Author: Varosian Antranik

’20TH CENTURY POETRY BY ARMENIAN WOMEN’
Literature

Azg/arm
19 July 05

The Armenian Mirror Spectator weekly informed that the International
Association of Armenian Women has recently published “Another Voice.
20th Century Poetry by Armenian Women” collection in Boston. The
poems were translated and edited by Diana Ter-Hovhannisian. The
collection includes about 200 poems by 65 poets working in Paris,
Los Angeles, Tehran, Istanbul, Beirut, Buenos Aires and Armenia.
Ter-Hovhannisian stated in the preface that the first poems by the
Armenian women were written in the 8th century. She added that “there
had been poems and songs written in the pre-Christian period as well,
but they were not preserved.”

Diana Ter-Hovhannisian is the chairwoman of the New England Poetry
Club. There she initiated the poetry prize after Daniel Varouzhan.
Mrs. Ter-Hovhannisian is the author of 22 books, including “How to
Chose One’s Past,” “The Burning Glass,” “About the Time” and “The
New Year Day for You.”

By Hakob Tsulikian

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 18, 2005
___________________

DN. MITCHELL MOURADJIAN ORDAINED INTO PRIESTHOOD

By Jake Goshert

For 15 years, Mitchell Mouradjian worked in the mortgage bank industry.
To further his career he decided to go back to school, but none of the
finance programs he looked at touched his heart.

In fact, there was another calling deep in his heart he had yet to hear.

“I’ve been fascinated with the church and loved God very much since I
was a kid. Since my childhood I wanted to be a priest, but I always put
it off, because I wasn’t sure. I thought this step is something that
once you take you put yourself in God’s hands. I was afraid to do
that,” he said. “Then one night, after looking for a graduate program,
I couldn’t sleep and I was tossing and turning. My wife asked if I was
all right, and I looked at her and said I wanted to do it.”

He went to study at St. Nersess Armenian Seminary and then had an
internship at the St. Gregory the Enlightener Church of White Plains,
NY, under Fr. Karekin Kasparian. About two years ago was appointed
deacon-in-charge of the Church of the Holy Resurrection in New Britain,
CT. On Saturday and Sunday, July 16 and 17, 2005, his long journey came
to an end and his new life began when he was ordained into the
priesthood by Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Diocese of the
Armenian Church of America (Eastern).

“This young family man, who had a successful business career, was able
to hear the call to serve God. It was not an easy decision for him, I
am sure, but I know it is one that he feels is best not just for him but
for our community of faith,” Archbishop Barsamian said. “He is an
example of how the call to serve the Lord can come to anyone at any
time. He will serve as a role model for others who might now be hearing
the Lord’s calling in the back of their mind.”

MAKING THE LEAP

For Mouradjian, 43, the decision to study at the seminary and then work
towards being ordained as a priest was complicated by the fact that he
had a wife, Diane, and two kids, Mitchell Jr., 15, and Elizabeth, 14.
When he made that decision they were 8 and 7.

“My wife married a guy in mortgage banking, she didn’t marry a
clergyman. I wanted to make sure becoming a priest was something I
wanted to do, and secondly I needed to make sure that my family could
survive going through unknown trials,” Mouradjian said. “My family has
been unbelievably supportive of me from day one.”

He knows others with families will hear the call to serve the church,
and to them he has one piece of advice: contact St. Nersess Seminary.

“If someone is thinking about becoming a priest, and I know there are
others out there, I urge them today to call St. Nersess Seminary and
speak with Fr. Daniel (Findikyan, dean of the Seminary). They should
ask all the proper questions related to how it will change their lives
and then start studying at the Seminary,” he said. “Because the end
result is definitely worth it.”

A NEW LIFE

Fr. Gabriel is in the Holy Land for the traditional 40 days of seclusion
which follow priestly ordinations. He will be staying in Bethlehem and
praying daily at the Church of the Nativity. Fr. Gabriel will celebrate
his first Divine Liturgy back at his home parish in New Britain on
August 21.

Though as deacon-in-charge he has been able to do most of the duties a
priest does Monday through Saturday, on Sunday the parish has had to
bring in a visiting pastor for badarak, funerals, weddings, and
baptisms.

“This parish has enjoyed the support of visiting clergy for the past
eight years, but the greatest thing is that when I come back at the end
of August there’s already two baptisms and a wedding scheduled,” said
Fr. Gabriel, a native of Providence, RI. “For these families it will be
more meaningful to them, because they know me. I’ve gotten to know
their families and I will be the one administering the sacrament, so the
bond will be stronger. As a priest I will be able to create a stronger
bond with my parish as the one performing the sacrament.”

