Author: Kanayan Tamar

ANTI-SEMITIC SCHOOL BOOKS SPARK OUTRAGE IN TURKEY

Worldcrunch
Oct 22 2012

ISTANBUL – A Turkish education union has pressed charges over the
distribution of anti-Semitic books to schools in Istanbul’s Maltepe
district, the daily Radikal reported.

“The books include phrases that are unscientific, anti-Semitic,
anti-Armenian and humiliate Christians, non-religious people and
people with a left-wing philosophy,” read a statement issued by the
Egitim-Sen union. The organization has accused the editor of carrying
out a ” Hate Crime,” Kehaber reports.

The book in question depict Charles Darwin as a Jewish man with a
big nose, who keeps company with monkeys, according to the Financial
Times. Over 1,000 copies of the book were handed out to primary school
children for free.

Ahmet Sirri Arvas, the editor of the books, spoke to Radikal about
the incident, saying that a few friends put the content together,
which is what lead to such terms being used. “The books were only
handed out to 1000 children and will be amended to meet professional
standards as soon as possible,” he said.

The Egitim Sen Union has taken legal action again Arvas. “We want the
books impounded, and all those responsible held accountable for their
part in their distribution into the hands of 10-year-old children,”
said Mehmet Aydogan, chief of the union’s Istanbul bureau.

Aydogan has criticized the publisher for discrediting artists worldwide
and forcing students to think unscientifically.

POLITICAL EXPERT: BATTLE ACTIONS IN SYRIA WILL NEGATIVELY AFFECT KARABAKH CONFLICT SETTLEMENT PROCESS

arminfo
Monday, October 22, 19:03

Battle actions in Syria will negatively affect Karabakh conflict
settlement process, director of the “Noravank” fund, Gagik Harutyunyan,
said at today’s press-conference.

He said that Syria is de-facto in war which in future may turn into
a military operation of the USA and its allies against Iran. He also
added that such a scenario is beneficial to Turkey which is pretending
to the status of regional superpower. “Turkey itself is an interested
party in the Karabakh conflict, and the growth of its influence will
bring dividends to Azerbaijan which is eager to settle the conflict
by means of war. As for Turkey, it also wants to have a lark at
the territory of Armenia”, – he said. The expert added that some
optimistic political experts draw another actions plan, in particular,
continuation of the “Arab spring” in Turkey. Such development of events
would be beneficial to Armenia, but it is hardly possible, he said.

The modern Turkey has nothing in common with that of the 90-s, he said
and added that at present Ankara has been trying to get beyond control
of Russia and the USA and to play its own part at the Middle East.

Turkey’s attitude to Iran and Syria is stemming from this, he said.

“It is no secret that the USA and Russia cannot any more dictate their
rules to Turkey. But it is not clear yet if Moscow and Washington can
keep Turkey from attacking Syria. However, taking into consideration
the fact that there are many interested parties in the Syrian issue –
EU, China, the USA and Russia, the above mentioned global players will
take measures to mortify Ankara, and civil war will go on developing
in Syria”, – he said. At the same time, he added that the returning
point has been already lost and suspension of the “Arab spring”
is impossible, as the situation has already run out of control of
its scenarists.

ORIENTALIST: SITUATION IN LEBANON IS PART OF THE WEST’S SYRIA-LEBANON- IRAN SCENARIO

arminfo
Monday, October 22, 19:05

The situation in Lebanon is part of the West’s Syria-Lebanon-Iran
scenario, Orientalist, professor of Yerevan State University Ruben
Melkonyan said in an interview to ArmInfo.

He said that the outbreak of violence in Lebanon was quite easy to
predict. “The West has just produced one more trouble spot in the
Middle East just to show how weak the Shia-Alawi regimes are,” the
expert said.

He believes that in their fight against Bashar al Assad’s Syria the
West and Turkey needed one more spot of instability. “In other words,
they in the United States have decided that the tensions in Syria are
high enough to spread to the key ally of Syria and Iran, Lebanon. And
now they will try to replace the local pro-Syrian and pro-Iranian
authorities by an anti-Syrian and anti-Iranian regime,” Melkonyan said.

