Conundrum of April
Parish Priest’s Message from “The Key”* – 22 April 2012
It’s a conundrum, isn’t it? We just celebrated the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ a couple of weeks ago. Priests stood up from the altar area of all the Armenian Churches in the world the news was heralded, “Christ has Risen!” I know I did. And now, just weeks later, from the same altar areas we’re talking about death, evil and the ultimate expression of darkness, Genocide!
Today we commemorate the 1.5 Million Armenians who perished at the hands of the Turks in 1915.
Since that time, there have been many geno-cides. Strange, isn’t’ it? We think we’re living in such advanced and modern times, yet we still resort to barbaric forms conflict resolution! Since the Armenian Genocide, there have been the Holocaust, Cambodia, Bosnia and Rwanda, just to name a few where the words “ethnic cleansing” are used. And today, there is the Genocide in Darfur!
Since that time, there have been many geno-cides. Strange, isn’t’ it? We think we’re living in such advanced and modern times, yet we still resort to barbaric forms conflict resolution! Since the Armenian Genocide, there have been the Holocaust, Cambodia, Bosnia and Rwanda, just to name a few where the words “ethnic cleansing” are used. And today, there is the Genocide in Darfur!
We as Armenians KNOW the meaning of pain and suffering. We KNOW crucifixion. But we also KNOW resurrection, and as such we need to be equal witnesses to Crucifixion AND Resurrection. This is why, at our church, our efforts and our attention is not only on the past, but on the present. We’re calling for justices through-out the world through our In His Shoes Ministries. I thank you, as parishioners and parish administrators, for adopting this stand. We’re living out Christ’s commandment to be the LIGHT in the world.
~ Fr. Vazken
To hear the entire message of the day listen to Next Step Episode #202 at www.epostle.net
To hear the entire message of the day listen to Next Step Episode #202 at www.epostle.net
*The “Key” is the weekly newsletter of the St. Peter Armenian Church in Glendale, California. Jesus asked the Disciples, “Who do YOU say that I am?” Peter responded “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” Jesus promised the Keys to the Kingdom for this profession of faith. (Mt 16) At the St. Peter, Glendale Parish, our faith and actions are based on that same profession of faith. It is the Key that opens the doors to our journey as Christians…
Leave a Reply
Want to join the discussion?Feel free to contribute!