The Greatest Commandment


Love to the end, love to the end. And this is very logical. Why? If it is true that man is the image of God, then every human being is born in the image of God, because man is created that way and is called to be like God. If we are the image of God, we cannot love God, but at the same time despise his image on earth. What is the great commandment, how do we apply it in our lives? Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.

 

The voice of many is the voice of God?


The voice of many is not the voice of God, but the voice of the ruling system. Barabbas, who was a robber, a rebel, a false ideal of liberation, a false symbol. The liberation proposed by Jesus was not this false liberation, but the people gave preference to the false path of liberation, which later cost them tragedy.
How does the Holy Scripture prove that the voice of the people does not express the voice of God? Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.
 

Babylon, "Gate of the Gods"


The building of the tower of Babylon was the first collective sin. Here, a manifestation of sin takes place in a social, political, and collective sense. If in the Adam and Eve episode, or in the Cain and Abel episode, individual sins are committed, then here a collective sin is committed, which is the sin of power. In any collectivity, there is always a problem of abuse of power and the word of the power that has dominion passes. What is the contrast between the Tower of Babel and the ceremonies of Pentecost, what similarities do they have with our life today? Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.

 

In the footsteps of Grots and Brots


2024 marks the 150th anniversary of the publication of Garegin Srvandztyants’ book “Grots and Brots and David of Sasun or Mher's Door”. This significant book for Armenian philology and ethnography, among other important materials, published the first version of the epic “Sasna Tsrer”. The video film presents this book, accompanied by exclusive footage from filming in Sasun in 2024, which presents the places, monuments and churches, Armenian-populated villages and people remembered in the national epic.

 

Rev. Fr. Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan


Tears are the “second baptism”
 
Tears, tears, crying are a human phenomenon from the moment of birth. This is not a phenomenon specific to the weak, which is mistakenly perceived as such. On the contrary, if we look from a Christian perspective, those who are afraid of being accused of the mistakes they have made are weak, and those who have the courage to admit their mistake, repent, and return to the field of God’s faithfulness are strong. And most importantly, when we shed tears with sincere repentance, this is what humanizes a person. Why does Christ cry, what message does he send us with his tears, why do we ask God for the grace to cry? Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.

 

Faith as race


Sport educates not only physical strength, but also moral values. For example, respect for the other person. There are rules in sports, and the rule is to respect the other person's rights. A sportsman deals with the rules from day one. Sports also implies sacrifice, which is the core of the Christian life. Why does the apostle Paul compare the Christian life with sports, what parallels and similarities are there? Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.

Holy Communion: sharing of good /Part 2/


To worship God means to walk the path of communion. We have a consumer mentality: we come to church, participate in the Holy Liturgy, listen to the word of God, receive the Holy Communion, but after that we do no good. Hovhan Voskeberan says: Do you want to honor the body of Christ? Very good. The one who said: This is my body also said: I was hungry and they gave me bread. He also said that if you don't do all this to one of my brothers, you won't do it to me either. Voskeberan gives an example: what is the meaning of honoring Christ on the Holy Table with golden dishes, when your Christian brother is dying of hunger at the door of the church. Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.

 

Holy Communion: sharing of good /part 1/


The Holy Communion, which is given through the Liturgy, is the core of church ritual life, it is the heart. Through that ceremony, the saving work of our Lord with expressed humanity, public activities and sufferings become modern to us. Through bread and wine we become communicants of our Lord's body and blood according to his word. Why do we easily accept the mystical body and blood of the Lord, but live with great difficulty in the union of communication? Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.

 

He who does not condemn is condemned


There is no sin that does not have consequences. The problem is who pays for the consequences.
When a woman caught in adultery is brought to Jesus Christ for condemnation, she does not condemn, then she will be accused of the same sin of breaking God's law. Fr. Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.
 

Life given from the cross


The church of Christ is founded on the cross. This has great significance and is related to the relationship between man and woman. When we look at the History of Creation, we see that the creation of man ends with the creation of the family and the woman is created. A woman is created from the rib of an earthly being. Therefore, here, the church, as a bride, is founded from the rib of Christ. This points to the two important sacraments of the church: the sacrament of baptism, by which we are reborn and become children of the church, and the sacrament of holy communion, by which we become communicants with the founder of the church, Jesus Christ. With what significant differences do the evangelists present the death of Jesus? Rev. Fr. Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.

 

The cross of Jesus - a necessity?


God sent his son to convert humanity to the source of life, to the path of love. It is another matter that the world rejected this way and instead of enjoying justice, truth, love, chose the way of falsehood. In the trial of Jesus, how much falsehood is there, how much injustice is there, how much hatred is there and in return Jesus' forgiveness from the cross? God did not send his son to crucify, but to save the man he created. Could Jesus have avoided the death of the cross? Rev. Fr. Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.

 

The miracle is a sign, the cross is glory


For Hovhannes the Evangelist, the event of the Exaltation is, on the one hand, the event of the foundation of the church, and on the other hand, the coming of the soul: it deposits the soul to the father, but at the same time distributes it to the world. For John, the event of the cross is the testimony of God's love and glorification. Why do witness evangelists present Christ's miracles as an event, and John the evangelist shows their theological explanation and purpose? Rev. Fr. Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan speaks on this.