The Bible: The Book of Hope

On the occasion of the announcement by His Holiness Catholicos Aram I of Holy See of Cilicia 2012 as the Year of the Armenian Book, the Armenian Prelacy of Cyprus has scheduled a series of lectures every Friday during the Lenten season. The first lecture was dedicated to the Bible, and the lecture was delivered by Mr. Hrayr Jebejian, General Secretary of the Bible Society in the Gulf. The lecture, entitled “The Bible: The Book of Hope” was delivered on February 24 in the Armenian Orthodox Church in Nicosia.

“Undoubtedly,” Mr. Jebejian said, “the Bible played an important role in the life of the Armenian people right from the day when Armenia accepted Christianity as a state religion in AD 301. The Armenian alphabet was invented so that the Bible will be translated into Armenian. Since then the national and Christian identities of the Armenian nation have been integrated as an inseparable entity. The Bible played a vital role in the development of the Armenian culture throughout the ages, and Christian faith helped the Armenian nation to overcome the many calamities it went through throughout its history.”

Mr. Jebejian pointed out that the theology of the Bible is based on the “I Am” sayings of Jesus Christ. “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he may die, he will live” (John 11:25). The essence of “I am” and the fact that He saves and offers a new life on earth and in eternity make Christianity a unique religion. “This new life is based on God’s love which is real because He came down to earth to share it with the world,” explained Mr. Jebejian.

“It is written in John 3:16 that God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life,” he continued. “We are the recipients of God’s love and are asked to give the same love back to God by sharing it with the community we live in. This love is what makes the lives of human beings filled with the hope of God. We live this hope in our lives on earth and for eternity.” The life of the believer was illustrated through Luke 18:18 when “A certain ruler asked Jesus, ‘Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’” A believer’s life is not in “doing this” or “not doing that” rather on setting their priorities right. A Christian’s priorities lie in accepting Jesus’ “I Am” as the leading motto in their life.

God’s love is illustrated in chapter 13 of Paul’s Letter to the Corinthians. Verse 4 talks about love being patient, enduring, with the intention of building something new and generating hope. This was the lesson Jesus intended to teach through the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). The Samaritan’s love was characterized by his endurance and care for the wounded person to the end. Christian hope is community-oriented and helps to build a national, civic identity.

Mr. Jebejian’s final point was that hope for perfection is made possible because God “gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self control” (2 Timothy 1:7). This same hope enables us to love life even when we struggle. It helps us to maintain a discipline in life where values are preserved. It is this same hope that will help believers to follow the path of Jesus and his experiences: His victorious entry to Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, His betrayal and suffering during the Holy week, His crucifixion and death on Good Friday and His triumphant resurrection from the dead on Easter Sunday. Similarly, as Christians we live a life full of joy, pain, and victory. The Bible helps us to navigate through all these experiences in a meaningful way, with an identity that is generated by the hope of eternal life.

Three Days in Beirut

A couple years ago, my dad sent me a website that showed a picture slideshow of Lebanon, revealing some of the most beautiful sights I’ve seen in my life. I had grown up and lived in Lebanon for 10 years and had not seen any of these sights in person. So I replied to his email, “Why did you never take us to these places?” To which he responded, “Don’t you remember we lived during a time of war?”

War had severely limited how we spent our time, who and where we visited, and how we made decisions in general. In the last two days, we had seen more of Lebanon than I had ever seen as a child.

The country is rich in its history and beautiful. I started my morning eating breakfast facing the Mediterranean Sea, and by mid-morning, we were driving through picturesque snow covered hills. From the ancient Roman ruins we visited to the old villages we drove through, this is a country that had lost much of its reputation because of war and politics.

War and politics continue to dominate the psyche of people. It’s a complicated mess of a country and trying to get the political landscape straight is not an easy task. Yet apart from politics, the people are incredible hosts who value hospitality more than anything else.

In about half a day, I visited all the major landmarks from my childhood–where I lived, where I went to school, where my father worked, and where we socialized. I felt nostalgia at each of those locations and felt at home in each of those contexts. My major takeaway, though, is how small everything looks. Yet those were my world. And in this trip, my world didn’t just feel small, but it also got expanded, by touring villages and sights that are beautiful.

The other takeaway is the power of hospitality. I have a high value for hospitality. I think it’s one of those non-negotiable Biblical values. So I teach and model hospitality in my ministry. But no matter how much of it I model and live out, it pales in comparison to the hospitality that is embedded in the culture here. To be blunt and potentially offend my American friends, the hospitality here is like Level 301. It’s just natural and not intentional for people to extend hospitality. (I recently defined hospitality as serving and prioritizing others. I like that definition)

In my ministry, I aim for something like hospitality 201–trying to model the Biblical call of welcoming people into my life. And part of the 201 stuff is trying to inspire people who come from no value for hospitality, and having them not just do the 101 stuff (i.e. learning to be kind), but to do the 201 stuff of being radical.

