The Catholicos of All Armenians Arrived in Moscow - Armenian Painters' Exhibition at the "Ark" Museum
15.05.2017
On May 15, His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; arrived in Moscow with members of the Supreme Spiritual Council. From May 16 to 18, the regular Supreme Spiritual Council meeting will be held, at the invitation of His Eminence Archbishop Yezras Nersisyan, Primate of the Armenian Diocese of Russia and New Nakhijevan; and His Holiness and the Council will attend events dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the establishment of the Diocese.
The Catholicos of All Armenian and his delegation were greeted at the Sheremetyevo Airport by His Eminence Yexras Nersisyan; Mr. Vardan Toghanyan, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Armenia and representatives of Diocesan organizations and Armenian community.
The Pontifical retinue travelled to the Diocessan Headquarters in Moscow, where His Holiness Karekin II, accompanied by the Supreme Council members and representatives of the Diocesan clergy visited the Holy Transfiguration Cathedral.
In the afternoon, His Holiness Karekin II attended the opening ceremony of an exhibition of works by famous Armenian artists, dedicated to the 300th anniversary of the founding of the Diocese. The exhibition was held in the Ark Museum. The exhibition presents 23 paintings and 4 sculptures of famous Armenian artists donated to the Diocese by various Armenian benefactors.
The opening ceremony was attended by members of the Supreme Spiritual Council; spiritual servants of the Diocese; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Armenia; and representatives of the Armenian community in Moscow, as well as Mr. Sergey Stepashin, Chairman of the Imperial Orthodox Palestinian Society; Professor and public figure Leonid Roshal, and Mr. Alexey Levykin, Director of the State Museum of History and Russian art figures.
The ceremony began with opening remarks by Archbishop Yezras. His Eminence expressed his joy on the visit of His Holiness to Moscow, which coincided with the anniversary of the diocese. Reflecting on the exhibition, Archbishop Yezras expressed gratitude to all those who continue to bring their contribution to the development of national-spiritual life, as well as those that always support the Armenian people and Armenia.
The Catholicos of All Armenians spoke and conveyed his blessings to all attendees. “We praise and give thanks to God that our children living in Russia, through the caring leadership of our Apostolic Holy Church, maintain their commitment to our values and holy and sacred traditions of our ancestors. With the blessings of Almighty God, the Diocese succesfully expands the scope of its activities, and along with religious informational mission, serves for the development of Armenian culture, the patriotic education of our younger generation, and strengthening of national and religious identity of the Armenians.
We are pleased to be in the Ark Museum of the cathedral complex in Moscow for the first time with the members of the Supreme Spiritual Council, and become familiar with the valuable spiritual-cultural exhibits - our sacred relics from the past, each of which zealously tells a separate story of our nation's creative spirit, bright faith, dedication to culture, science and education. Since its opening, the Museum has become an important cultural center in the life of Russian – Armenians, which through its mission, strongly contributes to the maintaining of a national consciousness in the souls of pious Armenians, a connection to our culture and our deepest roots.
Today, dear friends, the Museum presents valuable works of Armenian fine arts to Armenians and foreigners - famous paintings of Ivan Aivazovsky, Martiros Saryan, Yeghishe Tadevosyan, Gevork Bashindjaghian, Minas Avetisyan and other great artisits, who at various times were a part of the Armenian Diocese of New Nakhijevan and Russia through the benefaction of Armenian donor”, stated His Holiness in part. He conveyed his blessings and appreciation to His Eminence Archbishop Yezras Nersisyan, Primate of the Armenian Diocese of Russia and New Nakhijevan; Diocesan Council members; honorable patrons of the art work, and the Ark Museum staff.
His Holiness expressed his wish that Almighty God bless and grace everyone, granting further success in their patriotic and church activities for the vibrancy of the Armenian Church and welfare of her faithful people. The Catholicos of All Armenians also asked the Almighty to bless and strengthen the centuries-old friendship between the two peoples, and the effective cooperation between Russia and Armenia.
Mr. Sergey Stepashin, Chairman of the Imperial Orthodox Palestinian Society, gave remarks, expressing joy on the occasion of the opening of the exhibition. He referred to the lively national-religious life of the Armenian community in Russia and spoke about the support of the two churches.
Mr. Alexey Levykin, Director of the State Museum of History also welcomed the exhibition. Stressing the importance of the opening of the exhibition, Mr. Levykin noted with confidence that it will enrich the cultural life of Moscow. In his remarks, he reflected on the centuries-old Armenian-Russian relations, stressing the important role of Armenians in the development and strengthening of Russian statehood during its history.
At the conclusion, Mr. Tigran Manasyan, Chairman of the museum; expressed his gratitude to His Holiness and the guests. Presenting the mission of the museum, he noted that the museum's name indicates that it will contribute to the spiritual, cultural and historical preservation of the cherished values and mutual enrichment of culture of Armenian and Russian people. He added that for the Armenians living away from homeland the Church complex, with its various institutions has become not only a spiritual center, but also a national and cultural center.
The ceremony ended with the Pontifical "Protector" prayer.
