Lazarus, Martha and Mary lived in the period of the earthly life of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the village of Bethany not far from Jerusalem. Christ had a special feeling of love towards them, and visiting Jerusalem He

stopped at their house. Christ raised Lazarus from the dead, thus making his sisters happy. Martha, the elder sister, was active and hardworking, and Mary, the younger sister, was a very pious woman. After the resurrection of Lazarus, Mary poured perfume on Our Lord's feet and wiped them with her hair. According to tradition, they went to Cyprus and lived there until their deaths.

According to tradition, Captain Lukianos (Longinus the Centurion), a Roman soldier from Cappadocia, witnessed the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ and the wonders that occurred after our Lord's death. Captain Lukianos believed in Christ's doctrine and converted to Christianity. Witnessing the Glorious Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ, he refused to bear false testimony and say  that the Lord's disciples had stolen His Body. He was then beheaded by Pontius Pilate.

Joseph the Godfather, is a descendant of David. He was the earthly father of Jesus Christ and the husband of St. Mary. The Evangelist St. Mathew characterized him as "a man who always did what was right" (Matthew 1:19). When Joseph found out that Mary, to whom he was engaged, was going to have a baby, he privately made plans to break the engagement. While he was thinking about this, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and told him to take Mary as his wife and that they would have a baby through the Holy Spirit. The angel also told Joseph to name the baby Jesus because he would save His people from their sins. Understanding the importance of the mission entrusted to him by God, Joseph protected Mary and took care of her. When Jesus was born and the time came, Joseph performed the ceremony of purification as the Law of Moses commanded, and took the forty-day-old child to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord. And when a threat to the life of baby Jesus arose, Joseph took the child and His mother and escaped to Egypt and only after some time returned with them to Nazareth. St Joseph distinguished himself with his unshaken faith in God. He always tried to honor the Divine Commandments.

St. Joseph of Arimathea was one of the secret disciples of Jesus Christ. He was a rich, honest, pious and fair man waiting for the Kingdom of God. Learning of Our Lord's death on the cross, he daringly went to Pilate and asked for the body of Christ in order to properly bury Him. It is supposed that his tomb is near the tomb of Jesus Christ in Jerusalem in a small chapel belonging to the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

Archbishop Karekin Hovsepian officially designated October as the month for celebrating and embracing Armenian culture in his encyclical "To Our Faithful People and Diocesan Parish Organizations" dated August 14, 1942. In it he introduced the idea to the public and encouraged everyone in the community to participate in this special observance. He emphasized that "culture," broadly understood as literature, language, music and art, has always found a welcoming home in the Armenian Church, alongside the Church's ministry to preach the Gospel of Christ to God's people. Archbishop Hovsepian noted the Church's historic support of Armenian cultural and educational institutions and affirmed that the church itself has been a "school" to the nation, encouraging literacy among the people and broadening their awareness of history and the larger world.

2015 is a year of observance of the 100th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. It is also a year of celebration of the 70th Anniversary of the Consecration of St. James Armenian Church. It will be a year full of community events and services.

You might be aware of THE 100 YEARS, 100 FACTS online project that educates and raises awareness about Armenian history and culture as a way to communicate the 100th Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.

This week we are launching our own THE 70 YEARS, 70 FACTS project with some well-known as lesser known facts about St. James Armenian Church and it's parishioners.

Starting this week and continuing through the entire 2015 "The 70 Years, 70 Facts Project" will publish facts once a week in the E-Bulletin and Sunday Bulletin, as well as on Facebook and Twitter. The number of facts will grow until the 70th and final fact of this collection is published on April 24th, 2015, to mark the centennial of the Armenian Genocide.

 Fact 1

Our building is 120 years old. The sanctuary of St. James Armenian Church was built in 1895 for the Norwegian-Danish congregation.

The Armenian community purchased the building in February 1944 from  Our Savior's Methodist congregation. The original name of the Church was North Shore Armenian Apostolic church. The Church was consecrated on February 26, 1945 by Bishop Tiran Nersoyan (then Dzayragooyn Vartabed) and named St. James, in memory of the late father of Walter Vartan, the gunkahayr (godfather) of the new church.

SATURDAY OCTOBER 25, 2014 (12:00 noon to 8:00 PM)

This event is sponsored and organized by St. James Cultural Committee as part of its Celebrating Our Diaspora initiative. Each year, the Cultural Committee will host a Fall Food Bazaar featuring the cuisine of various corners of the Armenian diaspora. Future years will feature the Turkish, Iraqi, and Iranian Armenian communities. The Fall Food Bazaar is but one taste of celebrating the diversity of our St James parish community.

We cannot stress enough the importance that each organization be present to ensure the coordination and ultimate success of each event and of our year.  Please come prepared with a list of events and dates that your organization is planning for 2015. 

Thank you in advance for your participation and leadership!  

St. James Parish Council

N.B. Dinner will be served and childcare will be provided to ensure full participation.

As needs arise and are brought to the attention of Der Hovhan or the Parish Council, we will need an established list of volunteers whom we may contact to assist these parishioners. 

Volunteering your time and talents will ease the burden of others.  Please contact Debbie DerAsadourian ([email protected] or 847-259-6053), Outreach Coordinator, or sign up in the church hall, if you are able to help.

In Celebration of 

the Armenian Cultural Month

The Cultural Committee of

St. James Armenian Apostolic Church

Invites you to meet

 Renown artist

GAGIK AROUTIUNIAN

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2014

After Divine Liturgy

www.gagikaroutiunian.com

at that time. He will be leading the Bible study from his office.