Tag Archive for: Vartan

Vartan: A comma not a period

Vartan: A comma, not a period

Have you ever heard of a nation, a country, a people, or even a team celebrating a defeat? A loss? Well the Armenian Church does exactly that and I don’t believe there is another group of people on the planet that celebrates a defeat, a military one at that. This was the first time anywhere that a battle was fought for the defense of Christianity. And the mere fact that the Armenian Church exists today and is the center of the Christian tradition of the Armenian people, is proof that the battle was lost but the war was won.

This week before the Lent begins, the Armenian Church commemorates two groups of saints headed by two heroes of the Church. They were actually partners in mission, Leon (Ghevont) and Vartan, are noted for bringing the light to the darkness. Of the two friends, brothers in Christ, Vartan was the warrior, Ghevont was a priest. Together they were the fighting force of body and soul, of spirit grounded in Faith. The story of Vartan & Ghevont gets told and retold from generation to generation, from 451AD to today.

Armodoxy asserts that you cannot impose your beliefs on anyone else. Armenians have never pushed their faith on others. This is not a sign of apathy, sloth or weakness, it is an expression of tolerance and understanding. However, when it came to the practice of their faith, the Armenians would not give it up, even if the consequence was death.

To the Persians who were imposing their faith on Armenians, Vartan and the Armenian forces responded, “From this faith [Christianity] no one can separate us, neither sword, nor fire, nor any other force.” Armenians make the point of remembering that they were outnumbered on the battle field by a ratio of 3:1. With over a thousand Armenian casualties, Vartan fell.

The historian Yeghishe records that Vartan and his soldiers took an oath, We are ready for persecution and death and every affliction and torture for the sake of the holy churches which our forefathers entrusted to us by the power of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, whereby we were reborn ourselves by torments and blood. For we recognize the Holy Gospel as our Father, and the apostolic universal church as our Mother. Let no evil partition come between us to separate us from her.

Remembrance of the saints Vartan, Ghevont and those who sacrificed their lives as an act of defiance, is a reminder that our faith in Christ cannot be compromised. In a sense, the Battle of Vartan, 451AD is a page of history that has a comma at the end of it, not period. The Battle of Vartan continues today and each generation has a chance to continue or end the story. The Battle of Vartan 451 is history, the Battle of Vartan in the 21st century is our reality. For we recognize the Holy Gospel as our Father, and the apostolic universal church as our Mother. Let no evil partition come between us to separate us from her.

Let us pray, “Lord, our God, through the intercession, memory and prayers St. Vartan and St. Leon, who lived and died for Jesus and the Fatherland and whom we commemorate today, grant us the gift of peace and of your great mercy. Amen.”

Body & Soul

Partners in mission, Leon (Ghevont) and Vartan, are noted for bringing the light to the darkness. Following on yesterday’s theme of Spirit and Flesh, today we look at the body with its soul. Of the two friends, brothers in Christ, Vartan was the warrior. He was the body with soul, a spirit that was grounded in his beliefs. The story of Vartan gets told and retold from generation to generation, from 451AD to today.

Armodoxy asserts that you cannot impose your beliefs on anyone else. Armenians have never pushed their faith on others. This is not a sign of apathy, sloth or weakness, it is an expression of tolerance and understanding. However, when it came to the practice of their faith, the Armenians would not give it up, even if the consequence was death.

To the Persians who were imposing their faith on Armenians, Vartan and the Armenian forces responded, “From this faith [Christianity] no one can separate us, neither sword, nor fire, nor any other force.” Armenians make the point of remembering that they were outnumbered on the battle field by a ratio of 3:1. With over a thousand Armenian casualties, Vartan fell.

I don’t believe there is another group of people on the planet that celebrates a military defeat. This was the first time anywhere that a battle was fought for the defense of Christianity. And the mere fact that the Armenian Church exists today and is the center of the Christian tradition of the Armenian people, is proof that the battle was lost but the war was won.

