St. Vartan
Armenian Apostolic
Vol. 1 No. 18 May 18, 2008
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Remembrance of the Prophet Elijah
Last Sunday was
Pentecost, when we celebrated the arrival of the Holy Spirit. The Armenian
Apostolic Church has a five-day fasting period immediately following the Feast
of Pentecost called Elijah’s fast, as it coincides with the feast of Commemoration
of the Prophet Elijah, which is being celebrated today.
Elijah’s fast
ended Saturday, but do we know who is Elijah and why
we are remembering him today? Elijah (in Hebrew), also called Elias (in Greek),
was a prophet of God in the Kingdom of the North, in
In 1st Kings
17:1 Elijah warns the King of Israel Ahab that there will be years of severe
drought, so that not even dew will fall because Ahab and his queen Jezebel have
“done evil in the sight of the Lord.” In
particular, Aheb and Jezebel killed the God’s
prophets and encouraged worship of the local nature deity Baal. Not only did
Ahab allow the worship of a foreign god within the palace, but he built a
temple for Baal and allowed Jezebel to bring a large entourage of priests and
prophets of Baal.
After Prophet
Elijah’s confrontation with Ahab, God tells him to flee to a hiding place by
the brook Cherith, east of the
After more than
two years of drought and famine, God tells Elijah to return to Ahab and announce
the end of the drought. Elijah proposes to test the powers of Baal and Yahweh
(God). The people of
On each a
slaughtered ox is placed with firewood below. Elijah invites the priests of
Baal to pray for fire to light the sacrifice. They pray until evening without
success. Elijah now orders that the altar of Yahweh and its sacrifice be
drenched with 12 barrels of water. He asks God to accept the sacrifice. Fire
falls from the sky, igniting the sacrifice. On each a slaughtered ox is placed
with firewood below. Elijah invites the priests of Baal to pray for fire to
light the sacrifice. They pray until evening without success.
Elijah now
orders that the altar of Yahweh and its sacrifice be drenched with 12 barrels
of water. He asks God to accept the
sacrifice. Fire falls from the sky, igniting the sacrifice.
The people who
witness this immediately begin worshipping Yahweh. Elijah orders the death of
the prophets of Baal. The rains return to
Jezebel is
enraged that Elijah ordered the death of her priests and threatens to kill
Elijah (1st Kings 19:1-13). Elijah flees into the wilderness and prays for
death. He falls asleep under a juniper tree. An angel touches him and tells him
to wake and eat. When he wakes he finds a bit of bread and a jar of water. He
eats and drinks and goes back to sleep. The angel comes a second time and tells
him to eat and drink because he has a long journey ahead of him. Elijah travels
for 40 days and 40 nights to
God again
speaks to Elijah (1st Kings 19:9) Elijah shares his despair and complaints and
is told to go outside the cave and “stand before the Lord.” A terrible wind passes,
a great earthquake shakes the mountain, then a fire passes, but God is not in
any of these. Then a “still small voice” comes to Elijah and asks again, “What
doest thou here, Elijah?” Elijah responds again with his despair and
complaints. God answers by sending him to
Elijah
encounters Ahab again in 1st Kings 21 after Ahab has acquired a vineyard by
murder.
God sends
Elijah to confront Ahab and when he tells Ahab of terrible things to come, Ahab
repents. However, Ahab’s son Ahaziah sends out three
groups of soldiers to arrest Elijah. The first two are destroyed by fire which
Elijah calls down from heaven. The leader of the third group asks for mercy and
Elijah goes with them to Ahaziah.
The Biblical
story of Elijah’s departure is unique. A chariot of fire and horses of fire
appear and Elijah is lifted up to heaven in a whirlwind (2nd Kings2:8). Elijah’s
is also mentioned in Malachi where it is said that Elijah will come again
before “the great and terrible day of the Lord.” This is taken to mean that
Elijah will come before the coming of the Messiah.
May 28 is Independence Day of
Armenia
On
Tell us about graduating
students--high school, university, and college. Call Fr. Hayrik
or email anijan2@gmail.com.
