WD Newsletter
Diocese of the Armenian Church of America
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Western Diocese e-Newsletter
Dear Reader
*Primate’s New Year’s Message*
God’s biggest and most precious gift to us is our life. We are called
to transform ourselves by living in God’s will and by devoting our
life to Him. We should not be indifferent to our God-given life, but
transform our life into a spiritual journey in the path of God’s
commandments.
Our sincere wish is that each of us begins the New Year with this
understanding of faith. To begin our days with prayer, so that our
life is filled with God’s love; to transform through divine love our
human weaknesses into a source of inspiration for others.
The New Year is significant for Christianity because it marks the
birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Christmas is the expression of
God’s infinite and immeasurable love for mankind. Indeed, if the Son
of God came down from Heaven, took human form and humbly dwelt among
people, as an expression of utmost sacrifice, we too are called to
sacrifice no less than the widow, whose example Christ pointed out to
those who were devoid of spirituality as an invitation of
awakening. `Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all
of them; for they all contribute out of their abundance, but she out
of her poverty put in all the living that she had.’ (Luke 21 1-4).
Human beings have the moral obligation to live a creative life in
which total dedication is a prerequisite. All of us, whether parents,
professionals, educators, leaders or students, should emulate the
example of the poor widow in order to make our lives meaningful. All
our duties are entrusted to us by God; they are God’s work and we are
obliged to perform them with complete understanding and sacrifice.
Let us resolve to live the year 2010 in ways that would transform the
shortcomings of last year. Indeed, in order to turn our God-given life
more beautiful and fulfilling, we need to entrust our life to God with
complete devotion and full faith.
January 1, 2010
Archbishop Hovnan Derderian
Primate
The Western Diocese of the Armenian Church of North America, providing
spiritual guidance and leadership to the Armenian Apostolic community,
is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit, tax-exempt organization comprised of more
than 50 churches in 16 western states. It was established in 1898 as
the Diocese of the Armenian Church encompassing the entire United
States and Canada. In 1927 the Western Diocese was formed to
exclusivly serve the western United States.