The historian Yeghishe records that Vartan and his soldiers took an oath, We are ready for persecution and death and every affliction and torture for the sake of the holy churches which our forefathers entrusted to us by the power of the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, whereby we were reborn ourselves by torments and blood. For we recognize the Holy Gospel as our Father, and the apostolic universal church as our Mother. Let no evil partition come between us to separate us from her.

Remembrance of the saints Vartan, Ghevont and those who sacrificed their lives as an act of defiance, is a reminder that our faith in Christ cannot be compromised. In a sense, the Battle of Vartan, 451AD is a page of history that has a comma at the end of it, to be decided in the Battle of Vartan in the 21st century. For we recognize the Holy Gospel as our Father, and the apostolic universal church as our Mother. Let no evil partition come between us to separate us from her.

Let us pray, “Lord, our God, through the intercession, memory and prayers St. Vartan and St. Leon, who lived and died for Jesus and the Fatherland and whom we commemorate today, grant us the gift of peace and of your great mercy. Amen.”

Spirit & Flesh

Armodoxy for Today: Spirit & Flesh

Angels are flying and hovering all around us on Valentine’s day, and mostly of the chubby little cherub variety. With arrow drawn, Cupid takes aim at the heart twixt lovers. As for the other variety of angels, they’re called seraphim, they’re flying with their six wings in service to God.

We have developed quite an imagery of angels. Interestingly enough, angels are spiritual beings, that is, they do not have physical attributes. Go ahead, look it up. Angels are spiritual beings. They are the messengers of God. We ascribe physical traits to them for convenience so that we can form an idea of what a spiritual being may look like.

It is the human being, who above angels, has been gifted with both spirit and body. Often, it is the struggle between spirit and flesh that is highlighted in many religious stories, especially in the Bible. Today we will look at the power found in bringing spirit and flesh together.

Over these two days preceding Great Lent, the Armenian Church commemorates two saints, who were contemporaries, brothers in Christ, and responsible for the continuity of the Armenian Church and therefore the nation. One is St. Leon the Priest (Ghevont Yerets), and the other is St. Vartan Zoravar (the Warrior).

In the 5th Century, the Battle of Avarayr was fought between the Christian Army, under commander Vartan Mamikonian and the Perian army. This was the first time anywhere that a battle was fought for the defense of Christianity. It led to the signing of a treaty in 484 which affirmed Armenia’s right to practice Christianity. This is the single most important and significant event in Armenian history and for this reason, St. Vartan is recognized by the Church but also by the people, as a national hero.

His friend and priest, St. Leon, is often forgotten, though his impact on the Battle and thus the victory, is recognized by all historians, as essential. The Church recognizes the two over the course of this week, and emphasizes the importance of spiritual practices combined with physical prowess to overcome the worst of difficulties. More specifically, for us, we pray to God, but in the end, it is on our physical strength that we count on to stand or walk, to reach out or voice ourselves. In our daily struggles, the example of St. Leon and St. Vartan teach us how to balance the spirit and the flesh to achieve our goals. This then, becomes a prelude to the Lenten Season.

Tomorrow we will look closer at St. Vartan.

One of the more recent manifestations of the Divine presence in our lives was in 1968 when the Cathedral (the headquarters of the Diocese) in New York was consecrated in the name of St. Vartan. Forty-two years later, when the Cathedral in Los Angeles was to be consecrated a philanthropist came forward and asked that it be consecrated using his father’s name, which happened to be Leon, and so it was in 2010. Some may call this coincidence. Others, like me, want to believe it is God’s special messenger letting us know, the Armenian Church in America, is protected from coast to coast by St. Leon and St. Vartan, as they have for centuries.

Let us pray, “Lord, our God, through the intercession, memory and prayers St. Leon and St. Vartan, who lived and died for Jesus and the Fatherland and whom we commemorate today, grant us the gift of peace and of your great mercy. Amen.”