Welcome to St. Vartan
Armenian Church
Welcome to our Soorp Badarak this afternoon. Thank you for taking the time to pray and
worship with us. We believe that you
will feel God’s Spirit and his renewing love among us, as we come together as a
community to give him glory.
Divine Liturgy @
Pentecost -
Daily Scripture
Acts 2:1-21
John 14:25-31
Remembrance of the Prophet Elijah
1 Kings
2Kings 2:1-15
James 5:16-20
Luke 4:25-30
Requiem
services (hokehankist) can be requested for the next
church service by calling Very Rev. Fr. Hayrik Hovhannisyan. A
requiem may be requested following the death of a loved one, 40 days after
their death (karasoonk),the yearly anniversary, name
day, birthday or Father’s/Mother’s Day.
“I tell you the
truth,” he continued, “no prophet is accepted in his
hometown. I assure you that there were many widows in
Meet our pastor
Very Rev. Fr. Hayrik Hovhannisyan
905-916-1886 905-617-7888
stvartan@hotmail.com
Dear Lord,
So far today, I am doing all right. I have not
gossiped, lost my temper, been greedy, grumpy, nasty,
selfish, or self-indulgent. I have not whined, complained, cursed, or eaten any
chocolate. I have charged nothing on my credit card.
But I will be getting out of bed in a minute and I
think that I will really need your help then.
Amen.
Are You On Our Mailing List?
Have you moved
or are you planning a move? The Parish Council needs your help to keep its
mailing list up-to-date. Sign up to receive church news by email. Clipboards
are at the church entrance doors.
Websites to Visit
News Stories and Photos on
St. Vartan’s Website
www.stvartan.ca
On Canadian Diocese Website www.armenianchurch.ca
How true it is that sadness is often the result of our attachments to the
world.
The
There is a
God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every person and it can never be filled by
any created thing. It can only be filled by God, made known though Jesus
Christ.
Blaise Pasal,
17th Century Mathematician
Christian
heroes have demonstrated strong faith and have been the visible love of the
invisible God in the world. In this issue and coming issues, we will look at
some of the saints of the Armenian Church who overcame obstacles and served
God, often sacrificing their lives.
St. Thaddeus or
Tateos (1st century) was one of Jesus’ 12 disciples. Thaddeus
is also known as Jude (Matthew 10:3, John
Outstanding Qualities: Powerful faith, desire to witness and teach,
courage against odds.
Straighten me out, Lord, before I
become an embarrassment to you and everybody else. Amen.
Volunteers Needed for Carassauga 2008
If you would
like to be a volunteer at St. Vartan’s Armenia
Pavilion for Carassauga 2008, please contact
Christine Ermarkaryan at (905) 825-5299 or
cermarkaryan@cogeco.ca or Katie Shahinian
at (905) 785-7626 or cshahinian@sympatico.ca.
Volunteers are always needed for this annual multicultural festival in
the City of
Early passports
$8; $10 at the door
Frank McKechnie Community Centre
·
Marsha Skrypuch
(award-winning author of
·
·
Kef Night 8 p.m. Saturday, May 24
with Hye Fidelity Band featuring Armenian Folk Singer Hrip Atamian, Berdj Artinian, Herag Hamboyan, and background vocals by Nairi
Artinian.
·
Traditional folk songs by Nayiri Armenian Choir of Toronto
·
Traditional Armenian Dance Performances
hourly by Sassoon Armenian Dance Group of
Remember to Turn Off Your Cell Phone
Please turn off
your cell phone when you are at church, out of courtesy for your fellow
faithful and respect for the holiness of the Soorp
Badarak.
The heaviest thing I can carry is a
grudge.
Be Patient and Pray
Sometimes we do
good and it turns out badly. It does not mean we are
to stop doing the right thing. Be
patient and pray faithfully for God to show you what his will is.
People who fulfill their dreams are not merely
lucky; neither are they necessarily the most talented. Rather, they understand the value of perseverance
and determination. They believe that setbacks are simply a means to grow, and
that small failures only pave the way for new insights. They know where
they are going even when others do not and believe in their own dreams when
others doubt. Their vision comes from within - and it is always burning in
their hearts. Lisa Crofton
How Can There be a God so Big?