To remind, at least 8 were killed and 80 wounded in an explosion in
the center of Beirut Oct 18. It is the first terrorist act in the
Lebanese capital in the last four years.

COMMITTEE TO PROTECT JOURNALISTS REPORT: NO JUSTICE FOR HRANT DINK

tert.am
22.10.12

The Committee to Protect Journalists has released a report entitled
‘Turkey’s Press Freedom Crisis The Dark Days of Jailing Journalists and
Criminalizing Dissent’ Along with other issues, the reports addresses
the assassination of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink.

The sidebar entitled “No Justice for Hrant Dink” reads:

Nearly six years after Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was shot
in front of his Istanbul office by a 17-year-old ultranationalist,
the real instigators, their links to state institutions, and the role
played by the Turkish media in making the well-known journalist and
human rights activist a target have yet to be fully investigated.

Captured shortly after he killed Dink on January 19, 2007, Ogun Samast
was sentenced by a juvenile court in July 2011 to nearly 23 years of
imprisonment. From the onset of the investigation, it was evident
that the young man, who had traveled to Istanbul from the Black
Sea city of Trabzon to commit the crime, had not acted alone. In
the course of the inquiry, it emerged that police, gendarmerie, and
intelligence officials in Trabzon, Istanbul, and Ankara were aware
that an assassination attempt was planned, but did nothing to warn or
protect Dink. On January 17, 2012, the 14th Criminal Court in Istanbul
ruled on the fate of other key suspects. It sentenced Yasin Hayal,
seen as the mastermind, to life behind bars.

Two defendants were sentenced to 12 years and six months of
imprisonment as accessories to Dink’s murder, while another was
punished for illegal gun possession. But to the dismay of Dink’s
relatives and supporters, the court ruled that Erhan Tuncel, an
ultranationalist police informant believed to be a major player,
had no involvement in the assassination. All 19 suspects were cleared
of being part of a criminal organization. “Turkey has a tradition of
political murders that goes back to Ottoman times. The judiciary still
has the automatic reflex to protect the state and civil servants,”
said Fethiye Cetin, lawyer for the Dink family. “They can’t reveal
the truth about the Dink case because it was part of state policies.”

Paradoxically, the presiding judge himself acknowledged that the
verdict was flawed. “We acquitted the suspects of organized crime
charges,” Judge Rustem Eryılmaz told Vatan newspaper. “This ruling
does not mean that there was no organization involved. This means
that there was not enough evidence to prove the actions of this
organization.”

In prescient articles published days before his death, Dink expressed
fears that he was in danger. “Why was I made a target?” he wrote in
Agos, the weekly Armenian-Turkish newspaper he founded in 1996.

Pressure against the ethnic Armenian writer had been building for
years. A series of articles on Armenian identity published in 2004 led
to his prosecution under the controversial Article 301 of the penal
code for “insulting Turkishness.” He received a six-month suspended
sentence, which was upheld on appeal in 2006. The campaign against Dink
and other nonMuslims may have its roots in a policy document adopted
in 2001 by the National Security Council, which listed “minorities” and
“missionary activities” among the threats to national security. “After
the document was prepared, articles started appearing in the media
suggesting the country was overrun by missionaries and Christian
churches were being built everywhere,” Cetin said.

In 2006, Catholic priest Andrea Santoro was killed by a right-wing
teenager, also from Trabzon, and a few months after Dink’s
assassination, three Protestant missionaries were slaughtered in
the eastern city of Malatya. In this case, too, state involvement
is suspected.

At a time when power balances are shifting and the influence of the
military is waning, the judicial investigation into Dink’s murder has
been widely seen as a test: Can Turkey end a culture of impunity and
shed a rigid state ideology that views some segments of society as
internal foes? The case also highlights troubling issues regarding the
Turkish media–though TURKEY’S PRESS FREEDOM CRISIS 19 restrictions are
imposed on press freedom, media outlets also play an active role in
the smear campaigns directed at Dink and others deemed to be enemies
of the state.

“The media were used as an instrument in the run-up to Hrant
Dink’s murder,” said Rober KoptaÅ~_, Dink’s successor as editor of
Agos. “There was a trial against him, but he was also attacked first
by the right-wing press, then by mainstream media.”

