July 28

TOP STORY   

Meet the Descendants of Armenia’s Patron Saint

The story of Armenia’s conversion to Christianity is often told as a tale of individual heroism and holiness: of great, exemplary figures who embraced their faith in Jesus Christ, suffered in his name, and laid the spiritual foundations for the world’s first Christian nation. Certainly, the names associated with the events of A.D. 301—Drtad and Ashkhen, Hripsime and Gayane, and above all St. Gregory the Illuminator—testify to the way a few, remarkable individuals changed the course of our nation’s history at a single, critical moment in time.

But from another perspective, Armenia’s Christian conversion can also be seen as the work of generations, involving successive waves of people facing their own trials, and inscribing their own achievements into the historical record. The mission that St. Gregory began 17 centuries ago was not completed by him, but was carried forward by his descendants—and by all those who succeeded that great founding generation.

The calendar of the Armenian Church reminds us of the “generational” character of that mission through the feast day dedicated to “The Sons and Grandsons of St. Gregory.” It singles out four members of the Illuminator’s family—his two sons Sts. Arisdagés and Vrtanés, and his grandsons Sts. Krikoris and Husig—and assigns them a special commemoration on the Saturday before the Third Sunday of Transfiguration. This year, the feast falls on Saturday, July 29.

In this last of several sacred observances dedicated to Armenia’s patron saint, we learn how the Illuminator’s family continued his missionary work among the Armenian people, helping to cement the nation’s Christian identity. It reminds us that Armenia’s embrace of Christ is an ongoing story, which connects every generation. In the deepest sense, the faithful of today are part of the same “family saga”: the remote descendants of those heroes of old, carrying the Light of Christ forward into the world.

Click on the following link to learn about the Sons and Grandsons of St. Gregory.

July 30, 2023

Morning Service 

10:00 AM

Holy Badarak 

10:30 AM

Celebrant

Rev. Fr. Hovsep Karapetyan

Usher

Mr. Garbis Chubukian

Parish Council Members on Duty

Mr. John Asadoorian

Choir

Mrs. Edita Kalayjian

Organist

Mrs. Karine Muradyan

Bible Readings: 

Isaiah 5:1-10; 

1 Corinthians 6:18-7:11;

Matthew 19:3-12

For the Soul of:

 Mrs. Ojen Sivasli

Requested by:

 Sivaslian, Koseian, Beckam, and Kulp families

For the Souls of:

 Mr. Horen Kose

Requested by:

 Koseian and Beckam families

The Hospitality Table is hosted by:

Sivaslian, Koseian, Beckam, and Kulp families

Flowers are donated by:

Anna Seferian

 To request a Hokehankist/Requiem Service 

Please contact the Church Office

by 12:00 Noon on Thursday

202-363-1923

or Click here to see the form

Prayer of the Week

My soul is always in your hands, and I place my hope in your Holy Cross, O Heavenly King. May the multitude of your saints intercede on my behalf.

You who are patient with everyone, do not neglect me who trusts in you but keep me in peace with your precious and Holy Cross.

Lord, please keep watch over your faithful people and the holy soil of Artsakh and Armenia, now and always. Foil every aggressor against our homeland. Defend the innocent and voiceless, Lord. Deliver the world from every conflict, and bestow your peace on all mankind. Amen.

Sunday, August 13, 2023

Morning Service 10:00 AM

Divine Liturgy 10:30 AM

Following the Church Service

Please join us for the

Picnic Style Celebration with Mediterranean Menu, Games & More.

Place your order by August 1st.

Meet our 2023 Parish Council Officers:

 President Der Hovsep Karapetyan

Chair Shoghig Sahakyan

 Vice-Chair John Asadoorian

 Recording Secretary Svetlana Hovhanissyan; 

Corresponding Secretary Shahnur Bostan;

 Treasurer Jack Guiragossian

 Assistant Treasurer Catherine Sahakian;

 Member Vazrik Nishanian

Member Sean McCLure

 Member Ohannes Sivaslian

Volunteer Corner

We extend our utmost appreciation to Anna Seferian for taking the initiative to offer altar flowers throughout the year. We welcome any parishioner who would like to adorn the church’s altar with flowers be it from their own garden or from a flower shop. 

