“GOD BECAME MAN”: CATHOLICOS CELEBRATES NATIVITY AT MOTHER SEE

On Tuesday, January 6, on the Feast of the Holy Nativity and Theophany of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, His Holiness Catholicos Aram I celebrated the Divine Liturgy and the Blessing of Water at the Mother See of the Great House of Cilicia in Antelias, Lebanon. Nora Bayrakdarian, Lebanon’s Minister of Youth and Sports, was in attendance on behalf of President Joseph Aoun. Also in attendance were the staff of the Embassy of the Republic of Armenia and other dignitaries. 

From the altar, His Holiness proclaimed the Holy Nativity of Christ to the daughters and sons of our nation in the Diaspora. “Centuries ago, in the manger of Bethlehem, the greatest mystery of human history took place,” he said. “God became man, so that the man who had grown distant from Him might draw near to Him once again.” Bethlehem became the place of reunion between God and man, the Catholicos added. 

His Holiness then reflected on the mystery of Christ’s Incarnation. “In Bethlehem, the birth of the Son of God became humanity’s rebirth,” he said. “The Incarnation of the Son of God was essential for humanity’s renewal: to liberate the human person from the dominion of sin, to restore within humanity the divine image and likeness, and to lead the human person onto the path of salvation.” 

The Catholicos then quoted the Evangelist: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life” (John 3:16). He also cited the apostles’ exhortation to newly converted Christians: “Put away your old self—its former life, thoughts, and deeds—and become a new person.” Thus, His Holiness stressed, “Bethlehem is the birth of the new person.” 

He then urged the faithful to remain steadfast in their faith. Believing in Christ means embracing the commitment to become a “new person,” by following the truths and values Christ brought into the world. In our times, when lifestyles and practices undermine the true, God-created person, we, as Christians, are called to remain steadfast in our commitment to the mystery and message of Bethlehem. 

His Holiness remarked on his proclamation of 2026 as the “Year of Spiritual Renewal,” saying that “enriching our life with spiritual values means becoming children of the Son of God born in Bethlehem, confessing Him as the Savior of the world and as the one who is our ‘way, truth, and life’ (John 14:6).”

The Catholicos concluded his patriarchal message by offering a prayer to God that “the birth and Theophany of the Son of God may fill the life of our people with heavenly gifts and divine blessing, removing from our life every form of evil and harm, and leading our people toward the heavenly kingdom inaugurated in Christ.”