Tag Archive for: Gyumri

Gyurmi – DNA returns

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Roots of Armodoxy: Memory in DNA

“She remembered the railroad tracks and the mountains.”

During the Armenian Genocide 1.5 Million Armenians were brutally slaughtered and a greater number of Armenians were exiled from their historic homeland creating the Armenian Diaspora, with representation in almost every country on earth. When a member of that diaspora visits Armenia for the first time, Armenian DNA returns to the land after a century in exile.

A dear friend recently made a pilgrimage with us to Armenia. She came with a story of a memory. Her mother’s mother was from Gyumri and remembered two distinct images from the landscape, the railroad tracks and the mountains.

A child’s vantage point is skewed. From a small stature always looking up at adults and the world, the world seems different than when, as an adult, standing 6 feet off the ground, the same scenery and objects are viewed.  And so, in Gyumri we searched, viewing as a child, compensating for the parallax view and invoking images in our mind’s eye from a century before. We searched for what may have been the spot where this child’s memory focused on  the railroad tracks that reached for the horizon only to find the mountain. And there it was! Tracks and a mountain.

The mind has a way of protecting itself from huge traumatic events. It will compartmentalize the memories of the Genocide and images from the mass exodus, but it will remember, and quite vividly, those things which are precious and give definition to life. They are the sacred spaces of our lives. The train tracks were a connection to home. The mountain range was home. Over a hundred years later, the DNA and the memories embedded within its double helix returned from where it was taken.

In the Gospel according to St. Luke (2:42-48) we read, that when Jesus was twelve years old, on a trip to Jerusalem with Joseph and Mary, “he lingered behind.” Joseph and Mary searched for three days and found Him in the temple, ‘sitting in the midst of the teachers, both listening to them and asking them questions.  And all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers. So when they saw Him, they were amazed; and His mother said to Him, “Son, why have You done this to us? Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously.” And Jesus said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father’s house?” ‘

Some memories honor the past. Others celebrate them while still others hinder us from moving forward. In Gyumri we found these memories and we returned one as well, one which identified this land as sacred and holy, as the place where life began.

Armodoxy asks us to look at land not as possessions but as sacred spaces that define and give meaning to life. They are created by the holy memories that we hold in our heart. War becomes obsolete because the goal is not to acquire more land but to celebrate the sacredness that belongs to us all.

We pray, “I beseech You, Living God, through Your divine blessings and pleasing graces, enlighten my mind and allow me to love You with all my heart, and through Your irrefutable might, lead me on the path of your will and Your commandments. You are my hope and refuge. You are my salvation. Amen.”

Bulleted Cross

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Roots of Armodoxy: The Bulleted Cross

This week on the Roots of Armodoxy, we are looking at memories from different vantage points that we discovered in Gyumri, the second largest city in Armenia. This is the fourth of five episodes of this mini-series of daily messages.

The manner in which a memory is articulated can honor the past, while at the same time bring healing, so as to ensure a forward movement from the event.

Outside the front doors of the Church of the Seven Wounds is a brass cross that looks like it was used for target practice at a firing range. Sadly, it was. In 1937, a group of clergymen of the Armenian Church were executed in an area called Haykadzor, a small section of Ani that is in Armenia proper, near the Armenian Turkish border. The Cross, with bullet holes and all, is displayed atop a brass sphere, which is also riddled with bullet holes. It casts its shadow on the names of a couple dozen clergymen, inscribed on large marble slabs below the cross.

An engraved marker proclaims, “The Cross of Haykadzor’s St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Church fired on by Turk and Soviet atheists. The cross is moved here in memory the priests from the Diocese of Shirak who were shot.”

This monument, with the relocated cross and the inscription was placed in Gyumri in 2018.  The choice of words on the plaque was interesting to me, specifically identifying the culprits as “atheists.” With this word a very strong and meaningful sentence is imposed on the evil doers. It identifies the intention of the perpetrator and lays blame on them. There is no doubt, after reading the statement about what happened and for what reason.

Many times, our memories, especially memories of horrid events or traumatic episodes in our life, are areas that keep us stuck and living in the past, particularly in the case of unresolved conflicts. To label them for what they are, for instance with the phrase “by the atheists,” brings resolution to the trauma. The motive of the Turks and Soviets, in this case, is clearly defined with the phrase and we can understand that it was to eliminate the Christian clerics. The memory is identified, expressed and honored. This is a necessary step to live life in the moment and not to be hampered by the weights of yesteryears.

