LATE ARMENIAN PARIARCH FAREWELLED: JOY AND PRIDE BEHIND THE SORROW
21:01, October 23, 2012
By Arthur Hagopian
Jerusalem, Oct 22 – The epic odyssey of the boy Avedis, from the
sandstorms of the Iraqi desert, to the golden throne of St James
in Jerusalem, wound down to its inevitable close this week, as the
coffin slowly descended into the grave, clods of earth raining down
upon the lid, a final farewell: earth to earth.
The heavens themselves seemed to blaze forth the death of the prince,
Archbishop Torkom Manoogian, Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem, 96th
in line of succession from Abraham, the first leader of the Armenian
Church in the Holy Land.
In a hauntingly solemn ceremony, his fellow princes had led Manoogian
to his final resting place in the Armenian cemetery of St Saviors,
a stone’s throw from the bullet-riddled Zion Gate, one of seven that
punctuate the 500-years old Walls of the Old City.
Thousands of people, some of whom had flown in expressly for the
occasion, watched the funeral or accompanied the cortege, the narrow
streets of the Old City and the confined space within the cemetery
making it impossible to accommodate more than a fraction of their
number.
For the first time within living memory, the whole city seemed to have
risen as one to pay tribute to the man who gave pungent definition to
the terms “glasnost” and “perestroika,” and who helped usher a new era
of stability and prosperity for his diminishing and dispirited fold.
Putting aside their differences for a brief spell, leaders or
representatives of practically every house of God in Jerusalem,
whether Christians, or the ones who call Him Yahweh, or those who
call Him Allah, and of every political affiliation in the country,
marched in the mournful funeral procession, from the Convent of St
James, seat of the Armenian Patriarchate, to the Armenian cemetery.
The presence of the foreign host gave tangible, vociferous
recognition of the ineradicable place Armenians continue to occupy
in Jerusalem: despite the relentless attrition wars and catastrophes
have precipitated in their numbers over the years, Armenians still
prefer Jerusalem over their chief joy.
Ask any Armenian, if he or she could remold his destiny “to the heart’s
desire,” (in Omar Khayyam’s words), where would they like their home
to be, and the reply will be unequivocally divided between Yerevan,
capital of the Armenian homeland, and Yerusaghem (the Armenian name
for Jerusalem).
Pulitzer prize winning novelist William Saroyan said it best: when
any two Armenians meet anywhere in the world, see if they will not
create a new Armenia.
The unmistakable attendance of a special envoy from the Lebanon-based
Armenian Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia, historic rivals
of the mother church in Armenia with which Jerusalem is aligned,
gave vivid proof of this unshakable bond of fraternity and solidarity.
And to demonstrate his affinity with the Armenian church (as well
as his own personal regard for Manoogian), former Latin Patriarch
of Jerusalem Michel Sabbah emerged out of self-imposed retirement,
to join the funeral procession.
During the past 50 years or so, the Armenians of Jerusalem have had
to bury two patriarchs: Guregh Israelian, in 1949, just after the
first Arab-Israel war and Israel’s proclamation of independence,
and Yeghishe Derderian, in 1990.
Derderian had been elected locum tenens (“caretaker”) following
Israelian’s death, and had adhered to that position tenuously for
decades before finally succumbing to demands for an election that
traditionally should take place after the expiration of a 40-day
mourning period.
Church sources doubt this will happen again: within days of the death
of Manoogian, the brotherhood of Armenian priests in Jerusalem met
in general assembly to elect a new locum tenens, giving the nod to
Archbishop Aris Shirvanian, director of the Patriarchate’s ecumenical
and foreign relations.
It will be his job, among his other caretaker responsibilities, to
pave the way for the election of Jerusalem’s 97th Armenian patriarch.
In one of the highlights of Manoogian’s funeral mass, celebrated in
the ornate Cathedral of St James, Shirvanian bent to bless Manoogian’s
body, dipping his finger in a receptacle holding the holy chrism,
and anointing the late patriarch’s forehead and right hand.