“The murder of a journalist known for his peace efforts shook Turkey
to the core. KoptaÅ~_ says the emotions it generated have contributed
to improving perceptions of Turkey’s 50,000-strong ethnic Armenian
community. The debate on the 1915 massacres has also broadened
significantly, even if the Turkish authorities continue to deny
strenuously that they amounted to genocide. “Hrant Dink’s murder has
decreased pressure on Agos. Article 301 was amended after the murder,
and any prosecution now has to get prior approval of the justice
minister,” KoptaÅ~_ said.

“There has been no court case against us for the past four years.”

In the past few years, dozens of army officers and other figures
suspected of plotting to overthrow the government have been arrested,
among them officials who harassed Dink and tried to intimidate him.

Journalists are among those facing terrorism charges, including Nedim
Å~^ener, who wrote a book alleging a police coverup in the Dink case.

Released pending trial in March 2012 after more than a year in
prison, the reporter is accused of belonging to the very network
he investigated.

Prosecutors looking into the past misdeeds of the “deep state” have
limited their inquiries to elements perceived to pose a direct threat
to the conservative government. Injustices committed against minorities
have not received the same attention. As Cetin points out, “the Hrant
Dink murder case has remained on the other side of the line.”

The Dink family has appealed the criminal court’s verdict, underscoring
the prosecution’s failure to pursue crucial lines of inquiry pointing
to state involvement in the journalist’s murder. The case will be
reviewed by the Supreme Court of Appeals, which can confirm the ruling
or order a retrial. A decision is not expected until the end of the
year. Interest in the final outcome remains strong, in Turkey and
abroad, and the ruling party is under pressure to ensure that justice
is properly served. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged after
the January 2012 criminal court ruling that “the Hrant Dink case will
not be lost in the dark corridors of Ankara.

No provocation, no plot will remain concealed.”

Cetin has publicly documented the inconsistencies and weaknesses of
the judicial procedure. “Everything is out in the open,” she said. In
spite of the legal team’s insistence, security camera footage and
phone records that could have offered proof of other suspects’
presence at the murder scene were not produced in court.

Prosecutors turned a blind eye to bureaucratic stonewalling.

Cetin remains hopeful that the upper court will reject the judgment and
demand a wider judicial inquiry. A report prepared in February by the
official watchdog, the State Audit Institution, stated that the role
of public officials has not been sufficiently investigated. In 2010,
the European Court of Human Rights came to a similar conclusion,
based on the early results of the murder inquiry. The court also
ruled that Turkey had violated Hrant Dink’s freedom of expression
and failed to protect his life.

YOUTH WILL HAVE MORE OPPORTUNITIES TO LEARN ABOUT UNITED NATIONS

armradio.am
18:46 22.10.2012

Within the framework of series of events celebrating 20th anniversary
of UN presence in Armenia students of the Yerevan State University
(YSU) will have more opportunities to further raise their awareness
on the UN values, UN global agenda and UN work in Armenia as a result
of the implementation of the Plan for Cooperation which was signed
today between the University and the United Nations Department of
Public Information (UNDPI).

Marking of the language days at the UN, organization of Model UN
Conferences, joint management of the UN Depository Library at YSU,
UN outreach lectures and debates, internship opportunities for the
students are just a few examples of the expected activities, which
will enhance the dissemination of the UN values among the students.

The UN Department of Public Information Representative in Armenia,
Maria Dotsenko said: “Youth is the driving force of any society,
and it is important that Armenian youth has more opportunities to
learn about agenda and values of the UN: human rights, democratic
governance, peace and security, sustainable human development. Our
cooperation with Armenian universities also gives students more chances
to be engaged in UN activities. It will help them to become not only
successful professionals, but also active and responsive citizens of
their country.”

Hundreds of UN publications were distributed to the students and
professors of the University. The participants watched also a
slide-show of photos illustrating 20-year achievements of the UN
inArmenia.

“We highly appreciate our cooperation with the UN. Giving academic
knowledge to our students is our key priority, however we invest
significant efforts into helping them to become well informed and
active citizens of the world”, said Ruben Markosyan, the deputy rector
of the Yerevan State University.