Jesus addresses a group of people (Luke 13:1-5) who were questioning a tragedy which befell some others when a tower fell over and killed them. “Do you think that they were worse sinners than all other men who dwelt in Jerusalem?” Jesus asks. He answers his own question concisely, “I tell you, no; unless you repent you will all likewise perish.” The past is over and there is nothing that can be done to change it. What is important for Jesus, and for us as followers of Christ is that we manage ourselves and change those things that we have control over. In other words, live for today.

Let us pray, Lord our God, you have given us a chance to renew each and every day, each and every minute of the day. Keep my eyes focused on the moment. Help me to move on from the past in a spirit of repentance, knowing you have forgiven me for past wrongs and the moment of today is before me to grasp and live in peace and harmony, in accord with your commandment to love. Amen.

Memories that Honor

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Roots of Armodoxy: Memories that Honor

This week on the Roots of Armodoxy, we are looking at memories – those that honor, those that help us heal and those that keep us from moving forward. We’re looking at memories from different vantage points we’ve discovered in Gyumri, the second largest city in Armenia after Yerevan. This is the third episode of this mini-series of daily messages.

There are a couple appointments in the Church of the Seven Wounds that set it apart from other Armenian churches. The church, as we discovered, is one dedicated to the Holy Asdvadzadzin and points to “seven wounds” inflicted on the Blessed Mother, each annunciated in the Gospel of St. Luke. (See “Memories in Gyumri” for the list.) Aside from the church’s very unique name, inside the sanctuary the altar area is adorned with an iconostasis.  In Eastern Orthodox churches, such as the Greek or Russian Orthodox Churches, the iconostasis is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating altar area from the nave of the church. In the Armenian Apostolic Church, that separation is demarked by a curtain. Secondly, in one of the side rooms where congregants are invited to light their devotional candles, there is a large crucifix hanging from one of the walls. Crucifixes are not part of the Armenian Church tradition, partly because the symbol of the cross emphasizes resurrection for the Armenian Church, that is, Jesus’ conquering the cross and our ability to do likewise.

These two unusual appointments – to reiterate, they are unusual within the Armenian Church – the iconostasis and the crucifix are reminders of the ecumenic spirit that is often overlooked when people think of the Armenian Church. Gyumri is on the crossroad of the continents and had visitors from different countries. The large Crucifix was left by a Roman Catholic congregation which was granted use of the Church of the Seven Wounds by the Armenians during the World War II, when the Catholics did not have a place to worship.

Ecumenism is the idea that Christians of different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships to promote Christian unity. One of the pioneers of ecumenism was St. Nersess Shnorhali, the 12th century Saint and Patriarch of the Armenian Church. He offered a formula for Christian understanding which has been adopted by many church leaders through the centuries.* Shnorhali says that as Christians we must be united in essentials, approach secondary items of faith with liberty and display charity (love) in all things.

Essential items are the articles of Faith. We are united in our understanding of God as Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. This is essential. Secondary matters might be practices which differ from place to place, community to community. Is the Crucifix necessary? Should you adopt a vegan diet as a Christian? And finally, we approach all our relationships with one another in a spirit of love, to promote Christ’s Birth announcement: Peace on Earth and Goodwill toward one another.

The Armenian Church has lived and survived by this simple code of ethics as articulated by St. Nersess Shnorhali. In the Church of the Seven Wounds, we find memories, remembrances, that honor the spirit of Christian Unity.

As our prayer today, we remember the words from the Gospel of John, and our Lord, Jesus Christ did say, “I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep.  And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.” Amen. (10:14-6)

* There are those who contend that this formula was given developed by Augustine of Hippo, but modern scholarship has shown otherwise.

 

 

Gyumri: Memories that heal

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Roots of Armodoxy: Memory that heals

This week on the Roots of Armodoxy, we are looking a memories – those that honor, those that help us heal and those that keep us from moving forward. We’re looking at memories from different vantage points we’ve discovered in Gyumri, the second largest city in Armenia after Yerevan. This is the second episode of this mini-series of daily messages.

I remember when the earthquake hit Spitak and the surrounding city of Gyumri in 1988. We in the diaspora went into a massive fundraising effort to provide for equipment and supplies to be sent over there. We in California feel the earth rumble as well, especially in Northern California where I had assumed my first pastorate. In fact, when we heard that the Spitak quake was a magnitude 6.8 Ms, we were a bit surprised to learn that 25,000 to 50,000 had perished. We had had quakes exceeding that magnitude without the casualties sustained in Armenia. It was only a few days later, when Soviet Premier Gorbachev visited Gyumri that we learned about the shotty workmanship and the pilfering of construction material that led the destruction. During Soviet times cement brought in a hefty profit on the black market for those who could manage to build buildings with less material.

