy Mother.

August 27, 2023

Morning Service 

10:00 AM

Holy Badarak 

10:30 AM

Celebrant

Rev. Fr. Hovsep Karapetyan

Usher

Arlin Diratsuyan

Parish Council Members on Duty

Shahnur Bostan

Choir

Mrs. Edita Kalayjian

Organist

Mrs. Karine Muradyan

Bible Readings: 

Isaiah 9:8-19,

2 Corinthians1:1-11,

Mark 4:35-41

For the Soul of:

Elfrida Kartashyan (1st anniversary)

Requested by:

 Arthur and Naira Babayan, and her grandchildren, Mariam and Joann Khaloyan, and Ani and Lilit Babayan

For the Soul of:

Ruben Hayrapetyan (1st anniversary)

Requested by:

His wife Karine Muradyan and son Areg Hayrapetyan

For the Soul of:

Armenak Boyajian, Keghanoush Boyajian, Sograd Boyajian

Requested by:

Molly Boyajian 



---------------------------------

The Hospitality Table is hosted by:

Karine Muradyan

To request a Hokehankist/Requiem Service 

Please contact the Church Office

by 12:00 Noon on Thursday

202-363-1923

or Click here to see the form

Prayer of the Week

Lord, please keep watch over your faithful people, and protect the holy soil of Artsakh and Armenia—now and always. Foil every aggressor against our homeland. Defend the innocent and voiceless, Lord. Console all those who grieve, and remember those who sacrificed their very lives in your Name. Deliver your faithful children from conflict, and bestow your peace on all mankind.

     Dear Lord, you parted the Red Sea and the Jordan River as your people journeyed to the Promised Land. Lift away those things that keep us from you today as we continue the journey. We ask this in your name, and with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

GRAPE DONATIONS 

Our utmost thanks to everyone who contributed to the Grape Blessing.



To see the list of donors, Click Here.

Please tune in to St. Mary YouTube channel for the upcoming services and Badaraks

In the face of ongoing concerns, challenges, and humanitarian crises that our brothers and sisters are facing in Artsakh our Primate directed the parishes of our Diocese to hold a special fasting and prayer day on August 23. In the evening, the members of St. Mary Armenian Church gathered together for a special prayer service. The prayer service was a solemn yet uplifting event that aimed to bring solace and strength to individuals deeply impacted by the ongoing situation in Artsakh. It served as a powerful reminder that prayer can endure even in the toughest times.

At the center of the service, led by Der Hovsep and St. Mary's deacons special prayer for peace, justice, and well-being of all affected by the conflict was offered. Those present raised their petitions to God, seeking comfort and guidance in these turbulent times.

As the prayers echoed throughout the church, hearts were renewed with hope, and a sense of collective purpose was ignited. The service not only nourished the spirits of those present but also sent forth a message of resilience and determination to stand together against adversity.

In moments when darkness appears to prevail, such gatherings illuminate the path toward healing and peace. 

“The Lord heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” Psalms 147

Prayers for Healing

Աղօթք Բժշկութեան

Join us in this ancient Armenian Church tradition:



A brief prayer service, holy Scripture, and blessing of holy water asking God to ease the pains of body, mind, and soul and bestow his peace.

The Bible Discussions on the healing miracles of our Lord will follow the services.

Prayer of Healing and Bible Discussions will be offered every Tuesday at 7: 30 pm.

ALL ARE WELCOME

 THE FIRST SERVICE WILL BE HELD ON SEPTEMBER 12th, 2023

SHNORHALI SCHOOL

Dear Parish Community,

The staff and teachers of Shnorhali Armenian School are delighted to welcome you to the 2023-2024 academic year. The registration is now open. We are only weeks away from the first day of school and looking forward to seeing our school once again be filled with positivity and learning and fueled by kids’ laughter and joy!

The new academic year starts on August 27th with the Celebration of Knowledge and Education. Following our tradition, the school’s staff and teachers will evaluate the students’ knowledge of the Armenian language, history, and culture on the first day of school while students spend a fun day getting to know each other. Students and parents will participate in the Patarak (Badarag) to receive a special blessing during the service. The day will conclude with a meeting with parents.

Please click on the link below for more information.

