On Sunday, the Eastern Orthodox Church, e.g. the Greek, Russian, Ukrainian, Romanian, Serbian, Bulgarian, Georgian churches, celebrated Easter. These are the churches that adhere to the canons of what is traditionally referred to as the seven ecumenical councils. The Armenian Church has celebrated Easter with the Western world since 1923.
The date of Easter is calculated as being on the first Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox. March 21 is the date of the equinox, giving you an idea of the range in which Easter can fall. The calculation formula for the Eastern Orthodox Easter date includes the Jewish Passover feast date. The Armenian Church chose to see the Resurrection – the Easter feast – as something separate from the Old covenant and opted for the Western date.
Every four or five years, the dates coincide, and the world celebrates Easter on the same date. On the other years, Easter is either one, three or five weeks apart.
There are those who contend that there should be a unity in celebrating Easter in the Christian world. There are others who argue the validity of one date over the other.
Armodoxy looks at the message of Easter – the power to Resurrection over Crucifixion – as the defining force of Easter. For Christians, every day must be celebrated as Easter as a Resurrection. Christos Anesti, Christos haryav, Christ has risen, is the greeting that is valid every day of our life as a Christian.
There is an expression that is worth remembering: “Arranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.” When the Titanic was sinking, it was futile to arrange the deck chairs. With wars, genocide, intolerance, hatred hitting us from all sides, it’s important to keep the message of the day in focus and prioritized.
We pray, Lord, you conquered death through Your Resurrection. Evil lost its hold and was destroyed in the presence of Good. Keep your Resurrection ever before my eyes as the power that overcomes hopelessness and is the generation of Life. Keep me focused on the Empty Tomb that is found every day that I choose to live, hope, and love. Amen.
Next Step #791 – May 5, 2024 – The War in Gaza, a nightmare echoing the words, Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing. Famine is fueled by hatred. The world stands still and even worse, so do those who have seen the same nightmare. Fr. Vazken takes about opportunities lost and the importance of articulating a statement of protest, for the sake of record and moral authority. Firsthand observation of the Eclipse from Uvalde and the Sign of the Cross. Overwhelmed reaction in the birthing room and at the eclipse – God’s perfection. Discussed: the eye for an eye maximum, college protests, a Maturity of Faith. Orthodox Easter, Cinco de Mayo and the Weakest Link.
Links: Uvalde – Eclipse 2024 College Protests of the War Eclipsed Relevance – April 6 Next Step Tooth as the Maximum Next Step Niebuhr’s Prayer (Serenity) 49 Bye-Byes/America’s Song CSNY – Four Way Street
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On the last evening of a visit to Armenia, I sat staring out the window of my room at sunset. The room was high enough to give me a panoramic view of Yerevan, under the majestic shadow of Mt. Ararat. During my trip, I had met with people doing work on the cutting edge of technology. I spent time with people who were challenging the norms and excelling for the betterment of themselves, their families and their country. There was real hope in the air.
I remember looking out the window and praying for peace. It was simple wish: If this small but potent country could only have peace, miracles could happen. The miracles we would see would not be from any outside source, rather, they would come from within, if only there was peace. It was possible, it had been nearly 30 years that this country, which had known centuries of oppression, massacres and even genocide, was now living in peace. I looked out at the Yerevan skyscape and knew we would see the best of miracles, if only there was peace.
A friend called me from Armenia this morning. At the end of our conversation he said, “If only we have peace, we can do anything, we can aspire to the best and be the best. If only we have peace.” It was as if my prayer from a few years ago was recorded and being played back to me in the voice of my friend. His prayer was more current, though, and had a more urgent tone to it.
It is difficult to understand the pain and suffering of others from a distance. One of the core tenants of Armodoxy is a call to walk in the shoes of others. It is the expression of empathy, that is, to fully understand the pain and suffering of others, we must walk in their shoes. And small exercises can help us place our feet in the correct place.
Those of us living in the United States might not fully understand the prayer for peace in Armenia, but we might begin by imagining a world where we were constantly being attacked by our neighbors in Mexico and Canada, to the point that we live with the uncertainty of maintaining our independence, day-in and day-out. Perhaps the example is not fair considering the size, power and geography of the US. Those of you in Europe, in Africa, or in the Middle East, where countries are so much closer and intertwined with one another, can consider a country such as Switzerland, if its landlocking neighbors, France, Italy, Austria and Germany had only one intention, to annihilate and destroy that relatively small country.
