Author: Kalantarian Kevo

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:

March 12, 2015

ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF REMEMBRANCE:

NATIONAL EVENTS IN WASHINGTON

The national observance in the United States includes special events
that will take place over a three-day period (May 7, 8, 9) in
Washington, DC, that includes an ecumenical prayer service, a
Pontifical Divine Liturgy, a memorial concert, and an awards banquet
honoring those who helped the survivors. The Catholicoi, His Holiness
Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, and His Holiness Aram I,
Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia, will be present to preside
over the events. Armenians from all over the United States are
expected to participate in solidarity and unity.

Events in Washington, DC

Thursday, May 7, 2015-Ecumenical Service, 7 pm

Ecumenical Service will take place at the National Cathedral, 3101
Wisconsin Avenue, NW. Presided by His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos
of All Armenians, and His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Holy See
of Cilicia. President of Armenia, Serge Sarkisian, will attend as will
many dignitaries and diplomats. Performances by soprano Isabel
Bayrakdarian and Hover Chamber Choir. Very limited seating and ID is
needed. Tickets (non-transferable and color-coded for seating blocks)
are free but required for entry. Contact your local parish and
register your name for tickets.

Friday, May 8, 2015-Concert of Armenian Music at 8 pm

`A Journey through 100 Years, ` a concert of Armenian music at the
Music Center at Strathmore, 10701 Rockville Pike North, Bethesda,
Maryland. Artists participating include sopranos Hasmik Papian and
Isabel Bayrakdarian, violinists Ida Kavafian and Levon Chilingirian,
cellist Alexander Chaushian, clarinetist Narek Arutyunian, Hover
Chamber Choir, Armenian National Philharmonic Orchestra, directed by
Edward Topchian. For tickets ($40 to $125) go to

Saturday, May 9, 2015-Divine Liturgy at 10 am

Divine Liturgy will be celebrated at the Basilica of the Shrine of the
Immaculate Conception, 400 Michigan Avenue NE, Washington, DC, on the
campus of Catholic University, at 10 am. His Holiness Karekin II will
celebrate the
Divine Liturgy and His Holiness Aram I will deliver the sermon.
Armenian choirs from across the country will participate under the
direction of
Maestro Khoren Mekanejian.

Saturday, May 9, 2015-Reception and Banquet, 6 pm

Reception and Banquet at the Marriott Marquis Hotel at 6
pm. Institutions and individuals who helped Armenians will be honored,
with remembrance of all those experiencing genocide and human rights
abuses. Mark Geragos, emcee; keynote speakers to be announced; Zulal,
a cappella choir, will perform. Tickets are $120 per person. Checks
should be payable to Armenian Commemoration Centennial, and mailed to
NCAGC, 4125 Fessenden Street, NW, Washington, DC 20016.

THOSE PLANNING TO ATTEND THE WASHINGTON EVENTS SHOULD MAKE THEIR HOTEL
RESERVATIONS AND TICKET PURCHASES IMMEDIATELY.

Learn more about the national observance in Washington at

().

NEW YORK METRO AREA EVENTS ORGANIZED BY CENTENNIAL COMMITTEE

Divine Liturgy, Friday, April 24, 10 am

at

Saint Vartan’s Cathedral

630 Second Avenue, New York City

and

Saint Illuminator’s Cathedral

221 East 27th Street, New York City

Friday, April 24-March to Demand Justice, 12 noon

Immediately after the Divine Liturgy there will be a march from
St. Vartan
and St. Illuminator Cathedrals to the Turkish Embassy organized by the
ARF-ADL.

Sunday, April 26-Divine Liturgy, 10 am

Saint Vartan’s Cathedral

The Divine Liturgy will be celebrated by His Eminence Archbishop
Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Armenian Church of America; the
sermon will be delivered by His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan,
Prelate of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America. Please note:
Divine Liturgy will not be celebrated in local parishes of the Eastern
Diocese and Eastern Prelacy on Sunday, April 26.

Sunday, April 26, 2015-Gathering at Times Square

Immediately after the Liturgy, the faithful will walk in a procession
from
Second Avenue and 34th Street to Times Square to participate in a
rally/gathering at the crossroads of the world. Buses are expected
from throughout the East Coast and Midwest making this the largest
gathering ever of Armenian Americans.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR TIMES SQUARE GATHERING

The Knights of Vartan and the Eastern Centennial Committee have issued
a call for volunteers to assist the elderly, direct procession
participants, maintain security, and to keep order and flow of traffic
of the participants
at the gathering at Times Square on Sunday, April 26. Volunteers are
needed for the procession from St. Vartan Cathedral to Times Square,
9am to 2pm and at Times Square, 10am to 5pm. Volunteers will be
required to attend a pre-event orientation on Sunday, April 19, 1 pm
at St. Vartan Cathedral (V-Hall). Contact: Tigran Sahakyan,
212-444-8003, [email protected] or Ari Minnetyan, 516-521-7347,
[email protected].

`RESPONSIBILITY 2015′ WILL TAKE PLACE THIS WEEKEND

`Responsibility 2015,’ an international conference for the
Armenian Genocide’s centennial will take place this Friday, Saturday,
and Sunday, March 13, 14, and 15, at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in
Times Square, New York City. The conference featuring prominent
historians, policymakers, authors, and artists is organized by the ARF
Eastern US Centennial Committee, under the auspices of the Armenian
Genocide Centennial Committee of America, Eastern Region.

For information:
().

IN MEMORIAM

Jeanette Nazarian

1956-2015

It was with heartbreaking sorrow that we received the news of the
passing of Jeanette Sophia Nazarian, who died on Saturday, March
7. Jeanette was a faithful member of the St. Gregory the Illuminator
parish in Philadelphia where she served in a number of capacities
including director of the Sunday School for which she had a deep and
special passion.

Funeral services will take place this Saturday, March 14, at
St. Gregory Church, officiated by His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan
Choloyan. Viewing will
take place from 9 am to 11 am. Funeral services will follow at 11 am.

Jeanette Sophia Nazarian was born on June 1, 1956, to the late
Joomshoot Nazarian and Victoria Azadouhi Antabian Nazarian, who
survives her. Jeanette
received a BA in German from Saint Joseph University and a BS from
Thomas Jefferson University in Occupational Therapy. She loved
languages and in addition to English she spoke Armenian, German, and
Russian.

