Armenian Church E-Newsletter, Issue 41

5 OCTOBER 2012

ISSUE 41 VOLUME 3

E-NEWSLETTER H- J:RJIK A WEEKLY ONLINE PUBLICATION OF THE PRIMATE’S OFFICE OF THE DIOCESE OF THE

ARMENIAN CHURCH OF GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND

ORIENTATION SESSION FOR PILGRIMAGE TO THE HOLY LAND

After passing of the second extended deadline, the Primate’s Office had to reluctantly close registration for the forthcoming Third Annual Pilgrimage to the Holy Land, 6-13 January 2013. Thirty eight pilgrims from all over the United Kingdom and Ireland have signed up for the forthcoming pilgrimage which will be led by His Grace Bishop Vahan Hovhanessian, Primate. An orientation session is scheduled on Tuesday, 16th October, 2012 at 7:30PM, in the Nevart Gulbenkian Hall of the St. Sarkis Church. While part of the Orientation will focus on the details of the travel and lodging during the pilgrimage, the orientation is open to all and will include a video documentary on Jerusalem and slide show including photos from the previous two pilgrimages to the Holy Land. Accompanying the Primate and the 38 pilgrims this year will be the Very Revd Fr. Garegin Hambartsumyan. As in the previous two pilgrimages, the group will have daily reflections, Bible discussion sessions, and prayer services. The

group will fly British Airways to Tel Aviv and be transported from the Airport by air- conditioned luxury coaches to Jerusalem. There the pilgrims will get to visit the Armenian Patriarchate, participate in the celebration of Feast of St. Stephen at the magnificent Cathedral of St. James, meet with the Grand Sacristan and Locum Tenens of the Patriarchate, His Eminence Abp. Nurhan Manougian and visit the beautiful shops and cafes of the Armenian Quarter. The pilgrims will also visit the key biblical shrines of the Holy Land. Have a blessed and successful Pilgrimage.

THE PRIMATE’S OFFICE Armenian Church of Great Britain and Ireland c/o Hye Doon, 25 Cheniston Gardens, London W8 6TG

The Primate’s Office

c/o Hye Doon 25 Cheniston Gardens Kensington London, W8 6TG

Church Website

armenianchurch.co.uk

E-mail

primatesoffice@

armenianchurch.co.uk

Telephone

0208 127 8364

PILGRIMAGE 2012

PILGRIMAGE 2011

5 October 2012

Issue 41, Volume 3

AREV STARTS ITS THIRD YEAR

Arev Children’s Play Group at St. Sarkis Church started its third year of programme on Sunday 30th September, under the patronage of the Primate of the Armenian Church, His Grace Bishop Vahan Hovhanessian, and as part of the ministry of St. Sarkis Church Parish. The play group for pre-School to 7 years old children is an exciting hour of fun through Armenian songs, dance, storytelling and activities. “Parents’ participation is essential during the activities,” said AREV founding director Shakeh Major Tchilingirian. She commended the parents for making the commitment to bring their children to an “Armenian world” at St. Sarkis Church once a month on a Sunday morning. AREV meets on the last Sunday of each month at 11:30 am in the Nevart Gulbenkian Hall for an hour and then the children and parents attend church service. You can have a glimpse of this exciting Church programme of the Sr. Sarkis Parish by clicking here. Happy anniversary AREV, and many happy and blessed returns!

EPISCOPAL BADARAK AT ST. YEGHICHE CHURCH

This Sunday, 7th October 2012, His Grace Bishop Vahan Hovhanessian, Primate of the Armenian Church of Great Britain and Ireland, will be celebrating the Divine Liturgy (Badarak) and offering the homily of the day at St. Yeghiche Armenian Church in Cranley Gardens, London SW7 3BB. Singing the choir parts of the Liturgy this Sunday will be the “Sahak-Mesrob Armenian Choir of Marseille” from France (The group will have its debut concert in London at St. Yeghiche Church Saturday night). Serving at the altar, together with the St. Yeghiche Senior Deacons, will be members of the Deacons’ Training Programme. The episcopal procession of the Badarak is scheduled to commence at 11:00am sharp. Click here for the flyer.