SHNORHALI SCHOOL - Save the Dates!



Sunday, August 27th - 1st day of school. Registration, and Celebration of Knowledge and Education

• 9:30 am – 12:30 pm - Meet with teachers.
• Assessments conducted for grade Levels 1st -8th.
• Senior and Junior Kindergarteners – Fun activities
• Attending Patarak (Badarag) No pizza lunch will be offered on the first day
• 12:30 pm – 2:00 pm - Parents meeting
• Sunday, September 4th – No School! Labor Day weekend
• Sunday, September 11th 9:30am – 2pm –School resumes its normal schedule.
• Sunday, September 24th - Back to School fun event after school for students and parents, Book Fair, and the School Yearbook sale

Shnorhali School Launches New Website



Dear Community,

We are thrilled to announce the launch of our redesigned website. It is now live: https://www.stmaryaac.org/shnorhali-school The new site was designed to be more informative and user-friendly. It is available in Armenian and English.

Some of the new features of this site include:

• School’s History

• Picture Gallery

• Academic Calendar

• Registration

• Our team

• Teachers Portal, where teachers can access and download their lesson plans and worksheets for their classes, etc.

We are proud to announce that the website was designed and developed by Shnorhali School’s 7th grade student Ani Nishanian. Ani has been working tirelessly this summer to create an excellent website. Thank you, dear Ani, for your hard work and dedication to your School. We also extend our gratitude to St. Mary’s Web Designer Oganes Mkrtchyan for all the technical assistance with the website in this process. The site continues to be a work in progress and will be updated with more features and information in the coming months. If you have any questions or have feedback to share, please be sure to reach out!

Shnorhali School is Looking for Armenian Language Teachers



Dear Parish Community,

St. Mary’s Shnorhali Armenian School is looking for enthusiastic, self-motivated, and devoted individuals who love the Armenian language and have a passion for educating our children. Please consider this rewarding opportunity to join our team of qualified and dedicated staff. Your support and commitment will be a great contribution to preserving our language and culture, and our children's discovery of their Armenian heritage, and Christian identity. With God’s blessing, we will work together to make 2023-2024 a year of achievement on all levels.

For more information, please contact Shnorhali School’s Principal Nunik Nishanian at (703) 835-1181 or shnorhalischool@gmail.com

NEW RECYCLING PROGRAM AT ST. MARY'S



There is now a blue recycling bin in the hall at St. Mary Church. Please only deposit empty plastic bottles and aluminum cans in the container. We are looking for volunteers to sign up about once a month to take the recyclables home with them after church or during the Food Festival. It involves sorting through what's in the clear recycling bag and discarding any trash that might have been put in the bag. Then, you replace the clear bag with one from the box in the kitchen marked "Recycling Bags, Not for Trash". I have created a SignUp Genius link to sign up for a slot. Please see St Mary's Armenian Apostolic Church: St. Mary's Recycling Committee (signupgenius.com). If you have any questions, please email me at rangerrox@msn.com. Thanks for your help in keeping God's good earth cleaner!

UPCOMING EVENTS

St. Nersess to Honor 12 Priests and Lay Alumni on Nov. 4



St. Nersess Armenian Seminary will highlight the vocations of 12 alumni priests and lay ministers, with a gala banquet on Saturday, November 4, 2023.

This will be the second in a series of tribute events featuring alumni of St. Nersess who serve the Armenian Church in various capacities. The first celebration took place in November 2021 and established the “12 Vocations” theme. The upcoming event will build on that idea, under the title: “12 Vocations: Broadening the Call.”

This year, the event will honor a seminary graduate who became a hierarch of the Armenian Church: Archbishop Avak Asadourian (priestly ordination in 1977, episcopal consecration in 1982), who recently retired after a long tenure as Primate of the Diocese of Iraq.

He will be honored along with seven clergymen and four lay ministers—listed here by ordination or graduation date: Fr. Krikor Sabounjian (ordained 1998); Fr. Sarkis Petoyan (ordained 1998); Fr. Abraham Ohanessian (ordained 1999); Fr. Mikael Devejian (ordained 2000); Fr. Hovsep Karapetyan (ordained 2004); Fr. Aren Jebejian (ordained 2004); Fr. Bedros Kadehjian (ordained 2005); Mka. Valerie Goekjian Zahirsky (graduated 1974); Yn. Sirarpi Feredjian Aivazian (graduated 1978); Nancy Basmajian (graduated 1979); and Shaké Ajamian Derderian (graduated 1989).

