PRESS RELEASE
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
e-mail: [email protected]
Website:
Contact: Iris Papazian
MAY 4, 2006
ARMENIAN AIRLINE PLANE CRASHES IN BLACK SEA
We mourn the loss of the 113 passengers on an Armavia Airbus A-320 that
crashed yesterday near the southern Russian resort city of Sochi on the
Black Sea. Officials believe the crash was caused by poor visibility due to
pouring rain. Many of the passengers were vacationers.
Upon hearing the sad news Archbishop Oshagan telephoned His Holiness
Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, to express
condolences. In a message issued to the Faithful circulated yesterday in a
special edition of Crossroads, the Prelate said: “We extend our heartfelt
sympathy to the families who lost loved ones. May the love of our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ comfort them in this time of deep sorrow. We urge our
Faithful to join our brothers and sisters in Armenia in offering special
prayers on Friday, May 5. May the souls of the victims find everlasting
peace in our Lord’s Heavenly Kingdom.”
PRELATE WILL ATTEND ST. ILLUMINATOR SCHOOL GALA
Archbishop Oshagan will attend the dinner dance gala sponsored by the St.
Illuminator School, tomorrow, Friday, May 5, at the Terrace on the Park in
Corona, New York. In an innovative change of pace the event is also a
reunion of Armenian School students going back to the 1930s to the present.
Many remember with great fondness the first-rate Aharonian Mayr Varjaran
where the first generation of Armenian Americans was taught the Armenian
language, history and culture. Back then (yes, some of us here at Crossroads
are old enough to remember those days) students went to Armenian School
three afternoons a week (after regular school was dismissed). Dressed in
“Sunday-best” attire, most of the students were from the Armenian enclave in
the neighborhood near the Cathedral on the lower east side, but many others
traveled by subway or trolley from distant parts of the city-including the
outer boroughs.
PRELATE WILL TRAVEL TO PHILADELPHIA ON SUNDAY
TO ATTEND ST. GREGORY ANNIVERSARY GALA
On Sunday, May 7, Archbishop Oshagan will travel to Philadelphia where he
will preside over the Divine Liturgy at St. Gregory the Illuminator Church
and the church’s 39th anniversary celebration that will follow the church
service.
The Philadelphia community is one of the oldest Armenian communities in
the United States. Its history goes much further than 39 years. However, the
current church complex was built and consecrated in May 1967. Since then it
has been serving the growing needs of the large Armenian American community
in the sprawling Philadelphia area, which includes southern New Jersey and
nearby Delaware. Last year the church embarked on a new phase of growth and
is now in the midst of a fundraising campaign for a much-needed renovation
and expansion of facilities in order to provide spiritual, educational and
cultural services to the community.
DEACON SHANT WILL LEAD RETREAT IN PHILLY
Deacon Shant Kazanjian, director of the Prelacy’s Armenian Religious
Education Council, will lead a retreat for the Sunday School teachers and
staff of St. Gregory the Illuminator Church, Philadelphia, beginning
tomorrow evening, Friday, May 5, through Saturday, May 6. The theme of the
retreat is “Nurturing Faith.”
SCHOOL VISIT PLANNED BY ANEC
In her continuing schedule of visits to Armenian schools, Nayiri
Balanian, chair of the Armenian National Education Committee, will visit the
Taniel Varoujan School in Chicago on May 12 and 13. She will meet with the
teachers and the principal on May 12 and the next day will attend a Mothers
Day luncheon where she will honor the teachers for their dedicated service.
ANEC is jointly sponsored by the Eastern Prelacy and the Armenian Relief
Society (Eastern).
TURKISH NOVELIST SELECTED AS TIME MAGAZINES
100 MOST INFLUENTIAL PEOPLE
Orhan Pamuk, the acclaimed and prize-winning Turkish writer, was named
this week as one of the one hundred most influential people in the world by
Time Magazine.
Describing Pamuk as the “Teller of the Awful Truth,” Time writes: “Pamuk,
already the most famous author in contemporary Turkey, became a global cause
celebre early last year after he pointedly criticized his country’s
all-too-willful historical blind spots: the genocide of Armenians in 1915 by
the Turkish military and a similar suppression of the country’s Kurdish
minority.” All this led to fierce criticism from nationalist groups and the
government prepared to put him on trial. Human rights organizations and
writers’ unions around the world came to his defense attracting intense
worldwide publicity. In the end, as Time Magazine notes, “Pamuk’s name has
become even more recognized and his words even more influential. In the
confrontation of rock-hard reality and paper-thin artistry, sometimes, as in
the children’s game, paper overcomes stone.”
