The condition of the Armenians in Lebanon

YEREVAN (Combined Sources)-The safety of Armenian citizens in Lebanon as well as that of the greater Lebanese Armenian Community is secure for the time being, Head of the Middle East Department of Armenian Foreign Ministry Armen Melkonyan told a press conference in Yerevan Thursday.
Melkonyan's statements came as Arab League mediators said on Thursday they had brokered a deal to end Lebanon's worst round of internal fighting since the 1975-1990 civil war. According to the mediators, Hezbollah has agreed to hold talks with the government and remove a roadblock that has shut down the airport for a week.
Shortly after violence broke out between clashing pro-government and opposition Hezbollah forces on May 7, the Lebanese branches of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, the Armenian Democratic League (Ramkavar Azatakan Party) and Social Democratic Hunchakian Party came forth with a joint statement urging the feuding sides to put an end to bloodshed, engage in dialogue and restore national unity, Melkonyan explained.
The Armenian community in Lebanon has remained neutral in this latest round of internal conflict to hit Lebanon since the civil war, he said. The position of the Armenian national parties and the whole Armenian community during the internal conflicts in Lebanon should therefore be assessed positively.
Melkonian explained that the only major damage suffered by the Armenian community has been the burning of the "Sevan" radio station, which shared the same building as a pro-Hezbollah political party. Despite that fact, the radio station was allowed time to evacuate its equipment and resumed broadcasting a few hours later from an alternate location.
The Armenian Embassy in Lebanon and the Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been closely following developments in Lebanon and will be increasing embassy staff in order to deal with the situation on the ground, he told reporters.
"We are ready to assist our citizens there and, if possible, the Lebanese Armenians," he added.
"Lebanon is a friendly country with which [Armenia] has many historical and cooperative ties," The Foreign Ministry Official said. "Lebanon is the only Arab country that has recognized the Armenian Genocide, and it is the only Arab country we have an agreement on friendship and cooperation with."
The situation in Lebanon concerns Armenia, not only because the country is home to one of the largest Armenian Diasporas, but also because the stability of Lebanon affects the stability and security of the entire region, Melkonyan stressed, noting that Armenia is very close to the Middle East.
"We hope that the [conflicting] parties will soon reach a solution to the issue through dialogue," he said.
But Armenia plays no role in the given situation and cannot interfere with the domestic affairs of Lebanon, Melkonyan noted. The conflict is the internal affair of Lebanon, and any foreign interference will result in an aggravation of the conflict.
"If we look back, we shall see that what is happening in Lebanon, is the consequence of foreign interference," Melkonyan said.

"The work of a critic is easy. We risk very little..."

It was fascinating, watching Remy, the rat, in Ratatouille, the animated movie. Yet, the character that grabbed my attention was Mr. Anton Ego (the critic), who resembles many of the critics that we encounter in our lives.
Here's a confession that Mr. Anton writes as part of his review, after he tastes the dish (ratatouille) prepared by Remy, and is flash-backed to his childhood, when his mother used to cook ratatouille for him...
In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face is that, in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so. But there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new. The world is often unkind to new talents, new creations. The new needs friends.


Raffi

Do you decide...?

Do you decide
where you are going?
Or like me,
you let yourself
be dragged away by somebody?

Do you face
whatever happens?
Or like me,
you lie hidden
behind lies, for eternity?

Do you cry
when you feel like it?
Or like me,
you hold it in
to escape mockery?

Do you smile
in your sleep?
Or like me,
you try waking
to forget what you see?

Do you delight
in what you did?
Or like me,
you wish it hadn't
gone so badly?

Like me,
do you sleep,
when you wish to wake?
do you laugh,
when you wish to weep?
do you wander,
though you know the way?
do you embrace,
those you wish to murder?

Do you do
what you want?
Or like myself,
don't realise,
the only one stopping me,
is me.

Do you enjoy
all that life brings?
Or like me,
you crawl through it,
though you were born with Fire Wings.

By Fire Wings

Soccer match among the chanitzagans


(Standing from left to right): M. Chilingirian, J. Baghboudarian, K. Aynilian, H. Assilian, H. Hanneyan, H. Yacoubian, H. Demirjian, S. Churukian, H. Gojigian, M. Hagopian.
(In Front from left to right): G. Avesian, A. Torkomian, Rev. H. Svajian (the pastor), S. Ohanian.

The Role of the Layperson in the Armenian Evangelical Church

Excerpts from the Article titled "The Role of the Layperson in the Armenian Evangelical Church" By Rev. L. Nishan Bakalian

Read the Complete Article

If all our Union’s clergy and ministerial students were rounded up and taken somewhere to be imprisoned or even killed, what would our churches do? Would they continue; would they survive?
These ruminations are quite logical when considering the reformation ideal, “The priesthood of all believers.” This ideal, from which we often fall short, is one of the central tenets of the Reform tradition, and it represents a major difference between Evangelical and non-Evangelical Armenian churches - or at least it did at one time.