The commemoration of the Arabic Language Day at the UN and organization
of the Model UN Conference at the University in December 2012 are
among the upcoming activities in the framework of the plan between
the UNDPI and Yerevan State University.

IGOR MURADYAN: THERE ARE A LOT OF POLES IN THE WORLD, BUT THERE IS STILL ONLY ONE WORLD OPERATOR – USA
by David Stepanyan

Arminfo
Monday, October 22, 17:23

ArmInfo’s interview with Igor Muradyan, a well-known analyst, one of
the initiators and heads of the Karabakh Movement of 1988

Mr. Muradyan, the latest developments around Syria and Iran, deployment
of Turkish troops near the Syrian border, at first sight, testify
to a sooner large-scale regional war. Do you see such trends in the
geopolitical situation?

The analytical community and the mass media are gradually arriving
at a conclusion that a big regional war is possible. I think special
attention should be given to the threats. After all the numerous talks
on failure of the monopolar world, one can come to the conclusion that
there are really very many poles. And these poles of international and
even regional significance are becoming more and more independent,
having a resource base for that. Yes, there are many poles, but the
United States is still the only world operator.

European Union has apparently given up the idea to have an operating
significance in the world, though it still hopes to become the only
arbitrator, moral and legal authority, etc.

The NATO Summit in Chicago contributed to overcoming of the
discrepancies among the NATO countries, because many of the NATO
members and partners realized that they could not do without the
Alliance.

There is a boom of independence in the world and some countries in the
world have suddenly decided that they are insufficiently independent. 
All this are not just irrational ambitions, it is motivated by specific
economic goals.

Are the Arab revolutions among them?

Indeed, but even the Arab Spring was not a global threat. Those
revolutions started when it turned out that radical Islam suffered
fiasco.

The last NATO summit has shown that Turkey is a problem not only
because it seeks wider independence from the United States but also
because of its tensed relations with NATO.

The Turks are laying claims that cannot be ignored.

As a result, the Europeans and the Americans have come to a consensus
that they need a strategy to restrain the Turks and are actively
negotiating this project. Their goal is to subdue Turkey while their
mechanism is to create political, diplomatic, economic, social,
religious and ideological problems for the Turks. Today Turkey is
facing a very interesting situation: almost all of its neighbors,
the Arab, Balkan and Caucasus nations, see it as a potential threat
and have asked the Americans to do something about it.

But there are also Russia and Iran. Past year showed that in case of
necessity Ankara demonstrates rapprochement with Moscow…

The USA has never been concerned over possible alliance between Turkey
and Russia or Turkey and Iran, there are too many discrepancies
between them. The United States has always been concerned over the
Middle East, where the fate of Turkish ambitions and neo-Ottomanism
is decided. Therefore, Americans have made a powerful barrier
of Iraq and Syria, thereby creating an irresistible obstacle for
Turkey’s promotion. Actually, over the recent years the USA posed
no obstacles in Turkey’s way and offered Ankara to move forward and
enjoy its grandeur. Turkey moved forward and came across everybody’s
resistance. This is why it should be taken into account that Turkey
is very much diverted from the Caucasus. It is not the power to act
in two directions adequately. It cannot act even in one direction,
as it cannot cross over Iraq and Syria”, he said. In addition,
Americans are creating a home front consisting of Kurds.

Therefore, Turkey is trying to involve NATO in its game in every
possible way, but its attempts are in vain. Turkey will declare no
war against Syria all by itself. It’s absolute nonsense. I think that
Ankara does not want to face the prospect of suffering immense losses,
remaining alone, and being excluded from NATO.

At a glance it may seem that it is Turkey that must play the key role
in supporting the Syrian rebels…

In reality Turkey is only instructed to ensure communications, delivery
of arms, and the logistic support for the manpower fighting against
Assad. Turkey cannot enter the territory of Syria, as it is not its
zone. It is the zone of the Western community’s interests.

And if Turkey invades Syria all by itself, it will become the key
player in the developments and will dominate in the region, which
runs counter to the policy of restraining Turkey.