And if still difficult to imagine, sit in your own home, in your house or apartment and picture all of your neighbors – every one of them, next door and across the street – wanting only one thing: to overpower, overcome and rid you from the neighborhood.
Walking in the shoes of others is a call to empathy. It is understanding that the only real and true miracle that we must pray and work for is peace. Walking in the shoes of others gives us the capacity to understand and once in the shoes, we must walk towards resolution.
Appropriately, today we pray the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi, Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy. O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.
According to Holy Scripture, the first witnesses to the Empty Tomb of Christ, “Fled from the tomb, for they trembled and were amazed. And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.” (Mark 16) Fear, was the first expression of the post-Resurrection Church, and it was that fear that turned into Faith, the Faith of the Christian Church.
Having just celebrated Easter – the Resurrection of Jesus Christ – we find ourselves in the period time (from Easter to Pentecost) dedicated to the birth and growth of the Church. The Church is not an accessory or an after-thought to Christianity. Contrary to the popular understanding of Christianity, it was the Church – the Body of Christ – which transferred the stories of Jesus to us. That is, everything we know about Jesus Christ we have received via the Church. You may hear popular formula of reading the Bible and therefore understanding Jesus, but in fact, Jesus gave us the gift of His Body the Church. Yes, “God so loved the world that He gave his Only Begotten Son” (John 3:16), and in turn, Jesus so loved us that he gave, established his Church so that we should not orphaned. (John 14-17)
According to Jesus, the Church is established and built on the proclamation of Christ’s divinity. In the 16th chapter of the Gospel of St. Matthew, Jesus asks his disciples, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?”
So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”
That “rock” is the proclamation made by Peter, that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God. Upon this proclamation the Church is built. And as we see, in the Apostolic era, that is, days after the Resurrection, there was no Bible, but there definitely was a Church. It was “raw” Church built on the gospel message that Jesus has risen. The Armenian Apostolic Church is a continuation of that original Church. The fear the Disciples experienced at the Empty Tomb was transformed into Faith through Christ. It is the same transformation of fear to Faith that the Armenian Church has witnessed as its people survived and flourished against all the odds.
As we look at the early post-Resurrection Church, we are reminded of the necessity of the Church for a complete celebration of the Christian faith, and that the cornerstone of that Church is the proclamation that Jesus Christ is the Son of the Living God.
We pray, O Lord Jesus Christ, son of the Living God, as we celebrate your glorious Resurrection at this Easter time, may we be worthy to be members of your Holy Church, your sacred body, to be your hands, legs and mouth here on Earth. Dispel the fears and gloom that consumes our lives by helping us find the Faith that others have found throughout the centuries, so that we may better serve humanity and in so doing, serve you and your Holy Body. Amen.
Cover Photo: Lunabelle Beylerian, 2023
https://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/P0110.jpg663999Vazken Movsesianhttps://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/final_logo_large_for_epostle_web-300x189.pngVazken Movsesian2024-05-02 00:01:352024-05-01 12:05:35From Fear to Faith: The Church’s Cornerstone
The first day of May, referred to as May Day, is roughly halfway between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice. In European culture, festivals would take place, and still do, to celebrate the nearing of summer. International Workers Day is also celebrated on the first day of May, with a focus on man and his labor, similar to what we celebrate in the United States, possibly with less commercialization.
The human animal is uniquely endowed with this ability to celebrate different aspects of life. We hold gatherings and create events to facilitate the celebration.
Celebrating life was important to Jesus. His parables pointed to that celebration and he himself was attuned to the need to celebrate by leading a productive life.
Although May Day and the International Worker’s Day are celebrated on the same day, they are not related to one another except by the fact that they are both celebrated. Let that celebration be a good starting point to aim for peace and harmony. Celebration sets us up as humans to see the wonders of life and stand in awe. In that common refrain, we are tuned to one another.