Invitations and further details on the November 4 banquet will be coming soon. Contact event co-chair Lynn Beylerian at lynnbeylerian@gmail.com or access the seminary website: www.stnersess.edu. 

Special Gift for St. Mary Gift Shop

St. Mary gift shop is offering limited numbers of imported bottles of medieval Armenian health elixirs formulated from ancient manuscripts deciphered at the Matendaran Museum of Ancient Armenian Manuscripts. These elixirs are made in Armenia by Armen Sahakyan, a pharmacologist and botanical scholar who has been working at the Matenadaran Museum for the last several decades. A trained medical doctor ordained a deacon in 1997, Sahakyan has dedicated his life to the maintenance of Armenia’s sacred botanical traditions.

The three different batches available at our gift shop (Royal Elixir, Arates Elixir and Arates Tonic) are made from a codified recipe of medieval Armenian medicine, using a special distillation process. They contain medicinal and aromatic plants, known for their healing properties. Through the distillation and aging process alcohol is created, so think of them as perhaps Armenia’s first (healthy) cognac! 

The supplies are limited and each bottle is numbered, including the batch and year of production. All of the bottles were donated to St Mary Church, so 100% of the proceeds will go to the St Mary Endowment Fund, with a portion also going to support Armenian clergy serving in Artsakh.

"Embrace the Future" Endowment Fund

Dear Parishioners and Friends, 

This year we celebrate the 90th Anniversary of the St. Mary Community and Church with the launch of the new "Embrace the Future" Endowment Fund to help ensure our church has the resources needed to continue serving our beloved community.  

Just as you plan for your future and that of your family, please join us in planning for the future of St. Mary Church. 

We are asking for your support so that St. Mary will be able to continue to fulfill her mission for future generations.  

The link below lists various opportunities for you to make a meaningful gift of lasting significance that will help support our church's long-term security, visibility, and vitality. Please consider making either a one-time gift or pledge, which would allow you to make payments over a five-year period.

Join St. Mary's Prayer Group

We are initiating a new form of ministry at St. Mary Armenian Church. For parishioners who would like to make an electronic prayer request, they can do so by Clicking Here

A group of volunteers will receive the request and pray at their earliest convenience. Additionally, a new physical prayer request box will be placed at the entrance of St. Mary Armenian Church with blank forms that anyone can fill out and drop in the box. These requests will be retrieved weekly and delivered to the members of the volunteer prayer group. If you would like to become one of the volunteers of the Prayer Group please email us. 

Please click on the link below to present your request. 

Dear Parishioner,



St Mary’s is preparing for its FY 2023 Fall Food Festival, and we are seeking your participation. The Woman’s Guild makes excellent traditional food and dishes. The workshops are an opportunity to learn how to make traditional Armenian food and learn from our culinary experts in these classic dishes. Please click on the link below to complete the volunteer form, if you would like to participate in any of the workshops. 

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0E4DA4A82FA6F5C25-fall 



We look forward to hearing from you.

Buy a Brick and Leave Your Legacy at

St. Mary Armenian Apostolic Church

Bricks can be ordered and purchased by clicking below and

filling out a simple online order form.

You can choose to have a 4" x 8" brick

which includes your preselected

3 lines of 20 characters per line of text.

Or you can choose to have the

Armenian Cross artwork on the 4" x 8" brick

which includes your preselected

3 lines of 15 characters per line of text.

Order Today While Quantities Last!

Payment can be made with PayPal or a Credit Card.

Legacy Brick Donations are Tax Deductible.

DIOCESAN & OTHER NEWS

NATIONWIDE THEATRICAL RUN: Aurora’s Sunrise Animated Film

An extraordinary animated feature film on the Armenian Genocide and its aftermath, titled Aurora’s Sunrise, opened in theaters nationwide last week. In New York City, the award-winning film is still playing for a few days more at Village East Cinema (click here for info and showtimes)—with a possibility of an extended run if viewership supports it. See below for a link to screenings elsewhere.

