Anglican Primate to join a Canadian ecumenical delegation to Armenia
BY DIANA MAVUNDUSE
Anglican Church of Canada (press release), Canada
Aug 15 2005
AUGUST 15, 2005 — The Primate of the Anglican Church of Canada,
Archbishop Andrew Hutchison, is part of a five-member ecumenical
delegation set to visit Armenia from Aug. 24 to Sep.1, 2005.
The visit organised by the Canadian Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic
Orthodox Church, is in response to an invitation by His Holiness
Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, to
visit the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. It is the first ever visit by
such a delegation from Canada to Armenia. Led by the Primate of the
Canadian Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church, Bishop
Bagrat Galstanian, the delegation will discuss future prospects for
the role and mission of Christian churches and cooperation between
the Eastern and Western churches. The delegation will also meet with
Armenian government officials.
Other members of the delegation are: Archbishop Sotirios, Metropolitan
of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Canada, Archbishop Brendan
O~RBrien, President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops
and Professor Richard Schneider, President of the Canadian Council
of Churches.
The dates for this visit were chosen to coincide with celebrations
commemorating the 1600th anniversary of the invention of the Armenian
alphabet, which take place between Aug. 24 and Sept.1st. The delegation
will have an opportunity to participate in the celebrations.
The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin is the pre-eminent centre of
authority in the worldwide Armenian Apostolic Orthodox Church.
Located near Yerevan, the capital city of the Republic of Armenia,
it includes The Mother Cathedral of the entire Armenian Church, the
residence of the Catholicos, a monastery, the Gevorgian Theological
Seminary and a museum that houses the religious artefacts and
treasures of the Armenian Church. The Cathedral dates to the 4th
century, and is considered to be the oldest Christian cathedral in
the world. Holy Etchmiadzin became the seat of the Catholicate of the
entire Armenian nation in the 4th century, following the conversion
of King Tiridates III to Christianity by St. Gregory the Illuminator
in AD 301. Christianity became a powerful force in preserving the
identity of the Armenians who have lived under foreign rule for much
of their history.
The Armenian Orthodox church is a member of the Oriental Orthodox
family of churches that includes Coptic, Syrian, Armenian, Ethiopian,
Eritrean and the (Indian) Malankara. There is an on-going theological
dialogue between Anglicans and the Oriental family. In November 2002,
the Anglican-Oriental Orthodox International Commission reached an
Agreed Statement on Christology.
The Rev. Canon Harold Nahabedian of St. Mary Magdalene, Toronto,
(the only Armenian Anglican priest in Canada), is a member of the
Commission.
Formal dialogue between the Anglicans and the Eastern Orthodox
churches stemmed from recommendations of the Lambeth Conferences of
1988 and 1998 and the decisions of the Oriental Orthodox Churches that
the Anglican-Orthodox dialogue be upgraded from a forum (1985-1993)
to a commission.
Armenians dispersed throughout the world after the Armenian Genocide
of 1915 when 1.5 million Armenians perished and millions more fled.
Today there are more Armenians living outside the country than inside
Armenia. It is estimated that over 80,000 Armenians live in Canada.
In 2002, the Federal Government of Canada designated 24 April as a
day of remembrance of the 1915 genocide, the first genocide of the
20th century.
The relationship between the Anglican Church of Canada and the Canadian
Diocese of the Armenian Orthodox Church, dates back 125 years, when
in the absence of Armenian sanctuaries, the Anglicans offered the
Armenians liturgical space and hospitality in Anglican churches.
Through the Scholarship of St. Basil the Great, administered by the
Anglican Foundation, the relationship between the Armenian Orthodox
Church and the Canadian Anglicans has been strengthened and become
better known.
The scholarship, established by Bishop Henry Gordon Hill, retired
bishop of the Diocese of Ontario, is meant to facilitate exchanges
between members of the Anglican Church of Canada and members of the
Oriental Orthodox Churches and the Assyrian Church of the East.
In 1997, Rev. Sargis Boyajyan of the Armenian Orthodox church was the
second recipient of the scholarship. He studied theology and English
and is now serving in the diocese of Montreal.
Another recipient, the Rev. Canon Philip Hobson, travelled to Armenia
and Jerusalem where he spent four months sharing in the life of the
Armenian Apostolic Church and lecturing on the Anglican Church.
For further information on the visit please contact: Deacon
Hagop Arslanian, assistant to the Primate Armenian Holy
Apostolic Church Canadian Diocese 615 Stuart Avenue, Outremont
Quebec H2V 3H2 Tel: 514~V276-9479 Email:[email protected]
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