Is it any wonder that the leader of the Divine Liturgy is referred to as the Celebrant. Today, we pray the prayer of the celebrant of the Divine Liturgy as he clothes himself with the garments of salvation:
O Jesus Christ our Lord, clothed with light as with a garment, you appeared upon earth in unspeakable humility and walked with men. You became eternal high priest after the order of Melchizedek and have adorned your holy church. Lord almighty, having granted us to put on the same heavenly garment, make me, your servant, also worthy at this hour when I make bold to approach the same spiritual service of your glory, so that I may divest myself of all ungodliness, which is a vile garment, and that I may be adorned with your light. Amen.
April is the month of Genocide remembrance. The Armenian Genocide (1915-1922), Holocaust and the Rwandan Genocide are all remembered during the month. On this last day of April, I wish to share with you a writing from the late, and great, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. From a cell in Birmingham Jail where he was being held for civil disobedience, he writes to the religious leadership about civil disobedience:
Of course, there is nothing new about this kind of civil disobedience. It was seen sublimely in the refusal of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego [Daniel 3] to obey the laws of Nebuchadnezzar because a higher moral law was involved. It was practiced superbly by the early Christians, who were willing to face hungry lions and the excruciating pain of chopping blocks before submitting to certain unjust laws of the Roman Empire. To a degree, academic freedom is a reality today because Socrates practiced civil disobedience.
We can never forget that everything Hitler did in Germany was “legal” and everything the Hungarian freedom fighters did in Hungary was “illegal.” It was “illegal” to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitler’s Germany. But I am sure that if I had lived in Germany during that time, I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers even though it was illegal. If I lived in a Communist country today where certain principles dear to the Christian faith are suppressed, I believe I would openly advocate disobeying these anti-religious laws.
I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that over the last few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro’s great stumbling block in the stride toward freedom is not the White Citizens Councillor or the Ku Klux Klanner but the white moderate who is more devoted to order than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says, “I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I can’t agree with your methods of direct action”… Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection.
—
During the Sacrament of Penence in the Armenian Church we confess: I have also sinned against all the Commandments of God, both against the affirmative ones and the restrictive ones, because I have not stayed away from what is forbidden, but neither have I done what was expected.
As important as it is to not do evil, it is just as important to do the good – the right.
This finishes our April lessons in Armodoxy.
The prayer of St. Francis of Assisi is always important to remember:
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me bring love. Where there is offence, let me bring pardon. Where there is discord, let me bring union. Where there is error, let me bring truth. Where there is doubt, let me bring faith. Where there is despair, let me bring hope. Where there is darkness, let me bring your light. Where there is sadness, let me bring joy. Amen
https://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/DALL·E-2024-04-29-21.28.58-Expressive-oil-painting-of-having-courage-in-the-armenian-church.png10241024Vazken Movsesianhttps://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/final_logo_large_for_epostle_web-300x189.pngVazken Movsesian2024-04-30 00:01:532024-04-29 21:31:13The sin of not doing
Next Step with Fr. Vazken #790 – April 29, 2024 – College campus protests flare up regarding Israel’s attacks in Gaza, while Armenian Genocide commemorations take buy into the myth of victimization. Here’s Fr. Vazken’s post-April 24 assessment of disappointments and challenges. Walking in the shoes of others as an answer. Epostle sets up in the metaverse.
https://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/DALL·E-2024-04-29-17.42.55-impressionist-version-of-young-people-on-the-streets-wearing-crosses-in-a-group-.png10241024Vazken Movsesianhttps://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/final_logo_large_for_epostle_web-300x189.pngVazken Movsesian2024-04-29 17:45:112024-04-29 17:45:11Buying into the Myth
The Theology of the Armenian Apostolic, and therefore Orthodox, Church is embedded in its hymns. The hymn, referred to as Sharagan, holds a wealth of ancient wisdom that is a treasury preserved for us from the time of Christ. Over a thousand hymns are compiled into a book called the Sharagnots, which describes the fellowship between God and His creation.
Access to the Sharagnots is complicated by the language in which the hymns are written, and while there are translations from the Classical Armenian to the colloquial language and even to non-Armenian languages, the mystical flavor of the Church is tied in with the melodies of the chants as well as the sacred environment where they have taken form. Inside of a monastery or a church, within the incense filled space and candle-smoked walls, the words of the shargans dance to the rhythms of monastics vocal cords and theology is deciphered and delivered holistically.