A question arises as to what makes Syria so important for the West?

Syria is the key country in the region and the fight for that country
has continued for decades; it has not begun recently. However,
now when a new very powerful project of an independent source of
oil is implemented, that fight has become even more important. The
Caspian source is of local importance, even despite Kazakhstan. The
oil reserves explored in Northern Iraq total 31.5 billion tons, which
is more than the total oil reserves of Saudi Arabia. Nearly 40%-45%
of total Iraqi oil is concentrated in the territory of Northern Iraq
far from the Shiite zone and, consequently, far from Iran’s influence.

It will allow producing oil independently of Iran and OPEC and laying
oil pipelines via the Syrian territory and Syrian ports independently
from the Persian Gulf, Suez Canal and Turkey.

Via Syria’s territory and Syrian ports…

Surely, it is the shortest, cheapest and most reliable way. However,
it is impossible as long as Assad, who ignores the interests of the
West and U.S., is in power in Syria. Therefore, it is necessary to
change the power, to try to maintain the territorial integrity of
Syria federalizing it and pump oil, especially that there is already
a solid oil pipeline with a capacity of 70 million tons in Syria.

But there are also interests of Russia and Iran, which Moscow and
Tehran are protecting by all means possible…

The positions of Russia and Iran on Syria are clear and explained by
the fact that the U.S. tries to oust them from Syria. Nevertheless,
there will be no war against Iran, just growing pressure on Iran and
attempts to break the power of ayatollahs. The decision on Syria,
which had not been adopted yet in the spring, is to achieve full
disorganization of Syria and launch a new dialogue. As a result,
Bashar Assad will leave after he receives security guarantees (maybe
false), and a new government will be appointed in Syria basing on
the Iraqi experience. The Iraqi model of power change is currently
being implemented in Syria with consideration of the previous mistakes.

The key mistake of the U.S. in Iraq was Ba’ath Party’s overthrowing.

Now, the Syrian Ba’ath Party will be left at least part of the power
after Assad’s leave. As a result of this combination, Turkey has been
shut in the south and it cannot get out independently. The Kurdish
factor is just the filling of the Syrian chocolate, for the entire
Arab world headed by Egypt has been mobilized not to allow Turkey to
the Middle East.

You have drawn the general regional picture, but what about Armenia
and Karabakh?

I am sure that war in Karabakh may begin only when Ankara signals.

Azerbaijan will never war alone. It is a bluff, nonsense, irrespective
of Baku’s military budget. Turkey will make that signal only when
it makes sure that the West has left no path for its development
and expansion.

Last summer Americans and Turks had a serious talk. The U.S. blamed
Turkey for rejecting their repeatedly offered effective cooperation
and for preferring single-handed sail. Turkey, in turn, cannot blame
U.S. for impeding its sailing.

The U.S. is also ready to return to that talk, but whether it is
possible now when Turkey has prejudiced everyone against it, even those
who it had certain arrangements with. The U.S. told Turkey that it
has failed its regional policy and cannot return to the past, because
the U.S. cannot assure Turkey’s neighbors in the region that it can
safeguard them against Turkey. Turks are so confused now. They have
faced a deadlock. They are making provocations, blasting bombs on the
borders, trying to involve NATO in all that and force a breakthrough
under NATO flag. They do not need Syria; they need the entire Middle
East. In response to their ambitions, the U.S. told Turks that they
could trade in textile, nuts and whatever they want, but oil and gas
and the billions of the Arab world are not theirs.

At the NATO Summit in Chicago Turkey denied the Cypriot reality and
insisted on a communique on regional conflicts aimed against Armenia.

That is why President Serzh Sargsyan did not attend the Summit. At the
Summit Ankara hinted that it is going to wage an independent regional
policy, which was quite unpleasant for NATO, because Turkey’s regional
policy is a threat and something extra- systemic for NATO. Observing
the Turkish policy for the last 20 years I can state that it is of
sinusoidal nature. Pan Turkism, Neo-Ottomanism and Anatolian Islamism:
these three Turkish doctrines have never been independent from each
other, as U.S. was interested in those doctrines due to its aspirations
for Turkey’s Islamization.

Why?