...

From our current perspective we may wish things could have been a bit different, so that over the years the Armenian Evangelical would not have expunged so much of his native culture from his life and worship, adopting a Western one in its place. In any event, that Armenian Evangelical of old is practically a forgotten species. The distinctiveness which defined his public behavior has gradually been forgotten, and a caricature has replaced it. Certain habits have been retained for the sake of appearance, not out of conviction. The internal drive which made him what he was are all but gone, and so most of our laypeople (here the unfortunate dichotomy enters) know neither what they believe, nor why they do. We have come to resemble the world around us, not as a strategy to win others to salvation and faith in Jesus Christ (note Paul’s words in I Corinthians 9.19-23), but in order to win society’s approval. This latter manifestation of Armenian Evangelicalism is the current norm, and it represents a collective abandonment of our purpose as a distinct group.

...

Both Armenian Evangelical clergy and laity are responsible for pushing the balance towards clergy; frequently clergy have been afraid of giving laymen authority and negligent in training believers in the responsible use of authority. Laypersons have accustomed themselves to think of faith issues as separate and unimportant, as opposed to material issues. This has led to passivity in deepening ones faith, and aggressive activity in running the church like one’s personal business. Lay people must take ownership of the church and become full members of it, fully participating in its life and mission. The present contentment with only a fragment of our Lord Jesus’ Great Commission, an embarrassing dichotomy, has become established in our churches, along with a lack of vision for all God can accomplish through us. We have bred spiritually passive laymen over the years. Armenian Evangelical families have trained their children to keep their connection to the church as tenuous as possible, and to keep their treasures and their hearts anywhere but there. We trivialize the mission and ministry of the church by arguing over irrelevant topics, ensuring the disinterest of outsiders, and making outsiders of our own youth. For effective Christian witness, God can use the pastor, who is more or less trained in what to say and how to say it, but he can often more effectively use a layman who has a good basic knowledge of what he believes, and is deeply convinced of why he believes. The pastor’s job, then, is to train laypersons to live as children of light, to stand firm against the tide of this world, and to go and relate to one or two others in his daily life in such a way that they come to faith, and likewise spread the word, in particular including their own children (see II Timothy 2.1-2).

...

More specifically, the Armenian evangelical church, especially its clergy, needs to inspire and call its members to share in the ministry of the Gospel in all aspects of life - worship, education, culture, politics, athletics, and so on. It must be a calling, training, and sending body, or else it will become a closed system, running out of energy, being indistinguishable from the decaying world it seeks to change. It will look a lot like it does today, unable to attract new members, unable to communicate a viable vision, because it lacks such a viable vision. We need to define ourselves in deeper and more meaningful terms; not as the people who do not drink, smoke or dance, nor as the people who do drink, smoke or dance (fill in your favorite prescription or proscription), but as multi-faceted and multi-talented people who follow Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, who study his Word, who go to all the places he went, who affect others with their wisdom and witness, yet are not affected by the materialism or unbelief surrounding them.

The Rev. Dr. Manuel Jinbashian shares the Power of the Bible

May 2008: The Rev. Dr. Manuel Jinbashian of Montreal, Canada, delivered lecture in
Nicosia, Cyprus, entitled, “The Bible: Historical reflection on the Armenian
translation and its role in building the Armenian national identity”. The lecture took place on Monday, May 5, 2008, in the Armenian Prelacy’s Utujian Hall. The lecture was initiated and organized by the Armenian Evangelical Church in Cyprus. His Eminence, Archbishop Varoujan Hergelian, Primate of the Armenian community in Cyprus,
Mr. Vartkes Mahdessian, the Armenian representative in the Cyprus parliament, the
Holy fathers of the Larnaca and Nicosia parishes, together with members of the Armenian community in Cyprus were among the attendees.
Mr. Hrayr Jebejian made the opening word. He welcomed all on behalf of the Armenian
Evangelical Church in Cyprus. He briefed the Armenian nation’s historical development from the 7th century BC (the formation of the Armenian nation) up to the turning era in 301 AD (the Christianization of the Armenian nation). “The Christian faith since then has become the identity of the Armenian nation and in all aspects of life,” said Mr. Jebejian. “The need to preserve the Christian faith bore the necessity to invent the Armenian alphabet and the translation of the Bible into the Armenian language,” he continued. “Language and culture modifications and changes urge communities to reconsider the translation of the Bible in their own language, including Armenian,”
he added. He then presented Rev. Dr. Manuel Jinbashian as the master mind behind the recent Bible translations into Western and Eastern Armenian.
Rev. Dr. Manuel Jinbashain gave a brief overview on the Christianization of Armenia and the need to have our own alphabet to preserve the Faith. Church masses were held in Assyrian and Greek and the leadership, then, were very concerned as to how long the Christian faith can be preserved without their own mother language. “The Armenian nation owes a lot to Mesrob Mashdotz, Sahag Bartev and Vramshabouh, who invented the Armenian alphabet and translated the Bible into Armenian. It is through the Bible that the Armenian nation is surviving up till today,” said Rev. Jinbashian. He highlighted the strength and the beauty of the first translation of the Armenian
Bible, “Takouhi Tarkmanoutian”. He critically and with the use of Scriptural examples showed the power of the first translation in the areas of cultural adaptation and linguistic analysis. “The First Armenian Bible was the translation of the concept and not of the word,” Rev. Jinbashian added.
Rev. Jinbashian spoke also on the ongoing Bible translation work of the Western and Eastern Armenian and the need to finish the process that had started with the late Archbishop Zareh Aznavourian. He concluded his speech by saying, “Those Christian nations and communities who do not have the Bible in their own language are destined to die. The survival of the Armenian nation owes a lot to the translation of the Bible into Armenian”.
The lecture created interest among the attendees who asked many questions to Rev. Jinbashian after the presentation. The concluding remarks were made by Archbishop Varoujan Hergelian, who also offered the “Bahbanitch”.