There are many ways we could serve our church and community. Please do not hesitate to share your skills and talents with us.

Email the church’s office at stmarychurchdc@gmail.com with your interest and ways you would like to serve.

NEW RECYCLING PROGRAM AT ST. MARY'S



There is now a blue recycling bin in the hall at St. Mary Church. Please only deposit empty plastic bottles and aluminum cans in the container. We are looking for volunteers to sign up about once a month to take the recyclables home with them after church or during the Food Festival. It involves sorting through what's in the clear recycling bag and discarding any trash that might have been put in the bag. Then, you replace the clear bag with one from the box in the kitchen marked "Recycling Bags, Not for Trash". I have created a SignUp Genius link to sign up for a slot. Please see St Mary's Armenian Apostolic Church: St. Mary's Recycling Committee (signupgenius.com). If you have any questions, please email me at rangerrox@msn.com. Thanks for your help in keeping God's good earth cleaner!

Special Appeal - Emergency Funding

Dear Parishioners and Friends,

Recently, during our Spring Food Festival, some of you might have experienced the unusual rise in temperature at St. Mary's Cultural Hall. That was due to the breakdown in 2 of our Air Conditioning units.

The malfunction of our Air Conditioning Units came at a terrible time with summer heat around the corner. Moreover, the $15,000 was unbudgeted for this fiscal year.

We are reaching out to our faithful and loyal supporters to kindly consider helping us raise the much-needed funds. Regardless of the amount, we are grateful for each and everyone's thoughtfulness and participation.

May God bless you all abundantly.

Prayerfully,

Der Hovsep and St. Mary Parish Council

UPCOMING EVENTS

St. Nersess to Honor 12 Priests and Lay Alumni on Nov. 4



St. Nersess Armenian Seminary will highlight the vocations of 12 alumni priests and lay ministers, with a gala banquet on Saturday, November 4, 2023.

This will be the second in a series of tribute events featuring alumni of St. Nersess who serve the Armenian Church in various capacities. The first celebration took place in November 2021 and established the “12 Vocations” theme. The upcoming event will build on that idea, under the title: “12 Vocations: Broadening the Call.”

This year, the event will honor a seminary graduate who became a hierarch of the Armenian Church: Archbishop Avak Asadourian (priestly ordination in 1977, episcopal consecration in 1982), who recently retired after a long tenure as Primate of the Diocese of Iraq.

He will be honored along with seven clergymen and four lay ministers—listed here by ordination or graduation date: Fr. Krikor Sabounjian (ordained 1998); Fr. Sarkis Petoyan (ordained 1998); Fr. Abraham Ohanessian (ordained 1999); Fr. Mikael Devejian (ordained 2000); Fr. Hovsep Karapetyan (ordained 2004); Fr. Aren Jebejian (ordained 2004); Fr. Bedros Kadehjian (ordained 2005); Mka. Valerie Goekjian Zahirsky (graduated 1974); Yn. Sirarpi Feredjian Aivazian (graduated 1978); Nancy Basmajian (graduated 1979); and Shaké Ajamian Derderian (graduated 1989).

Invitations and further details on the November 4 banquet will be coming soon. Contact event co-chair Lynn Beylerian at lynnbeylerian@gmail.com or access the seminary website: www.stnersess.edu. 

Armenia by Armen Sayar

Shushi, Artsakh

Dear Parishioners and Friends!

We want to introduce the Armenian Artists Project to you!

The Armenian Artists Project (AAP) is a non-profit organization founded in San Diego, CA, USA in 2018. The AAP operates an online art gallery to support Armenian artists living and working in the Motherland by providing a platform to exhibit, promote and sell wonderful pieces of Armenian art to a wide international market.

Featuring vivid colors, inspired by Armenian motives, original art pieces will make your space look magnificent. 

Special Gift for St. Mary Gift Shop

St. Mary gift shop is offering limited numbers of imported bottles of medieval Armenian health elixirs formulated from ancient manuscripts deciphered at the Matendaran Museum of Ancient Armenian Manuscripts. These elixirs are made in Armenia by Armen Sahakyan, a pharmacologist and botanical scholar who has been working at the Matenadaran Museum for the last several decades. A trained medical doctor ordained a deacon in 1997, Sahakyan has dedicated his life to the maintenance of Armenia’s sacred botanical traditions.

