Christopher Columbus, explorer of the West, advises, “You can never cross the ocean unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.”
The ocean is vast, mysterious and seemingly unending. The shore is solid, familiar with no waves to push you up or pull you down. In other words, it’s a safe place. Frankly, it’s not a bad place to be, unless you wish to explore, to go beyond the familiar.
To grab opportunity, pushing off the shore is not only necessary but the rule of law. When exiled from their homes, either in 1915 or in 2023, Armenians made the sign of the cross, lost the shore, fought the waves and arrived at their destination.
Happy sailing. Today’s one minute for standard time.
A prayer from Bishop Nikolaj Velimirovic to the Asdvadzadzin
Waves of passion disturb my spirit, great sadness and anguish have overwhelmed my soul. Embalm my soul with Thy Son’s peace, O Most Holy One, and by His Grace drive away every doubt and despair. Calm the storm of my sins that, like a fiery worm, burn me, and quench its flame. Fill my heart with joy, O Most Pure One, and disperse the fog of my iniquities before me. Amen.
https://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/the-bow-of-a-ship-with-the-horizon-in-the-distance.jpg10241024Vazken Movsesianhttps://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/final_logo_large_for_epostle_web-300x189.pngVazken Movsesian2024-11-20 00:01:362024-11-20 11:33:55Losing the Shore: Courage
The most prominent earthly father in Holy Scripture is Joseph, the husband of St. Mary, the Holy Mother-of-God. In the Armenian Church, he is referred to as Asdvadzahayr, that is, the Father-of-God. Now, in the case of St. Mary, we accept this title because she gave birth to Christ, but we have difficulty with the title given to Joseph because from our earliest days in church and in Sunday School, we have learned that there was no biological tie between Joseph and Jesus.
Very little is written about Joseph in Holy Scriptures, but from that little we know that he was a devout and God-fearing man. We know his strength not only by his physical prowess as a carpenter, but by his moral character. He was unwilling to discredit his wife. Being obedient to the messenger of God, even when all the facts gave him reason to doubt, he took on the responsibility of being the adoptive father of Jesus. In that act of compassion, Joseph did not allow Jesus to be referred to as “illegitimate,” or as an “orphan.” Nor did he allow Jesus to be treated as anything less than his own son.
The act of adoption is an act of love and sacrifice. As parents, we love our own children, but to love another person’s child as your own reflects a very deep love. Joseph demonstrated that love as he adopted Mary’s child, loved and cared for him as his own.
When we talk about the saints, whether Joseph or any of the other saints, it is easy to get caught up in the details of their lives rather than understand that a saint is like us, with all their frailties, problems and even doubts. However, they are able to rise from their difficulties and aspire to the godly, hence, giving us the inspiration and motivation to move from our difficulties. It is important to see in them the characteristics from which we can learn and by which we can pattern our lives.
Joseph sets the ultimate example of living. We see in him true strength. We understand what it means to be obedient to God’s word. Joseph prayed, believing that “Thy Will be done” would take place when he, Joseph, agreed to take part in God’s will. In fact, his actions allowed God’s will to be done here on earth as it was in heaven.
As the adoptive father of Jesus, Joseph displayed courage and immense love for his wife and her child. Former president Barak Obama once said, “What makes you a man is not the ability to make a child, but the courage to raise one.” In fact, in this manner alone, we can understand why our Church Fathers referred to Joseph as the Father of God. Joseph teaches us the true virtues of parenthood – it is the courage to give, sacrifice and to love another human being as your own. He raised Jesus Christ from infancy to adulthood and gave him the necessary support in preparation for the Divine ministry and to ultimately rise to the Cross and conquer it.
Today we pray a prayer for children and their adoptive parents, “Heavenly Father, by your word, the whole world was created. By your word, your Son was conceived and became man. Bless all fathers of children who have been placed for adoption. May these men always know of your great love for them, just as St. Joseph knew. May these men love their children always as the example set by St. Joseph. Grant them your courage and your peace. Amen.
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During Lent we have become aware of the curtain drawn across the altar of life. That curtain is the obstacle that prevents us from seeing the wonders and the beauty of God – the obstacles that prevent us from maximizing our potential. That curtain has been lowered because of our fears, and the only way for us to bring it up, the only way for us to open that curtain is to combat our fears with courage.
Because God resides within us we know that the potential for courage is within us. Courage comes from within where God has placed it.