PRELATE WILL ATTEND SYRIAN ORTHODOX LEADER’S ANNIVERSARY
On Saturday, May 6, Archbishop Oshagan will attend a celebration of the
10th anniversary of the Episcopal Consecration of Archbishop Mor Cyril
Aphrem Karim, Metropolitan of the Syrian Orthodox Church (Eastern U.S.)
The Syrian Orthodox Church is within the family of Oriental Orthodox
Churches which includes the Armenian Apostolic Church.
PRELACY LADIES GUILD MOTHERS DAY LUNCHEON
WILL TAKE PLACE MONDAY, MAY 8
The Prelacy Ladies’ Guild’s Mothers’ Day Luncheon will take place on
Monday, May 8, at The St. Regis, 2 East 55th Street, New York City. The
event, which has become an anticipated event for women in the metropolitan
area and beyond, will take place in the beautiful St. Regis Roof with
reception beginning at 11:30 am, followed by luncheon at 12:30 pm. A special
Musical Interlude, “Voices of Spring,” will provide entertainment and the
“Mother of the Year” will be announced and honored.
NATIONAL REPRESENTATIVE ASSEMBLY
WILL CONVENE IN NEW JERSEY
The Eastern Prelacy’s National Representative Assembly will convene May
17 to 19, at the host church, Sts. Vartanantz Church, Ridgefield, New
Jersey.
The concluding reception and banquet will take place Friday evening, May
19, at the Fort Lee Hilton, Route 4 East, Fort Lee, New Jersey. During the
banquet program a number of individuals will be honored including “Persons
of the Year,” “Spirit of Armenia,” and “Youth Leadership” awards.
“Certificates of Merit” will be presented to deserving members of the local
host community. To make reservations for the banquet ($75. per person)
contact any of the following: Sts. Vartanantz Church, 201-943-2950; Bea
Movsesian, 201-445-6867; Sonia Setrakian, 201-313-7157; Lynn Mahlebjian,
201-440-3018.
CONFERENCE FOR YERETZGEENS WILL TAKE PLACE
DURING NATIONAL ASSEMBLY IN NEW JERSEY
Archbishop Oshagan and the Religious and Executive Council are pleased to
announce that a conference for Yeretzgeens of the Eastern Prelacy will be
held in New Jersey on May 16-17, in conjunction with the National
Representative Assembly. All Yeretzgeens are invited to attend the
conference. Archbishop Oshagan will open the session with a prayer and
deliver the opening message. The remainder of the conference will feature
two sessions on various aspects of the life of a priest’s wife (family,
parish life, work) by Presvytera Athanasia Papademetriou of the Greek
Orthodox faith and one session titled “Women of Noble Character,” by
Yeretzgeen Joanna Baghsarian.
PRELATE AND VICAR WILL ATTEND JOINT MEETING
Archbishop Oshagan and V. Rev. Fr. Anoushavan will attend the third
meeting of Christian, Arab and Middle Eastern Churches Together next
Thursday, May 11, which will take place at the Eparchy of St. Maron of
Brooklyn, hosted by Archbishop Gregory Marsour.
REGISTER NOW FOR DATEV SUMMER PROGRAM
Urge your teenagers to enroll in the St. Gregory of Datev Summer
Institute. The weeklong program will take place July 2 to 9 at the St. Mary
of Providence Center in Elverson, Pennsylvania. This year the Institute is
marking its 20th anniversary and all kinds of commemorative events are being
planned. We will provide full details in the coming weeks.
THE ART OF EMMA GREGORYAN
TO BE EXHIBITED AT THE PRELACY
The works of noted artist, Emma Gregoryan, will be shown beginning on
Friday evening, May 12, at the Prelacy’s Vahakn and Hasmig Hovnanian Hall,
138 E. 39th Street, New York City. The opening reception will take place
Friday, May 12, at 7 p.m. The artist will be present to welcome guests.
Refreshments will be served.
Ms. Gregoryan’s works are currently being shown at the Susquehanna Art
Museum in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, as part of an exhibition of the Armenian
art collection of the late John Vartan.
Born in Gumri, Armenia, Emma Grigoryan graduated from the Fine Arts and
Theatrical Institute of Yerevan. Her paintings have been exhibited in
Yerevan, Paris, Beirut, New York, Washington and throughout Canada.
