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Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
Archbishop Gizirian: 65 Years of Service
More than 200 people gathered at Holy Trinity Church in Cheltenham, Pa., on
Sunday, June 17, to mark Archbishop Yeghishe Gizirian's 65th anniversary of
ordination into the holy priesthood.
Archbishop Gizirian celebrated the Divine Liturgy. A luncheon and program
followed the service in the church's Santerian Hall.
Messages were read from His Holiness Karekin II, the Supreme Patriarch and
Catholicos of All Armenians, and Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern).
"In all the aspects of your ministry, you have always kept your priestly
promise to our Heavenly Father, and shown your love and dedication to the
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin," His Holiness wrote. "May our almighty Lord
keep you strong and protect you."
Archbishop Barsamian expressed his appreciation to Archbishop Gizirian for
his dedicated service. "The holy priesthood is an unbroken chain linking us
back to Christ; and this spiritual truth is clearly evident in Archbishop
Yeghishe," the Primate wrote. "His preaching is done with such authority;
yet his personal example is one of humility and quiet grace. He is a leader
of great inner strength and conviction; yet his greatest strength is the
tender compassion he shows to all-a quality that has made him beloved
wherever he has served."
Other clergy spoke about the humility and devotion that Archbishop Gizirian
has brought to his ministry. The Rev. Fr. Karekin Kasparian, pastor of St.
Gregory the Enlightener Church of White Plains, N.Y., who studied with
Archbishop Gizirian at the seminary in Antelias, Lebanon, spoke about their
close friendship and their ministry in the Eastern Diocese.
The Rev. Fr. Hakob Gevorgyan, pastor of Holy Trinity Church, said that
Archbishop Gizirian has been a mentor to him and to other young priests in
the Diocese. "He carries love in his heart, and shares it with everyone he
meets," Fr. Gevorgyan said. "He is a role model and a source of inspiration
for young seminarians and newly-ordained priests."
Remarks were also made by the Very Rev. Fr. Oshagan Gulgulian, pastor of the
nearby St. Sahag and St. Mesrob Church of Wynnewood, Pa., who reflected on
Archbishop Gizirian's tireless service in the vineyard of the Lord.
The program included a video highlighting Archbishop Yeghishe's path to the
priesthood, produced by the Diocese's Communications Department, as well as
a musical performance and poetry recitations. Antranig Garibian served as
the master of ceremonies.
In his remarks, Archbishop Yeghishe shared memories about his ministry and
about the people who have inspired him. He also spoke about the importance
of carrying forward the mission of the Armenian Church and keeping alive its
ancient traditions for new generations of faithful.
"Despite all the disappointing events of our time, we Christians strongly
believe that there is an everlasting source of strength and hope in this
divine institution that we call the Church," he said. "The basis of
everything is the love of God, and the Armenian Church was established on
that divine love."
Also attending the program were guests from the Armenian Martyrs
Congregational Church and the Armenian Sisters Academy.
A native of Damascus, Syria, Archbishop Gizirian studied at the Seminary of
the Catholicosate of Cilicia in Antelias, Lebanon. He was ordained a
celibate priest in 1947 by the late Bishop Terenig Poladian.
He came to the United States in 1951, where he served as the pastor of the
Holy Cross Church of New York City; St. John the Baptist Church of Miami,
Fla.; Holy Mother of God Church of Newark, N.J.; the Holy Savior Church of
Worcester, Mass.; St. John the Baptist Church of Detroit, Mich.; Sts. Sahag
and Mesrob Church of Wynnewood, Pa.; and Holy Trinity Church of Cambridge,
Mass.
In 1982, Fr. Gizirian was ordained a bishop in the Cathedral of Holy
Etchmiadzin by His Holiness Vasken I, the late Supreme Patriarch and
Catholicos of All Armenians. In March of that year he began serving as
Primate and Pontifical Legate of the Armenian Church of England. In 1993, he
was elevated to the rank of archbishop.
After 20 years of service in the United Kingdom, he retired and returned to
the United States, where he divides his time between visiting parishes,
representing the Diocese at official functions, and serving as the spiritual
father of St. Nersess Armenian Seminary in New Rochelle, N.Y.
For a video on Archbishop Gizirian's ministry, visit the Diocese's website
AZERBAIJAN BOASTS OF MILITARY SUPERIORITY AS ARMENIA
SIMULATES RESPONSE TO WAR
Karabakh | 26.06.12 | 11:32
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev believes
Armenia will lose if hostilities resume over the disputed region
of Nagorno-Karabakh.
"I have no doubt that Armenia will flee the battlefield if the active
phase of the war starts," Aliyev said in remarks broadcast on the
state television channel AzTV on Monday.
"We have every opportunity to regain control of our territory,"
he added, reports Bloomberg.
