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:
July 29, 2004
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FUNERAL SERVICES FOR BISHOP BAGDASIAN TO BE HELD AUGUST 10
Longtime Armenian Church leader, Rt. Rev. Bishop Houssig Bagdasian
passed away on Tuesday, July 27, 2004.
A wake will be held at the St. Mary Church in Livingston, NJ, on Sunday,
August 1, 2004 with viewing from 2 to 4 and 6 to 9 and the wake service
at 7 p.m.
The Divine Liturgy and last anointment, presided over by Archbishop
Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Diocese of the Armenian Church of
America (Eastern), will be held at the St. Mary Church at 10 a.m. on
Monday, August 2, 2004.
A hokejash will follow. The St. Mary Church is located at 200 W. Mt.
Pleasant Ave. in Livingston, NJ.
Bishop Bagdasian will be buried in Providence, RI, where he was born in
1934.
“His entire life was devoted to serving our church and our people,”
Archbishop Barsamian said. “As a pastor, his flock always held a
special space in his heart. He left his mark by planting the seeds of
leadership in people who lead our church today and the others who will
in coming years.”
LONGTIME SERVANT OF THE LORD
A graduate of the Seminary of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem,
Bishop Bagdasian was ordained a priest in 1959. In 1960 he was
appointed Patriarchal Vicar of Israel, and was responsible for the
Armenian community in Israel as well as the properties of the Armenian
Patriarchate.
During his 11 years of service in the Holy Land, Bishop Bagdasian helped
renovate several Armenian churches, including St. Nicholas in Jaffa, St.
Elijah in Haifa, and St. Krikor Loosavorich in Jerusalem.
Returning to the United States in 1971, he was assigned to the St. Mary
Church, then in Irvington, NJ. He led the church in its move to
Livingston in 1974. After the church was destroyed by fire in 1980,
Bishop Bagdasian’s leadership was key in helping the parish faithful
pull together to rebuild the church, which was consecrated in March
1982.
His service to the Diocese was not limited to the St. Mary parish. He
was appointed Vicar General of the Diocese and headed the Diocesan
Finance Committee. He had also served as a member of the Diocesan
Council. And he was dedicated to the Armenian homeland, leading a group
of 26 ACYOA members to the region devastated by the 1988 earthquake to
help with reconstruction efforts.
Upon the recommendation of His Beatitude Patriarch Torkom Manoogian,
Bishop Bagdasian was consecrated a bishop in Armenia in September 1992
by His Holiness Vazken I, the late Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of
All Armenians.
“He was a great leader, a dedicated pastor, and above all else, a kind
friend to so many,” Archbishop Barsamian said. “His dedication to the
faith he was called to serve was strong, as was his love for his flock.
He will surely be missed in Livingston, throughout the Diocese, and in
the worldwide Armenian Church family.”
— 7/29/04
E-mail photos available on request. Photos also viewable in the News
and Events section of the Eastern Diocese’s website,
www.armenianc}oOuh.org.
PHOTO CAPTION (1): Bishop Houssig Bagdasian