Varak Dialect of Khatchkar

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Armodoxy for Today: The Khatchkar dialect of Varak

As Jesus entered Jerusalem on that first “Palm Sunday” the people went to the streets with joy, singing in loud voices, “Hosanna. Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”

In the Gospel of Luke (19) we read that the religious elite of the day called Jesus from the crowd and ordered him to rebuke the crowd, but Jesus answer, “I tell you that if these [people] should keep silent, the stones themselves would immediately cry out.”

There is a small little village just off the shore of Lake Van in Western Armenia called Varak. In the third century the nun Hripsime, escaping persecution for her Christian beliefs hid in the hills of Varak. In her possession was a piece of the Cross of Christ. She hid the fragment on the mountain where it lay for over three hundred years until a hermit named Totig found it in the seventh century. This Sunday marks the celebration of this event, the Cross of Varak.

I had a chance to visit Varak. Today the town as well as all of Western Armenia is occupied by Turkey. The once beautiful and spiritually active monastery of Varak is now in shambles. Among the ruins you can make out the markings of the interior of the church. Small niches where candles once lit the interior are now exposed to the elements with the roof and huge dome in piles of rubble.

Next to the foundation stones which act as a footprint of the Varak Monastery are houses of the villagers. Kids were playing on the unpaved streets and we struck up a conversation with some of the villagers. One of them invited us into their house. The walls were stones stuck together with a dry pack type of mortar. Stones of different colors and different shapes indicating a variety of sources and suggested they were gathered from different time periods. And… there were khatchkars – cross stones – taken from the monastery and stuck on the wall to protect the inhabitants of the house from outside weather conditions.

The destroyed monasteries and ruined churches, are part of a campaign to erase history and are the final act of destruction following Genocide. Michael Arlen, in his book Passage to Ararat, (1975) searches his roots in Armenia and in Western Armenia. Speaking to the erasure of history, Arlen writes, “What was it except hatred to say that a people did not exist?”

The khatchkar answers back. Khatchkars speak to us in a distinct language, or perhaps, it is a different dialect, because if you listen carefully, you can always understand the message. Khatchkars are the stones that counter the hatred by proclaiming peace of heaven on earth. Even in destructed form, in the ruins, the khatchkars are sharing the Divine message of hope and love as an antidote to the hate.

We pray this prayer for peace, Lord Jesus Christ, who are called the Prince of Peace, please grant us peace. Make all men and women witnesses of truth, justice, and brotherly love. Amen.

Khatchkar Messages

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Armodoxy for Today: Khatchkar messages of Christ

Khatchkars decorate Armenian Church, monasteries and the landscape of Armenia. They are tall. They are telling. Many of them can be read like a map pointing to the heavens and eternity.

A khatchkar, literally means “cross stone.” On a large stone, usually rectangular in shape, about six or seven feet tall and three feet wide, engravings reflecting the faith and determination of a person dedicated to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. These stones have survived and have been sharing a message for hundreds and even a thousand years.

The central carving is of a cross, ornate with swirls and designs that depict different theological concepts or ecclesiastical symbols. One khatchkar which is found at the Monastery at Gōsh is especially telling. Gōsh was a seat of education in Armenia as such, the khatchkar there stands tall to tell a story of heaven-earth relations. It may not seem very unusual to see earth depicted as a large sphere in this carving, until you learn that this stone was carved in the 6th century, some 600 years before the Inquisition in Europe, Armenians had already understood the earth to be round and rejected the flat-earth concept.

The messages on the khatchkars are many and in different varieties. However, the greatest story that is often  forgotten is that the khatchkar depicts resurrection and victory. Every cross, without exception, and especially every khatchkar is the story of Jesus Christ. Without Christ, the khatchkar has no meaning, in fact, without Jesus Christ, a cross is merely two perpendicular lines.

We stand between two feasts of the Cross – the elevation and the Cross of Varak. The Cross is defined by Jesus Christ, as the instrument of torture, now turned into a symbol of victory.

Yes, the khatchkar decorates the Armenian landscape, and in that decorative form it has been a constant reminder to the people of the power of love over hate, and good over evil. The khatchkar stoically standing on the sidelines of history as the ever-present messenger of hope is a nonstop witness to the reality that has been central to the survival of a people.