For months which turned into years, we collected money and goods to send to Armenia. But during that first year, on October 17, 1989 that I had a front row seat to a big one. It was during the World Series – a special series that pitted the two Bay Area teams, the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics, against one another. The fans were in the stands and the rest were next to a TV or radio to follow the game when our turn came. The ground rumbled, and we found ourselves in the Loma Prieta quake, registering 6.9 Ms. I rushed home to find shelves toppled, glass all over the floors and the entire neighborhood out on the street, not sure when the next tremor would hit. It was a big one, indeed, a freeway collapsed, the Bay bridge came apart and when all was said and done 63 people died.

Two earthquakes, less than a year apart, with relative same intensity. The differences of the loss of life was remarkable and may account for the way the quakes were remembered. Or maybe it’s something more, something to do with the way we handle our memories.

On the first anniversary of the Spitak quake, orders came from the top, the Catholicos of All Armenians, that we would solemnly observe the anniversary with requiem services throughout the world. The day was somber indeed, with reruns of video clips and reprints of articles and photos to forever forge the images in our mind.

On the first anniversary of the Bay Area quake, the atmosphere was completely festive! The community got together to celebrate the life that was spared! There were street parties and festivals proclaiming the win over something so tragic, celebrating their re-birth as a community.

The differences in the commemorations could be described as seeing the glass, half full or half empty? Of course, the number of casualties in Armenia – 50,000 deaths in a country of 3 million means 1.7% of the population was wiped out in this single event. Still, for our discussion, we’re looking at memory, and what that memory does and can do for us.

In the case of Gyumri, the sadness continued for years, in fact, decades later the effects of the earthquake are still felt. The domes that we looked at yesterday are reminders of the quake and they stand so that they are unavoidable, that is, you have to confront and acknowledge the past. In so doing, they give a license for victimization. It opens the doors for confusion. Instead of understanding their predicament logically, people revert to fatalistic answers, such as, “It is God’s will that I suffer.”

One of the groups that is taking a bold stand in Gyumri is FLY = Freedom Loving Youth. Yes, today 35 years after the quake they are relieving the pain and suffering. They are building facilities and housing for people, and even more, providing the necessary resources and psychological assistance to overcome the depression caused by an unresolved trauma from 35 years ago. They are in the process of building a new center where these issues can be resolved in an efficient and equitable manner. We visited the site and met with their workers. In His Shoes is a proud partner of FLY.

What I’m describing here can be seen in as comparison between the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. In the Old Testament we read stories – memories – that pit people against one another. The concept of God playing favorites with one people over another is pronounced and remembered throughout its pages. Jesus came to end that. His message was to everyone. This last Sunday we celebrated the Transfiguration. The point of Moses and Elijah being there was that Jesus is the fulfillment of the law and the prophets. “The Kingdom of God is at hand,” is how Jesus entered on the scene and the even greater news he had to give was that the Kingdom was accessible by everyone – young and old, regardless of race or nationality. With his proclamation he moved the model away from fatalism, back to self-determination. “To hear the word of God, and do it.” It’s about Faith being action, not a history lesson.

Baptism is the “Born Again” experience in the Armenian Church. It’s a fresh start, where the past is left behind. The “curse” of the memory is dropped. Memory serves to heal. Christianity is about celebrating the today. The past can be honored and revered but is not a place to live. The difference between a happy or festive expression and a sad expression is not merely an optimistic vs. pessimistic view of the world, it is an acknowledgement that God is with you, that the new day brings with it a new life.

We pray from the Book of Hours of the Armenian Church a morning prayer bringing in the new day, “We thank you O Lord our God, who granted us restful sleep in peace. Grant us to pass the remainder of the day in peace. Strengthen and guard us through the days of our lives, so that we live our lives with pure behavior and reach the peaceful haven in eternal life, by the grace and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Memory in Gyumri

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Roots of Armodoxy: Memory in Gyumri

In 1988 the ground shook in Armenia.

December 7, a date which Franklin Roosevelt described as a “day which would live in infamy,” when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in 1941, would now be infamous especially for the Armenians who suffered close to 50,000 casualties from the quake.

