PRESS RELEASE
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apost. Church of America and Canada
H.E. Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan
Prelate, Easter Prelacy and Canada
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
Web:
August 23, 2012
PONTIFICAL VISIT OF HIS HOLINESS ARAM IS POSTPONED;
PRELACY COUNCILS WILL MEET TOMORROW AND SATURDAY
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A communique by His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan, Prelate, was
distributed today with the announcement that the forthcoming
Pontifical Visit by
His Holiness Aram I is being postponed due to the worsening situation
in Syria.
A letter from His Holiness informed the Prelate of the decision taken
by His Holiness and the Catholicate’s Central Executive Council.
The Pontiff’s letter expressed concern about the deterioration of the
situation in Syria that is affecting the Armenian community. His
Holiness said, `Currently the Armenian areas of Aleppo, Kessab,
Damascus, and Kamishli, are in a state of siege by both state and
opposing forces, and our people are facing serious safety and economic
hardships. The
degenerative situation in Syria is beginning to also cause serious
concerns in Lebanon. The general indications point to a possible
further degeneration of the overall situation.’
The Prelacy’s Religious and Executive Councils will meet tomorrow
evening and Saturday at their previously scheduled monthly
meeting. The top agenda item will be decisions about pontifical events
that are in various stages of completion. A communiqué about those
decisions will be released no later than Monday.
RELIGIOUS, POLITICAL, AND CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS
JOIN TO AID ARMENIAN COMMUNITY IN SYRIA
In a joint announcement made today, the Eastern Prelacy of the
Armenian Apostolic Church of America, the Armenian Catholic Exarchate,
the Armenian Missionary Association of America, the Armenian
Revolutionary Federation, and the Armenian Relief Society announced
the formation of the `Fund for Syrian-Armenian Relief,’ that will
offer urgently needed assistance to the historic Armenian communities
of Syria.
During the past week the heavily Armenian populated areas of Aleppo,
Kessab, Damascus, and Kamishli have been under siege by both state and
opposing forces and the physical safety of the people, as well as
their economic livelihood, are in great jeopardy.
The joining of the Armenian Orthodox, Evangelical, and Catholic
churches with the political and charitable organizations in the United
States,
follows the pattern set in Aleppo where the three churches, the three
political parties, and all social and charitable organizations have
joined together to face the growing crisis.
Efforts are underway to reach out to other organizations to join the
joint committee. Fundraising efforts will be undertaken by this newly
formed joint U.S committee, together with their affiliates to raise
funds to help the immediate needs of the Armenian community in Syria,
as well as for
long-range efforts to maintain and restore the community. At present,
assistance will come mainly through fundraising for schools and other
community
institutions, which face severe shortfalls as the crisis restricts
their own financial capabilities. A portion of the funds will also
assist needy individuals directly affected by the unrest.
The formation of a coordinating committee, with representation from
each of the participating organizations, will be announced imminently.
IN MEMORIAM:
PATRIARCH ABUNE PAULOS
(1935-2012)
Archbishop Oshagan expressed his condolences on the passing of His
Holiness Abune Paulos, the Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church,
who passed away last Thursday, August 16 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, at
age 76.
Patriarch Paulos has been the leader of the Ethiopian Orthodox
Tewahedo Church, a member of the Oriental Orthodox family of churches,
since 1992. He was an active participant in the World Council of
Churches and worked tirelessly for interfaith dialogue and on behalf
of causes for the advancement of Africa.
Archbishop Oshagan with Patriarch Paulos in January 2012 at the Joint
Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Roman Catholic and
Oriental Orthodox Churches that took place in Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia. This photo was taken during the Blessing of the Water
ceremony on the occasion of Epiphany.
VICAR WILL PARTICIPATE IN ECUMENICAL CELEBRATION
Bishop Anoushavan will participate in the centennial celebration of
the reestablishment of the Catholicate of Malankara Church of India,
on Monday, August 27 in Floral Park, New York. The event is organized
by the Council of Orthodox Churches in Brooklyn, Queens, and Long
Island.