Imagine that, a people who have turned around in their journey, and everywhere they have looked, they have been reminded of the hope in the eternal and aligned themselves with the Divine through Christ. “If God be for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31)

Tomorrow, we’ll look at one special khatchkar, decorating a village house, in Varak. Today we pray, from the 13th hour of St. Nersess Shnorhali’s “I Confess with Faith”: Heavenly King, grant me your kingdom, which you have promised to Your beloved; and strengthen my heart to hate sin, to love you alone, and to do Your will. Have mercy on all Your creatures and on me. Amen

Cover photo: Luna & Gregory Beylerian, 2023

Fig Leaf Censorship?

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Armodoxy for Today: Censorship

Censorship pops up as a topic in the news regularly. It rises to a prominent news position here in the United States, primarily because constitutional guarantees forbid forbidding free speech. Censorship is understood as a central authority – read, a government – decides what should and should not be read, heard, seen, written or said. This decision is made based on someone’s, or some group’s values.

As far as central authorities go, you can’t get more central or more authority than God and God does not censor. Nor does he ask that we make aprons out of fig leaves. (cf. Genesis 3) In Jesus’ teachings, he calls us to personal responsibility. Over and over again, he insists that we are responsible for the actions we take, hence censorship – a decree to prohibit access to certain words or content is not part of Christianity. You are free to act as you wish, understanding that there are consequences, even ultimate judgement, for your actions. The entire concept of a final judgement, to be judged on your life’s sum-total, is based on the premise that you are free to choose to do or choose to do otherwise.

Often, in their zeal to keep things orderly and not to violate norms and decency, people come up with rules and regulations to protect a society, and most definitely those who are unable to protect themselves, such as children.

So what is the answer to censorship? How do you prevent bad ideas from spreading?

Think of how you get your news, or receive entertainment, ponder art and experience music. Think of how you participate in your faith, and stay away from belief systems that are offensive to you. You have the ability to walk away! You have the ability to turn off a television, swipe up on a page to make it disappear, unplug a device, unsubscribe to media, or just plain turn the channel. Just as right now – you have the option to tune in or to tune out to this message. In other words, you can make those decisions. Pray, engage in dialogue, share your thoughts and then act. It’s your decision. This is Jesus’ call to responsible living.

The Bonds of Sisterhood

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Armodoxy for Today: Sacred Bond of Sisterhood

The remembrance of saints is an important and essential part of Armenian Church Tradition. Saints are not God or gods, far from it. They are people – flesh and blood, like you and me, with the freedom to exercise their will according to their conscience. They are the ones who opt for the difficult path of life with faith. We commemorate them because as humans, with all the frailties that come with being human, they demonstrated godly expressions of living.

Saints days are interspersed on the calendar throughout the year. Today, the Armenian Church remembers St. Peprone (or Phebronia), Mariana, and Shoushan, the daughter of Vartan the Great. Each of these saints has a story in which they rose from their human condition and demonstrated an extra ordinary love for God and people.

In remembering the saintly stories from yesteryears, we can’t ignore the stories of today. A few days ago, at a nationally televised funeral of Charlie Kirk, his wife, Erika in reflecting on their life together and the faith they shared, went on to forgive her husband’s assassin.

In tears she said, “…on the cross, our Savior said, “I forgive them for they know not what they do.” That man, that young man, I forgive him. I forgive him for they know not what they do. I forgive him because it was what Christ did and is what Charlie would do. The answer to hate is not hate. The answer we know from the Gospel is love and always love. Love for our enemies and love for those who persecute us.”

In a country that is divided, in an atmosphere of volitivity, amid the incomprehensible acts of violence, and against the backdrop of an ignored genocide on the other side of the globe, these words were a welcome and needed expression for the world. If only we have ears to hear.

For all we do and say at Epostle, and for every sermon and advice I have given, had I not remembered this small expression from this weekend, the saints and lives of the past would not shine.

Forgiveness. It is the hallmark of Christianity. It is the higher and divine grace that saves us from our past and from ourselves. Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Amen.