In 1988, the Soviet Union was still intact. It’s president, Michael Gorbachev was visiting the United States, engaging in high level talks with then President Ronald Reagan promoting Glasnost and Perestroika. He cut his trip short and returned to the Soviet Union, specifically to Armenia to assess the damages. That presidential change-of-plan hurled the Armenian earthquake onto the world stage. Once again, without being asked or considered, Armenia found itself in the top headlines. Of course, this is not what anyone wants to be known for, especially Armenia who had succumbed to other tragedies including Genocide, but still, Armenia is so small and insignificant on the world stage that had the Soviet premier and US president not been inconvenienced, the earthquake would have registered as a footnote with Western media. Instead, 113 different countries sent over rescue and humanitarian aid to Armenia in the months that followed the December 7 earthquake. It was the first time since the 1940s that the Soviet Union officially asked for aid from the United States, despite being in the “cold war.”

The facts are important to remember, because they point to possibilities that can exist and that can usher in peace, harmony and understanding between countries. In this case, Armenia was the catalyst for the harmony and understanding we saw that year.

The earthquake’s epicenter was a small town called Spitak, in between two larger towns, Gyurmi and Vanadzor. (During the Soviet years these two towns were called “Leninakan” and “Kirovakan” respectively.)

In Gyumri, there is a church known as Yot Verk, or the “Church of the Seven Wounds.” It is in the center of the bustling city.  The “seven” refers to the wounds of Jesus that were felt by the Blessed Asdvadzadzin. They are all from our Lord’s life as shared by the Evangelist St. Luke. Specifically, they are, 1) Simeon’s revelation to her “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many… And a sword will pierce your own soul too.” 2) The Holy family’s escape to Egypt 3) Jesus lost for three days; 4) Jesus betrayed; 5) Jesus crucified with the Blessed Mother Mary at the foot of the cross; 6) Jesus’ death; 7) Jesus’ burial. An icon in the church depicts St. Mary with seven daggers symbolizing the wounds.

This church is a repository of the memories. The seven wounds are identified by name. the memory of the earthquake is identified by large structures, namely the domes that toppled off of the church on that ill-fated day in 1988. The domes have since been replaced, but the fallen domes sit on the side of the church and at the entrance of a small garden area. The size of these domes and their placement in view of everyone, solicit a response, at the very least, “Why are these domes here?” and get the response, “They fell off during the 1988 earthquake.”

Memories have many functions. Of course, as is implied, they prevent us from forgetting. But what happens when the pain is so great, beyond human comprehension, as was the case on December 7, 1988 when 50,000 people perished? The event was within our lifetime and we certainly want to honor the dead, however the structures and monuments we build to our memories are double edged swords. They honor the losses, but they can also function as monuments to victimhood and prevent us from a healthy move forward.

Following the Crucifixion of our Lord Jesus, a few women when to his grave to anoint his body. They were there to honor the dead Jesus. When they arrived at the grave, the angel asked them a simple question, “Why are you searching among the dead for one who lives?”

This week on the Roots of Armodoxy, we will be in Gyumri, the second largest city in Armenia. We will be looking at memories from different vantage points. Memories that honor, memories that help us heal, and memories that, unfortunately, keep us looking among the dead instead among the living.

We pray today a prayer from the Armenian Church’s Book of Hours, “O Lord, do not turn your face from us. Benevolent Lord, we beseech You, be our helper. Send us Your angel of peace, who will come and protect us from temptations. Almighty Lord our God, save and have mercy. Amen.”

Earthquake Theodicy

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Armodoxy for Today
Earthquake Theodicy

On this date the earth shook in the town of Spitak, Armenia. The year was 1988, the Soviet Union was still intact. It’s president, Michael Gorbachev was visiting the United States, engaging in high level talks with then President Ronald Reagan promoting Glasnost and Perestroika. He cut his trip short and returned home and to Armenia to assess the damages. Anywhere from 25,000 – 50,000 people were presumed dead and thousand more injured.

At the time I was serving at the Armenian Church in Cupertino, California. We immediately went into disaster aid mode and became the collection center for humanitarian aid in the Bay Area, shipping much needed medical supplies and survival goods and services on a weekly basis.

The season was Advent. Christmas was approaching, but everyone was so overwhelmed by the enormity of the disaster that normal celebrations and gift giving was severely curtailed. Yet, on January 6, we would be celebrating Christmas – the joy of the Christ Child coming into the world – and greeting one another, “Christ is revealed among us!”

I was approached by the San Jose Mercury News to write a piece focusing on my sermon for Christmas: “God is Revealed, but where was He when we needed Him?” Here then, is what I offered and was printed January 5, 1989:

One of the most difficult questions asked of a priest is the question of evil. The problem is this: If God is good, and God is all powerful, why is there evil in the world? Since evil is a reality in this world, then it follows that either God is not all-powerful, or God does not will the good, or God does not exist. The search for an answer is more troubling when evil occurs in the form of a natural disaster, such as the Armenian earthquake. It seems that there is no one to blame but God.

