New Year’s message of His Holiness Karekin II Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians
01.01.2022
Dear Faithful in the Homeland, in Artsakh and the Diaspora,
On the New Year’s Eve, we extend Our Pontifical Blessings, love and best wishes from the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin to you.
We lived a year full of pain and bitterness. The aftermath of the catastrophic War of Artsakh, the complex and disturbing processes occurring around our homeland Armenia and Artsakh, the difficult situation in the country have deprived us of the natural joy of everyday life and New Year.
Nevertheless, we celebrate the New Year with hope and faith, that we will rebuild our patriotic life, and we will make every effort to protect the rights of our people in Artsakh. We are people who believe in the Resurrection of Christ; throughout the centuries, the pain, suffering and death have never defeated us; we have risen with the power of the Lord's Grace, with optimism towards the future. We believe, that with the Mercy of God and the steadfast commitment of our people, we will be able to make the salvation year of 2022 as a year of national and patriotic achievements. The way to the strengthening of Armenia, to the free and secure life of Artsakh, to the prosperity and longevity of our people all over the world, is our unification around a common vision towards the future, as well as the life and deeds anchored on national and spiritual values. For the sake of the Homeland, let us reconsider our course of life; let us get rid of intolerance and hatred, and give up irresponsible, nation-hurting words and deeds; let us be united so that we can experience the Blessed presence of God in our lives again.
With the complicated developments in our region and the challenges facing our country, we cannot succeed in building a strong homeland unless we first restore the atmosphere of trust and our inner peace. With humility and gratitude to the sacred memory of our martyred sons, and by the example of the devotion and love of our heroes towards the homeland and the nation, let us do everything possible for the progress of the country and the state, for the prosperous life of our people. Let us remain strong and steadfast in our zeal to be guided by the national interest, and God will enlarge the harvest of our righteousness (2 Corinthians 9:10).
At this sacred moment of the New Year, we invite all of you to pray together, that with the Blessings of the Most High Lord, our good aspirations in personal, family, national and patriotic life will come true. Let us pray for the Armenian Army, for our soldiers guarding the borders of the Fatherland. Let us pray for all those who celebrate the New Year in their service. Let us pray for the offended, the needy, the sick, our disabled, captive and missing sons, their mourning families. Let us pray for our children living in difficulties in Syria, Lebanon, and Iraq, so that with the support of the Heavenly Lord, they may be able to overcome the problems they face.
Let us ask God to grant peace and security to our homeland Armenia and Artsakh, to our people all over the world, and the whole world.
Now may God, … who has loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good hope as grace; comfort us, keep our hearts firmly in every good word and deed (2 Thessalonians 2:15-16). May the love, Mercy and Blessings of the Lord always be with us all. Happy New Year.