Jeanette’s passion in life was her faith and the Armenian Church and
making a difference in the lives of her students in the Sunday
School. In addition to her dedication to the Sunday School, Jeanette
has served as editor and photographer of The Illuminator, as a
delegate to the National Representative Assembly, as a member of the
Board of Trustees, the choir, the
Knar Choral Group, and an instructor and advisor at the Prelacy’s
St. Gregory of Datev Summer Institute. She was a frequent contributor
to the Prelacy’s e-newsletter Crossroads with news about her
Philadelphia parish.

Jeanette is survived by her mother Victoria and her sister Anita. We
pray the Almighty will embrace His faithful servant in heavenly peace
and grant the grace of His comfort to her family and all those who
loved and admired her. Asdvatz Hokeen Lousavoreh.

ST. GREGORY OF NAREK:

THE 36TH DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH

St. Gregory of Narek, the tenth century Armenian monk, priest, mystic,
composer, theologian, and poet was declared the 36th Doctor of the
Church by Pope Francis on February 21. The Roman Catholic Church
confers this honor on
saints whose lives and writings have provided significant
contributions to
the teachings of the faith. Thus, Gregory joins 35 other Doctors that
include notable names like Augustine, John Chrysostom, and Thomas
Aquinas.

Gregory grew up in a family of church leaders. His father was a bishop
and
theologian and his uncle was abbot of the famed Narek Monastery on the
shores of Lake Van. Gregory spent most of his life as a monk, priest,
and teacher at Narek. His first notable work was a commentary on the
Song of Songs.
He also wrote many letters, odes, songs, poems, and Armenian
liturgical chants. His masterwork was his last, the `Book of
Lamentations,’ known simply as the `Narek.’ It is a collection of 95
deeply personal prayers composed in classical Armenian in 1003, with
one major goal: `Speaking with God from the Depths of the Heart.’
The Narek has been the source of consolation and guidance for
generations in times of suffering.

The Narek was published in 2001 in a bilingual edition with English
translation by Tom Samuelian. The book is now out-of-print; however,
the Prelacy Bookstore has a few copies left from its original
stock. The price is $35.00 plus shipping & handling. Contact the
Bookstore, ([email protected]) or 212-689-7810.

Gregory of Narek will be remembered on the Roman Catholic Church’s
liturgical calendar on February 27 each year. In the Armenian Church,
he is remembered on several occasions during the year.

BIBLE READINGS

Bible readings for Sunday, March 15, Fifth Sunday of Lent, Sunday of
the Judge are: Isaiah 65:8-25; Philippians 3:1-4:9; Luke 17:20-18:14.

Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not
to lose heart. He said, `In a certain city there was a judge who
neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city there was
a widow who kept coming to him and saying, `Grant me justice against
my opponent.’ For a while he refused; but later he said to himself,
`Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because
this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she
may not wear me out by continually coming.’ And the Lord said, `Listen
to what the unjust judge says. And will not God grant justice to his
chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in
helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And
yet, when the Son of
Man comes, will he find faith on earth?’ (Luke 18:1-8)

For a listing of the coming week’s Bible readings click here
().

SUNDAY OF THE JUDGE

We are now more than half-way through Great Lent (yesterday was
Michink, the median day of Lent). This Sunday, March 15, is the Sunday
of the Judge (Datavori Kiraki). The Gospel reading for this day is the
parable told by Jesus about a widow and a judge (see reading
above). The judge in the parable
is seen as hard-hearted and without principles, fear of God, or
compassion
for people. A widow in the same town has been ill-treated and she has
come
to the judge for justice. Although her cause is just, the judge does
not pay attention to her case. However, she is persistent and she
makes the same
appeal again and again until at last the judge decides to see she
receives
justice. He does this not because he cares about justice, but because
he wants to be rid of the widow.

The message of this parable is that we must persist in our pursuit of
righteousness and justice with the confidence that perseverance
(especially in prayer) will be rewarded.

FORTY MARTYRS OF SEBASTIA

This Saturday, March 14, we remember the Forty Martyrs of
Sebastia. Although the backgrounds and identities of the forty young
soldiers are not
known, it is believed they came from Lesser Armenia and served in the
Roman army. According to St. Basil of Caesarea, forty Christian
soldiers refused to worship the Roman emperor while stationed in
Sebastia in Armenia in 320. They remained faithful to their Christian
faith. The soldiers were tried
and condemned to death by stoning. Miraculously, when the sentence was
being carried out, the stones would not reach the condemned soldiers,
but would instead come back striking those throwing the stones. The
soldiers were then thrown into a frozen lake and forced to stay there,
unless they renounced their faith. Warm baths were prepared for anyone
who would recant. Of the forty, only one gave up. When he did, another
soldier, moved by the example of the suffering Christians, declared
himself a Christian and took the apostate’s place. All forty died.

Some of our great Church Fathers like Basil, Gregory of Nyssa, Ephraim
the
Assyrian, and Sisian of Sebastia, wrote panegyrics about the forty
martyrs, who are remembered each year during Lent on the Saturday
following the median day of Lent. The Armenians have built and named
churches in memory of the Forty Martyrs in various parts of the world.

LENTEN REFLECTIONS CONTINUE

The fourth of the Prelacy’s six-part Lenten Program took place last
night at St. Illuminator’s Cathedral in New York City, with church
service and reflections and meal fellowship, presided over by His
Eminence Archbishop Oshagan.

This year, instead of faith-based topics, the Lenten reflections are
focusing on diverse aspects of the Armenian Genocide, in commemoration
of the centennial anniversary. The reflections are presented by young
adults, three every Wednesday. Last night’s presentations were offered
by Lara Milian Bardizbanian, Simon Bardizbanian, Esq., and Hooshere
Bezdikian Kaligian.

Next Wednesday, March 18, reflections will be presented by Andrew
Bagdasarian, Dalita Getzoyan, Anahid Ugurlayan, Esq.

The Lenten Program is sponsored by the Prelacy’s Armenian Religious
Education Council (AREC), the Prelacy’s Ladies Guild (PLG), and the
Ladies’ Guild of St. Illuminator’s Cathedral.

The presenters last night were Lara Milian Bardizbanian, Simon
Bardizbanian, Esq., Hooshere Bezdikian Kaligian.

Reflections offered in prior weeks, can be seen here
().