Merdinian School Banquet Highlights Plans for New High School

BY JOYCE ABDULIAN

UNIVERSAL CITY--The Universal Sheraton Hotel Roof Garden was, on March 2 the celebration site of the 26th anniversary of the Charlotte and Elise Merdinian Armenian Evangelical School. Peter Kougasian, an Assistant District Attorney of New York City was Keynote speaker. He spoke about the importance of an Armenian Evangelical education such as the one offered at Merdinian. He shared how his ancestor's Armenian Evangelical faith and education continues to influence him.
Kougasian, works in the office of Robert Morgenthau-- grandson of Henry Morgenthau, the US Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire during World War I. He relayed a warm message from Morgenthau. He shared how the Morgenthau family are fierce partisans of the Armenian people in the world today stating “Armenian blood flows through their veins and whenever there is an Armenian cause, they can always be counted on to try to bring a sense of justice.”
The evening began with the honoring of Armenian history and language teacher Ashkhen Ispendjian. Board of Directors Chairman, Dr. Hrair Atikian honored Ispendjian for her 25 years of devoted service to the students and school. She came to Merdinian after serving in Lebanon as a teacher and principal for 20 years. Here, she not only taught Armenian language and history, but prepared textbooks for these courses when no such books existed. Ispendjian expressed her appreciation for the honor and confessed she “lied” to her students claiming no knowledge of English in order to encourage their use and understanding of Armenian.
Former students honored her. Duduk player Armen Kvryan, performed a musical piece and Greg Martayan, stated, “Merdinian is not just a school feeding into college prep schools. Merdinian is the prep school for life.”
Also honored were individuals who have served 15 years or more on the Board of Directors. The late Alice Haig was highlighted as the “First chairperson and moving force behind the school from its inception 27 years ago.” Accepting her award posthumously was her husband, Dr. Vahe Pierre Haig. The other honorees were: Zaven Khanjian, Koko Balian, Samir Ekmekji, Hratch Sarkis, and Dr. Nazareth Darakjian,
Dr. Steve Aharonian, AMAA President, encouraged the gathering to continue their financial support for the growth of the school--pledging AMAA's support by raising 10% of the cost. A conditional-use permit for the new expansion has been granted as of this printing, adding 13,100 square feet on the same school site for a high school. The projected cost is about $7 million. The student population will have the capacity to increase from 260 to 650.
Principal Hovsep Injejikian stressed the importance of a high school by stating; “When the students leave us at the end of middle school, they are still teenagers. They are not fully committed to their Armenian Christian heritage.”
Master of ceremonies Dr. Nazareth Darakjian stated how the school started with, “a few visionaries and with a lot of faith and hope.” Miss Elise Merdinian made the school possible by donating her entire estate to the AMAA.
An architectural drawing of the proposed new high school was proudly exhibited by the building committee consisting of Samir Ekmekji, Dr. Hrair Atikian, Hratch Sarkis, and Herair Mouradian. Evening co-chairpersons Helga Sarkis and Seta Nalbandian, along with their committee, were encouraged by the enthusiasm shared by the evenings large crowd and some impromptu donations. The Lark Musical Societies Women's Acappella Chorus provided the musical portion of the evening under the direction of Maestro Vatsche Barsoumian.
From the humble beginning in 1982 with only 13 students and no campus of their own, Merdinian has developed into this unique Armenian Evangelical School shaping the lives of hundreds of students as they envelop their Armenian Christian heritage coupled with a first class education. Elise Merdinian's dream was realized beyond her expectations.

Asbarez