Autumn is Here

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Armodoxy for Today: Autumn is Here

Today is the Autumn Equinox, meaning that there is an equal number of hours of sunlight and sunless time during the day, if you happen to be residing on the equator. For the rest of us, and particularly those in the Northern Hemisphere of our planet, it is the first day of autumn or simply Fall.

New Years, and particularly New Year’s Day, has taken a first place spot for resolutions. It’s a convenient time to change – put off old habits and take on healthier and better habits. But the first day of Fall is even a better opportunity. First of all, there’s not all the hoopla of New Years, but even more the entire season is based on change. The color of the leaves turn, trees lose their leaves, while others go dormant to survive the winter months. It’s a perfect day to cycle through life and begin anew.

St. Paul writes to the Ephesians, “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” (4:22-24)

We pray, Lord our God, You create everything with wisdom. The seasons take shape according to your order and coordination with the Sun and our Earth. At this beautiful time of year, let the habits of old fall off, like the leaves of summer and prepare me for the days ahead that are full of life. Amen.

The Turn-it-off Solution

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Next Step with Fr. Vazken, The Turn-it-off Solution, #806 – September 21, 2025
Freedom, Independence and Speech in America on the anniversary of Armenian Independence. Step-by-step instructions on how to turn off what you reject. Checks and balances. Aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s death, Palestinian death. Editorial perogative. Varakakhatch coming up: The Stones will speak, they did and do in Varak. Rallying around the Shnorhali formula of Unity in Essentials.
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Extra Contrast

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Armodoxy for Today: Contrast

What is darkness? Very simply, it is the absence of light. Darkness is only definable in the presence of light.

What is evil? Very simply, it is the absence of good. Evil is defined in reference to the good.

Some take this one step further and define Hell as the place where there is the absence of God. With this simple definition it is possible to find Hell here on Earth now, not at some future time. Still, others will argue that by definition there cannot be a place where God does not exist.

Questions and ponderings such as these are more than mental gymnastics, they are brought to the forefront of our thoughts when light is threatened. It is part of our natural defense system because we are afraid of the dark. As humans, we want to stay in the light but sometimes the darkness can be so overwhelming that we succumb to its power.

The power of sunlight is so great, that its light enlightens our entire planet and heats it as well. Likewise, the power of Jesus, as Light of the World, is so great, that His Light overcomes the Darkness.

Jesus begins his ministry by referencing the prophet’s saying  –  “…The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.”

The Evangelist St. Matthew continues the narrative (chapter 4), “From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”

We pray, Christ, the true Light, make my soul worthy to encounter with joy the light of your divine glory, on the day I will be called by you; and to rest in good hope, in the mansions of the righteous, until the great day of your coming. Have mercy upon your creatures, and on me, a sinner. Amen. (St. Nersess Shnorhali, I confess with Faith)

It’s all Connected

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Armodoxy for Today: It’s all connected

If you want to keep the peace in the family or among friends, you’ve been told from an early age to steer clear of discussing politics and religion. Even Peanuts character, Linus Van Pelt, with security blanket in hand, knows, “There are three things I have learned never to discuss with people – Religion, Politics, and the Great Pumpkin.”

It was the 18th century satirist, Jonathan Swift who put his finger on the reason for this unfriendly mix when he wrote, “You cannot reason someone out of something he or she was not reasoned into.” Yes, most of the time we’re “born into” our persuasions, be they religious or political, we adopt them from our family and friends.

But the basic understanding in Armodoxy is that all things are connected in a universal network of life. Economics gives us the resources to buy the Bible, which defines sin, which psychology attempts to diminish. Physics explains the movement of the building blocks which chemistry and biology exploit into physical realities, that art presents in forms that express ideas that form ideologies that philosophy dissects and analyses. Politics creates systems that organize those ideologies, and religion is there to ensure the equity of distribution, claiming to have a connection to a higher understanding of fairness.

We get into trouble when we claim one system of distribution is better than another. An old Hindu proverb claims, “There are hundreds of paths up the mountain, all leading to the same place, so it doesn’t matter which path you take. The only person wasting time is the one who runs around the mountain, telling everyone that his or her path is wrong.”