MUSICAL ARMENIA

To all lovers of Armenian music: The 32nd Musical Armenia concert is
just a week away. If you have not secured your tickets we suggest that
you do so
right away. Tickets are $25 and can be secured from the Carnegie Box
Office, 212-247-7800 or from the Prelacy, 212-689-7810
([email protected]).

The annual Musical Armenia concert series presented by the Eastern
Prelacy
of the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Prelacy Ladies Guild, will
take place Friday, March 20, 2015 at 8 p.m. in Weill Recital Hall at
Carnegie Hall in New York City. The high standards of professionalism
as represented by
the roster of artists featured during the past years will continue
with this year’s thirty-second concert of the series. A duo of
exceptionally talented musicians, Patil Harboyan, pianist, and Heather
Tuach, cellist,
in a program dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide, will present the works of Armenian composers, including
Atamian, Babajanian, Khatchaturian, Saradjian, Stepanian, and
Talalyan. A considerable part of
the program will be devoted to the work of the great Armenian composer
and
musicologist Komitas Vardapet, who was among the intellectuals and
leaders
arrested on April 24, 1915, at the onslaught of the Armenian
Genocide. Continue reading the entire press release here
().

For an online interview with Patil Harboyan go to

()

CURRICULUM MATERIALS ON THE GENOCIDE

Fulfilling one of the missions of the Armenian National Education
Committee (ANEC) of providing educational resources and guidance to
Armenian schools, ANEC recently prepared curriculum materials on the
Armenian Genocide for
use of the schools under its jurisdiction. Structured as a Power Point
presentation enriched with maps and illustrations, it includes an
introduction
about the definition of genocide and the reasons why the Medz Yeghern
is a
genocide, a historical background (the beginnings of the Armenian
Question
and the massacres of 1894-1896 and 1909), and the process of
annihilation and its aftermath up to the present day. The materials
have been sent to the schools for distribution to all teachers.

ARS REMEMBRANCE DAY

Remembrance Day for the Armenian Relief Society was observed in all
Prelacy parishes on Sunday, March 1. Requiem service was observed for
all deceased members and benefactors of the ARS.

Remembered specifically was the founder of the ARS, Agnouni
(Khatchadour Maloomian), on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of
his death, as well as benefactors George and Beatrice Lazarian, Levon
and Sophia Hagopian, Karekin and Virginia Siroonian, Samuel and Agnes
Yeremian, Araxie Proodian, Haiganoush Garabedian, Doris Norian Lentzi,
Alice Norian, Arpkes Kelerchian, Hagop Jacques Mouradian , Alice
Haigazian Berman, Genevieve Yekeshian,
Yervant and Helen Terzian, Albert and Takouhi Bagian, Giragos
Vaporsiyan, Kourken Assaturian, and Margaret Assaturian.

`This is a day for us to honor those who served the Armenian people
for many decades in the field of education and humanitarian and social
welfare. It is also an opportunity for us to express appreciation of
the Armenian Relief Society’s noble service for more than 100 years,’
said the Prelate, Archbishop Oshagan.

Archbishop Oshagan, Bishop Anoushavan, Rev. Fr. Mesrob, and Talin
Daghlian, chairlady of the ARS Eastern Region, with members of the New
York Mayr Chapter of the ARS, at St. Illuminator’s Cathedral in New
York.

Requiem Service for ARS members and benefactors at Sts. Vartanantz
Church,
Ridgefield, New Jersey.

SYRIAN ARMENIAN COMMUNITY NEEDS OUR HELP MORE THAN EVER

The crisis in Syria requires our financial assistance.

Please keep this community in your prayers, your hearts, and your
pocketbooks.

PLEASE DO NOT FORGET OUR ONGOING RELIEF EFFORTS FOR THE ARMENIAN
COMMUNITY
IN SYRIA WHERE CONDITIONS ARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY MORE DIFFICULT.

THE NEED IS REAL.

THE NEED IS GREAT.

DONATIONS TO THE FUND FOR SYRIAN ARMENIAN RELIEF CAN BE MADE ON LINE.

TO DONATE NOW CLICK HERE
() AND SELECT SYRIAN
ARMENIAN RELIEF IN THE MENU.

OR IF YOU PREFER YOU MAY MAIL YOUR DONATION TO:

Armenian Prelacy

138 E. 39th Street

New York, NY 10016

Checks payable to: Fund for Syrian Armenian Relief

Thank you for your help

THIS WEEK IN ARMENIAN HISTORY

Prepared by the Armenian National Education Committee (ANEC)

Birth of Alan Hovhaness (March 8, 1911)

Armenian American composer Alan Hovhaness is said to be one of the
most prolific composers of the 20th century.

He was born Alan Vaness Chakmakjian in Somerville (Massachusetts), on
March 8, 1911. His father, Haroutioun Chakmakjian (1878-1973), was a
professor of chemistry at Tufts College and author of a popular
English-Armenian dictionary, as well as onetime editor of
Hairenik. His mother, Madeleine Scott,
was of Scottish ancestry, and did not especially approve that he
learned about Armenian culture from his father. Until her death in
1931, the composer would sign his earliest music as Alan Scott Vaness.

Alan Hovhaness was a precocious composer who already penned operas by
age 14. After initial studies at Tufts College, he studied composition
at the New England Conservatory of Music, in Boston. In the 1930s, he
composed mostly chamber music in Western modes of expression.

He would shift to a fusion of Western and Eastern music in the 1940s,
starting with his job as organist at St. James Armenian Church in
Watertown, where he was exposed to the Armenian liturgy and the works
of Komitas Vartabed. `It was through Komitas that I got the idea of
saying as much as
possible with the fewest possible notes,’ he would write later. He
got rid of most of his earliest music, and started anew to seek out
his Armenian heritage. His `Armenian period’ lasted from 1943 to 1951,
and was benefited from the performances of important works and rave
reviews in the mainstream press. The Friends of Armenian Music, a
committee headed by pianist Maro Ajemian and her sister, violinist
Anahid Ajemian, were instrumental in supporting him in various
capacities. Maro Ajemian performed and recorded many of his works.

Alan Hovhaness conducts the Ani Symphony at the Metropolitan Museum of
Art
in New York City on April 21, 1989, in one of several events sponsored
by the Prelacy on the occasion of the 1000th anniversary of the Great
Cathedral of Ani.