ANEC PRESENTS TEACHER TRAINING SEMINAR
The Armenian National Education Council (ANEC), a joint venture of the
Eastern Prelacy and the Armenian Relief Society, Eastern USA,
sponsored
a teacher training seminar that focused on teaching Armenian as a
second language last Saturday, August 18. Participants from New York,
New Jersey, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, Providence, Boston, and
Chicago gathered at the Prelacy’s headquarters in Manhattan to
participate in a workshop titled, `Train the Trainer: Armenian as a
Second Language for Newcomers,’ presented by Mr. Scott Cohen of
Community Learning Partners.
ANEC Executive Director, Dr. Vartan Matiossian, welcomed the attendees
and thanked them for participating. He discussed some new ANEC
projects
and resources intended to be used in support of all teachers’
practice. He said that this seminar was a way to meet the developing
need of changing classroom dynamics, particularly in teaching Armenian
to students with no Armenian language exposure. (To read the entire
story click here ())
Participants of the ANEC Teacher Training Seminar.
Armenian language teachers exchanging ideas.
CELEBRATING ASDVADZADZIN AND BLESSING OF GRAPES
IN WAUKEGAN AND RACINE
Rev. Fr. Daron Stepanian celebrated the Divine Liturgy and Blessing
of the Grapes on Sunday, August 5 at St. Paul Church, Waukegan,
Illinois. After the ceremonies the parish’s annual shish kebob dinner
and bake sale took place with the attendance of a large number of
parishioners and
friends. Everyone enjoyed the delicious food and the Armenian dances
performed by the juniors of the Armenian Dance Company of Chicago.
On Sunday, August 19, Der Daron celebrated the Divine Liturgy and
Blessing of the Grapes at Sourp Hagop Church in Racine,
Wisconsin. After the
Liturgy the parishioners enjoyed a fellowship hour at which time they
welcomed and thanked Der Hayr for his visit.
Rev. Fr. Daron Stepanian at St. Paul Church, Waukegan.
Der Daron at Sourp Hagop Church, Racine.
BIBLE READINGS
Bible readings for Sunday, August 26, Second Sunday after the
Assumption and Feast of the Discovery of the Belt of the Theotokos,
are, Isaiah
9:8-19;2; 2 Corinthians 1:1-12; Mark 4:35-40.
On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, `Let us go across
to the other side.’ And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with
them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him. A great
windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat
was already being swamped. But he was in the stern, asleep on the
cushion;
and they woke him up and said to him, `Teacher, do you not care that
we are perishing?’ He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the
sea, `Peace! Be still!’ Then the wind ceased, and there
was a dead calm. He said to them, `Why are you afraid? Have you still
no faith?’ And they were filled with great awe and said to one
another, `Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?’
(Mark 4:35-40)
For a listing of the coming week’s Bible readings click here
().
FEAST OF THE DISCOVERY OF THE BELT OF THE THEOTOKOS
This Sunday, August 26, the second 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 articles of
devotion. 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.
The feast days dedicated to the Holy Mother are: Her Nativity, Her
Presentation to the Temple, the Annunciation, the Conception of Mary,
the Purification, the Assumption, the Discovery of her Belt, and
Discovery of her Box.
NEWS FROM THE CATHOLICOSATE
CATHOLICOS ARAM I SENDS CONDOLENCES
TO ETHIOPIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH
His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Holy See of Cilicia, sent a
letter of condolence on the passing of His Holiness Abune Paulos,
Patriarch
of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, who passed away last Thursday,
August 16, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
His Holiness praised the Patriarch noting that he opened a new page
in the modern history of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. `Our close
collaboration led us to meet frequently in Addis Ababa and in the
headquarters of the Armenian Church’s Holy See of Cilicia, in
Antelias, Lebanon. The goal of His Holiness was to reinvigorate the
evangelical mission and ecumenical witness of his church and re-affirm
its role in a new world context.’
His Holiness described the late Patriarch as a `strong voice of Africa
in Christendom, defending the rights of the African people, exposing
their concerns and expectations, and advocating for the unity of this
great continent.’