The three different batches available at our gift shop (Royal Elixir, Arates Elixir and Arates Tonic) are made from a codified recipe of medieval Armenian medicine, using a special distillation process. They contain medicinal and aromatic plants, known for their healing properties. Through the distillation and aging process alcohol is created, so think of them as perhaps Armenia’s first (healthy) cognac! 

The supplies are limited and each bottle is numbered, including the batch and year of production. All of the bottles were donated to St Mary Church, so 100% of the proceeds will go to the St Mary Endowment Fund, with a portion also going to support Armenian clergy serving in Artsakh.

"Embrace the Future" Endowment Fund

Dear Parishioners and Friends, 

This year we celebrate the 90th Anniversary of the St. Mary Community and Church with the launch of the new "Embrace the Future" Endowment Fund to help ensure our church has the resources needed to continue serving our beloved community.  

Just as you plan for your future and that of your family, please join us in planning for the future of St. Mary Church. 

We are asking for your support so that St. Mary will be able to continue to fulfill her mission for future generations.  

The link below lists various opportunities for you to make a meaningful gift of lasting significance that will help support our church's long-term security, visibility, and vitality. Please consider making either a one-time gift or pledge, which would allow you to make payments over a five-year period.

Join St. Mary's Prayer Group

We are initiating a new form of ministry at St. Mary Armenian Church. For parishioners who would like to make an electronic prayer request, they can do so by Clicking Here

A group of volunteers will receive the request and pray at their earliest convenience. Additionally, a new physical prayer request box will be placed at the entrance of St. Mary Armenian Church with blank forms that anyone can fill out and drop in the box. These requests will be retrieved weekly and delivered to the members of the volunteer prayer group. If you would like to become one of the volunteers of the Prayer Group please email us. 

Please click on the link below to present your request. 

HELP NEEDED

Armenian Speaking Caregivers are needed. For information, please contact the church office at 202-363-1923 or stmarychurchdc@gmail.com.

Buy a Brick and Leave Your Legacy at

St. Mary Armenian Apostolic Church

Bricks can be ordered and purchased by clicking below and

filling out a simple online order form.

You can choose to have a 4" x 8" brick

which includes your preselected

3 lines of 20 characters per line of text.

Or you can choose to have the

Armenian Cross artwork on the 4" x 8" brick

which includes your preselected

3 lines of 15 characters per line of text.

Order Today While Quantities Last!

Payment can be made with PayPal or a Credit Card.

Legacy Brick Donations are Tax Deductible.

DIOCESAN & OTHER NEWS

Join the Eastern Diocese on a Pilgrimage to Armenia!

This September, the Eastern Diocese will lead a pilgrimage to Armenia, to witness the historic events scheduled to take place at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin. These include the Blessing of the Holy Muron, and the re-opening of the Mother Cathedral after an extensive restoration process.

Pilgrims will also bear witness as our Primate, Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan, is consecrated as a bishop of the church, by the hand of His Holiness Karekin II, the Catholicos of All Armenians.

The trip—which runs September 27 to October 10—also visits spiritual and cultural sites of our homeland, including Khor Virab, the Genocide Memorial, Noravank, Lake Sevan, Dilijan, Garni, Geghard, and Haghpat.

Click here to view a flyer with further details. The deadline to register is June 25. For information, contact Sima Tours at simatours@gmail.com, or (610) 359-7521.

FAR NEWS

FAR’s GTech Launches Vanadzor Engineering Education Center

With the opening of its Vanadzor Engineering Education Center, the Fund for Armenian Relief (FAR) has made a great advance in empowering young students in Armenia who are aiming at careers in science and technology.

The new center—part of FAR’s GTech school—provides an avenue to higher education in Artificial Intelligence and IT for young people in Armenia’s third-largest city. Tuition is absolutely free, making it accessible to all.

The center welcomed its first summer class of 44 high school students . Their curriculum will span two years, covering mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, and AI. As a result, before they even enter a university, these students will have learned to create, design, and develop products highly demanded by the military and tech fields.

To learn more about how FAR provides opportunities for young Armenians—and to support its ongoing efforts—click here.

