Armenian Christians inspiring

From Jan. 18-25, we will observe the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Both in our own Catholic parishes and in ecumenical settings, we will pray for that unity among the followers of Jesus for which He prayed so fervently on the night before He suffered and died: "May they all be one, Father, as you are in me and I am in you. May they be one in us, that the world may truly believe it is you who sent me" (John 17:21).

The quest for Christian unity is not an addendum for the Church, but, as our Holy Father John Paul II has noted, "an organic part of our life and work which must pervade all that we do."

One of the ways we can heal the scandal of this disunity among those who glory in the name Christian is to learn more about the history and tradition of our brothers and sisters in the various branches of the Christian family.

Dialogue

I serve as a co-chair of the dialogue in the United States between the Roman Catholic community and the Oriental Orthodox Churches. Those are the churches from Armenia, Egypt, Syria, Ethiopia and India that were an integral part of the Christian family for the first three great ecumenical councils of the Church; but they split with the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches by not attending the Council of Chalcedon in 451, which was devoted to defining the nature of Christ.

In this capacity, I have come to understand and appreciate more fully the rich spiritual tradition of these ancient faith communities -- and the enormous contributions they have made to the entire Christian family.

Let me reflect briefly on one of these Oriental Orthodox Churches that has had a dynamic presence in our area: the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Roots in Armenia

The roots of Armenian Christianity are reflected in the very name of the Armenian Apostolic Church. The Church of Armenia traces its descent from two apostles: Ss. Judas Thaddeus and Bartholomew, who arrived in Armenia in the second half of the first century, preached the Gospel, and suffered martyrdom. The Armenian Church has traditionally preserved and venerated their graves in the ancient churches of Artaz and Albac.

The Armenian Church, from its earliest days, encountered persecution, as witnessed by the apostles' martyrdoms, a persecution which continued through the second and third centuries, including that of the Father of Armenian Christianity, St. Gregory the Illuminator.

Armenia's official conversion to Christianity through the preaching of St. Gregory in the year 301 and the conversion of King Tiridates is one of the most cherished traditions of the Armenian nation.

New identity

It should be underscored, however, that the almost instantaneous conversion of the whole country of Armenia to Christianity at the dawn of the fourth century could not have occurred unless the proclamation of Christianity within the nation by Thaddeus, Bartholomew and their successors had already prepared rich soil.

With the baptism and conversion of the Armenian nation, the people acquired a new identity that was to become an integral and inseparable part of Armenian life.

As this brief synopsis of the origins of the Armenian Christianity reveals, the preaching of the Good News and Armenia's conversion flow from the blood of the Apostles and their followers who bore witness to that faith. The first baptism of Armenia was truly one of blood.

Faith and blood

As Pope John Paul II has noted, martyrdom has been a constant feature in the history of the Armenian people, whose "faith remains inseparably linked to the witness of blood shed for Christ and the Gospel. The whole culture and the very spirituality of Armenians are filled in the pride they take in the supreme sign of the gift of life in martyrdom."

Yes, martyrdom has been a constant feature of Armenia's history, culminating monstrously in the tragic genocide from 1915 to 1922, when 1.5 million Armenians were massacred by the Ottoman Turks and 2 million more were deported.

What made the genocide and deportation even more unbearable was the deafening silence of the world in the face of this travesty, and the refusal to this day of its perpetrators to acknowledge and take responsibility for this barbaric action.

Painful times

The martyrdom of the Armenian people was perpetuated during the 20th century by the 70-year totalitarian rule imposed upon the nation by the Soviet government, with its atheistic and materialistic ideologies designed to destroy the ancient faith of that embattled nation.

Referring to those painful times, the Armenian Catholicos, His Holiness Karekin II, has said: "For us, Christianity is not a garment but the color of our skin which cannot be altered."

Thus, the Christian faith of the Armenian people endured and perdured through dark and difficult periods, and is now reemerging stronger than ever. For this, the entire Christian community owes the Armenian people an enormous and incalculable debt of gratitude.

Strength for all

As Pope John Paul II has noted, "the people of Christian Armenia have shed their blood for the Lord, but through their sacrifice the whole Church grew and was strengthened. If today the West can freely express its faith, this is due (in no small measure) to those Armenians who sacrificed themselves, making their bodies a bulwark for the Christian world to its furthest reaches. Their death was the price of our safety."

Indeed, it was! We of the Christian family should be grateful to the members of the Armenian Apostolic Church for their heroic and fire-tested witness to the demands of Christian discipleship.

Fortunately, spurred by the worldwide ecumenical movement and the renewed commitment of the Second Vatican Council to ecumenical dialogue, there has been real progress in strengthening the bond between our Roman Catholic community and the Armenian Apostolic Church.

Steps forward

In this regard, I would note in particular, the meeting between the Armenian Catholicos Vazken I and Pope Paul VI in 1970, and the 1986 joint agreement signed by Catholicos Karekin I and Pope John Paul II, which resolved the theological differences created by the Council of Chalcedon.

The two great religious leaders asserted that "we confess our faith in the Triune God and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only son of God, who became man for our salvation. We also believe in One, Catholic, Apostolic and Holy Church. The Church, as the body of Christ, indeed, is one and unique. This is our common faith, based on the teachings of the Apostles and the Fathers of the Church. We acknowledge furthermore that both the Catholic Church and the Armenian Church have true sacraments, above all -- by apostolic succession of bishops -- the priesthood and the Eucharist. We continue to pray for full and visible communion between us."

That commitment was solidified further by the recent return to the Armenian Catholicos of a relic of St. Gregory the Illuminator, which had been in the possession of the Roman Catholic community, and by the 2001 visit of Pope John Paul to Armenia.

Learning together

I hope that through praying and dialoguing together, we of the Roman Catholic and Armenian Apostolic Churches will continue to learn from one another's theological, liturgical and spiritual traditions, and see them not as conflicting but as complimentary.

In particular, we pray that through the intercession of Mary, the Mother of God, who plays such an essential role in both Roman Catholic and Armenian theology and spirituality, and that of the Apostles Peter and Paul, Thaddeus and Bartholomew, Gregory the Illuminator, and all the saintly men and women of the Armenian, Roman Catholic and other Christian churches, we may appreciate more fully our oneness in the Christian family, leading to a renewed proclamation of the Good News of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

May this be the rich fruit of this year's Week of Prayer for Christian unity.

(01/09/03) [[In-content Ad]]