Serving as the godparent of the ordination was Yn. Patricia Buttero.
Fr. Karekin Kasparian was the sponsoring priest for Fr. Gabriel’s
ordination.

— 7/18/05

E-mail photos available on request. Photos also viewable in the News
and Events section of the Eastern Diocese’s website,

PHOTO CAPTION (1): Dn. Mitchell Mouradjian kneels before the altar and
the congregation at the Church of the Holy Resurrection in New Britain,
CT, during his priestly ordination on July 17, 2005.

PHOTO CAPTION (2): Archbishop Barsamian anoints Fr. Gabriel Mouradjian
during his ordination on July 17, 2005.

PHOTO CAPTION (3): The Primate anoints Fr. Gabriel in front of hundreds
of parishioners and friends at the Church of the Holy Resurrection of
New Britain, CT.

PHOTO CAPTION (4): Fr. Gabriel Mouradjian turns and blesses the
parishioners during his priestly ordination on July 17, 2005.

PHOTO CAPTION (5): Joining Archbishop Barsamian at the altar for the
ordination of Fr. Gabriel were several priests including, from left, Fr.
Stepanos Doudoukjian, Fr. Simeon Odabashian, and Fr. Karekin Kasparian.

PHOTO CAPTION (6): Fr. Gabriel Mouradjian with his sponsoring priest,
Fr. Karekin Kasparian, following Fr. Gabriel’s ordination to the
priesthood at the Church of the Holy Resurrection in New Britain, CT, on
July 17, 2005.

PHOTO CAPTION (7): Parishioners approach to kiss the hands of newly
ordained Fr. Gabriel following the badarak at the Church of the Holy
Resurrection in New Britain, CT, on July 17, 2005.

PHOTO CAPTION (8): Archbishop Barsamian, Primate, blesses Yn. Diane
Mouradjian during the ordination ceremony for her husband, Fr. Gabriel,
at the Church of the Holy Resurrection in New Britain, CT, on July 17,
2005.

# # #

INTERIOR MINISTER’S VISIT TO VIENNA
[July 18, 2005, 13:39:33]

Azer Tag, Azerbaijan
July 18 2005

Interior Minister of Azerbaijan Colonel-General Ramil Usubov stayed in
Vienna, Austria on July 14-15 on an official visit at the invitation
of the Federal Interior Minister of the country Liese Prokop.

During the meeting, the Ministers highly valued the developing
cooperation between the two countries interiors, and discussed
strategic directions of its further expanding. Mrs. Prokop invited
his Azerbaijani counterpart to attend the European Union ministerial
conference expected in Vienna in 2006. The Ministers also signed the
Agreement On police cooperation. Minister Usubov invited his Austrian
colleague to pay a visit to Azerbaijan.

During the visit, the Interior Minister of Azerbaijan also met with
other Austrian officials to inform them on legal reforms implemented
in Azerbaijan, democratic development in the country, and touched
upon the Armenia-Azerbaijan, Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. He also had
a conversation with Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations,
Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime and
Director-General of the United Nations Office in Vienna Antonio Maria
Costa, on way of further strengthening cooperation between Azerbaijan
and UN in global fight agaists intenational crime. “It is important
for Azerbaijan that the United Nations is represented at a high
level at the 40th Session of the UN Sub-Commission on the Struggle
Against Illicit Drugs & Drug Trafficking in the Near & Middle East,
to be held in Baku on September 12-16,” said Ramil Usubov, handed
over the letter of invitation to attend the event Mr. Costa.

UK AMBASSADOR TO ARMENIA GRATEFUL TO ARMENIAN PEOPLE FOR SUPPORT

PanArmenian News Network
July 18 2005

18.07.2005 07:03

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The British Ambassador and the staff of the British
Embassy in Yerevan thanked all those who have sent messages of
sympathy and support following the bombings in London on 7 July. In
response to the letter which President Kocharian sent to British
Prime Minister Tony Blair on the day of the bombings, the Ambassador
on Friday sent the President the following letter: “Your Excellency.
I should like to thank you sincerely for your warm and timely message
of sympathy to the Prime Minister following the bombing in London on
7 July. This is a sad time for all of us. Our thoughts and prayers
are with the victims and their families. But we deeply appreciate the
fact that our friends share our sense of loss and outrage at this
cowardly attack. We have been moved by the sympathy and kindness of
Armenians of all walks of life, including those who left flowers and
candles anonymously in front of the Embassy last week. Your support
means a great deal to us in these troubled times. Thank you again.~T

Today, Azerbaijan
July 16 2005

Azeri deputy transport minister: ?Armenia is not in transport
blockade?