“SOURCES OF FAITH OF THE ARMENIAN CHURCH”

This Sunday, 7th October 2012, as announced in the the St. Sarkis Church 90th Anniversary Programme Bulletin, the Colloquium “Sources of Faith of the Armenian Church”, will be presented by Dr Hratch Tchilingirian (Oxford University), Hon. President of St. Sarkis Church Trust, followed by discussion. Light lunch will be served in the Nvart Gulbenkian Hall following the Divine Liturgy and before the discussion. Donation: £10. This and all forthcoming colloquiums are co-organised by the St. Sarkis 90th Anniversary Committee with St. Sarkis Church Parish Council and the Armenian Institute.

BRITISH-ARMENIAN ALL-PARTY PARLIAMENTARY GROUP: PUBLIC CALL

“Dear fellow Armenian, please contact your Member of Parliament ( MP) by accessing the “Parliament”’ site, then click “MPs by Constituency” and having located the MP who is serving your constituency , please send the letter below or create your own wording; but please send it as soon as possible because we, Armenians in UK, need the British Authorities to express condemnation at the events in Hungary and specially at the actions of President Aliyev of Azerbaijan. Please gather as many signatures of residents of the same constituency as possible and send to the MP. Thank You.” The British-Armenian All-Party Parliamentary Group. Click here for the sample letter.

CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO SUPPORT THE ARMENIAN CHURCH TRUST – UK

(ACT-UK) WWW.ARMENIANCHURCHTRUST.ORG.UK

5 October 2012

Issue 41 Volume 3

BADARAK BASICS – SESSION FOUR

Last Sunday 30th September, the fourth session of “Badarak Basics”, a programme of the St. Sarkis Parish, was presented by Dr Hratch Tchilingirian of Oxford University, who focused on one of the significant parts of the Divine Liturgy, where the celebrating priest in his prayer asks Christ "to purify and enliven us [the congreation], you who sits with the Father and are here sacrificed. Dr Tchilingirian used this quotation to explain an important theological teaching of the Church that God is timeless and space less, that God is always Now, in the present, that past, present and the future are one act for God -- are all now. He then explained that we do not and cannot know God's nature, but we know God through His Revelation and his attributes -- such as compassionate, merciful, gracious, infinite, righteous, etc. He then underlined that, as St John writes, "God is love" (1 John 4:7) and how Christ's incarnation is the perfect example of that love towards humanity. The next session of Badarak Basics is scheduled for Sunday 28th October.

DINNER & TALK @ LAMBETH PALACE

THE OFFICE OF THE BISHOP OF LONDON has informed our Primate’s Office that in an unprecedented situation, a large number of tickets for the “Annual Constantinople Lecture” are already sold. This year’s guest lecturer, as announced earlier in this publication, will be His Grace Bishop Vahan Hovhanessian, Primate. The title of the lecture is: “The New Testament Apocrypha and the Armenian Church Canon of the Bible.” The lecture, which is sponsored by the Anglican and Eastern Churches Association in conjunction with the Nikean Club, is scheduled on Thursday 22nd November 2012. And will take place at Lambeth Palace, London SE1 7JU, by special permission of His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury. The evening will start at 5:30 with Evensong followed by Bishop Vahan’s lecture and at 7:00pm Buffet supper, carriages at 9:00pm. Tickets for the event, including buffet supper, are £23 per person. For tickets please write to The General Secretary, Anglican and Eastern Churches Association, c/o The Old Deanery, Dean’s Court, London EC4V 5AA, or e-mail: janet.laws@btopenworld.com. Closing date for booking tickets is: Friday, 9th November 2012. Places are limited and will be allocated to AECA & Nikaean members first. For further information, Click Here.

ST. SARKIS PARISH CAKE SALE

On Sunday 30th September, the St Sarkis Parish council held a cake sale at Gulbenkian Hall after Divine Liturgy. The purpose of the cake-sale was to raise funds for the Syrian Armenians Relief Initiative. The council is pleased to announce that £322 was raised during the sale. The council would like to thank all volunteers, donors and parishioners for making the sale a success. The St. Sarkis Parish Council in its August regular monthly meeting, responding to the call of His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians and our own Primate’s appeal, decided to allocate all the funds raised during the Sunday Badarak collections of the month of September to the worldwide fund raising efforts of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin to aid the Armenians of Syria. In addition to the St. Sarkis Church in London, the Holy Trinity Armenian Church in Manchester and the Armenian Church Mission Parishes in Birmingham, Cardiff and Dublin have all responded to the call of the Catholicos and contributed with similar fundraising efforts. Thank you on behalf of the Armenians of Syria and God bless you all.

