The Eastern Prelacy clergy met on Wednesday, May 17, at Sts. Vartanantz Church of Providence, Rhode Island, on the eve of the National Representative Assembly, to elect delegates in the course of a meeting mostly devoted to the legacy of St. Nerses Shnorhali, one of the Fathers of the Armenian Church, on the 850th anniversary of his death.
Very Rev. Fr. Ardag Arabian and Rev. Fr. Samuel Ajemian were elected chairman and secretary of the meeting. Very Rev. Fr. Sahag Yemishian, Vicar, read a message from His Holiness Catholicos Aram I urging the clergy to hold fast to the precepts of the Christian faith and the Armenian Church in these times of spiritual and moral turmoil while being understanding of the societal changes. The Catholicos also called on the priests to extol the teachings of Shnorhali.
His Eminence Archbishop Anoushavan, Prelate, offered a modern reading of Shnorhali’s “Encyclical Letter,” with insights into the Church Father’s timeless wisdom.
Archbishop Anoushavan’s talk was followed by a presentation by Archpriest Fr. Stepan Baljian, who discussed Shnorhali’s enormous contributions to the Armenian liturgical tradition.
The evening closed with an exchange of ideas on pastoral experience, followed by a vespers service.