After a three-year stint at the Boston Music Conservatory (1948-1951),
while he had married for the third time, Hovhaness gradually acquired
considerable reputation. He received academic honors and a steady flow
of commissions. He embarked on a more Western phase of writing and
devoted himself to full-time composing. His Symphony No. 2 (Mysterious
Mountain ) that premiered in 1955, brought him national
recognition. MGM Records released 8 long-plays of all-Hovhaness
records from 1955-1957. `Mysterious Mountain’ was recorded in 1958 by
Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and became his most
famous recording and most-performed orchestral work. To this day it is
considered to be one of the best recordings ever made.

After a Fulbright research scholarship in India (1959-1960), Alan
Hovhaness also visited and studied in Japan and Korea. He also visited
the former Soviet Union in 1965, including Soviet Armenia. He shared
his time between New York and Switzerland in the mid-1960s, while
steadily maintaining his prolific output. He settled in Seattle,
Washington, in the early 1970s. At this time, his music veered towards
a more Western neo-romantic expression. In 1977 he married his sixth
wife, Japanese soprano Hinako Fujihara. In the same year, he was
elected to the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

In 1991 the American Composers Society and the Eastern Prelacy, by
initiative of Archbishop Mesrob Ashjian, celebrated the 80th birthday
of Alan Hovhaness at Carnegie Hall. He directed his own works,
including the premiere of his symphony No. 65 `Artsakh,’ dedicated to
the heroic fighters for the liberation of Karabagh and commissioned by
the Prelacy.

The composer continued to be active until his 85th birthday. In 1996
his health suffered a marked decline. He passed away on June 21, 2000
at the age
of 89. His official catalogue includes 67 symphonies and 434 works.

()

Episode 28: Interview with Mrs. Lala Demirdjian-Attarian, Executive
Director of ARS, Inc.

AND IN CASE YOU MISSED THESE RECENT ARTICLES…

Armenian Leaders Establish Rights Award to Commemorate Centenary of
Genocide

By Rick Gladstone, New York Times, March 10. Click here
().

Study Backs 5th-Century Historian’s Date for Founding of Armenia

By Nicholas Wade, New York Times, March 11. Click here
().

Why does Turkey continue to deny Armenian genocide?

By Chris Bohjalian, Boston Globe, March 9. Click here
().

Remembering a forgotten genocide.

By Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, Catholic Philly, March 5. Click here
().

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

March 5-27-Solo Exhibition of art by Seeroon Yeretzian,
N.A.W.A. Gallery, 80 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1405, New York City, Tuesday
to Friday, 10 am to 5 pm. Opening reception on March 5, 5 pm to 8
pm. For information: 212-675-1616.

March 13-15-`Responsibility 2015,’ International conference for
Armenian Genocide’s centennial at Marriott Marquis Hotel in New York,
featuring prominent historians, policymakers, authors, and
artists. Organized by the ARF Eastern US Centennial Committee, under
the auspices of the Armenian Genocide Centennial Committee of America,
Eastern Region. for information.

March 15-Sts. Vartanantz Church, 461 Bergen Boulevard, Ridgefield,
New Jersey, Annual Membership Meeting following the Divine
Liturgy. For information: 201-943-2950.

March 13-15-International conference, `Responsibility 2015′ marking
the Armenian Genocide’s centennial, at Marriott Marquis Hotel, New
York City. Organized by the ARF Eastern United States Centennial
Committee, under the auspices of the Armenian Genocide Centennial
Committee of America, Eastern Region. For information visit the web
site ().

March 20-Musical Armenia, presented by Eastern Prelacy and Prelacy
Ladies Guild, Weill Recital Hall, 8 pm, Carnegie Hall, New York
City. Featured artists Patil Harboyan, piano and Heather Tuach, cello,
will present a
program dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide
that will include works of Armenian composers Atamian, Babajanian,
Gomidas, Khatchaturian, Saradjian, Stepanian, and Talalyan. Tickets
are $25 and will be on sale after December 20th at the box office and
the Prelacy, 212-689-7810.

March 21-`Renewal and Remembrance,’ Centennial Commemoration of the
Armenian Genocide presented by Hamazkayin of Philadelphia, at Founders
Hall, 7:30 pm, celebrating three generations of the Armenian singer in
the Diaspora, featuring Maroush Paneyan-Nigon (soprano), Barig
Naltantian (soprano), Vartan Gabrielian (baritone), and Gary Gress
(piano) performing works by European, American and Armenian
composers. Tickets: $35. Anny Aghajanian 215-699-9296; Elizabeth
Dramgotchian 215-920-6054; Kari Ghezarian 484-919-0203.

March 28-Eastern Prelacy’s Mid Atlantic Regional Conference for
pastors, trustees, and delegates, hosted by Sts. Vartanantz Church,
461 Bergen Boulevard, Ridgefield, New Jersey, 10 am to 4 pm.

April 21-`Commemorating the Centenary of the Armenian Genocide: A
Reading in Remembrance,’ Holy Cross Church, 580 West 187th Street, New
York City, 7 pm. For information: Lola Koundakjian,
[email protected].

April 23-Canonization of the Armenian Martyrs of 1915 in Holy
Etchmiadzin, Armenia.

April 25-Connecticut Armenian Genocide Commemoration Day at the
Connecticut State Capitol. Keynote speaker: Noted author Chris
Bohjalian.

April 26-Centennial commemoration of Genocide. Joint united Divine
Liturgy in New York City (site to be announced), presided by
Archbishop Khajag Barsamian and Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan. To be
followed by Times Square gathering `100 Years to Remember.’

April 27-`Commemorating the 100th Anniversary of the Armenian
Genocide,’ by Drew University Center for Holocaust/Genocide Study in
Madison, New Jersey at 7 pm. Testimony of Andranik Vartanian
(1900-2007), presented by his daughter Susan Vartanian Barba; `Undoing
Denial: The Armenian Genocide and Art’ presented by Neery
E. Melkonian; Concert by the Armenian folk group, Zulal, an a cappella
trio will present Armenian village folk melodies. Free and open to the
public. RSVP encouraged: (973) 408-3600 or [email protected].