Are you interested to help in the ministry of the Armenian Church by joining the Church choirs or altar servers?

Please write to the Primate’s Office: primatesoffice@armenianchurch.co.uk

5 October 2012

Issue 41 Volume 3

SCRIPTURE READINGS According to the Armenian Church Lectionary

Sunday – 7 October

Isaiah 17:7-14 2 Corinthians 13:5-13 Mark 11:27-33

Monday – 8 October Proverbs 27:1-6 Isaiah 43:16-21 2 Corinthians 11:21-29 Mark 6:45-56

Tuesday – 9 October Song of Solomon 8:14 Isaiah 61:9-11 1 Peter 5:8-11

Luke 12:32-40

Wednesday – 10 October Galatians 1:1-10 Mark 12:1-12

Thursday – 11 October Proverbs 4:20-27 Jeremiah 15:19-20 1 Corinthians 12:1-7 Matthew 9:35-10:7

Friday – 12 October Galatians 1:11-24 Mark 12:18-34

Saturday – 13 October Wisdom 8:7-10 Amos 5:10-14 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 Matthew 7:6-12

OVER 10,360 VIEWERS!

OPERA GALA EVENING AT THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF MUSIC

You are invited to join us in Celebration of the First anniversary of the episcopal Ordination of His Grace Vahan Hovhanessian, Primate, at an Opera Gala Evening at the Royal College of Music produced by Anais Heghoyan who will feature in the programme as well as many other internationally acclaimed singers and pianists including Artur Bobikyan. The heads of many Christian Churches and other dignitaries in England will be present and seats are limited. Please book your tickets in advance. This not-to-miss event will take place on Sunday the 4th of November at 7.30pm in the Amaryllis Fleming Concert Hall at The Royal College of Music, Prince Consort Road, London, SW7 2BS. For booking or any enquiries please contact Anais on 07931 377 539 or Mimi on 07931 377 537. Click here to download the flyer.

CLASSES IN WESTERN ARMENIAN

COURSES IN WESTERN ARMENIAN will be offered for beginners, intermediates and advanced students in Hye Doon by Professor Krikor Moskofian of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS, University of London). Courses will start the first week in October. For further information or to register please click here, or e-mail: moskofiank@hotmail.co.uk

NO BIBLE STUDY SESSION THIS THURSDAY

DUE TO THE FIRST ANNUAL “ACYF Service Project”, His Grace Bishop Vahan Hovhanessian, Primate, will be joining our ACYF members this Thursday, 11 October 2012, and consequently will not be able to lead the Bible Study session in English. Our regular study sessions will resume in two weeks on Thursday, 25th October at 7:00pm. The group continues reading the thrilling Book of Revelation every Thursday. All are welcome.

ARMENIAN VERSION OF OUR E-NEWSLETTER

The Primate’s Office is considering the possibility of publishing the E-Newsletter in Armenian as well as English. If you are, or someone you know is, interested in receiving the Armenian version of the E-Newsletter, please send the name and e-mail address to: information@armenianchurch.co.uk

MEZZO AND TENOR IN 90TH ANNIVERSARY CONCERT

A Special Concert on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of London's St Sarkis Armenian Church, Mezzo Anaïs Heghoyan and Tenor Sipan Hakobyan will present a special programme, including Mozart, Handel, Verdi, Curtis, Komitas, Ganachian, Harutyunyan. Click here for details.

SUPPORT OUR CHURCH MINISTRY

By donating to the Armenian Church Trust UK (registered charity), post it to: The Primate’s Office, c/o Hye Doon, 25 Cheniston Gardens, Kensington, London W8 6TG

DID YOU KNOW that the video clip released by the Information Centre of the Primate’s Office about our second annual Armenian Street Festival (ASF) has been viewed by over 10,600 viewers within roughly a one-month period. If you have not watched it yet, you can do so by CLICKING HERE. You can view other video clips of the Information Centre of the Primate’s Office by CLICKING HERE.