The film by director Inna Sahakyan tells the story of Aurora Mardiganian, who lost everything as a 14-year-old enduring the horrors of the Armenian Genocide. Two years later, through luck and courage, she escaped to New York, where her story became a media sensation. Starring as herself in “Auction of Souls,” an early Hollywood blockbuster, Aurora became the face of one of the largest charity campaigns in American history. With a blend of vivid animation, interviews with Aurora herself, and 18 minutes of surviving footage from her lost silent epic, Aurora’s Sunrise revives a forgotten story of survival.

Click the following links to view the trailer on YouTube; to read about the production in Animation Magazine; and to find theaters in your area showing the film.

FAR NEWS

FAR Plants Seeds of Survival for a Mother and Child in Artsakh

A handful of seeds and a small plot of land provided by the Fund for Armenian Relief have become a lifeline for 21-year-old single mother Elina and her baby, Luse. Based in Artsakh’s capital city of Stepanakert, Elina received supplies and support from FAR’s “Social Workers for Artsakh” team, allowing her to establish and cultivate her garden.

That was during the early days of the cruel blockade against Artsakh. But now, Elina’s land thrives with an array of vegetables, sustaining her family and her neighbors—even as the eight-month blockade causes other food supplies to dwindle.

Elina is involved in a community barter system, swapping her home-grown produce for commodities like eggs or milk. She also supports neighbors with free food as needed. She credits her survival to the land and seeds provided by FAR—and remains grateful to be able to share in a collective support network through this grueling time for her country.

August 27 First Day of Shnorhali School

August 27 Volunteer/Service Opportunities Discussion

September 17 Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross

September 24 Shnorhali School Back to School Night

October 1       Feast of Holy Cross of Varak

October 6-7-8 Fall Food Festival

October 29     Feast of the Discovery of the Holy Cross

October 29 Shnorhali School Talent Show

November 21 Presentation of the Holy Mother-of-God to the Temple

December 9    Feast of the Conception of the Holy Virgin Mary

December 10 Celebration Of the 91st Anniversary of the Church

December 24 Shnorhali School Christmas Celebration

35 And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. 36 And when they had sent away the multi-tude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships. 37 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. 38 And he was in the hin-der part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? 39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? 41 And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? (Mark 4:35-41)

35 Այդ նոյն օրը, երեկոյեան դէմ, աշակերտներին ասաց. «Եկէք անցնենք ծովի միւս կողմը»: 36 Թողնելով ժողովրդին՝ նրան իրենց հետ տարան նաւակով, ինչպէս նաեւ՝ միւս նաւակները, որ նրա հետ էին: 37 Եւ մեծ մրրիկ բարձրացաւ ու ալիքները նաւակի մէջ էր թափում, այնպէս որ նաւակը գրեթէ լցւում էր: 38 Իսկ ինքը նաւախելի կողմը բարձի վրայ ննջում էր. նրան արթնացրին եւ ասացին. «Վարդապե՛տ, քեզ համար բնաւ հոգ չէ՞, որ ահա մենք կորչում ենք»: 39 Եւ նա արթնանալով սաստեց հողմին եւ ասաց ծովին. «Դադարի՛ր, լռի՛ր»: Եւ հողմը դադարեց, ու մեծ խաղաղութիւն եղաւ: 40 Եւ նրանց ասաց. «Ինչո՞ւ այդպէս վախկոտ էք. դեռեւս հաւատ չունէ՞ք»: 41 Եւ նրանք սաստիկ վախեցան եւ միմեանց ասում էին. «Ո՞վ է արդեօք սա, որ թէ՛ հողմը, թէ՛ ծովը հնազանդւում են սրան»: (Մարկոս 4:35-41)

Our gift shop is furnished with distinctive and unique items from Armenians all over the world. Some of the items are Armenian crosses, jewelry, paintings, religious tiles, tapestry icons, children's and adult books, T-shirts, hats, bags, Armenian CDs, Armenian artwork, and much more. 

The Gift Shop is open every Sunday after Church service and by appointment, call the church office at 202-363-1923 or send an e-mail to stmarychurchdc@gmail.com