Few people understand why it was done. Islamization is expansion
of Turkey’s foreign policy through clashes with neighbors. Clashes
accompanied with a scandal always lead to a deadlock.

War in the South Caucasus will be possible only when Turkey finds
itself in deadlock and needs to demonstrate who is ‘the conductor’
in the region. Turkey and Azerbaijan had a strategic treaty not tested
by NATO. The later closed eyes on it to avoid a conflict with Turkey.

However, that treaty is illegal for it implies that Turkey will help
Azerbaijan in case of an attack on that country.

Nevertheless, Turkey cannot do it without relevant sanctions by
NATO, otherwise it will challenge its membership. Therefore, the
Turkish-Azerbaijan treaty is impossible in practice – these are
trappings of power. At the same time, Turkey has thousands of other
methods to help Azerbaijan in case of war. The military and political
leadership of Armenia is well aware that a new war will not last long,
for within two- three weeks of active, non-siege battle the Azerbaijani
army will not be able to conduct active operations. The results of the
role games held at the general staffs of serious countries exactly show
this. I attended the second political contours of those games. However,
if Azerbaijan suffers failure, non-one can suppose what Turkey will do:
whether it will care for its NATO membership then or not. Therefore,
Ankara will try its best in order the war does not lead to its direct
interference.

What about Iran?

Iran does not fit in the scenario of the regional war either.

Actually Iran helps the U.S. as it is a very important factor of the
USA’s presence and even activation in the region, and frightening
of a number of countries in the West and East. Today’s Iran cannot
become a partner for either Russia or China, it is just a country
which Russia and Iran take interests in. The U.S. has turned Iran
into a pariah state. For instance, Iran strives to SCO, but it is
not allowed to join the Organization because all the member- states
are system countries, part of the world elite. So, the world elite
cannot deal with a pariah-state. The U.S. has achieved that.

In other words, everything that happens around Iran Syria, Turkey
and the entire region is just imitation…

Imitation that reflects the image of our epoch. Such imitation was
problematic before. Now, in our information epoch when every idiot can
read whatever he wants, imitation has turned into a powerful weapon.

VERA HOVHANNISYAN WINS THE GOLD FOR ARMENIA AT WORLD CULINARY OLYMPICS
Hasmik Dilanyan

“Radiolur”
16:11 22.10.2012

Contrary to popular opinion, the Olympics aren’t just for sporting
enthusiasts. There’s another Olympic competition, designed to challenge
the world’s top chefs.

Vera Hakobyan of Moscow won the gold medal at the World Culinary
Olympics held in Erfurt, Germany from 5 to 10 October. She participated
in the competition under the Armenian flag.

Representatives of 53 participating countries were astonished by the
squirrel made of 10 kg of sugar.

The World Culinary Olympics is organized once in four years by the
World Association of Cooks.

Vera first participated in the Olympics in 2004 and won the silver.

“It was my dream to represent Armenia at the Olympiad and with a gold
medal,” she told reporters in Yerevan.

It took her about two months to create the sugar figure of the
Ice-Age-figure ‘Scrat.’ Vera got 100 points out of 100 possible.

President of the Armenian Association of Cooks Armen Mandalyan is
inspired by Vera’s success. In the near future those interested can
see Vera Hovhannisyan’s works at an exhibition in Yerevan, he said.

Vera is going to live inYerevanand is ready to share her experience
with the youth.

PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Tel: (212) 686-0710; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:

October 22, 2012
_______________________________________________

Altar Servers Ordained in Providence, RI

Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Diocese of the Armenian Church
of America (Eastern), visited Sts. Sahag and Mesrob Church of Providence,
RI, last weekend, where he ordained altar servers and presided over the
church’s name day celebration.

On Saturday, October 13, the Feast of the Holy Translators, Archbishop
Barsamian presided over a vespers service during which 10 young men were
ordained to the rank of acolyte. The 10-Timothy Aznavourian, Garen
Megrdichian, Adam Parnagian, Antranig Daoud, Michael Papazian, Luke
Alexander, David Alexander, Aren Daoud, Zachary Semerjian, and Zander
Semerjian-have spent the past year preparing for their new responsibilities
with the Rev. Fr. Shnork Souin, parish pastor.

