PRESS OFFICE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern)
630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Contact: Jake Goshert, Coordinator of Information Services
Tel: (212) 686-0710 Ext. 60; Fax: (212) 779-3558
E-mail: [email protected]
Website:
September 1, 2005
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NEW PRIEST IN DIOCESE APPOINTED TO CHARLOTTE
By Jake Goshert
The Armenians of Charlotte, NC, had prayed for a church to call their
own for years before a benefactor provided the final financial boost
needed to build the St. Sarkis Church, which was consecrated earlier
this year.
While God was answering those prayers, a former rock-and-roll
musician-turned-priest in Bulgaria was dreaming of visiting the United
States. Then his wife won a Green Card in a lottery and now that priest
is not only visiting but living and working in the Diocese of the
Armenian Church of America (Eastern).
And as if to complete the prayers of the people of Charlotte, Fr. Daniel
Karadjian was appointed the parish’s pastor starting September 1, 2005.
“This is a miracle, because these people from Charlotte, they didn’t
know if they would have a church, and I always dreamt of visiting the
United States,” said Fr. Karadjian, 45. “But look at God’s work: it is
mysterious. These people have a church, and now they have a priest from
Bulgaria.”
HONORING A PROMISE
Growing up in communist Bulgaria, Fr. Karadjian was never able to attend
church, because spies would turn Armenians in as traitors if they freely
practiced their faith. He did learn about prayers and making the sign
of the cross from his grandparents, but never really was taught what
they meant.
But faith percolated through his family. After the fall of Communism,
his father became active in the local Armenian Church. As more people
began worshipping openly, there was a shortage of priests and the
community asked Fr. Karadjian’s father why his son couldn’t become a
priest.
“I told him I wanted to be a rock-and-roll musician, not a priest,” Fr.
Karadjian said. “But later I made a promise to my dying father, and
told him I would make his last dream come true.”
Fr. Karadjian traveled to the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem, where
he studied and was ordained in 1994. During his studies in Jerusalem he
was joined by his wife, Mariam, and their two sons: Hagop, now 20, and
Harut, 19. Carrying on the family flame, his two sons served on the
altar in Jerusalem and are now helping Fr. Karadjian with a
deacon-training class in Charlotte. Already, four young people have
signed up.
After being ordained, Fr. Karadjian worked on “Gantegh,” the newspaper
of the Armenian Patriarchate in Jerusalem, and later published a monthly
religious magazine for the St. George Church in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, where
he served as pastor.
NEW SPIRITUAL HOME
While he is making his new home in Charlotte, Fr. Karadjian sees his job
as making a new spiritual home for a diverse community. Many of the
Armenians in Charlotte are fairly recent immigrants, and many come from
areas such as Baku, Armenia, and Russia, which were under atheist
communist control for most of their lives.
“I am the same as these people, since I come from Bulgaria,” Fr.
Karadjian said. “Charlotte is fantastic. This is a little community of
Armenians whose members came from all over and they are like new
believers, so we are just starting our spiritual work. After growing up
under the Soviet Union, without permission to visit a church and be
Christian, we are now starting from the beginning, and our work is going
to be very hard and difficult.”
While he admits that the challenges of building a new parish, one made
up largly of immigrants who grew up under Communism, and one with
parishioners with diverse backgrounds and cultures, is a challenge that
will require 24-hour, seven-day-a-week efforts, Fr. Karadjian said the
importance of his work will keep him going.
“I will work more or less 24 hours a day, because the church is new, the
community is new, and everything is new; and to be a success everyone
needs to work hard,” he said. “But we must succeed, because we are all
children of God in need of the church.”
Before being assigned to St. Sarkis, Fr. Karadjian took classes at St.
Nersess Seminary and studied English for a year at Concordia College.
While at St. Nersess Fr. Karadjian also was assigned to work with Fr.
Karekin Kasparian, pastor of the St. Gregory the Enlightener Church in
White Plains, NY, for a year to be introduced to parish life in the
United States.
Along with his studies in America, Fr. Karadjian studied at the Seminary
of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem and at St. Kliment Ohridski’s
Theological University in Sofia, Bulgaria, where he earned a master’s
degree.
“Fr. Karadjian is an example of the power of our Christian faith to
overcome darkness,” said Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the
Eastern Diocese. “And many of the people of Charlotte have faced such
challenges as well, so I know they will greatly benefit from Fr.
Karadjian’s background. But, more importantly, they will benefit from
his true Christian spirit and love of the Lord.”
— 9/1/05
E-mail photos available on request. Photos also viewable in the News
and Events section of the Eastern Diocese’s website,
PHOTO CAPTION (1): Fr. Daniel Karadjian, front, the new pastor for the
St. Sarkis Church of Charlotte, NC, joins Archbishop Khajag Barsamian,
Primate, and Fr. Daniel Findikyan at the consecration of the new church.
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