May 7, 8, 9-National Armenian Genocide Centennial Commemoration in
Washington, DC, organized under the patronage of the Diocese and the
Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church. Presided by His Holiness
Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, and His
Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of the Holy See of the Great House of
Cilicia. May 7, Ecumenical Service at the National Cathedral, 7 pm;
May 8, A Journey Through Armenian Music at the Music Center at
Strathmore, 7:30 pm; May 8 & 9, Exhibits, Films, and Events at various
venues; May 9, Divine Liturgy at the Basilica of the National Shrine
of the Immaculate Conception, 10 am; May 9, A Time to Give Thanks,
banquet, 6 pm, Marriott Marquis.

May 10 to June 4-Pontifical Visit of His Holiness Aram I to the
Eastern Prelacy.

June 3-6-National Representative Assembly hosted by St. Stephen’s
Church, Watertown, Massachusetts.

June 18-Annual Cigar Night and Dinner, Men’s Club of St. Gregory
Church of Merrimack Valley, North Andover, Massachusetts. Drawing of
Super Raffle of 2015 Mercedes Benz-CLA 250 will take place. Raffle
tickets can be purchased online
(saintgregory.org/organizations/mens-club).

July 18-Blessing of the Holy Muron (Oil) by His Holiness Aram I, at
the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia in Antelias,
Lebanon. For details click here.

October 5-9-Clergy gathering of Eastern, Western, and Canadian
Prelacies.

November 15-90th Anniversary Banquet, St. Stephen’s Church, 167
Tremont Street, New Britain, Connecticut. Watch for details.

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]

PUTIN TO ATTEND 1915 COMMEMORATION IN YEREVAN

Hurriyet Daily News, Turkey
March 12 2015

Nerdun Hacıoglu – MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin has announced that he will attend
the ceremony in Yerevan to commemorate the 1915 events.

According to a statement issued by the Russian Presidency, Putin
told his Armenian counterpart Serzh Sarkisian by telephone on March
12 that he would join the commemoration ceremony scheduled for April
24 in Yerevan.

Armenia says up to 1.5 million Ottoman Armenians were killed in a
genocide starting from 1915. Turkey denies that the deaths amounted
to genocide, saying the death toll of Armenians killed during mass
deportations has been inflated and that those killed in 1915 and 1916
were victims of general unrest during World War I.

Russia is among around 20 nations that recognise the killings as
genocide.

News of Putin’s call to Sarkisian comes as speculation that he is
ill swirls online following his cancelation of a number of meetings.

Speaking to AFP, Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed the claims,
ascribing media reports of the leader’s ill-health to “March madness.”

Armenia is Russia’s most loyal ally in the Caucasus, but ties have
been strained since January when a Russian serviceman killed a family
of seven in Armenia, sparking mass protests.

March/12/2015

PROFESSOR PETER BALAKIAN TOURS U.S. IN ADVANCE OF 100TH ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Targeted News Service
March 11, 2015 Wednesday 7:59 PM EST

HAMILTON, N.Y.

Colgate University issued the following news:

On April 24, 1915, the arrests of 250 cultural leaders in
Constantinople/Istanbul set in motion the mass-killing of more than a
million Armenians in Turkey. The Armenian genocide became the template
for genocide in the 20th century.

Peter Balakian, Colgate’s Donald M. and Constance H. Rebar Professor
of the humanities, a leading international expert on the subject, has
discussed the genocide on The Charlie Rose show and on 60 Minutes with
Bob Simon. He is the author of numerous books including The Burning
Tigris: The Armenian Genocide and America’s Response, and Black Dog
of Fate, both New York Times “notables” and best sellers.

Black Dog of Fate, winner of the 1998 PEN/Martha Albrand Prize for the
Art of the Memoir, and a best book of the year for The New York Times,
Los Angeles Times, and Publisher’s Weekly, was recently issued in a
10th anniversary edition.

Here are Balakian’s upcoming appearances to discuss the Armenian
genocide:

– March 12: University of Texas

– March 14: Houston Holocaust Museum

– March 17: Baylor University

– March 19: Southern Methodist University

– March 22: Arizona State University

– March 26: Keene State University

– April 16: Sienna College

– April 17: Le Moyne College

– April 23: Bergen Community College, Paramus, N.J.

– May 6: PEN World Voices Festival, SVA Theater, New York

At Colgate, Balakian and others are organizing a series of events:

– April 3: Colgate Friday Night 35mm Film Series: Calendar, a film
about the genocide

– April 7: Colgate Alternative Cinema: ARARAT screening at Golden
Auditorium. This event includes a panel discussion with director
Atom Egoyan.

– April 14: Colgate will host an event commemorating the Armenian
genocide, Yom Hashoa, and the Rwandan genocide

ARMENIA OFFICIALLY CONFIRM PARTICIPATION AT BAKU 2015 DESPITE CONFLICT WITH AZERBAIJAN

Insidethegames.biz
March 11 2015

Wednesday, 11 March 2015
By Nick Butler

Armenia have confirmed they will compete in the inaugural European
Games in Baku despite the continuing conflict between them and
Azerbaijan, it was officially announced today.

A final decision was made by the Executive Committee of the Armenian
National Olympic Committee’s (NOCA) following months of deliberation.

The country expected to compete in the sports of sambo, shooting,
judo, wrestling, boxing, and taekwondo.

Fierce tension has existed between Azerbaijan and Armenia ever
since the two countries received independence in 1991 following the
break-up of the Soviet Union over ownership of Nagorno-Karabakh, a
landlocked region in the South Caucasus which lies within Azerbaijan’s
internationally recognised borders.

More than 30,000 people were killed and 1.2 million displaced before
Russia brokered a cease-fire in 1994.

The mountainous region, inhabited predominantly by ethnic Armenians,
has provoked more tension in recent months after Azerbaijan shot
down what it claimed was an Armenian military helicopter on their
territory east of Nagorno-Karabakh, killing three crew members.

It has taken much mediation to find a solution to allow Armenian
participation in Baku.

But, following a series of promises such solution would be found,
today’s confirmation is a major coup for the European Olympic
Committees (EOC) and Games organisers less than three months before
the first European continental Games are due to open on June 12.

Some 6,000 athletes spanning all 50 EOC members now set to compete.

“We are very pleased to confirm our participation in the first European
Games,” said NOCA President Gagik Tsarukyan in a statement.

“We know that Armenian athletes will have the best possible facilities
and support available to them at Baku 2015, helping them reach their
peak performance this summer.

“My Executive Board took this decision based on sporting reasons alone;
it is important to keep sport independent from politics.