15 July 2005 [09:44] – Today.Az

“Armenia is not in transport blockade,” Musa Panahov, the Deputy
Azerbaijani Transport Minister, told Trend on Thursday.

“Unless Armenia was in blockade, it would be unable to receive
cargo. Armenia receives necessary cargo via Georgia and Iran. So,
Armenia’s claims on its location in the transport blockade do not
meet the reality,” he noted.

As to the Sukhumi-Tbilisi-Yerevan route, it is only an idea. “This is
not the first year it is put forward, while the project remains to
an idea in connection with the unsettlement of political problems,”
the Deputy Minister underlined.

Panahov regarded the project as non-perspective, as the
Sukhumi-Tbilisi-Yerevan route was used during the Soviet period for
the passenger transportation. “However, the profile of routes did not
allow delivering goods via the route, which makes it unattractive,”
he underlined.

THE BLOC STILL THINKING

A1+
15-07-2005

Today the Justice bloc was discussing for 4 hours to say “no” to
the revised draft Constitution now or later. No common solution
was found, and the session decided that the Republican Party will
make an announcement saying “No” to the Constitution, and the other
members of the bloc, including Shavarsh Kocharyan, will make a similar
announcement later, and there will be only strategic differences.

The “constructive” part of the bloc thinks they must say “no” but
only after receiving and reading the final draft.

Member of the Republican Party political council Smbat Ayvazyan
informed that their party is for saying “No” to the Constitution
immediately.

Arshak Sadoyan is against the clause of the Republican Party
announcement which states that whatever the constitutional reforms;
the authorities will do everything for themselves. “I think if there
are radical constitutional changes, which will frame the activity
of the authorities, we will be able to organize fair and transparent
elections and have legitimate authorities”, he said.

Smbat Ayvazyan reminded the Law on “TV and Radio which was considered
positive but with which the TV Company “A1+” was deprived of air.

In one issue all the member parties of the bloc were of the same
opinion, “The authorities have no resources for reforms. This is a
trap for the opposition and an attempt to prove the international
community and the European structures tat in the political filed
of Armenia there is agreement about the reforms. All the parties
are convinced that the authorities will no be able to pass the
Constitution”, said Smbat Ayvazyan.

According to him, the bloc will try once more to show the international
community that the authorities will take n steps as the requirements
they faced have not been met. “It refers to the “A1+”, the organizers
of electoral forgery and many other processes”, noted Mr. Ayvazyan.

representative of the Republican party Gegham Haroutyunyan finds that
“More probably the authorities will change a good constitution than
the latter will be able to change the authorities for the better. In
any case, the population of Armenia will remain chained”.

The session of the Justice bloc decided that the parties can make
separate announcements and send them to the Venice Commission. Today
no final decision was made about the participation in the August 29
special session. The Republican Party is against it, Arshak Sadoyan
is for, and the other members of the bloc are still undecided.

MEETING OF THE MINSK GROUP CO-CHAIRS IN YEREVAN

A1+
15-07-2005

Today Robert Kocharyan received the Minsk group co-chairs Yuriy
Merzlyakov (Russian Federation), Steven Mann (United States of
America), and Bernard Fassier (France) who are in Armenia on a
regional visit. The personal representative of the OSCE
Chairman-in-Office Andrzey Kaspzyk also participated in the meeting.

Issues about the present stage of the settlement of the Karabakh
conflict have been discussed. The co-chairs have informed Robert
Kocharyan about the meetings in Baku and Stepanakert.

The Armenian Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanyan has also met with the
OSCE Minsk group co-chairs. The meeting was held in a business
atmosphere. The sides exchanged thoughts about the issues negotiated
within the framework of the «Prague process» about the settlement of
the Karabakh conflict.

The co-chairs represented the results of the meetings in Baku and
Stepanakert. Commenting on them, Vardan Oskanyan represented the
approaches of the Armenian side about the raised issues.

–Boundary_(ID_LsHwcrzb1PM7U8po1Lk5Ag)–

System of a Down singer fails to buy NZ beach property

The New Zealand Herald
04.07.05

By Louisa Cleave

The singer of American band System of a Down has failed in his bid to
buy a west coast beach property and develop a recording studio.