The last sharagan was written in 2015, at the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the Armenian Genocide. On April 24, 2015, the martyrs of the Genocide were canonized and are referred to as a Saints.
The translation of the Sharagan, opens a window into the understanding of the martyrs as saints.
“Astonished and appalled were the heavenly armies and with terror were petrified,” begins the sharagan, and continues to describe the desecration of God’s holiness by using the unique and singular pointer of Eden to Armenia.
“The nations upon seeing the ancient Eden, changed into the scene and arena of fire, blazing like Hell, of the passion of Cain, and the new sacrifice of this new Abel, whose blood speaks forever.
The Sharagan ends with the question posed earlier by the Psalmist and be humankind for millennia, “Sovereign Lord, holy and true! How long will it be until You judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?”
Let us pray, Lord our God, allow me to celebrate the Mystery of Life, with my soul, my voice, and all my senses. Help me as I accept Your invitation to follow with my heart and accordingly decipher the instruction of Love. Amen.
https://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/IMG_9056.jpeg18671697Vazken Movsesianhttps://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/final_logo_large_for_epostle_web-300x189.pngVazken Movsesian2024-04-29 00:01:262024-04-28 16:23:32Deciphering the Hymn
Fr. Vazken’s speech at the Genocide Commemoration VIGIL at UCLA sponsored by the ASA’s for USC & UCLA
Good evening. I would like to thank the ASAs of both USC and UCLA for this opportunity to offer my voice to this vigil this evening.
As the years move on, we are distanced from the link that ties us. When I would first come to these Genocide commemorations as a kid, the front rows would be occupied by survivors. My grandparents would sit in those chairs and were given chances to share their eyewitness accounts of the mayhem in Armenia circa 1915. The front rows became one row and then dwindled to a few chairs as the eyewitness generation passed away. They were replaced with the documentarians – those who had filmed, recorded or written the stories of the survivors.
This morning, at 9AM, I’m pleased and proud to tell you that the Epostle.net – electronic ministry of the Western Diocese, unveiled and launched the first ever immersive exhibition of its kind that is accessible from anywhere, 24/7/365 days a year, named the Spirit of Ararat. Here stand structures from khatchkars to monasteries, to songs of the heart, demonstrating the human spirit of creativity of the people of Ararat, preserved in Web 3.0, metaverse, 360, spatial audio and photogrammetry, items that can only be experienced and enjoyed and can no longer be damaged or the destroyed. Thank you technology and Epostle for exploiting the power of human creativity.
So now, thankfully, there are more and more volumes and documents that share the horrors of genocide. But sadly, the word Genocide is still being used to describe man’s ultimate intolerance for his fellow man,
But today we gather in vigil because the human heart is hurting. 1915 was the beginning of a wave of evil that continues through today. For us as Armenians we felt it because of the injustice we endured when we became the political pawn of governments. What happened in Artsakh last September is a continuation of the same evil, and the same silence of the world.
Graphic: SEE no evil, HEAR no evil, SPEAK no evil.
In 2006 I had a chance to visit Rwanda with a small group of educators from the University of Southern California. It was a decade after a genocide ravaged the country and claimed 800,000 people in the course of 100 days.
It was an important trip for me to take. I grew up hearing the stories of genocidal crimes told to me by my grandparents. The more I heard, the more I read, the more I wanted to know how such a violent and heinous crime could be committed so overtly, especially in the modern world, where understanding seemed to be common goal. I figured, by going to Rwanda, ten years after the Rwanda Genocide, might be like going to Armenia ten years after the Genocide I had heard so much about. What might have I found in 1925?
What I found was more than I could have asked for. Not only the answers to my questions but also I found an answer to the meaning of the Armenian Genocide for me as a person living 100 years after the event.
The stories of the Rwandans were remarkably similar to the stories that I heard from my grandparents. Police coming in the night, taking away and slaughtering the men, raping the women, killing of children, blatant exhibitions of cruelty and killing, without hints of remorse. Armenians referred to the Euphrates River as the Red Euphrates while Rwandans referred to Nile as the Red Nile because of the all the blood and bodies that were flowing through the rivers veins. Rwanda made me color blind, because the only difference between myself and my story and the Rwandan story was the color of our skins. And that is no difference. I realized that our pain, our suffering is our commonality and the common thread throughout human history. We are all children of the same God. Divisions we create, they are of our own doing.
