CELEBRATION MARKS 25TH ANNIVERSARY OF CATHOLICOS’S ELECTION
The Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, in Jounieh, Lebanon, hosted a celebration of the 25th anniversary of His Holiness Catholicos Aram I’s election on Saturday, July 2. Organized by the Armenian Prelacy of Lebanon, the event had originally been scheduled for 2020 but had to be cancelled due to the Covid pandemic.
His Eminence Archbishop Shahe, Prelate of the Armenian Prelacy of Lebanon, noted the accomplishments His Holiness achieved in the quarter of century on the catholicosal throne, saying he has brought years of glory to the Holy See.
The event, attended by dignitaries and representatives of Lebanese churches, included performances by the Shnorhali, Naregatsi and Armash choirs.
At the end of the celebration, His Holiness expressed his gratitude to God for finding him worthy of serving the Armenian Church and people as Catholicos.
On Sunday, July 3, a Pontifical Thanksgiving Prayer on the 27th anniversary of the election of His Holiness Aram I was celebrated during the Divine Liturgy at St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral in the monastery of Antelias. The Divine Liturgy was celebrated by Bishop Magar Ashkarian, head of the Christian Education Department of the Catholicosate. After the Thanksgiving Prayer, Archbishop Shahan Sarkissian, director of the Cilicia Library, delivered the sermon. He highlighted four central aspects of the 27-year “mission of faith” of His Holiness: reactivation of spiritual life; cultural rise; active participation in all-Armenian crucial issues; and promotion of relations at multiple levels.
After the Divine Liturgy, the faithful went in procession to the Catholicos Residence, where the Shnorhali choir offered a medley of patriotic songs. In his heartfelt address, His Holiness hailed the presence of Prelates, brotherhood members, Prelacies representatives, and especially the representatives of the three Armenian political parties, underscoring their role in the organization, reorganization, and flourishing of the Diaspora, along with the Catholicosate. The Catholicos noted that the Catholicosate renews its service and mission in this occasion, asking God’s protection for Armenia, Artsakh, the Armenian Church, the Catholicosate, and our entire nation.