Feast of the Universal Church of Holy Etchmiadzin
11.06.2023
On June 11, the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church celebrated the Feast of the Universal Church of Holy Etchmiadzin.
On the occasion of the sacred day, the Brotherhood of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, under the leadership of His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; attended the Divine Liturgy in the St. Gayane Monastery.
Attending the Divine Liturgy were Diocesan Primates who arrived at the Mother See, Bishops serving in various structures of Holy Etchmiadzin, participants of the Brotherhood Conference and many Armenian pilgrims.
The Celebrant was His Grace Bishops Moushegh Babayan, Grand Sacristan of the Mother See.
His Eminence Archbishop Sahak Mashalyan, Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople conveyed remarks on the sacrament on the day. Reflecting on the sacrament of the day, the Patriarch stated in part: "How is Etchmiadzin important for us? Holy Etchmiadzin is not just a temple for us, but an idea, one of the most powerful realities uniting our nation, a promise and a vision for us. This area, Vagharshapat, became Holy Etchmiadzin for us by God's will and mercy.
God gave us the Armenian Holy Week, which begins with the martyrdom of the St. Hripsime and her Companions and ends on Saturday, the feast of St. Gregory the Illuminator's "coming out of the pit", from the event of the Christianization of Armenian statehood to the vision of St. Gregory the Illuminator. So, it is this Holy Week that has left unforgettable traces in the history of our nation. God embodied his idea in the Holy Etchmiadzin Cathedral, and our ancestors passed this sacrament on to the new generations, and it is thanks to this that we are one nation."
The Patriarch urged the faithful to always keep Armenian sanctities alive in their memory, to live and be strengthened by the sacrament of Holy Etchmiadzin.
At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, under the leadership of the Catholicos of All Armenians a Eepublican Prayer was hold. The faithful people and the clergymen offered a prayer to God for the brightness of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, steadfastness and perpetuation of its sacred mission.