“We have already started organising our team for the Games, we will
make further announcements about our preparations in due course.

“But I can say now that this was the best decision for the future of
sport in our country.”

The official also thanked EOC President Patrick Hickey and
International Olympic Committee counterpart Thomas Bach for the
“support and encouragement they have provided which has directly led
to this positive decision today”.

The duo visited Yerevan last year to discuss the country’s
participation with officials including Armenian President, Serzh
Sargsyan.

“This is great news for the European Games and for Armenian sport,
and I want to congratulate the National Olympic Committee for taking
this decision,” said Hickey.

“From the start I have very been confident that this would be the end
outcome as Armenia is a passionate sports country and an important
member of the European Olympic family.

“The presence of their athletes at Baku 2015 will certainly contribute
to the success of the inaugural European Games.”

AZERBAIJAN: THREAT OF RIPPLE EFFECT IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT

Financial Times, UK
March 12 2015

Tony Barber

The “frozen conflict” between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the territory
of Nagorno-Karabakh is heating up, erupting in regular bursts of
violence that threaten regional stability and risk triggering ripple
effects beyond the southern Caucasus.

January’s casualty toll of 12 killed and 18 wounded was the highest
confirmed number of victims in the first month of a year since
a ceasefire halted a 1992-94 war between the two former Soviet
republics. That conflict killed at least 20,000 people and turned
more than 1m into refugees.

The latest clashes are on a less frightful scale, but international
monitors say the 2014 death toll of about 60 people was the worst for
20 years. “The risks are increasing. The nature of the confrontation
on the front line is becoming more dangerous. It’s not just snipers
any more. It’s attack helicopters, artillery and more,” says one
European official.

Serzh Sargsyan and Ilham Aliyev, the Armenian and Azerbaijani
presidents, met on three occasions between August and October 2014
for talks brokered by Russia, then the US, then France. But none of
these meetings advanced the prospects for a lasting peace settlement.

Instead, military expenditure, political intransigence and
state-fuelled propaganda are intensifying on both sides of a dispute
that concerns the EU, Russia, Turkey and the US, not least because
oil and gas pipelines important to Europe’s energy security lie close
to the Karabakh front line.

Mr Aliyev and his government are displaying more frustration with
the lack of diplomatic progress than for many years. At February’s
annual Munich security conference, he complained that western powers
were guilty of double standards, by imposing sanctions on Russia
for its actions in Ukraine, yet taking no meaningful steps to secure
Armenia’s compliance with UN resolutions that call for its withdrawal
from Azerbaijani land.

Azerbaijan has increased military spending over the past decade so
that it is now double the size of Armenia’s entire state budget. Among
Baku’s main arms suppliers are Israel and Russia.

In commercial, military and political terms, however, Armenia is more
closely aligned with Moscow. Russia’s 102nd Military Base is located at
Gyumri, Armenia’s second city. In January Armenia, unlike Azerbaijan,
joined Russian president Vladimir Putin’s cherished Eurasian Economic
Union, which unites Russia with several other former Soviet republics.

Having seized control of Karabakh and seven adjacent districts from
Azerbaijan in the 1992-94 war, Armenia now relies heavily on its
economic and security relationship with Russia to deter any attempt
by Baku to reclaim its lost territories by full-scale war.

What is unclear is how Russia might react if Azerbaijan launched an
attack but took care to confine its forces strictly to its side of
the internationally recognised border with Armenia.

For Baku, a related consideration is the exposed position of
Nakhchivan, an autonomous exclave that is vulnerable to Armenian
pressure because Armenian land, next to the occupied territories,
cuts it off from the rest of Azerbaijan to the east. Russia and Turkey
view themselves as guarantors of Nakhchivan’s status.

With the US and France, Russia leads the Minsk Group, which, under the
auspices of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE), has tried without success to broker a Karabakh settlement for
22 years. Moscow’s alliance with Armenia, its arms sales to Azerbaijan
and its 2008 military strike in Georgia, which resulted in that
republic’s de facto dismemberment at Russia’s hands, raise questions
about the Kremlin’s true intentions in the Minsk Group. However,
western officials say acute tensions between Russia and western
governments over Moscow’s annexation of Crimea and intervention in
eastern Ukraine have not hindered co-operation on Karabakh.

Nagorno-Karabakh (which means “mountainous black garden”), a mainly
Armenian-populated enclave of Azer-baijan in Soviet times, is today,
for most practical purposes, an appendage of Armenia. However, like
the Turkish Cypriot breakaway state in northern Cyprus, Karabakh is
isolated in the international community. Its officials are excluded
from the peace process, being represented by Armenia — a shut door
at which they chafe.

Since 2007, mediators have tried to build an agreement on the so-called
Madrid Principles, which foresee a phased Armenian withdrawal from most
of the occupied lands around Karabakh and an eventual popular vote
on the region’s status. At bottom, it may be that neither Armenian
nor Azerbaijani society is psychologically ready for the concessions
necessary to achieve a non-military solution.

“Given the breadth and depth of the propaganda on both sides, the
younger generations may not be receptive to compromise,” says an
official from an OSCE nation.

TOURING THE TASTY RUSSIAN & ARMENIAN GOODIES AT ROYAL MARKET & BAKERY

The Bold Italic
March 12 2015

by Jessica Lachenal
Mar 12 at 9am

Deep within San Francisco’s Richmond District stands an unassuming
gem of a grocer. Looking at it from the outside, you’d be forgiven
for mistaking it as just another corner store. But the Royal Market
& Bakery, which serves primarily Armenian and Russian groceries and
baked goods, has earned an avid following since opening in 2008.

While the Armenian and Russian communities in San Francisco are fairly
large, I wondered how this particular shop has managed to do so well.

The store has been able to keep a loyal base of repeat customers from
all over the Bay, managing to stick around in a neighborhood that
has no shortage of Russian and Eastern European markets and bakeries.

Royal Market is one of the best in its class, a standing confirmed
by word of mouth that travels from friends and Richmond locals.

As I learned during a recent visit, it takes more than just fresh
groceries and a smile to keep people coming back, especially in a
city where shopping services like Instacart, Google Express, and
AmazonFresh fight for your dollar.

