The chairmen of the youth unions of the Aragatsotn diocese held their first meeting of the year


Inter-community visits, joint pilgrimages, and a number of social and educational programs are planned in the near future. Under the high pontifical direction of His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, and with the blessing of the Primate of the Aragatsotn diocese, Bishop Mkrtich Proshyan, on January 31, the right-shaped relic of Sargis the Great will be transferred to the St. Sargis Church in Ushi.

 

Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the first andastan of the year was held


In the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, under the leadership of His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, the monks walked around the church. They blessed the four corners of the world with the cross, the khatchvar and the gospel, and asked for fruitfulness for the year. At the end of the ceremony, with a candle lit from the lamp of the Holy Altar of the Descent of the Mother Cathedral, His Holiness, accompanied by a procession of clergy and believers, walked to the monastic building of the Mother See, next to which he lit the bonfire of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the national symbol of the feast.

 

Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the first andastan of the year was held


In the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, under the leadership of His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, the monks walked around the church. They blessed the four corners of the world with the cross, the khatchvar and the gospel, and asked for fruitfulness for the year. At the end of the ceremony, with a candle lit from the lamp of the Holy Altar of the Descent of the Mother Cathedral, His Holiness, accompanied by a procession of clergy and believers, walked to the monastic building of the Mother See, next to which he lit the bonfire of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the national symbol of the feast.

 

The Sunrise Service was celebrated under the leadership of the Catholicos of All Armenians


On the first Wednesday of Great Lent, the Brotherhood of the Mother See, under the leadership of His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, participated in the Sunrise Service. This mysterious ceremony, which takes place during Great Lent, has been part of the ritual life of our church since the 7th century. The hymns that sound in churches early in the morning on this day are a glorification of light and the divine Essence. The Divine Liturgy of the Sunrise Service also reminds us of the Second Coming of Christ and the Resurrection of the righteous.

 

The procession of the Brotherhood of the Mother See participated in the Evening Service under the presiding authority of His Holiness


The evening services or daily services at different times of the church day are an integral part of the liturgy of our church. Especially during Great Lent, it is very important to participate in these ceremonies and prepare for the Holy Resurrection through prayer and transformation. The procession of the monks of the Mother See accompanies the Armenian Patriarch to the Mother Cathedral, where the evening service will be performed under the presiding authority of His Holiness.

 

Vardan Vardanyan after the 44-day war


Vardan Vardanyan is a native of Meghri. He was a high school student when he transferred to Yerevan Physics and Mathematics School. He decided to become a soldier later, after graduating from the Faculty of Geography of Yerevan State University. Since October 3, 2020, the artillery officer has been in Ishkhanadzor. In those days, he was preparing for training exercises with soldiers. His first combat shooting was supposed to be. The war forced Vardan and the soldiers serving under his command to participate in combat operations without prior preparation. On the night of October 10 to 11, a multiple shrapnel wound received from a strike by an enemy drone changed the course and path of his life.

Manvel Hakobyan after the 44-day war


Manvel Hakobyan suffered a spinal cord injury in the first days of the 44-day war. At first, he did not realize the complexity of the injury: his life had been saved, his parents and relatives were alive and well. However, long and difficult months of recovery and struggle lay ahead. Manvel is sure that the wheelchair is temporary in his life. “Regardless of what different doctors say, if one in a thousand people walked in my condition, then I will be the second. If no one has walked before, I will be the first,” says Manvel.

A Holy and Immortal Liturgy was celebrated in the Mother Cathedral under the presiding authority of the Catholicos of All Armenians


On the day before Lent, on Barekentan, a Holy and Immortal Liturgy was celebrated at the Mother Cathedral of the Nativity, presided over by His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians. At the end of the sacred ceremony, a prayer for Christian unity was performed in front of the Holy Table of the Descent of the Mother Cathedral, as a summary of the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity organized by the Vatican and the Ecumenical Patriarchate on January 18-25, which this year was dedicated to Armenia.
 

The Armenian Apostolic Church celebrated the feast of the pregnancy of the mother of the Holy Mother of God, the Righteous Anna


On this occasion, with the blessing of the Catholicos of All Armenians and at the initiative of the priests of the diocesan churches of Aragatsotn, Shirak, and Tavush, a Holy and Immortal Liturgy was served in the Mother Church of St. Gregory the Illuminator in Yerevan. During the singing of "Lord, have mercy," the clergy and believers raised a special prayer for those illegally imprisoned, as well as for the peaceful and prosperous life of the homeland.

The clergy of the Aragatsotn Diocese prayed together in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin


With the blessing of His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, the clergy of the Aragatsotn Diocese offered a united prayer in the chapel-baptistry of St. John the Baptist and St. Vartan of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. The clergy and the faithful of the diocese visit different churches together during the evening service on Thursdays, praying for the imprisoned Archbishops Mkrtich, Bagrat, Michael, Arshak, Priest Karekin, as well as for those unjustly deprived of their liberty and those in captivity. The events that have shaken public life in recent weeks have become an opportunity for pilgrims, together with spiritual fathers, to direct their steps to the spiritual center of all Armenians, the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, and to pray together for the longevity of the Armenian Patriarch and the steadfastness of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church.

Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan offered his first Liturgy in the Norabats church


Archimandrite Ruben Zargaryan offered his first Liturgy in the Norabats church of the Masyatsotn Diocese , which was attended by the clergy of the Masyatsotn Diocese. Earlier, the clergy expressed their unconditional loyalty to the order of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church and the mission of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. Many believers from different communities came on pilgrimage to the Holy Mother of God Church in Norabats to express their love and prayerful support to the new leader.

 

Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II received congratulations from the staff of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin


Karekin II Catholicos of All Armenians received the heads of various departments of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. The Director of the Administrative and Economic Department of the Mother See, Bishop Mushegh Babayan, on behalf of those present, congratulated His Holiness on the occasion of the New Year and Christmas, assuring that the Mother See’s officials will continue to support the Armenian Patriarch in the implementation of programs beneficial to the nation and building the church.