The Azeri leader's statement came as Armenia went into three-day
"command-and-staff" exercises simulating the country's combat-readiness
and response to a possible aggression by Azerbaijan.
Earlier this month Armenian Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan said that
on June 25-27 top military and civilian officials across Armenia will
practice "the launch of the state-military state system at a time of
war and the organization of resistance to aggression".
The defense chief implicitly linked the drills, the first of their
kind, with unfolding preparations for the military exercises of the
Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a Russia-led defense
pact of a number of ex-Soviet countries, including Armenia, that will
be held in Armenia in September.
CSTO Secretary General Nikolay Bordyuzha met with Armenian President
Serzh Sargsyan on June 25. The presidential press service said during
the meeting Bordyuzha briefed the Armenian leader on the course of
preparations for the exercises of the CSTO's Collective Rapid Reaction
Force due next fall.
Meanwhile, RFE/RL's Armenian Service reported that at least one
former Armenian paramilitary organization that had participated in the
1992-1994 war with Azerbaijan said on Monday that it started recruiting
new "volunteers" and asked the Armenian military to authorize their
deployment on frontline positions.
Smbat Ayvazyan, the head of the Metsn Tigran (Tigran the Great)
militia, linked the move with this month's upsurge in fighting along
Armenia's border with Azerbaijan and around Nagorno-Karabakh.
Ayvazyan said no official reply had come from the Ministry of Defense
yet, but added: "They have asked for a meeting with us to discuss how
we imagine the course of further action and what steps could be taken."
RFE/RL Report
OSCE Reaffirms Armenian Election Verdict
Emil Danielyan
\26.06.2012
Western monitors representing the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe reaffirmed on Tuesday their cautious assessment
of Armenia's recent parliamentary elections, praising the election
campaign but criticizing voting in a `considerable' number of polling
stations.
In its final report, the largest international vote-monitoring mission
deployed in the country by the OSCE's Office for Democratic
Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) again avoided concluding whether
the May 6 elections were democratic.
`The voting process was orderly and well organized in the large
majority of polling stations observed,' says the report. `However,
international observers assessed voting negatively in nine per cent of
polling stations, which is considerable. This assessment was mainly
due to organizational problems, undue interference in the process,
generally by proxies, and cases of serious violations, including
intimidation of voters.'
The ODIHR mission also negatively assessed one fifth of vote counts
observed by its more than 200 members. But it reported only `isolated
cases of serious violations' there.
The mission further noted a `competitive, vibrant and largely peaceful
campaign' that preceded the polls and commended the Armenian media for
generally providing `unbiased news coverage of contestants.' But it
criticized `misuse of administrative resources' by the ruling
Republican Party of Armenia (HHK), the official election winner, and
other pro-government forces.
Giving more weight to opposition allegations of vote buying, the
observers also accused the HHK, the official election winner, and its
coalition partner, the Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK), of violating
legal provisions that ban election contenders from providing goods and
services to voters.
As was the case during the release of their preliminary findings on
May 7, the observers did not to clarify whether these and other
reported violations influenced the official vote results rejected as
fraudulent by the Armenian opposition. Nor did they say, in contrast
to the OSCE/ODIHR's past election verdicts, whether the vote met
democratic standards.
Armenia's previous legislative polls held in May 2007 were judged by
the OSCE to have been held `largely in accordance with international
standards for democratic elections.' Western monitors gave a similar
assessment of the Armenian presidential election of February 2008,
which was marred by fraud allegations and a deadly government
crackdown on the opposition.
The Armenian authorities made no secret of their hopes to secure an
even more positive international verdict on the latest
ballot. President Serzh Sarkisian and other top officials repeatedly
pledged to do their best to hold the most democratic election in the
country's history.
Despite failing to get explicitly high marks from the OSCE/ODIHR
mission, the Sarkisian administration has earned praise from both the
European Union and the United States. The EU's foreign policy chief,
Catherine Ashton, spoke on May 8 of `progress towards more transparent
and more competitive elections' in Armenia. For her part,
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed hope that the next
Armenian election will be `even better' when she visited Yerevan
earlier this month.
IWPR REPORTERS HIGHLIGHT PROVINCIAL POVERTY IN ARMENIA
Institute for War and Peace Reporting IWPR
Caucasus Reporting Service - Issue 647
June 26 2012
Journalists from the Armenian capital Yerevan have been encouraged
by an IWPR project to focus on endemic poverty and deprivation in
the countryside which often go unreported.
Participants in the programme paid a two-day visit in December 2011
to Gegharkunik, where around 40 per cent of the population lives
below the poverty line.
Journalists in urban areas rarely visit places like this. The aim of
the visit was to draw on local expertise to identify specific social
and economic concerns, to generate reporting on them and get it
published in the media. The four reporters and two photojournalists
on the trip met local officials and NGO representatives and visited
parts of Gegharkunik where life is hardest.