`His passing is a great loss for his church, for the Oriental Orthodox
family, the ecumenical movement, and Africa. We pray to Almighty God
to accept the soul of His Holiness Abune Paulos in His heavenly
kingdom.’
THIS WEEK IN ARMENIAN HISTORY
Prepared by the Armenian National Education Committee (ANEC)
Death of Franz Werfel (August 26, 1945)
Writer Franz Werfel (1890-1945) had no Armenian connections
whatsoever, and probably he was little known among Armenians until his
novel The Forty Days of Musa Dagh turned him into a world celebrity at
the age of 43.
Born in Prague, which was then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire,
to a wealthy Jewish family, Werfel was educated in a Catholic
school. He published his first book of poetry in 1911. During World
War I, Werfel served in the Austro-Hungarian Army on the Russian front
as a telephone operator. In 1917, he left the army and moved to
Vienna, where he fell in love with
Alma Mahler, widow of composer Gustav Mahler and wife of architect
Walter Gropius. Mahler divorced in 1920, but she refused to marry
Werfel for the next nine years. Meanwhile, the latter became one of
the well-established German and Austrian writers by the end of the
1920s.
In the winter of 1930, Werfel and Alma Mahler made a trip to the
Middle East. In Aleppo, they met a group of Armenian children working
in a carpet factory. He was told that they were orphans. On his way in
Lebanon, he
heard the story of the seven villages of Musa Dagh. The plot for a
future novel started to thicken in his mind.
During the next two years and a half, the writer researched feverishly
to write a novel that would become the most popular literary text
about the Armenian genocide. The story of how the 5,000 villagers
living in seven villages in the southern corner of Cilicia had defied
the Turkish order of deportation captured Werfel imagination. The 53
days of resistance and final rescue by French ships on the `Mount of
Moses’ (Musa Dagh) took a Biblical resonance with the use of the 40
days that would parallel the 40 years that the Jews spent in the
desert before arriving in the Promised Land. Many other symbolisms and
parallel may be found in a novel that was said at the time to have
foreseen the destiny of the Jews in Europe.
It was 1933, and Werfel’s books were among the ones burned by Nazi
students. The publication of the novel in November 1933 led to its
prohibition three months later in Germany by Turkish pressure; the
book was also forbidden and condemned in Turkey.
Meanwhile, The Forty Days of Musa Dagh became a worldwide success and
translations into English and French soon were published. Hollywood’s
Metro Goldwyn Mayer bought the rights to the movie, but Turkish
pressure on the U.S. State Department had that project shelved, as
well as several other attempts in the following years. Werfel was
triumphantly received by Armenians in France and in the United States
during a trip to both countries in 1935-1936.
In 1938, the writer and his wife left Vienna after the Nazi occupation
of Austria and settled in France. But the defeat of France to Germany
in 1940 and the Nazi occupation forced them to narrowly escape to the
United States. Werfel died in Los Angeles in 1945 and was buried
there. By the initiative of Armenian American historian and educator
Vartan Gregorian, Werfel’s remains were returned to Vienna and
reburied in 1975.
The Forty Days of Musa Dagh was translated into English by Geoffrey
Dunlop in 1934 and became an immediate best-seller in the United
States, with several reprints over the decades. However, the
translation was not faithful to the German original, as Haigaz
Kazarian had already discovered in
1951 in an article translated in 1963 in the Armenian Review. The
equivalent of ninety pages of text had been excised by Dunlop. The
recent publication of the unabridged English version of the novel
(Boston, 2012), with the missing text restored by James Reidel, allows
Anglo-American readers to savor this classic at a time when literary
works on the Armenian genocide are quite fashionable.
NOTE: THE UNABRIDGED VERSION OF THE FORTY DAYS OF MUSA DAGH
IS AVAILABLE AT THE PRELACY BOOKSTORE
()
FROM THE PRELACY BOOKSTORE:
EAST OF BYZANTIUM; WAR GODS
Story and art by Roger Kupelian
War Gods is a graphic novel depicting the story of Armenia’s
conversion to Christianity. With bold, vivid illustrations and an
engaging story to match, Kupelian and his team draw readers into a bit
of history full of tension, vengeance, betrayal, and fate. This book
is a story arc from the ongoing digital release. It is recommended for
mature readers.