At the Last Supper, Jesus asked his disciples to look within. In the Gospel of John, we read Jesus’ final discourse (Chapter 16 and on). Jesus asks his disciples to act with love and with humility even in the face of the unthinkable, at the most horrid of endings. At the Last Supper he discloses to his disciples that he will suffer an unthinkable death. He will be humiliated before humanity. The same creature that received its life from Christ, will now kill the Christ. The same life that was formed from those hands, will now take those very hands and drive nails through them! And yet, Jesus says, have courage. In no uncertain terms he demands it of each of us who sit across from Him at the table. His words, “Courage! The victory is mine. I have overcome the world,” are words that should resound, should reverberate in the deepest pockets of our souls.
Our curtains need to be opened. The obstacles need to be removed. It’s all in our hands. We can do it if we have the courage. So let’s find that courage. It’s easy. Here is a small Lenten exercise for today. Imagine yourself sitting across from our Lord Jesus Christ at the Last Supper. As he spoke to his disciples 2,000 years ago, today he speaks to us, in the same language, knowing that ahead of Him lies the cross, and acknowledges the certainty of the resurrection. Now listen to his words carefully. “Courage! The victory is mine. I have overcome the world!”
It does not matter what difficulties we have ahead of us. It does not matter what kinds of obstacles there are. There may be crosses that are huge and torturous. There may be crosses that we find difficult to raise. There may be crosses that are merely stumbling blocks. It does not matter. With courage, we can carry those crosses. And we can find the resurrections. As we find, they are sitting on the other side of our curtains.
.
Open the curtains! Remove the obstacles! Put fear aside. Have courage – a courage that comes from within and without. Understand yourself as a creation of God, standing with Him during his trials and tribulations on the cross because, as you know, He is standing with you at your trials and your tribulations, guaranteeing you a resurrection.
Let us pray now the prayer of St. Nerses Shnorhali: You who bring back the wanderers, turn me from my evil ways into good ones and imprint upon my soul the recollection of the dreadful day of death, the fear of hell, and the love of your kingdom that I may repent of my sins and do righteousness. Have mercy upon all your creatures and upon me, a great sinner. Amen. (I Confess with Faith, 17/24)
https://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/SDSEA017.jpg600900Vazken Movsesianhttps://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/final_logo_large_for_epostle_web-300x189.pngVazken Movsesian2024-03-08 00:01:342024-03-06 21:58:58Courage – Lent Day 26
Saints come in all shapes and sizes. That might sound like an odd way to bring attention to the elite class of the Church, but each saint has a unique story that helps us in our Christian journey through life.
Andrew was the first-called disciple of Christ, in Armenian he’s referred to as Nakhagoch. He was the one who accepted the call of Jesus. Throughout Scripture we read that he invited others to follow, most notably is his older brother, Peter, who went on to be the Apostle to, and the first Bishop of, Rome.
Being the first takes a special and deep courage which is connected to inner strength but also to a commitment and belief that what you are following is absolutely and positively the correct path.
This weekend the Armenian Church celebrates St. Andrew Nakhagoch Disciple and Apostle of Christ, the first link on a movement that has changed the world. Today’s one-minute for standard time.
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Praying from the Book of Hours of the Armenian Church, with your Light, O Christ, we have all been enlightened, and in Your Holy Cross, O Savior, we take refuge. By the intercession of the Holy Apostle Andrew, hear us, O God our Savior, grant us peace, and show us Your mercy, Good Lord. Amen.
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Armodoxy for Today: Words for Prayer (for Artsakh)
Ever since Nagorna Karabagh, Artsakh, was violently taken over by the Azeris, Armenians the world over have been searching for words and expressions to share with others, and with God, their frustration, disappointment, anger, and acceptance of the hideous crime on the road to genocide.
The Armenian Law Students Association organized a vigil at the Loyola Law School here in Los Angeles to honor the lives lost during the Artsakh Genocide. An open invitation was sent to the student body as well as the entire community. They assembled, with candles they prayed. I wish to share their prayer here, for those searching for words, especially in a world that keeps adding wars and new sufferings on people. This, they adapted from a prayer written for Armenia and Artsakh in the Eastern Diocese (November 13, 2020).
Blessed are you, O Lord we come to you in a supremely difficult time for the Armenian people. With broken hearts and tears filling our eyes, we are united in grief over the loss of the ancestral holy lands of Artsakh. The Armenian people are forced to leave behind their sacred temples of worship and silence their joyful prayers within their glorious churches. In this state of unbearable pain, we appeal to you, O Lord, to hasten to their aid in your divine mercy and love.
Dispel their deep sorrow; heal their wounded spirits; pull them back from the error of hopelessness and despair. Help them to find strength and refuge in your loving arms, and to unite the Armenian nation under the warm and caring wings of your Holy Church. Grant us the humility and wisdom to accept the things we can no longer change; and give us courage to effect needful change where we still can.