One of Armenia's poorest regions, Gegharkunik has the highest rate of
economic migration of any region in Armenia - mostly men, and mostly
going to Russia to find seasonal work.
Life for those who remain can be bleak. During a visit to the village
of Vardenik, the journalists visited Silva Barkhoyan, her husband
Arayik Arakelyan and their six children in their tin shack, which had
plastic sheeting instead of glass for windows. Their two school-age
children were unable to attend classes because the family had no money
for clothing, while one four-year-old had a lung condition which they
could not afford to treat.
Freelance photojournalist Inna Mkhitaryan captured their plight on
camera (for a sample of her photographs see Armenia: Male Exodus From
Rural Communities), and after her pictures were published, a charity
and the local authorities took action to help the family.
The faith-based NGO World Vision Armenia provided clothing for the
children, while the Vardenik village authorities allocated 40,000
drams, around 100 US dollars, to help support the family.
Gegharkunik's regional governor Nver Poghosyan instructed Hambardzum
Safaryan, head of the regional education department, to ensure that
the two older children were going to school.
"We acted immediately after publication... to ensure they attend
school on a regular basis," Safaryan said.
Poghosyan has also pledged to allocate a 1,200-square-metre plot of
land to the family, which is expected to happen by autumn.
Arakelyan said he was grateful to the journalists who reported on
his family's struggle.
"They didn't ignore my hut - they came in and talked to us. More than
that, they wrote about my family and helped my six children get proper
clothing for school," he said. "The land plot gives me hope that I
can make a living for my wife and six kids, and eke out an existence."
who took part produced special reports on women's issues in the
region, both for the media outlets they work for and also for a
special IWPR-supported newspaper supplement printed in January 2012,
which included four articles and two photo essays.
The mission was organised within the framework of IWPR's Building
Bridges/Building Capacity: Conflict Prevention in the South Caucasus
project, supported by the Norwegian foreign ministry.
Hasmik Shahbazyan, head of press and public information in
Gegharkunik's regional administration, said he was pleased the
journalists had come to see conditions in the region for themselves.
"I think articles like this support government bodies, in this case
the Gegharkunik administration," he said. The articles that appeared
in the IWPR supplement were of huge educational value to women.
Victims of domestic violence gradually start standing up for their
rights and applying to various institutions to that end."
DUE TO ILLEGAL FISHERY, ENDEMIC FISH SPECIES OF LAKE
SEVAN FIND THEMSELVES ON THE VERGE OF ANNIHILATION
arminfo
Tuesday, June 26, 17:41
Due to illegal fishery, endemic fish species of Lake Sevan have found
themselves on the verge of annihilation, Bardukh Gabrielyan, Director
of the Institute of Hydroecology and Ichthyology of the Armenian
National Academy of Sciences, said at today's press conference
in Yerevan.
The expert said that over the 1980s the total fish reserves in Lake
Sevan were approximately 28-30 thsd tons, whereas now this index does
not exceed 20 tons. Gabrielyan said that due to the illegal fishery,
such endemic fishes as Sevan barbel and Sevan khramulya, which are
included in the Red Book, have found themselves on the verge of
annihilation. At the same time, the whitefish, whose reserves are at
a critically low level, are still openly sold in the markets.
He recalled that for 4 years the experts have offered the Government
to forbid the catching of all fish species, except crucian carps.
"After long efforts, the Government has finally paid attention to
this problem and has taken measures to restore the trout population in
the lake. However, the problem is evident: the state allocates money,
purchases juvenile fish, releases them into the lake, however, the fish
do not manage to grow because of illegal fishery", Gabrielyan stressed.
He said that it is necessary to implement a program consisting of
both environmental and socio-economic components to preserve the fish
reserves in the lake.
At present seven fish species are found in Lake Sevan: ishkhan,
khramulya, barbel, crucian carp, carp, bystranka and rainbow trout. As
regards the whitefish brought here from Lake Ladoga in the 1920-30s,
it is by right considered to be the main symbol of the Sevan.
a1plus.am
DOCTOR STILL IN CRITICAL CONDITION
02:21 pm | Today | Social
Military doctor Vahe Avetyan, who was transferred to the hospital
after an incident that took place at Harsnakar Restaurant Complex
on June 17, is still in very critical condition. As Head of the
Reanimation Department of the Military Hospital Hayk Antonyan told
"A1+", there was no change in his condition last night.
We remind that six have already been arrested in relation to the
incident that took place at Harsnakar Restaurant Complex. They
are charged with Article 112 (2) of the RA Criminal Code, that is,
suspicion of causing physical injury to two or more persons.
Harsnakar Restaurant Complex belongs to the family of deputy of the
Republican Party of Armenia, President of the Football Federation of
Armenia Ruben Hayrapetyan.
Watch this documentary on Bourj-Hammoud and learn more
about the original “Little Armenia”…
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