International Orthodox Christian News

The Catholicosate of Cilicia ceremoniously marked the 90^th anniversary of Armenia’s first independence, established heroically on May 28, 1918 following the victory of Armenian freedom fighters in the battle of Sartarabad. A requiem service in the Saint Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral paid tribute to the memory of brave men who fell for the independence of their homeland and an official ceremony in the Veharan celebrated this victorious episode of contemporary Armenian history. The events on Sunday also collided with the naming of His Holiness Aram I.

Officiating the Mass and delivering the sermon was Father Sahag Yemishian, who highlighted the Armenian nation’s struggle for survival and the great resistance it put on in May 1918 on the battlefront. Catholicos Aram I presided over the Requiem Service for the memory of the heroes of the Sartarabad, Gharakilise and Pash Abaran battles, as well as other battles fought during the same time.

The religious class then moved to the Veharan, where Bishop Norayr Ashekian spoke on behalf of the Cilician Brotherhood. Going through the historic events surrounding the battles of May 1918, Bishop Ashekian emphasized the courage and willfulness displayed by the Armenian nation in its existential struggle. He stressed that the struggle continues today in various ways until the restoration of our nation’s violated rights. Among the initiators of this holy struggle, he signaled out the first President of the first independent Republic of Armenia, Aram Manoukian, and among those who have continued on this path he pointed to Catholicos Aram I. Referring to the Pontiff’s bold statements on the internationalization of the Armenian Cause and his achievements in this respect, Bishop Ashekian maintained that His Holiness is the champion of this ongoing struggle.

Deacon Hagop Kortmosian read out an address on behalf of the Seminary’s management, faculty and students, extolling the self-dedication of the May 1918 heroes, who through their conscious death and martyrdom, upheld the dignity of our nation rising from the ashes of the Genocide. Father Hagop then reviewed Catholicos Aram I’s 40 years of service in the Armenian Church, stamped with the same spirit of May 28 and the vision of an independent homeland.

In his Pontifical message, His Holiness first expressed his contentment at the statements made by the previous speakers. He observed that the memory of those heroes who established the May independence has been immortalized in those who remember them. The Catholicos then spoke about the indifference, which has become our present enemy, much like the enemy our forefathers fought in the battlefields of independence in 1918.

“Where are the children and grandchildren of those fathers and grandfathers, who for 70 years kept the Armenian flag high up throughout the Diaspora as a symbol of independence and national identity? However, the Catholicosate of Cilicia with its Catholicoi, and clergy remains the guardian of our nation’s supreme values. The spirit of May 28 is imprinted in the heart and soul of each one of our Brotherhood members,” the Pontiff assured.

The Seminary’s Choir then performed a series of national and patriotic songs and the official anthem of the Sartarabad victory “Yerp Tchi Menoum Yelk ou Djar” (“When no solution or exit remains”), in which the audience participated.