“Seeing the look of awe and humility in the faces of these 10 young men
being ordained by the Primate on Saturday night, I was struck with the
realization that this was no graduation from a rigorous one-year acolyte
training program but a beginning of a greater service to and for the
church,” Fr. Souin said. “These young men have worked so hard and served on
the altar with such enthusiasm that I feel that they are an inspiration for
the entire congregation and a breath of fresh air in my own ministry.”

Also taking part in the service on Saturday were the Very Rev. Fr. Aren
Jebejian, pastor of St. Gregory the Illuminator Church of Chicago, Ill., and
the Rev. Fr. Krikor Sabounjian, pastor of Holy Translators Church of
Framingham, Mass.

Following the service, the parents of the newly ordained parishioners
sponsored a reception in the church hall. The community welcomed the
Primate, congratulated the young men, and encouraged them to continue their
service to the Armenian Church. David Alexander and the brothers Zachary and
Zander Semerjian sang songs and played the piano during the reception.

On Sunday, October 14, Archbishop Barsamian celebrated the Divine Liturgy
and elevated Samuel DeBlois, Timothy Aznavourian, and Haroutiun Ohanesian to
the sub-diaconate.

In his sermon, Archbishop Barsamian spoke about St. Sahag and St. Mesrob-the
patron saints of the Providence church-who created the Armenian alphabet in
the fifth century. The Primate reminded parishioners that “the love of Jesus
Christ which inspired and drove the Holy Translators is something available
to each and every one of us.”

“With such love, the various gifts that each of us possesses will become
greater,” Archbishop Barsamian said. “Like the Translators, we will see our
own ministry made more meaningful, more powerful, because it is inspired by
our Lord.”

A requiem service was held for Archbishop Torkom Manoogian, the 96th
Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem, and the long-serving former Primate of the
Eastern Diocese, who passed away on October 12.

Later in the afternoon, some 240 people gathered in the church hall for the
annual name day banquet. The community honored its 2012 “Parishioners of the
Year”-George Chakoian, Jean Farmanian Ricci, and Marion Der Vartanian-and
recognized outgoing parish council members and delegates. Parishioners also
conveyed words of congratulations to the newly ordained acolytes and
sub-deacons.

A musical program included performances by sub-deacons Timothy Aznavourian,
who sang and played classical guitar, and Davit Gevorkyan, who played duduk,
with his mother, Ruzan Gevorkyan, accompanying on the piano.

###

Photos attached.
Photo 1: Archbishop Khajag Barsamian ordains acolytes.
Photo 2: Three men are elevated to the sub-diaconate.

PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Tel: (212) 686-0710; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:

October 22, 2012
_______________________________________________

In Memoriam: His Beatitude Archbishop Torkom Manoogian

Reflections of Archbishop Khajag Barsamian

On Monday, October 22, 2012, the funeral service was performed for His
Beatitude Archbishop Torkom Manoogian, of blessed memory, the late 96th
Armenian Patriarch of Jerusalem, and former Primate of the Eastern Diocese,
who passed away on October 12. On the prior evening, the casket was carried
in a procession from the Jaffa Gate to Sts. James Armenian Cathedral, where
the Divine Liturgy was celebrated on Monday morning. The Patriarch was
subsequently interred at the Holy Savior Monastery at the Zion Gate.

Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Diocesan Primate, has been in Jerusalem this
week, to pay his final respects to Patriarch Torkom. What follows is his
reflection on the Patriarch’s life and ministry.

IN THE HOLY CITY OF JERUSALEM TODAY-after a procession through the streets
once walked by Jesus Christ, and having observed the ancient rituals of the
Armenian Church-we laid to rest the mortal remains of the 96th Armenian
Patriarch: His Beatitude Archbishop Torkom Manoogian.

It has been a day to reflect on history: the history of Jerusalem itself;
the history of the Armenian Patriarchate; and the history of a single man’s
life, spent in humble, devoted service to our church, our people, and our
risen Lord.

