The Armenian Genocide was the first genocide of the 20th century. The lives of 1.5 million Armenians were lost, who were massacred by Ottoman Turkey’s “Young Turk” government beginning in 1915. The deportation and mass extermination of Armenians continued until 1923. Planned and executed during World War I, the Armenian Genocide saw the virtual elimination…
This feast is celebrated 28 days after Easter Sunday and is dedicated to the Apparition of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem. At noon on May 19, 351AD, a bright, luminous cross appeared over the skies of Jerusalem, centred over an area spanning from the Mount of Olives (where Christ was betrayed and arrested) to Golgotha…
The Feast of Holy Ascension marks the ascent of our Lord Jesus Christ into heaven on the 40th day following His glorious Resurrection. The timing is clearly specified in the Acts of the Apostles, where it is stated that Christ presented himself alive to the Apostles, “appearing to them during forty days and speaking of…
The name of the feast is derived from Palm Sunday, which precedes Easter. The Second Palm Sunday is the commemoration of the triumphant entry of the Ascended Christ into the Heavenly Jerusalem, where the angels meet him with great happiness and delight. According to old beliefs, during St Gregory the Illuminator’s imprisonment in the pit,…
“When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All…
One of the four seasonal fasting periods, defined by the Armenian Apostolic Church, is the fasting period preceding the beginning of summer (northern hemisphere). This fasting period, as well as the other ones preceding the other seasons of the year, is not a preparation for any feast. According to tradition it is called Elijah’s fast,…
St Nersess was an Armenian Catholicos (Patriarch) who lived in the 4th century and was the great grandson of St Gregory the Illuminator. His father, Athenogenes, and his uncle, Bab, who were next in line for the succession to the Throne of St Gregory, were laymen and had no desire to become priests. As professional…
This is the Sunday preceding the week prior to the feast of Discovery of St Gregory the Illuminator’s relics, in the 5th century. The week long fast lasts from Monday to Friday.
King Kostandianos (Constantine) was born in the city of Nish, in the former Yugoslavia. He is one of the most prominent figures of the Roman Empire. It was he who officially released the Church from persecutions lasting more than 250 years and in 313 A.D. By the Encyclical of Milan he proclaimed Christianity to be…
The relics of St Gregory the Illuminator (Lousavorich) are one of our most revered within the Armenian Church, as well as all Christian Churches. The discovery of the relics of St Gregory the Illuminator is one of the three significant feast days dedicated to the memory of the Patron Saint of Armenia and the impact…
The Prophet Daniel (meaning God is my Judge), is one of the four great prophets of the Old Testament. Nearly all that is known concerning the Prophet is derived from the book ascribed to him, which dates back to the VII-VI centuries B.C. Daniel and his youthful companions Shadrach (Setrak), Meshach (Misak) and Abednego (Apetnakov)…
Catholicos St Sahak Bartev (Partev) and Archimandrite St Mesrop (Vardapet) Mashtots are the founders of Armenian literature and ecclesiastical bibliography. St Sahak Partev was the elder son of Catholicos St Nersess the Great. He was the last Catholicos of the Armenian Church who descended from the lineage of St Gregory the Illuminator. He became Catholicos…