CATHOLICOS ARAM I ISSUES FIFTH DIALOGUE WITH YOUTH
His Holiness Catholicos Aram I recently issued the 5th in a series of
dialogues with the youth, entitled “The Imperative of a Faith-Sustained
Life.”
His Holiness describes the general understanding of faith and then say,
“.being Christian does not mean merely knowing about our faith or even
witnessing about it. It means keeping firm our faith. This is the message of
our Lord Jesus Christ. The church, the mystical body of Christ, constantly
reminds her faithful to remain faithful to the Christian faith by responding
to its challenges, demands and implications.”
His Holiness says faith means to “remain faithful to the Christian faith
by responding to its challenges, demands and implications.” The Pontiff
expands on other important aspects including, placing faith at the center of
life, preserving the integrity of faith, participating fully and actively in
the life and mission of the church, and translating faith into work.
GEORGE MGRDICHIAN: FRIEND AND EXTRAORDINARY MUSICIAN
This week we mourn the loss of a personal friend and an extraordinary
musician, George Mgrdichian. His funeral took place today in Philadelphia at
St. Gregory the Illuminator Church. He grew up in Philly, but later moved to
New York.
George was an accomplished musician and also a talented artist, who loved
to draw cartoons, including a parody of himself and his world he called
“Kokorig.” He had undergraduate and graduate degrees from Juilliard and was
a gifted classical clarinetist.
Most probably he could have had a distinguished career in symphony
orchestras, but his true love was the oud, an instrument that he
single-handedly elevated to concert status. He performed in almost every
major concert hall in the U.S., wrote and performed musical scores for
movies, television and Broadway. His obituary was published today in the New
York Times and the New York Sun, and we are sure dozens of other newspapers
around the country.
EMPIRE STATE BUILDING TURNS 75
On Monday, May 1, New York’s Empire State Building (ESB) marked its 75th
birthday, beginning a year-long celebration. Built at the height of the
Great Depression, the building has gone through many hardships including a
1945 plane crash. When built, the ESB was the tallest building in the world
and remained the tallest in New York until the completion of the World Trade
Twin Towers in 1972. After September 11, 2001, the ESB again became New
York’s tallest building and remains so today. It now ranks 9th in the world,
and second in the United States behind Chicago’s Sears Tower.
Construction of the 102 floors was considered to be one of the most
remarkable feats of the 20th century. More than 3,400 workers-most of them
immigrants, desperate and grateful for employment-worked on the
construction, which took a mere 410 days to complete. Which leads us to
wonder: Why is it taking so long to repair the FDR drive?
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
May 5-Reunion of all students beginning from the 1930s who attended St.
Illuminator Armenian School in New York. Dinner Dance at Terrace on the
Park, Corona, NY. For reservations or information contact the St.
Illuminator’s Day School, 718-478-4073.
May 7-Mothers’ Day celebration at St. Sarkis Church, Douglaston, New York.
May 8-Mothers’ Day Luncheon by Prelacy Ladies Guild, St. Regis, New York
City.
May 12-Exhibition of the works of artist Emma Gregoryan at the Prelacy, 138
E. 39th Street, New York City.
May 13-Dinner-Dance organized by the St. Sarkis Church Ping-Pong Club. For
details 718-224-2275.
May 17-19-National Representative Assembly (NRA), hosted by Sts. Vartanantz
Church, Ridgefield, New Jersey. Concluding reception and banquet will take
place Friday, May 19, at the Fort Lee Hilton, Fort Lee, New Jersey.
Reception at 7 pm, followed by dinner. For information/reservations: Sts.
Vartanantz Church office, 201-943-2950.
May 16 and 17-Conference of Yeretzgeens in conjunction with the National
Representative Assembly, hosted by Sts. Vartanantz Church, Ridgefield, New
Jersey.
May 20-Year-end Hantes for Sunday School and Saturday School, St. Sarkis
Church, Douglaston, New York. For information, 718-224-2275.
June 4-16th Anniversary Celebration of the new St. Sarkis Church,
Douglaston, New York. For information, 718-224-2275.
July 22-Ladies Guild of Sts. Vartanantz Church, Providence, Rhode Island,
and Ani Chapter of Armenian Relief Society co-host gala dance at Greek
Orthodox Annunciation Church. For information, 401-286-8107.
September 28-4th Annual Golf Outing hosted by Sts. Vartanantz Church,
Ridgefield, New Jersey. Bergen Hills Country Club, River Vale, New Jersey.
For reservations and/or information: 201-943-2950.
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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