This year, on January 6th the Armenian Church will celebrate Theophany (sometimes called Armenian Christmas). More than Christmas, we celebrate the Revelation of God to the world through His Son, Jesus Christ. Theophany is one of the major feast days of the Church. Far from a feast, this year will be different for Armenians. Still fresh in our minds is the tragedy of December 7, 1988 when we lost over 50,000 people to a natural disaster. Although this number is great by any standard, it is particularly significant for a small group of people such as the Armenians because it represents about 1% of the total world population of Armenians and approximately 2% of the population in Armenia. In comparison, if an earthquake in the United States killed 2% of the population, we would lose five million people! One third of Armenia was leveled. Imagine one third of the United States leveled – from the Rocky Mountains to the Western coast!

When facing such devastation, it is only natural to ask why? Even more, why did not God spare the good Armenian people?  Why did He not intervene? Why the Armenian people? The same ones who were the first to accept Christianity, the ones who have so piously observed the faith for centuries, the ones who defended the faith to death, why them? When the history of a people, such as the Armenian’s, is plagued by devastation and tragedy, the questioning goes deeper: Why believe in a God who cannot save us from these dangers? I am confronted with questions such as these almost daily.

I also hear some answers. Some feel God has abandoned the Armenians for some divine purpose and plan. Even some doomsday forecasters claim the earthquake was part of the “signs of the times.” It is interesting to note, how quickly we are willing to thrust aside reason and logic when hit by calamity.

For me, I do not shy away from the scientific and logical approach. Why did the earthquake happen? Because the earth shifts. Why did people die? Because people were trapped under the rubble of buildings which were constructed poorly. Why didn’t God step in and save the Armenian people? I don’t know, but I venture to say that things just don’t work that way.

In times of crisis, our mental image of God transforms Him into a kind of superman. After all, He is omnipotent.  But the order of nature is such that that there is an imperfection built into this world. Lightning causes fires. Drought causes crops to wither and brings famine. The shifting and settling of the earth causes earthquakes. And sometimes, unfortunately, people die.

So, the more important question becomes, why believe in a god that cannot save you from the perils and dangers of this world? Why celebrate the revelation and birth of a god who is powerless against nature? We begin by answering that God is not some kind of superman. God is not there to prevent an earthquake. Disasters will happen, but God is found in the reaction to the disaster. Where was God when the earthquake happened? Most probably He was weeping and hurt like all of us. But the real power of God is seen in the aftermath. We see God in the reaction to the earthquake–in the love and support He provides us.

When we see people throughout the world coming together to aid the Armenians, it is God working. God gives us the capacity to love. We give to others because of that ability to love. We must stop thinking of God as this great puppeteer who sends disaster to this world to see our reaction. No!  Disaster, pain and suffering are part of an imperfect world. Where we do find God is in the peace and love that only He can give in answer to that disaster.

The feast of Theophany is the celebration of God becoming man so that man can know God. He took our form and went through all the motions of man. He suffered and died. He did not exempt Himself from this great suffering, for no one is exempt. However, He conquered death and promised the same to those who believe. What He left was His own peace, “not as the world gives.”

When the earthquake hit, we were all hurt. Where was God? We saw Him in the love and support from the four corners of the earth. We saw a world come together. We saw “enemies” helping “enemies.”

God is revealed: a God who understands us; a God who suffers with us; a God who helps and gives us strength during our darkest hour. This is God being revealed. This is the celebration of Theophany.

Empath’s Christmas

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Next Step with Fr. Vazken #705: Interview with Alina Samuelian of FLY – Freedom Loving Youth, after her recent outreach in Gyumri. Hear this energetic empath give her first-hand account of life and living conditions in areas of the world hit by tragedy. From Syria to Lebanon to Armenia, FLY reaches out to those in need. Here’s their story articulated by a front-line worker. All this, in the context of Jesus and the “Great Banquet”
Christian Giving, Luke 14:12-24
Freedom Loving Youth
Armenian Earthquake 30 years later
2021 Toy Drive
Children’s Memorial
Peacemakers – Gabriel & Katie Jay
Earlier interview in Armenian
Isabel Bayrakdarian
Cover: In Gyumri FLY meets with mother and son

Connecting with FLY
Website
Facebook: Freedom Loving Youth-FLY
Instagram: freedom.loving.youth
YouTube
Venmo account: @fly-freedomlovingyouth
Firewood Fundraiser

Produced by Suzie Shatarevyan for InHisShoes.org
Listen via Stitcher Radio on demand!
Listen on Apple Podcasts