Jesus avoids the discussion by turning the responsibility onto the individual. Equity is achieved by sacrifice – by giving of yourself. He teaches this, and then demonstrates with his own life. There is no argument here, for when we give it is between us and God. We do not give to prove a system better than another, nor do we give to the justify the system. We give, because it is the expression of love, which is the expression of God. It is not up for discussion nor debate. If you want to practice Christianity, then love, then sacrifice yourself. Plainly, religion is not to be debated but lived.

The Armenian Church saint, Hovhaness Voskeberan (= St. John Chrysostom) 4th century writes, “”If you cannot find Christ in the beggar at the church door, you will not find Him in the chalice.”

We end with one of his prayers, Almighty God, you have promised through your Son that when two or three are gathered together in his Name you will be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, our desires and petitions as may be best for us; granting us in this world knowledge of your truth, and in the age to come life everlasting. Amen.

Tangible Items of Faith

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Armodoxy for Today: The Tangible Items of Faith

In the post-Resurrection encounter between Jesus and his apostle Thomas, tactile affirmation is presented as the necessary proof for after-death existence. Thomas refuses to believe Jesus has resurrected, unless he can touch and feel his wounds. Following their encounter Jesus says, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” This, then, becomes the challenge for all Christians from time zero to today: believing without seeing. A difficult task for anyone, especially us in a world that is defined by our interaction with it, through our senses.

For this reason alone, symbols are important. Symbols help us understand things and concepts that are difficult to explain. For instance, a flag symbolizes a country and can stir deep rooted feelings of patriotism. The main symbol of Christianity is the cross. Two planks, placed perpendicular to one another, joined together and the horizontal plank dissected in its center constituting a left and right arm. Two planks of wood can be cut, whittled, and used as kindling in a fire, or to build a staircase, but create them in the shape of a cross, they now have a deeper meaning.

The many stories about the Holy Cross of Jesus involve people interacting – tactile interaction – with either the Cross or pieces of it – finding them, gathering them, decorating them, and, even, fighting for them. People take on great personal challenges and difficulties to find and preserve those fragments. In return, they discover a Power that goes beyond understanding. They find protection and a haven in the shadow of the Cross,

The stories we tell are meant to serve as the witness to the Power that emanates from the saving Cross. Challenge yourself to tap into that power.

We continue tomorrow.

Cover: 2019 “Custodian for an Hour” – Artsakh

St. Macarius’ prayer

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Armodoxy for Today: St. Macarius’ prayer

There are four major feasts dedicated to the Holy Cross of Jesus, Exaltation – the one we just celebrated on Sunday – is the greatest. Exaltation, or Elevation of the Cross, encompasses the others feasts, which are Discovery of the Cross, Apparition of the Cross, and the Cross of Varak.

The Cross of Christ is mystically connected to the power of healing. Yesterday I shared one story from my personal experience. Throughout the centuries there have been thousands of such events that have been well documented. The first takes place when the Holy Cross of Christ was discovered.

Christianity was an underground religion for the first few centuries after Christ. When Christianity was accepted in the Roman Empire, many pious converts went on expeditions to preserve relics and sacred objects connected to Christ. The greatest of these was the Cross.

The mother of Emperor Constantine, Queen Helena, was one of those pious individuals. She ventured off to Jerusalem to find items to bring her closer to Christ. With the help of the Bishop of Jerusalem, St. Macarius, she discovered the site where the Crucifixion took place. There, she found three crosses. Which was the true Cross of Christ? Apparently there was a terminally ill woman there. St. Macarius offered this prayer: “Lord, through the suffering of Your only Son on the cross, You chose to bring salvation to humanity. And now, You have moved Your servant Helena to search for the sacred wood on which our Savior was crucified. Please reveal clearly which of these three crosses was raised for Your glory. Set it apart from the ones used for ordinary executions. Let this dying woman be restored to life the moment she touches the cross that brings salvation.”

The woman was healed when touched by the True Cross of Christ. St. Helena had a shrine built on the spot. The Armenian Church is a custodian of the Church of the Holy Sepulcher.

Pray, as St. Macarius did, not as a test of the power of God, but rather, to have God guide you to the power which heals and brings us salvation.

Tomorrow, we continue.