Serj Tankian planned to pay $890,000 for the 13.6ha property at Bethells
Beach but his application was refused by the Overseas Investment Commission.

The metal band played at New Zealand’s Big Day Out in 2002 and their
latest album, Mesmerize, entered the charts at number one here last month.

The Kokako Rd property is mostly bush covered but has an existing home
where Tankian proposed to incorporate an acoustic recording studio. He
would have lived in New Zealand “in the medium term”, according to a
proposal to the commission.

Tankian, the owner of Serjical Strike Records, wanted to identify local
musicians to record demos, and then seek recording deals for them in the
US, the commission said. He intended to rent out the studio but also use
it for personal projects.

The plan was rejected because it was not considered to be in the
national interest.

PanArmenian News
July 13 2005

USA TO DONATE $2 MILLION TO ARMENIAN LAW-ENFORCEMENT

13.07.2005 03:53

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ On July 13, 2005 US Ambassador to Armenia John
Evans and Armenian Prosecutor General Aghvan Hovsepian will sign the
Protocol on Amendment to the Letter of Agreement on Narcotics Control
and Law Enforcement between the Government of the United States of
America and the Government of Armenia. Under this amendment, the US
Government will provide $2,411,000.00 to the Government of Armenia
for six projects. These projects will include regional law
enforcement computer network development, law enforcement academy
development, counter-trafficking in persons assistance, Border Guard
and Customs regional training facilities development, criminal law
reform program, and legal socialization program. Since the signing of
the original Letter of Agreement on June 11, 2001, the Government of
the United States has provided over $5 million for law enforcement
assistance in Armenia. Some of the projects completed or nearing
completion include installing computer classrooms and other classroom
equipment in the Police Academy, Police Training Center and the
Procuracy Training Center; providing computer equipment to the
Anti-Trafficking offices at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the
Procuracy, and the Forensic Lab; and providing evidence collection
equipment to the police, the Police Academy and the Forensic Lab. The
US Embassy remains committed to working with the Government of
Armenia to help modernize the criminal justice system in Armenia, IA
Regnum reported.

PanArmenian News Network, Armenia
July 12 2005

SOLUTION OF KARABAKH CONFLICT `ALMOST FOUND’

12.07.2005 03:45

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The conflicting parties have already agreed on the key
points of a peace deal that could be formalized as early as this year or at
the beginning of next, a high-level source told RFE/RL. According to the
source, the current state of the talks `is very similar to the Key West
phase of the settlement (April 2001), when everyone thought accord is
reached and the problem will be solved soon.’ In the words of the source, a
similar state may be formed at the Kazan meeting of the Presidents of
Armenia and Azerbaijan in August. There FMs of the two countries, as well as
Presidents R. Kocharian and I. Aliyev will discuss the text of the agreement
on settlement of the conflict. According to the source, A referendum to be
held within 10 to 15 years from the signing of a peace agreement will form
the basis of the peace process and will allow the Nagorno Karabakh people to
decide Karabakh fate on their own. `The option of a referendum was already
proposed a few months ago, however the matter concerned a referendum both in
Azerbaijan and NK, and now the matter concerns a referendum to be held only
in NKR. At that Azerbaijan will de facto recognize the status of Nagorno
Karabakh, i.e. the right for self-determination. Lachin will remain under
control of Karabakh. As of the Azeri lands controlled by Armenia, these are
returned to Azerbaijan in exchange for agreement to hold a referendum,’ the
source stated, adding that in the course of the referendum `the Karabakh
people should decide their status, i.e. join Armenia, remain within
Azerbaijan or become independent.’ Security guarantees were spoken about
much – the source continued, – Armenian and Azeri diplomats, as well as
international mediators have announced that international peacekeeping
forces will be present in the conflict zone. However, it is not specified
which forces these will be. `Azerbaijan has always come against Russian
peacekeepers, and Armenia was against Turkish ones,’ he said. As reported by
diplomatic sources, the matter is almost solved, i.e. the forces should not
represent an OSCE MG member country. This fits both the interests of
Azerbaijan and Armenia, as Russia and Turkey are part of the OSCE MG. The
source also reported that the `stepwise-package’ format includes the
Armenian-Turkish relations as well, specifically the issue of opening of the
Armenian-Turkish border. Upon the signing of the accord Turkey will open its
border with Armenia, Azerbaijan will lift the blockade of communication
routes. As reported by the same source, the conflict solution is `almost
found.’ Already in early June a supreme White House official stated `there
is notable progress in peaceful settlement of the NK conflict,’ Regnum news
agency reported.