What we see here is 301–it puts the radical hospitality to shame. And now I have that much of a stronger picture of the kind of hospitality Jesus challenged in his ministry (i.e. in his parable and teachings in Luke 14).

People who are not necessarily committed followers of Jesus have expressed the Kingdom in ways they don’t even know! They have served and prioritized well.

Eddy Ekmekji,
Campus Minister,
California, USA

Հայ Աւետարանական Թորոսեան Վարժարանի Երազ թատերախումբը ներկայացուց «Կախարդական Բառը»

Փետրուար 23 եւ 24, 2012-ին Հայ Աւետարանական Թորոսեան Վարժարանի Երազ թատերախումբը ներկայացուց «Կախարդական Բառը» Յովհաննէս Պօղոսեան սրահին մէջ: Բեմադրիչը՝ Ռոպերթ Առաքելեան միահիւսած էր թատրոնին մէջ երգն ու պարը արտայայտելու գլխաւոր պատգամը, թէ մեր ներքին աշխարհը կ'արտացոլայ մեր գործած բառերով: Այս պարագային «բառ»ը «Հաճիս»ն էր:













Haigazian University Business Society involved in community service

In an effort to encourage social responsibility in the business students, the Haigazian University Business Society (HUBS) collaborated with “Cup of Cold Water”, a non-profit charity organization, to organize two events over the Christmas season.

The first of these events consisted of a calendar sale that took place on campus on December 21, 2011. HUBS set up a small booth where students sold a large number of beautiful calendars, designed and prepared by “Cup of Cold Water”. The positive attitude of the students helped with the success of this event. Enthusiastic about the project, they not only bought calendars for themselves but also helped sell calendars to their families, friends and neighbors.

Following this successful fundraising effort, the students gathered on January 3, 2012 for their second project, paying a visit to “CAHL”, a senior center, to wish the elderly a very happy new year. The center is divided into two buildings, one for men and the other for women, and the students implemented the same program in both. They started by asking the assistants to gather the elderly in a common living room, where Mrs. Vera Karageuzian shared with them the beautiful Christmas message of God’s great love for humankind. This was followed by the joyful singing of Christmas carols, in which the elderly eagerly participated. To conclude this festive program, gifts were distributed to everyone, provided by “Cup of Cold Water”. Moreover, the students didn’t forget those who were bedridden and visited them one by one in their rooms. A simple and warm visit succeeded to put a smile on the seniors’ faces and make them realize they are always remembered.

The success of both events was the result of a great collaboration and it revealed the passion of Haigazian University students, who besides contributing in the business life of the university, feel socially responsible towards those in need.

Professor Levon Yepiskoposyan on the "Azokh Cave"



On Thursday, January 26, 2012, Professor Levon Yepiskoposyan delivered a lecture on the "Azokh Cave, Nagorno-Karabakh: Searching for our Caucasian Ancestors" at the Cultural Hour of Haigazian University. Dr. ArdaEkmekji, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Science, opened the event with some welcoming remarks and shared her appreciation for caves as "great preservers of antiquity" and "open books for study."

Professor Yepiskoposyan, co-director of the Azokh Cave excavation team, began his presentation by stating the underlying importance of Azokh Cave, located at a crossroad between Asia, Europe and Africa, where a 400,000-year-old human bone was discovered in 1968. Although excavation activities ceased in the 1980s, Yepiskoposyan and his team worked hard to begin their own excavations in 2002.

Being a geneticist and anthropologist, Yepiskoposyan described the evidence of Homo Neanderthal presence in the cave, showing images of various stone tools that they found. In addition, he provided details about the geological condition of the cave and discussed the painstaking methods that he and his team of specialists use to uncover fossils and work on them in the lab.

Apart from the international specialists that have come from various parts of Europe, the project has also involved interested young men from the local village to provide needed manpower, and Yepiskoposyan was proud to show images of them at work.

He concluded with a brief description of their future plans, including the publishing of their findings and the organization of an exhibition, as well as finding a more permanent station for the team to work in. Yepiskoposyan added that their aim was to "preserve this site for future generations" and they have already initiated measures to protect the various fauna and flora of the area.

The lecture was followed by a Q&A session and refreshments.

Lebanon's 'Little Armenia' (Video)

Film director Nigol Bezjian shares sights and sounds of Beirut’s 'Little Armenia', Bourj Hammoud on CNN.
The video link below is now updated, since the previous one was set to private