The Armenian Apostolic Church is Held Hostage – VIII
Lragir.am
Society – Saturday, 18 January 2014, 12:01
G. The Armenian Church, as a spiritual “MASH” unit on the front lines
of the war between good and evil, needs to heal its wounded soldiers;
to revitalize the hearts and minds of the faithful, and succor them
with hope and reassurance in the offing.
Within the last century, one of the most pertinent and vital questions
regarding the mission and founding purpose of the Armenian Church was
posed by Karekin I of the Great House of Cilicia. He asks, “Why is our
Church impoverished in the spirit of benevolence and bereft of
institutions performing compassionate work, and what do we have to do
in order for our Church to establish hospitals, orphanages, and
missions for the poor and homeless?” As our great historian Pavsdos
Puzant notes the want of dedicated and courageous clergy in our
Church, he, thereby, validates the sacerdotal functions of Nerses The
Great, who, by his work of feeding the hungry and cleansing the
unchaste, led the way to reformation by example.
Do we currently have such compassionate, noble, and courageous clergy
that is ready to take the Church to the people and heal their
spiritual and physical wounds?
Are we going to be able to prepare such a role-model clergy that is
willing to uphold the canons and the Constitution of the Church and
administer its precepts to the people?
Unfortunately the Christian faith today, with all its denominations,
has tarnished its image by unholy and self-serving practitioners, and
the Armenian Church, in particular, is not immune to this reality. We
no longer see benevolent institutions established by our Church, such
as hospitals, orphanages, and missions for the poor and homeless, to
aid and comfort a most needy laic population.
Most of our clergy has forgotten the poor and the needy, who are
collectively the real treasure of our Church. As the Bible teaches,
“Justice is the first fruit of mercy”. Unfortunately, however, the
concept of justice is absent from the lexicon of our clergy.
There was a time when the Christian Church did not fight against
social injustice, did not defend the weak, and was only concerned with
dogmatic religious teaching. The end result of such behavior was that
the public disassociated itself from the Church and followed strange
sects that promised wealth and prosperity.
The crisis in the Christian Church was a direct consequence of its
failure to address the social issues of the public. The Christian
Church started its mission by addressing the social needs of the poor
and needy, yet, once the clergy had established a certain lofty
position in society, they completely forgot the poor and began
catering to the rich, the wealthy, and the corrupt segments of society
that contributed to its coffers.
Therefore, by ignoring the poor, the Christian Church failed in its
social mission, and the hard reality was that the Church could not
survive or revive itself only with its theological and dogmatic
teachings, and thus it could not stay true to its founding mission.
The image of the Church is a direct result of the social services it
renders to the public. The less it renders, the less interest the
public will show in the Church. The Church will no longer be the
spring of inspiration, will lose its credibility, and cease to be the
magnetic force to its faithful.
Today the Christian Church as a whole,–and the Armenian Church in
particular,– is, by and large, contemptuous of the needy and only
seeks to propagate an obsequious relationship with the wealthy. Lured
by the opulent lifestyles of the rich, this unacceptable behavior
continues to permeate our motherland also-where, 25 years after the
devastating earthquake in Gyumri, Armenia, our brothers and sisters
still brave winter’s harsh conditions in shanty towns comprised of
hovels and metal shacks.
Shamelessly, in more affluent locations, gaudy and ostentatious
churches are being erected by the contributions of rich “oligarchs”,
who are then, in turn, decorated with honors by our high ranking
clergy.
As we speak, we are still hopeful and waiting for the Church to
declare, as our Lord Jesus Christ did, “Come unto me, all ye that
labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.’ (Matt. 11:28).
If the Church wants to succeed in its mission, it must revitalize the
social services that it is sworn to deliver, and reach out
compassionately to everyone who needs help and hope.
We need a clergy that is ready, willing, and able to deliver these
social services to the public. With great devotion, love, and
compassion, they must innately feel the frustrations of the public,
share their pain, and act according to the precepts of the Bible.
Currently, such a role model exists. A uniquely devoted person, Pope
Francis, displays the courage a servant of God must possess in his
response to a recent question. He was asked: “What does the Church
need today”? Without hesitation, he replied, `What the church needs
most today is the ability to heal the wounds and to warm the hearts of
the faithful; it needs nearness, proximity. I see the church as a
field hospital after the battle. It is useless to ask a seriously
injured person if he has high cholesterol and about the level of his
blood sugars! You have to heal his wounds. Then we can talk about
everything else’.
He continues, `The first reform must be the attitude. The ministers
of the Gospel must be the people who can warm the hearts of the
people, who walk through the dark night with them. The people of God
want pastors, not clergy acting like bureaucrats or government
officials. The bishops, particularly, must be able to support the
movements of God among their people with patience, so that no one is
left behind’. But they must also be able to accompany the flock that
has a flair for finding new pats. Instead of being just a church that
welcomes and receives by keeping the doors open, let us try also to be
a church that finds new roads, that is able to step outside itself and
go to those who do not attend Mass, to those who have quit or are
indifferent’.
The words of Pope Francis must serve as a clarion call as well to the
Armenian Church and its hierarchy. It must embrace this original
doctrine as a categorical imperative; emerge from its gilded stupor,
and reclaim its moral authority by fulfilling its mission of
beneficence. Only then can the Armenian Church assert the right to vie
for the hearts and minds of the current and future generations.
We call upon the Armenian Apostolic Church to regain its righteous
place in society by disavowing its descent into sinful extravagance
and debauchery and fall from grace, by providing solace to the
troubles of its faithful, warming their hearts, and giving them hope
for the future.
VOSGAN MEKHITARIAN
to be continued
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From: Baghdasarian
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