The gesture is a tacit affirmation of the link of patriarchal
succession and points to the symbolic importance of the right hand of
an Armenian priest (this is the hand he uses to bless the congregation
and offer communion) as evidenced by the fact that relics of Armenian
saints are usually housed in golden moulds or replicas of the right
hand.
Before coming to Jerusalem, Manoogian had held, reportedly to popular
acclaim, the highly prestigious position of Primate of the Eastern
Diocese of America, a mandate that gave him spiritual jurisdiction
over tens of thousands of Armenians living on America’s east coast.
But he gave all that up to go and act as shepherd to a mere handful,
in the city of Christ.
And Jerusalem turned out to be one mammoth challenge, a fact
acknowledged by the Armenian church, as conceded by the late Catholicos
of All Armenians, Vazken I, who said of Manoogian: “We see that his
task is difficult: a heavy responsibility weighs upon his shoulders. ”
Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Manoogian’s successor as Primate, echoed
the same sentiments in a eulogy: “He was one of the very few churchmen
of his generation to carry the weight of our church on his shoulders.
He stood out . . . and seemed to combine all the grace and dignity
of the Armenian past, with all our fondest hopes and aspirations for
the future. ”
Like Manoogian, Barsamian is a member of the priestly Brotherhood
of St James, and his name has cropped up as a potential candidate
to replace succeed, a prospect he shares with half a dozen others,
each no less impressive in his credentials.
Among the front-runners of the eligible candidates among the
Brotherhood, two stand out: Archbishop Aris Shirvanian, the locum
tenens, and Archbishop Nourhan Manoogian, the Patriarchal Vicar. The
former primate of the Diocese of the Armenian Church of Australia and
New Zealand, Archbishop Aghan Baliozian, who died recently, had also
been among the undeclared runners.
The Armenians of Jerusalem know that it is not going to be easy to
replace Manoogian, the reformer.
“Manoogian was a visionary, an idealist, and despite his foibles,
he was able to inspire and consolidate the local Armenian community
which had been wrung out to dry during the previous administration,”
as an observer remarked.
“Under his tutelage, division lines blurred, and people began to feel
once more a strong sense of unity, of belonging,” he added.
“Repercussions of the unhappy, traumatic age of Manoogian’s predecessor
lost their poignancy. Here was a man who could deliver, who cared
for his flock, and showed it.”
Manoogian, who was born in the desert town of Baqouba in Iraq, will
best be remembered for his bold initiatives to restore faith in the
Jerusalem church and its leaders, and re-establish the sense of order
and stability the community had been denied during his predecessor’s
tumultuous reign.
At the same time, his keen interest in ecumenical affairs ensured the
forging of sound brotherly ties with the other Christian churches of
the Holy Land.
But he also used his skills, honed during his US stint, to promulgate
firm diplomatic and political relations with local or regional
governments.
Jerusalem’s legendary mayor, the late Teddy Kollek, held Manoogian
in high esteem and would call on him from time to time.
And as Manoogian’s secretary and press officer, I accompanied him on
a visit to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in Gaza. As Arafat dwelt
at length on the problems and tribulations facing him in the Strip,
Manoogian would nod in understanding.
As we were about to leave, Arafat pulled me aside and whispered:
“He is a good man. Deeru balkom ‘aleh (take good care of him).”
Manoogian will be mourned long and lovingly, for behind the sorrow at
his loss there is joy and pride that this reformer was able, despite
all his foibles, to set the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the
second most important spiritual fount for all Armenians, back on a
solidly sound and secure course.
An old widow, who had cause to remember Manoogian’s beneficence,
summed it up with the traditional Armenian wish for the departed:
“May the earth lie gently and lightly on your tomb.”
ENDS
Pix: Courtesy Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem
http://hetq.am/eng/articles/19798/late-armenian-pariarch-farewelled-joy-and-pride-behind-the-sorrow.html