Angela Volkovich, the store’s general manager, explains that while
the Royal Market has earned a reputation for serving somewhat rare
products, like its award-winning marinated lula kebab meats or its
trademark puri bread, the store has mostly been able to keep its
customers coming back because of its adaptability. “When we started,
we didn’t know much about having a market. But we kept getting
recommendations, and we learned from them,” she says.

On the afternoon I’m talking to her, the market is fairly busy and
Angela greets many of the customers as regulars. As they pass by,
she stops our conversation to make sure to say hello. Most of them
she knows personally; she chats a bit, then we continue on.

We spend a good part of the afternoon walking around the market,
greeting employees, talking about the different products. I keep
asking her, “What else do you have that I wouldn’t be able to find
anywhere else?” Angela rises to the challenge, proudly showing off
some of her most favorite items in the store.

Here’s a sampling of those hard-to-find things that the Royal Market
sells.

Puri

Puri is an Armenian bread, a close cousin of matnakash and very
reminiscent of naan. You roll it around cheese or other vegetables,
or dip it into hummus. Since puri is a bit smaller than matnakash,
it tends to get harder quicker, so make sure you eat it soon after
purchase.

“Nobody else in the city sells puri, not like this,” Angela says. She
mentions that her award-winning version is baked three times a day,
every day. We pass by racks upon racks of the bread and watch as a
fresh batch is rolled out onto the floor in a free-moving cart draped
with plastic coverings designed to keep the bread warm and fresh.

Gata

Angela leads me over to the hot food and bakery section and discusses
Royal Market’s desserts. Alongside the traditional baklava and cakes
is something called gata, which is a semisweet, almost savory pastry.

She offers a piece, and it crumbles and flakes as I bite into it, the
sugary flavor coming through at the end. It is a lot like a layered
butter cookie, and Jane, the in-house baker, whips up batches of gata
fresh every day.

Lamb Lula

After the bakery, we walk over to the butcher counter and Angela points
out Royal Market’s lamb lula. It’s a pre-marinated mixture of lamb
meat and “special ingredients.” When I press Angela for more details,
she just gives me a conspiratorial wink. “Secret Armenian spices,”
she says.

Saint Gregor 50-Year Brandy

Angela comments on one of the bottles on the Market’s expansive liquor
shelf: “We shared one of these bottles not too long ago,” she says,
nodding. “It was really something.”

Russian Standard Vodka

Angela gestures to the store’s wall of vodkas, which are impressively
propped up against a window facing the street. Here you have your
standard Smirnoffs, some Stolichnaya, and many different brands in
between. There are a few bottles with names in a script I couldn’t
read. When I asked which was her favorite, I expected Angela to talk
up the bottles with the foreign script, but she pointed to the Russian
Standard Vodka. “It’s just the smoothest,” she says.

Lahmajun

Angela takes me back to the kitchen where all the food is made.

There’s a group of chefs prepping fresh vegetables. She explains that
they’re getting ready to make some lahmajun. “It’s basically Armenian
pizza,” she says.

Beluga Banquet Hall

No, the Royal Market doesn’t sell beluga. Beluga is a banquet hall
located next to the store. Angela takes us through the space, which
is set up for a party that night. The tables are decked out, the bar
is fully stocked. Angela pulls out her phone and shows me photos of
the events that have taken place here, along with all the catered food.

“Sturgeon, smoked salmon, Armenian cold cuts, and everything from
next door,” she says.

Angela obviously takes great pride in the Royal Market & Bakery,
because of its food, but also because much of that food is based on
the relationships she has cultivated with her customers. As I watch
her interact with the regulars and new shoppers, I realize that she’s
running more than a market. This store doubles as a community hub for
a lot of these people, a regular place for them to see each other and
be seen. It’s these kinds of personal and cultural bonds that take a
standard grocer and turn it into a community staple for a neighborhood
like the Richmond.

Got a tip for The Bold Italic? Email [email protected].

All photos by Jessica Lachenal except lahmacun (Wikimedia Commons)
and Beluga Banquet Hall (used with permission from Beluga SF / Royal
Market and Bakery).

YEREVAN EXPO CENTER TO HOST CONSTRUCTION AND REPAIR EXPO 2015

YEREVAN, March 12. / ARKA /. Yerevan Expo Center will be hosting
March 13-15 the international specialized trade fair “Caucasus:
Construction and Repair Expo 2015.” The 12th annual fair is the
largest construction exhibition in Armenia.

The exhibition is organized by LOGOS EXPO Center and the Union of
Industrialists and Businessmen of Armenia. This year it will feature
the products and services of around 80 companies from Armenia, Iran,
Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates and some other countries.

The exhibition’s aim is to search for new markets, attract foreign
investments in the Armenian economy, demonstrate the economic potential
of the country and look for new business partners. About 20% of
participating companies are foreign companies, LOGOS EXPO said.

Official support is provided by the ministries of economy, urban
development, Union of Builders, Union of Designers and the Union
of Architects.

Over the last 15 years LOGOS EXPO Center has organized more than 200
specialized and international exhibitions.-0-

BAKU WANTS TO RESUME FULL-FLEDGED NEGOTIATIONS

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
March 12 2015

12 March 2015 – 5:43pm

Azerbaijan said at a session of the OSCE Permanent Council that the
OSCE Minsk Group should resume regular meetings in Vienna, serving
as a dialogue platform to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
peacefully. Besides the co-chairs of Russia, the U.S. and France,
the OSCE Minsk Group includes permanent representatives from Belarus,
Germany, Italy, Turkey, Sweden, Finland, Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan asked Armenia to start integral and structured
negotiations. Spokesman of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Khikmet
Hajiyev said that Armenia should comply with the agreements to
exchange information about missing persons under the auspices of the
International Committee of the Red Cross, as agreed by the presidents
in Paris. He added that Armenia should immediately release prisoners
Dilgham Askerov and Shakhbaz Guliyev, Report.az reports.

Sergey Markov, a member of the Russian Public Chamber, said in an
interview with Vestnik Kavkaza that the efficiency of the Minsk format
was very dubious, despite the readiness of the countries to negotiate.

He blamed the U.S. for blocking the settlement process, France for
lacking the power and authority to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict.

Andrey Petrov, deputy head of the M.V. Lomonosov MSU Information
and Analysis Center, believes that Azerbaijan wants to hold an
international conference or regular negotiating rounds with Armenia,
under the mediation of the OSCE MG. He reminded that not a single
agreement had been reached since Azerbaijan had shot down an Armenian
combat helicopter.