In a time of unrest and turmoil in Armenia, give the people the peace you granted to all your followers: breathe into them, too, your life-giving Holy Spirit, so that they too may find peace from worldly commotion, worry, and fear. Help them to work together in love, directing their sincere efforts toward the recovery of our society. Guide them in rebuilding their broken homes, and heal their wounded families who lost loved ones during these bitter days of war.
Remember with love, Lord, as our Creator, the souls of the heroic soldiers and brave civilians who sacrificed their lives in your name. For those who have now lost their lifelong homes and must flee to safety. Remember them, bless them, and receive them into your Kingdom. Comfort their loved ones by the grace of your Holy Spirit.
Lord, today we are overwhelmed by the sense of loss and tragedy that has come upon the Armenian people. But we know that you are always near to the brokenhearted, and you rescue those who are crushed in spirit [cf. Psl. 34:18 2]. We trust that all things are possible through you [cf. Philip. 4:13 3]. Help us realize that even when matters lie beyond our understanding, you still know the plans you have for us—plans to help us prosper and not come to harm; plans to give us hope for the future [cf. Jer. 29:11]. We cast our anxiety to you, lean not on our mortal understanding, and trust in you with all our heart [cf. Prov. 3:5]. For we have faith that in all things, you work for the good of all who love and honor you [cf. Rom. 8:28].
We are humble, Lord, and you are our glory; your very name is wondrous, triumphant, and holy. Surrounded by the great cloud of our newly martyred witnesses to you, we praise you along with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and always, and unto the ages and ages. Amen.
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Archbishop Tiran Nersoyan, of blessed memory, was one of the brilliant minds of the Armenian Church in the 20th century. His accolades are many, but among the top was his vision for having an Armenian seminary in the United States. He founded the St. Nersess Armenian Seminary. Intellectually, his translation of the Holy Divine Liturgy (1950) is still the foundation upon which other translations are offered. He was elected Patriarch of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and served as Primate of the Eastern Diocese.
He was brilliant and sharp. In his senior years he would attend Summer Conferences at the St. Nersess Armenian Seminary, where young students would have the chance of a lifetime to engage in conversation with him. To many of us, he was a walking encyclopedia of the Christian Church, and the special volume on the Armenian Church. He was a pioneer in many respects. As a bishop he courageously challenged some of the rules of the Church. For instance, as a Primate he saw the tremendous need for clergy in the post-Genocide diasporan church and so he ordained a group of priests before they were married. One of the laws of the church is that if a candidate for the priesthood is to marry, marriage must take place before ordination. But as a primate he made the decision that the need for priests outweighed the respect of the rule. The Church refers to this as economia which allows for discretionary deviation from the letter of the law in order to adhere to the spirit of the law and charity. It takes clear vision and courage to takes these bold steps and Archbishop Tiran’s choice to ordain the priests were truly an act of economia.
In 1989, I was pastoring the St. Andrew Armenian Church in Cupertino, California. We published a small newsletter called The Nakhagoch (meaning the “First Call” a play off of St. Andrew the Disciples nickname of being the Nakhagoch, that is, the first called disciple of Jesus Christ. Each edition of the paper would include my pastoral message and commentary about social events. Archbishop Tiran wrote me that year. I had met him only casually, but to receive a letter by the revered archbishop, for me, was like being called out at a concert by the superstar on the stage because he said he recognized you! Me? Yes, you!
The letter was an invitation to edit a theological journal for the St. Nersess Seminary. Archbishop Tiran had read my articles and wanted to place me in charge of a journal for religious thought at the Seminary. In particular, he had read a piece I had written for the San Jose Mercury News about the 1988 film, “The Last Temptation of Christ.” The film was based on Nicholas Kazantzakis’s book by the same name. Kazantzakis was better known as author of “Zorba the Greek.” I had read the “Last Temptation” in college and it helped me form much of my expressions of theology. The epic movie, directed by Martin Scorsese, hit the theaters that year and was causing a stir. Christian groups and churches were protesting the movie – threatening to close down theaters and sponsors – because the film dared to present Jesus in human light. The last temptation of Christ, Kazantzakis imagined, was Jesus on the Cross, being approached by the Tempter, who offers him a “normal” life, with wife and kids, if he abandons the Cross. Spoiler alert: he doesn’t. But that didn’t seem to matter with the movie-going public of the time.