Ayo is the crowdfunding platform of Fund for Armenian Relief, the social arm of the Eastern Diocese. We’re passionate about partnering with Armenians all over the world to promote sustainable development through low-budget, big-impact projects.

This summer, Ayo! is partnering with GOALS (Girls of Armenia Leadership in Sports) to organize a sports camp for kids aged 11-17. It will intertwine learning and fun through games, promoting positive values such as teamwork, leadership, respect, and gender equality. 

The camp will be held in the rural Shirak region for 70 boys and girls from surrounding villages. In addition to soccer, basketball, and tennis, lacrosse will be introduced this year!

It costs $125 to sponsor one village child’s unforgettable week of camp.

Get involved!

• Donate tax-deductible through Ayo’s website here:

www.weareayo.org/donate

• One day of camp, including meals, costs $25/month

Click Here to DONATE!

We’re turning 10 this year!

With the support of Hilton, we’re organizing a special all-expenses paid trip to Armenia for one lucky person (chosen at random).

Enter here!

August 13 Feast of the Assumption of the Holy Mother- of- God (Picnic)

August 27 First Day of Shnorhali School

September 17 Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross

October 1        Feast of Holy Cross of Varak

October 6-7-8 Fall Food Festival

October 29      Feast of the Discovery of the Holy Cross

November 21 Presentation of the Holy Mother-of-God to the Temple

December 9     Feast of the Conception of the Holy Virgin Mary

3 Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?"4 "Haven't you read," he replied, "that at the beginning the Creator 'made them male and female,' 5 and said, 'For this reason, a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh'? 6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, let no one separate."7 "Why then," they asked, "did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?"8 Jesus replied, "Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. 9 I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another woman commits adultery."10 The disciples said to him, "If this is the situation between a husband and wife, it is better not to marry."11 Jesus replied, "Not everyone can accept this word, but only those to whom it has been given. 12 For there are eunuchs who were born that way, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others-and there are those who choose to live like eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. The one who can accept this should accept it."

(Mathew 19:3-12)

3 Եւ փարիսեցիները, մօտենալով նրան, փորձեցին եւ ասացին. «Օրինաւո°ր է, որ մէկն իր կնոջը արձակի ամէն մի յանցանքի պատճառով»: 4 Նա պատասխանեց նրանց եւ ասաց. «Դուք չէ°ք կարդացել, թէ նա, ով սկզբից ստեղծեց, արու եւ էգ արեց նրանց եւ ասաց. 5 դրա համար տղամարդը պիտի թողնի հօրը եւ մօրը ու պիտի գնայ իր կնոջ յետեւից. եւ երկուսը մէկ մարմին պիտի լինեն: 6 Ապա ուրեմն` ոչ թէ երկու, այլ մէկ մարմին են: Արդ, ինչ որ Աստուած միացրեց, մարդը թող չբաժանի»: 7 Նրան ասացին. «Իսկ Մովսէսը ինչո°ւ մեզ պատուիրեց ապահարզանի թուղթ տալ ու արձակել»: 8 Յիսուս նրանց ասաց. «Մովսէսը ձեր խստասրտութեան պատճառով ձեզ թոյլ տուեց արձակել ձեր կանանց, բայց սկզբից այդպէս չի եղել: 9 Սակայն ասում եմ ձեզ, թէ ով իր կնոջն արձակում է, եւ դա պոռնկութեան պատճառով չէ, եւ ուրիշին է առնում, շնանում է. շնանում է եւ նա, ով արձակուածին է առնում»: 10 Իր աշակերտները նրան ասացին. «Եթէ այդպիսին է պարագան մարդու եւ կնոջ համար, լաւ է չամուսնանալ»: 11 Եւ նա նրանց ասաց. «Բոլորն ընդունակ չեն այդ բանին, այլ` նրանք, որոնց տրուած է. 12 որովհետեւ կան ներքինիներ, որոնք իրենց մօր որովայնից այդպէս են ծնուել. կան ներքինիներ էլ, որոնք մարդկանց կողմից են ներքինի դարձել. ներքինիներ էլ կան, որոնք երկնքի արքայութեան համար իրենք իրենց ներքինիներ են դարձրել. ով կարող է տանել, թող տանի»:

(Մատթեոս 19:3-12)