The more we
think about how BIG God is, the more our poor heads feel dizzy. How can anyone
be so great, so strong, so wise?
It took a big
God to make the oceans, big mountains, big rivers, and big heat-shimmery deserts. It took a big God to make so many stars
that we can’t count them.
It took a big
wise God to make all of the tiny things too. Things like perfect snowflakes
with no two alike. Flowers so small you
have to lie on your stomach to look at them. Shiny fish that
play tag in the oceans, and all the beautiful shells on the beach.
There are lots
of things we don’t understand about God. That’s all right. We can still praise him
for what we do understand. That’s what the prophet Jeremiah did. He wrote: “Lord
and King, you have reached out your great and powerful arm. You have made the
heavens and the earth. Nothing is too hard for you” (Jeremiah 32:17).
Praise God
right now. He’s not too big to bend down and listen to every word!
Who Made God?, Larry Libby, 2002.
A Prayer for Wisdom
Give us your
wisdom, we pray, to do what is just, what is healing, what is needed and what
is your will. By the power of your Holy
Spirit, we ask that you give us discernment and soften our hearts toward one
another and toward you, dear Lord. We
pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Inner Transformation is What Matters Most
The revolution
of Jesus “is a revolution of character, which proceeds by changing people from
the inside through ongoing personal relationship to God in Christ and to one
another. It is one that changes their ideas, beliefs, feelings and habits of
choice, as well as their bodily tendencies and social relations…What matters
most is what we are on the inside, what we become within, our spiritual formation
and transformation. Within are our thoughts, feelings, intentions…the
life we live out wells up from a hidden depth. What is in our heart matters
more than anything else for who we become and what becomes of us…“The hidden
dimension of each human life is not visible to others, nor is it fully
graspable even by ourselves. We usually know very little about the things that
move in our own soul, the deepest level of our life, or what is driving it…only
God knows our depths, who we are, and what we would do.”
Renovation of the Heart – Putting on the Character of Christ,
The Prayer That Never Fails
“Thy will be done.”
Father Tim
looked at him, praying. The man who had controlled some of the biggest
construction jobs in the Southeast and some of the most powerful machinery in
the business couldn’t, at this moment, control the shaking.
“I pulled into
an Arby’s parkin’ lot and
sat in the car and tried to pray. The only thing that came was somethin’ I’d heard all those years (ago) in my
granddaddy’s church.” Buck looked into the fire. “I said, Thy will be done.”
“That’s the
prayer that never fails.”
The clock
ticked.
“He can be for
your life what the foundation is for a building.”
Buck met his
gaze. “I want to do whatever it takes,
Father.”
“In the
beginning, it takes only a simple prayer. Some think it’s too simple, but if
you pray it with your heart, it can change everything. Will you pray it with
me?”
“ don’t know if I can live up
to…whatever.”
“You can’t, of
course. No one can be completely good. The point is to surrender it all to him,
all the garbage, all the possibilities.
All.”
“What will
happen when…I pray this prayer?”
“You mean what
will happen now, tonight, in this room?”
“Yes.”
“Something
extraordinary could happen. Or it could be so subtle, so gradual,
you’ll never know the exact moment He comes in.”
“Right,” said
Buck, whispering.
The rector held
out his hand to a man he’d come to love, and they stood before the fire and
bowed their heads.
“Thank you,
God, for loving me…”
“Thank you,
God…” Buck hesitated and went on, “for loving me.”
“…and for
sending Your Son to die for my sins. I
sincerely repent of my sins, and receive Christ as my personal savior.”
The
superintendent repeated the words slowly, carefully.
“Now, as Your child, I turn my entire life over to You.”
“…as Your child,” said Buck, weeping quietly, “I turn my entire
life over to You.”
“Amen.”
“Amen.”
Out to
Jan Karon, p. 336-7.
No Service June 1
We hope to see
you at our next Soorp Badarak at
On this day, Hayr Hayrik will bless our high
school, college and university grad-uates as they
prepare to take the next step in their life journey.
Then, join us
for a Father’s Day Lunch immediately after Soorp
Badarak.