Kazantzakis’s story flirts with Christology, a topic which divided the Christian Church, particularly in the early centuries. In seminary we studied the Council of Chalcedon (451AD) and the variations of Christological expressions extensively. I was not about to touch any of these points in a newspaper article, rather I questioned our fear and doubt. Why would we be afraid to think and struggle with our Faith? And especially with the main character of our Faith, namely Jesus Christ? Receiving Archbishop Tiran’s letter – the foremost authority on our Church’s Christology – and his approval of the article and my positioning, was a boost of confidence that I needed at that early point in my ministry. Even more, his encouragement emphasized the need the bridge the gap between theoretical and practical theology.
Jesus came to us. Jesus lived in a real world and spoke to the issues and problems of this world. He made the Divine Realm accessible to everyone. As a Church, we pray, Thy Kingdom come,Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. It takes Christian courage to be the instrument to bring thy will from heaven to earth.
Tomorrow, we’ll look at what happened when I accepted Archbishop Tiran’s invitation. and found myself in a place that was too deep. Join me.
During Lent we have become aware of the curtain drawn across the altar of life. That curtain is the obstacle that prevents us from seeing the wonders and the beauty of God – the obstacles that prevent us from maximizing our potential. That curtain has been lowered because of our fears, and the only way for us to bring it up, the only way for us to open that curtain is to combat our fears with courage.
Because God resides within us we know that the potential for courage is within us. Courage comes from within where God has placed it.
At the Last Supper, Jesus asked his disciples to look within. In the Gospel of John, we read Jesus’ final discourse (Chapter 16 and on). Jesus asks his disciples to act with love and with humility even in the face of the unthinkable, at the most horrid of endings. At the Last Supper he discloses to his disciples that he will suffer an unthinkable death. He will be humiliated before humanity. The same creature that received its life from Christ, will now kill the Christ. The same life that was formed from those hands, will now take those very hands and drive nails through them! And yet, Jesus says, have courage. In no uncertain terms he demands it of each of us who sit across from Him at the table. His words, “Courage! The victory is mine. I have overcome the world,” are words that should resound, should reverberate in the deepest pockets of our souls.
Our curtains need to be opened. The obstacles need to be removed. It’s all in our hands. We can do it if we have the courage. So let’s find that courage. It’s easy. Here is a small Lenten exercise for today. Imagine yourself sitting across from our Lord Jesus Christ at the Last Supper. As he spoke to his disciples 2,000 years ago, today he speaks to us, in the same language, knowing that ahead of Him lies the cross, and acknowledges the certainty of the resurrection. Now listen to his words carefully. “Courage! The victory is mine. I have overcome the world!”
It does not matter what difficulties we have ahead of us. It does not matter what kinds of obstacles there are. There may be crosses that are huge and torturous. There may be crosses that we find difficult to raise. There may be crosses that are merely stumbling blocks. It does not matter. With courage, we can carry those crosses. And we can find the resurrections. As we find, they are sitting on the other side of our curtains.
.
Open the curtains! Remove the obstacles! Put fear aside. Have courage – a courage that comes from within and without. Understand yourself as a creation of God, standing with Him during his trials and tribulations on the cross because, as you know, He is standing with you at your trials and your tribulations, guaranteeing you a resurrection.
Let us pray now the prayer of St. Nerses Shnorhali: You who bring back the wanderers, turn me from my evil ways into good ones and imprint upon my soul the recollection of the dreadful day of death, the fear of hell, and the love of your kingdom that I may repent or my sins and do righteousness. Have mercy upon all your creatures and upon me, a great sinner. Amen. (I Confess with Faith, 17/24)
https://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/SDSEA017.jpg600900Vazken Movsesianhttps://epostle.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/final_logo_large_for_epostle_web-300x189.pngVazken Movsesian2023-03-17 00:01:002023-03-16 16:46:21Lenten Journey Day 26 – Courage
Lenten Journey 2021:
Faith in a Post Pandemic World
by Fr. Vazken Movsesian
Day 32: Courage Get up and do not be afraid. – Jesus (Matthew 17:7)
There are two parts of courage, as understood from Jesus’ command. Absence of fear is an obvious attribute of courage. Not so obvious is the necessity to act about that loss of fear, that is, to “get up” and live. The Lenten Journey is about finding this courage that leads to a productive life.
Graphic: PublicDomainPictures.net
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Next Step #656: New Year’s Eve expressions that don’t show up in reflections. Where are all the predictors of 2020 prophecy and how apologetics evolves. Living and doing with passion. Misdirected notions of martyrdom and the danger we’re falling into. Odd-ball occurrence? A look at Luke 19: Getting more of the right stuff. Courage to move forward with wishes for the New Year. Luke 19:11-28 New Year’s Sermon on Courage Wish for the New Year Finding my Voice by Anna Astvatsaturian Turcotte
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