Rasim Musabekov, a member of the Azerbaijani parliament, a political
analyst, said that the negotiating process was at a stalemate and
needed a boost. Monopolization of the negotiations by the co-chairs
could not guarantee a breakthrough. Musabekov agreed that regular
meetings even in the format of the OSCE MG would still be fruitful
for the process.

Alexander Markarov, the director of the Armenian branch of the
Institute of CIS Countries, insists that switching the negotiation
process to any new format or structure would only be a waste of
time because all the people involved will need to get to know each
other from the very beginning. The question is not what format the
negotiatinf process will choose, it is about the content offered
for talks and consideration, the expert explains. Dragging the
negotiating process only makes the resolution of the conflict slower,
assures Markarov.

SINGLE SOURCE PROCUREMENTS: TAXPAYERS ASSIST BUSINESS INTERESTS OF FORMER MINISTER OF HEALTH’S SONS

Tatev Khachatryan

14:19, March 12, 2015

The state budget has become the main source for government officials
and their relatives to develop their businesses. Oftentimes, companies
that win state procurement tenders are linked, in one way or another,
to various government officials.

63 million AMD contract goes to company owned by son of former Armenian
health minister

Bianco Dental Clinic, the company owned by Hrant Dumanyan, son of
former Armenian Minister of Health Derenik Dumanyan was awarded
the contract based on the following stipulation of the “Law on
Procurements”:

Article 23. Conditions for use of single-source procurement

Procurement can be single-source, if: a) the goods, works or
services to be procured can be purchased only from one source, due
to copyright and adjacent rights, lack of competition or license. b)
Owing to an emergency or contingency, there is an urgent need for
procurement and, in terms of time, it is impossible to use another
form of procurement, provided, this need was impossible to predict
as well as, if the procurement item is not covered in signed periodic
procurement contracts.

Bianco was founded in May 2011 and is solely owned by Hrant Dumanyan.

The clinic’s director is Kamsar Kostanyan, a relative of Derenik
Dumanyan’s wife Anahit. Artour Dumanyan, another son of Derenik
Dumanyan who currently serves as an assistant to the head of personnel
of the Ministry of Health’s Food Safety Service, is also affiliated
with Bianco.

The 2011 single source procurements made by the Ministry Of Health
are missing from the government’s e-gov.am website. There is data for
only three single source procurement contracts that the ministry made
in 2012.

On February 8, 2013, the Ministry of Health and Bianco signed two
contracts with Bianco – one for 3.176 million AMD and another for
17 million. Both were for out of hospital services. On February 18,
2014, two contracts totaling 21.7 million AMD were signed for the
same services.

Contracts were signed with Bianco both when Derenik Dumanyan served
as minister and afterwards.

On February 2 of this year two single source contracts totaling
21 million AMD were signed with Bianco. Thus, from 2013 – 2015
the government signed six contracts totaling 63 million AMD with
Bianco Ltd.

Gurgen Dumanyan’s animal and pharmacy businesses

Gurgen Dumanyan

Gurgen Dumanyan, the eldest son of Derenik Dumanyan, currently serves
as the first deputy to Davit Harutyunyan, the Armenian government’s
chief of staff. Gurgen Dumanyan owns 10% in the Fauna Zoological Garden
established in 2005. The other 70% is owned by Artour Khachatryan,
a person involved in Armenia’s trade of endangered animals that Hetq
has extensively covered.

As stated in its charter, Fauna is engaged in the retail trade of
mainly foodstuffs, beverages and tobacco products in non-specialized
stores.

Gurgen Dumanyan, a former director of the Ministry of Health’s “Health
Programs Implementation Office”, also owns shares in a number of
companies temporarily not operating.

The tourism sector

Derenik Dumanyan’s family also has its fingers in the tourism sector.

Prior to 2012, his wife Anahit owned 25% in Yan Voyage. This company
signed an air services contract with the Procurement Assistance Center
SNCO in October 2013.

The company was founded in 2010 and operates as a tour operator
in addition to offering real estate purchasing services in Armenia
and overseas.

HOW AN ARMENIAN IN EGYPT DONATED A RARE COPY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT TO ISRAELI FILMMAKER

17:17, 12 Mar 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan

A rare copy of the Tanach (Old Testament) that reached Israel in a
circuitous fashion and was donated to the University of Haifa by the
late film producer and well-known Israeli director Micha Shagrir, was
reunited with its “twin,” a copy of the same edition that was already
in the Rare Books Department of the University of Haifa’s library,
reads an article by Anav Silverman published by The Jewish Press.

When Shagrir informed the staff of the Younes and Soraya Nazarian
Library that he wanted to donate a 350-year-old copy of the Tanakh,
the staffers welcomed the idea, pleased that they could add another
antique edition of the Book of Books to the library’s collection. But
they were quite surprised to discover that the volume, which had
been printed in Germany in 1677, was a near-duplicate of a Tanach
the library already had.

While the two volumes were very similar, they were not identical. The
copy the library owned was narrow with almost no margins, the new
copy had wide margins, in which there were numerous notes written
in Latin, in tiny handwriting, by no less than 10 different readers
in the 17th and 18th centuries. The editor of the edition and source
of the commentary that accompanies the printed text was David Clodil
(1644-1684), a theologian and Hebraist – a Renaissance-era scientific
discipline in which Christian scholars studied the Hebrew sources of
Christianity in depth.

How the volume made its way from a 17th-century Frankfurt printing
press to finding its twin in Haifa is a fascinating story. As Shagrir
told it, a month after Egyptian President Anwar Sadat came to Israel
in November 1977, Shagrir and a group of other Israelis made a
secret trip to Egypt. Towards the end of the visit, as he was walking
through the streets of Cairo, he found himself in a store that sold
antique books. It turned out that the proprietor was not Egyptian,
but Armenian, and he was a big fan of a film Shagrir had recently
released about the Armenian genocide.

When the shopkeeper discovered that he was speaking to the producer
of that film, he gave Shagrir a wrapped copy of a book, but made him
promise not to open it until he returned to Israel. When he returned
and opened the package, he was stunned to find the ancient volume. So
nearly 350 years after it was printed, and 37 years after it arrived
in Israel, the volume of the Tanach was reunited with the copy held
by the University. Shagrir passed away last month on February 4 at
the age of 77.