In Rwanda, I found myself in a rather unique position of straddling, so to speak, the first and last genocides of the 20th Century. There, in the capital city of Kigali, is a museum dedicated to genocide. It houses a permanent exhibit dedicated to the Armenian Genocide, as well as to all genocides of 20th century.
The Armenian Genocide is the “granddaddy” of them all. The exhibition showed, sadly, and tragically, Genocides continued in Germany, Ethiopia, Bosnia, Cambodia, Rwanda and even into the 21st Century in Darfur.
The stories are all the same. And the Armenian story has a special place and meaning for the world, because it is the prototype for intolerance, hatred and ultimately Genocide. As a successor to the Armenian Genocide survivors the responsibility is mine. If I am going to refer to the Armenian Genocide as the first, then I – we – have a responsibility to be the first to call out, the point to, to actively protest and work for understanding that leads to peace. If the world is silent, let’s point the first finger at us – are we voicing our objection to what is happening to others?
Faith implies actions. You cannot mourn a genocide without actively fighting against one. But that fight has to be on new terms. You can’t fight fire with fire, you’ll only get more fire. Fight fire with a hose. With water. Put it out.
The time has come for us to toss out the victim mentality. We’re in the Easter season and we claim to be followers of the Resurrected Christ. We need to understand that the victory is ours. Not because politicians recognize Genocide or not. Don’t fool yourself, we don’t need any validation or the authentication of the fact of genocide, just as African Americans don’t need proof of slavery or Japanese American don’t need to prove their restraint in internment camps. The Armenian Genocide is a reality and always has been. We are victorious because we are here, not because of politics, but by the miracle that has made us arrive alive and creating our tomorrows. We side and will side wherever there is injustice or evil. Whether in Gaza, in the Congo, or in Armenia, we are here to proclaim these are humanitarian issues and we are always on the side of humanity!
April 24 is a date to renew a vow to work for peace, through understanding, vigilance and love toward all of humanity.
The Armenian Church’s prayer for the day is, Christ, who crowns the saints, willingly take those who are in awe of you and look with love and sweetness on your creation. With Your holiness hear us, by the intercession of the Holy Asdvadzadzin and the supplications of all your saints, especially the holy martyrs of the Armenian Genocide who completed their life for Faith and the homeland. Hear us and have mercy. Amen.
As the years move on, we are distanced from the link that ties us Genocide. When I would first come to these Genocide commemorations as a kid, there would be a stage area where the program would take place, and below it was a few rows of chairs where the Genocide survivors would sit. My grandparents would sit in those chairs and were given chances to share their eyewitness accounts of the mayhem in Armenia circa 1915. The front rows became one row and then dwindled to a few chairs as the eyewitness generation passed away. They were replaced with the documentarians – those who had filmed, recorded or written the stories of the survivors.
This morning, at 9AM, I’m pleased and proud to tell you that the Epostle.net – electronic ministry of the Western Diocese, unveiled and launched the first ever immersive exhibition of its kind that is accessible from anywhere, 24/7/365 days a year, named the Spirit of Ararat. Here stand structures from khatchkars to monasteries, to songs of the heart, demonstrating the human spirit of creativity of the people of Ararat, preserved in Web 3.0, metaverse, 360, spatial audio and photogrammetry, items that can only be experienced and enjoyed and can no longer be damaged or the destroyed. Thank you technology and Epostle for exploiting the power of human creativity.
So now, thankfully, there are more and more volumes and documents that share the horrors of genocide. But sadly, the word Genocide is still being used to describe man’s ultimate intolerance for his fellow man.
The time has come for a change, or a shift, in the way we operate. Faith implies actions. You cannot mourn a genocide without actively fighting against one. But that fight has to be on new terms. You can’t fight fire with fire, you’ll only get more fire. Fight fire with a hose. With water. Put it out.
The unfailing words of Jesus are our meditation for today. They challenge us to find a better way to combat evil.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.” (Matthew 5)
Before you say it’s impossible, is it not worth a try?