One moment of history I envision happened almost a half-century ago. It was
1968, and His Holiness Vasken I, the late, great Catholicos of All
Armenians, was departing from America, having recently consecrated St.
Vartan Cathedral in New York. In a parting statement to the community,
Vasken Vehapar had this to say:

“We convey our affection to Archbishop Torkom, who is a youthful and
energetic asset, a ray of hope for you and for us. We see that his task is
difficult: a heavy responsibility weighs upon his shoulders. Help him,
gather round him-hand in hand, clergy and laymen alike-so that in an
atmosphere of solidarity and a spirit of unity you may accomplish even
greater things than you have thus far.”

Vehapar spoke to the Armenians of America as a proud father giving
encouragement to his children. And chief among those children was the
talented arajnort of the Diocese: Torkom Srpazan.

In the years-the long years-that followed, that relationship grew, and
became deeper. To Vasken Vehapar, Torkom Srpazan was like the son whom a
father relies on to uphold the family honor and name. And Torkom Srpazan was
more than a son to the Catholicos: he was his close advisor, his loyal
champion in the field, his strong right arm who always lifted up the
Catholicos and the dignity of our church.

I personally saw this relationship expressed again and again: during the
Karabagh crisis; at the time of the earthquake; and in countless moments
behind the scenes.

I recall these matters because they show that Torkom Srpazan, throughout his
ministry, was not merely a talented priest, or an energetic primate, or a
distinguished patriarch. He was one of the very few churchmen of his
generation to carry the weight of our church on his shoulders.

To be sure, he shared that weight with others. But even in that small group
of indispensible figures, Torkom Manoogian was the one who stood out: who
shined; and who seemed to combine all the grace and dignity of the Armenian
past, with all our fondest hopes and aspirations for the future.

He came out of the deserts of Baghdad: a boy with the name of Avedis. And
when he chose to answer our Lord’s call to become a priest, it was indeed a
medz avedis for an Armenian Church which bore the fresh scars of the
Genocide.

>From the positions of authority he occupied-whether at St. Vartan Cathedral,
or the Throne of St. James-Torkom Srpazan was a man of towering stature in
religious and national life. He was a fixture in ecumenical and interfaith
circles, who built enduring relationships, and friendships, with his fellow
religious leaders.

To thousands of people across our Diocese-not only in our parishes, but in
the surrounding society-Torkom Srpazan was the compassionate face of the
Armenian Church of America: vigorous, spiritual, always impressive.

His was the beautiful, poetic voice of our people-advocating forcefully for
our rights and aspirations, while always exemplifying the great Armenian
civilization that had bestowed works of profound art and spirituality on
world culture.

Above all, Archbishop Torkom insisted on the dignity of the Church, as the
foremost institution of the Armenian nation: the greatest expression of our
national genius. It was through the church, he reminded us, that the
Armenians had produced a Vartan, a Nersess Shnorhali, a Krikor Naregetsi, a
Gomidas Vartabed.

Now today, we bury Torkom Srpazan alongside figures of similar stature: the
Armenian Patriarch’s of ages past. We remember his name with theirs:
Koushagian, Tourian-all the way back to Abraham the Chain-bearer. And we
affirm that, surely, this is the company in which Patriarch Torkom belongs
for all eternity.

Now, in death, they are all together-along with our other great figures like
Gomidas, and Vasken Vehapar, and others too numerous to name. From the
perspective of the world, they are all together in history. But to us as
followers of the risen Christ, they are alive, and merely sleeping; waiting
for the day when they will join in that heavenly chorus of the saints-to
which Torkom Manoogian aspired his entire life, and where his strong,
powerful, inspirational voice will be heard once again.

Today we cherish and bless his memory, and express gratitude to God, as we
pray for the soul of His devoted, princely servant. Amen.

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FORTH FESTIVAL OF ANIMATION FILMS REANIMANIA TO BE HELD IN YEREVAN ON 3-9 NOVEMBER

arminfo
Tuesday, October 23, 18:21

The forth festival of animation films ReAnimania will be held in
Yerevan on 3-9 November.

As art director of ReAnimania, Lusine Kassarjyan, told Arminfo
correspondent, more than 400 animation films from 42 countries of
the world will be presented, including Spain, France, Germany, Israel
and others.