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PATRIARCH PRESIDES OVER END OF YEAR SERVICE AT PATRIARCHAL CHURCH
On Sunday morning, 31 December 2006, His Beatitude Mesrob II, Armenian
Patriarch of Istanbul and All Turkey, passed from the Patriarchate building
to the Holy Mother of God Patriarchal Church to preside over the End of Year
service. The Chancellor of the Patriarchate, Father Zakeos Ohanyan, offered
the Divine Liturgy. Sacred music was provided by the Patriarchal Church’s
Koghtan Choir, under the direction of Hovsep Kuyumcuyan. Garbis Kilicyan
accompanied the hymns on the organ. The Church was filled with worshippers.
SERMON
His Beatitude the Patriarch read his New Year message both in Armenian and
in Turkish, and then preached on the scripture passage for the day (Luke
22:24-30). He said, "A dispute broke out among the disciples as to who among
them was considered the greatest. Jesus Christ said to them, ‘The kings of
the Gentiles lord it over them; and those in authority over them are called
benefactors. But not so with you; rather the greatest among you must become
like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves. For who is greater,
the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one at the
table? But I am among you as one who serves.’"
His Beatitude the Patriarch continued, "The disciples were still not able to
understand the kingdom of God. And they would continue to not be able to
understand it until after the death of the Messiah, until the Holy Spirit
descended on them at Pentecost. Jesus Christ preached the kingdom of God,
but they were talking about who would be the first in the kingdom. Today all
of us are similarly occupied. I wonder, when we look back 20 to 30 years
from now, what we will think of these matters that seem so important to us
today? I wonder whether so many of the things that keep us busy today will
seem comic to us then. In the end, almost nothing of our daily life today
can be compared with our eternal life.
"Our concept of leadership in this world is much different from God’s.
Worldly people are in such competition most of the time that they can even
decide to do ill to each other without mercy. In fact, we witness this
frequently in our own community. But according to Christian belief, the
leader should be the one who gives the best service. There can be different
leadership styles. Some speak well, some administer well, some relate well
to others. But in every Christian leader there must be the spirit of
service. We are all servants of God and God’s Holy Church. It is not
important who will be the greatest. It is important who will more usefully
serve others. For instance, one of the titles of the Pope is ‘servant of the
servant of God.’ This is a beautiful definition. As Jesus Christ said in
today’s Gospel reading, if members of our community could think sincerely
about how they could serve each other, then that is precisely when the Holy
Church becomes a bundle of great love and service, and of faith and
solidarity. On the occasion of the New Year, this is my greatest desire!"
FIRST SERVICE OF THE NEW YEAR IN THE PATRIARCHAL CHURCH
Many of the worshippers came forward to share in the Lord’s Table. After the
final prayers, His Beatitude the Patriarch spoke as follows to the church
members who reside in Kumkapi: "Tonight at midnight we will come to the
Cathedral and say the first prayers of the New Year for the occasion.
Tomorrow morning, on Monday, 1 January 2007, we will hold the Divine Liturgy
again in the Cathedral. I hope that those who are able to join will come and
receive the blessings."
PRAYERS FOR THE REPOSE OF SOULS
After the service, His Beatitude the Patriarch again presided as a
visitation was made to the tomb of Patriarch Nerses Varjabedyan and prayers
for the repose of the souls were said with the love of the Lord Jesus Christ
for Patriarch Nerses II, Patriarch Garabed III, Bogos Efendi Dadyan,
deceased members of the Simpatyan family, deceased members of the Eknayan
and Tavsanciyan families, Anna Mirzohanyan, Yeranuhi Papazyan, and
benefactors of the Patriarchal Church and the Bezciyan School.
CARDS AND LETTERS FOR SPIRITUAL LEADERS
His Beatitude the Patriarch sent holiday cards and letters on the occasion
of the New Year and Epiphany (The Visit of the Three Wise Men) to His
Holiness Bartholomeos I, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Istanbul;
Metropolitan Mor Philixinos Yusuf Cetin, the Syrian Orthodox Patriarchal
Vicar; Father Angel Velkof of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church; Father Silviu
State of the Romanian Orthodox Church; Pastor Holger Nollmann of the German
Evangelical Church; Father Ian Sherwood of the Anglican Church; Pastor
Benjamin Van Rensburg of the Union Church, which meets in the chapel of the
Dutch Consulate; and Pastor Turgay Ucal of the Anglican Church in Moda.
The contents of the letter of His Beatitude the Patriarch were as follows.
"Unfortunately, because of my illness with enteritis-colitis, I have been
unable to visit or write to the leaders of our sister churches on the
occasion of the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ. This virus
has caused me to take to my bed for some time and even go to the hospital
for tests and analysis. Even if your church’s Festival of Nativity has
already taken place, my dear Brother in Christ, I wish you and, through you,
all members of your beloved community a Happy New Year and a Blessed
Festival of Epiphany. On the occasion of the 2007th Year of the Grace of Our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, I sincerely pray for all Christians in our
country that during the New Year, there will be many occasions to witness to
His goodness; and for you, My Dear Brother, I pray for health and happiness.
With my brotherly love and prayers, MESROB II, Armenian Patriarch of
Istanbul and All Turkey."
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From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
