PRESS OFFICE
Department of Communications
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Jake Goshert, Coordinator of Information Services
Tel: (212) 686-0710 Ext. 160; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:
February 20, 2007
___________________
ST. VARTAN CATHEDRAL AND KNIGHTS AND DAUGHTERS OF VARTAN KEEP ARMENIAN
SPIRIT ALIVE
By Jake Goshert
They were bound to be martyrs. When St. Vartan Mamigonian and his men stood
on the field of Avarayr in 451 A.D., they faced a Persian army vastly
superior in strength, almost four times the size. The Persians were on a
quest to squash Christianity and forcibly convert the Armenians to their
faith of Zoroastrianism.
Secular historians have the same questions for almost sixteen centuries –
why, facing almost certain annihilation, did St. Vartan and his men
willingly march off to face the mighty, Persian army?
"They went in willingly because they had Christ as their guidance. They had
as their father the Holy Gospels and as their mother the Armenian Church.
Their faith was so strong they were brave enough to go into battle," said
Maria Derderian, one of the two keynote speakers at the Vartanantz Day
celebrations on Thursday, February 15, 2007, held at New York City’s St.
Vartan Cathedral.
"But just to remember something like this is meaningless. It should be a
challenge, a call to action," she added. "The actions of the past give us a
call to continue the Armenian spirit. The same spirit in Vartan and his men
is with us now."
About 180 people turned out for the mid-week program and dinner, organized
by the Diocese and the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the Knights and Daughters of
Vartan. The speakers were two young people active in the life of the
church.
Derderian, a member of the St. Sahag and St. Mesrob Church of Wynnewood,
Pennsylvania, has served as the chair of the Armenian Church Youth
Organization of America (ACYOA), an Oriental Orthodox youth group, and will
graduate from the St. Nersess Armenian Seminary this spring.
RELATED ROLE MODELS
The other keynote speaker of the evening, Gregory Andonian, is the current
chair of ACYOA and is in his first year at St. Nersess Seminary, after
working as an auditor for Ernst and Young.
Originally from the St. Gregory of Narek Church of Cleveland, Ohio, he is
working towards ordination as a priest. It is a journey that started from
his parents physically forcing him to sing in the choir and attend services,
even when he did not want to go.
"I didn’t realize what they were doing for me is something of utter
importance," he said. "They were building a house upon the rock. That’s
what the Armenian Church has done for me."
"Why is this important? Why did my parents do this for me," he continued.
"They remembered Vartan and they knew that it takes great faith to
persevere; and that we will be called upon to defend our Church and faith."
Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Diocese of the Armenian Church
of America (Eastern), told the crowd that both young speakers were
illustrations of the importance of family involvement in the church.
"They represent the best of the Armenian-American youth today. But we have
many young people like Greg and Maria, who are involved and devoted to their
faith and heritage," the Primate said. "And the reason why is very clear.
Their families not only go to church on Sundays. They also push their
children and become role models for their children. They practice their
Armenian Christian spirit at home."
"It is important for people to not only tell children to go to church, but
they themselves have to hold the hands of the child and walk them into the
church," the Primate continued. "And we must teach our children at home and
then bring them to church so our church and homes are together in one
spirit, creating a wonderful future for the Armenian people, the Armenian
community, and our church."
HONORING THE LEGACY
Vartanantz Day, which falls on the Thursday before the start of Lent, is a
way to bind the next generation to the past.
"We remember Vartan and all his soldiers who died for their faith and their
country," the Primate said. "It gives us the opportunity once again to
remember why they died. It is clear they died for our lord Jesus Christ.
They understood who Christ was and what Christ meant to the Armenian people
and the world."
The day’s activities began with a badarak in New York City’s St. Vartan
Cathedral celebrated by Fr. Aren Jebejian, pastor of the St. Gregory the
Illuminator Church of Chicago, Illinois. The program, organized by Fr.
Mardiros Chevian, dean of the Cathedral, and the Grand District
Representatives of the Knights and Daughters of Vartan Mid-Atlantic Chatper,
Hirant Gulian and Ani Minnetyan, with Sam Azadian, the Mid-Atlantic
Interlodge Chairman. It included a performance by students form the
Diocese’s Khrimian Lyceum.
Those gathered for the program agreed that the church and community need the
strength of young people such as the two keynote speakers.
"The church needs fresh blood constantly," said Dennis Papazian, who served
as the master of ceremonies for the program. "As we pass our identity on
from generation to generation, it is important to see up and coming young
people take an active interest."
— 2/20/07
E-mail photos available on request. Photos also viewable in the News and
Events section of the Eastern Diocese’s website,
PHOTO CAPTION (1): Fr. Aren Jebejian, pastor of the St. Gregory the
Illuminator Church of Chicago, Illinois, celebrates the Divine Liturgy in
New York City’s St. Vartan Cathedral on Vartanantz Day, February 15, 2007.
PHOTO CAPTION (2): Maria Derderian, who will graduate from the St. Nersess
Armenian Seminary this spring, speaks to the crowd at the Vartanantz
celebration organized by the Eastern Diocese and the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of
the Knights and Daughters of Vartan.
PHOTO CAPTION (3): Gregory Andonian, a student at the St. Nersess Seminary,
speaks about his parents actions in bringing him into the Armenian Church
during the Vartanantz Day program in the Haik and Alice Kavookjian
Auditorium.
PHOTO CAPTION (4): Khrimian Lyceum students Nirva Aydin, Talar Aydin,
Markrete Krikorian, and Nayad Manukian, perform a dramatic reading and song
during the Vartanantz Day program on February 15, 2007, at the St. Vartan
Cathedral complex in New York City.