84 pages, soft cover, $15.00, plus shipping and handling.
To order this or any other book, contact the Prelacy Bookstore by
email at
[email protected] or telepyhon e 212-689-7810.
()
CALENDAR OF EVENTS
August 18-The Armenian National Education Committee (ANEC) sponsors a
teachers’ seminar-workshop, `Train the Trainer: Armenian as a Second
Language for Newcomers,’ for ANEC-affiliated schools,
under the auspices of His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, at the
Armenian Prelacy headquarters, New York, from 10 am to 4:30 pm. For
information, email [email protected] or call (212) 689-7231.
August 19-Annual church picnic and Blessing of the Grapes,
St. Asdvadzadzin Church, Whitinsville, Massachusetts. Festivities
start at noon on
the church grounds; free parking and admission; shish kebab, losh
kebab, chicken kebab, khema and homemade desserts. Music by John
Berberian and Ensemble. For information: 508-234-3677.
September 9-Picnic-Festival sponsored by St. Gregory Church and
St. Michael Parish of North Andover, Massachusetts, 1 pm to 6
pm. Games and activities for the whole family. Armenian and American
music. Menu from St. Michael includes: hamburgers, hot dogs, pasta
salad, chips, popcorn, slush,
American pastries. Menu from St. Gregory includes: Shish, Losh,
Chicken Kebab and Lentil Kheyma dinners, Pilaf, Salad, Pita and
Armenian pastries. For information: 978-685-5038 (St. Gregory);
978-686-4050 (St. Michael).
September 16-St. Sarkis Church, Douglaston, New York, Annual Church
Picnic, on the church grounds, noon to 6 pm. Best kebabs, cold beer
and tan, watermelon, home-made sweets, special `Kid-Zone’ activities
for children. Also Armenian music and dancing, raffle with great
prizes. Takeout available all day. Admission free. For information
718-224-2275.
October 13-Sayat Nova Dance Company performs `Journey Through Time,’
presented by Holy Trinity Armenian Church, Worcester, Massachusetts, 3
pm, at North High School, 150 Harrington Way, Worcester. Tickets $35
adults; $15 children 12 and under. For tickets: Varsenig Cotter
508-852-3328 or Janis Arvfanigian 508-754-1039.
October 20-On the occasion of Translators’ Month, the New York Chapter
of Hamazkayin presents a gala concert featuring ARAX Dance Ensemble
from San Francisco and Aregak Youth Chorus of New Jersey, 7 pm at
Walter Crowley Middle School, 50-40 Jacobus Street, Woodside, New
York.
November 10-Hamazkayin Armenian Educational and Cultural Society of
New Jersey and Vanush Khanamiryan Dance Academy of New York, present
Inga
& Anush with performances by Hamazkayin Nayiri Dance Ensemble of New
Jersey, Hamazkayin Meghri Dance Ensemble of Pennsylvania, and Vanush
Khanamiryan
Dance Academy of New York and Connecticut. Felician College, 262 South
Main Street, Lodi, New Jersey, 5 pm. For reservations ($35 – $70) and
information: 201-739-9557, 201-684-1509, or
().
November 11-Hamazkayin Armenian Educational and Cultural Society of
Boston and Vanush Khanamiryan Dance Academy proudly present Inga &
Anush with performance by Erebouni Dance Ensemble of Hamazkayin
Boston. Shaw Auditorium, Watertown High School, Watertown,
Massachusetts, 5 pm. For reservations ($35 – $45) and information:
617-331-0426 or
().
November 18-St. Sarkis Church, Douglaston, New York, 50th anniversary
jubilee.
Web pages of the parishes can be accessed through the Prelacy’s web
site.
To ensure the timely arrival of Crossroads in your electronic mailbox,
add
[email protected] to your address book.
Items in Crossroads can be reproduced without permission. Please
credit Crossroads as the source.
Parishes of the Eastern Prelacy are invited to send information about
their major events to be included in the calendar. Send to:
[email protected]
From: A. Papazian
http://www.armenianprelacy.org/
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