St. Nersess Seminary Pilgrimage to Armenia Offers Spiritual Discovery

Editor's Note: Last summer, 11 young church loving  sub-deacons, tbirs, acolytes and altar servers who had previously indicated an interest in studying one day at St. Nersess Armenian Seminary in New Rochelle, N.Y., experienced a rare spiritual journey. Fr. Daniel Findikyan, Dean of the Seminary, along with a generous patron, decided that a pilgrimage to Armenia would be an appropriate and focused opportunity for these young men to discern the Holy Spirit. His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, warmly endorsed the project and invited the pilgrimage to make its home at the Seminary in Holy Etchmiadzin. The following is excerpted from John Aslanian's account of the journey.

Discerning the Spirit is a significant emotional and spiritual endeavor, and not simply a philosophical euphemism for vocational or career-determining activity. With a working knowledge of the Holy Badarak and its music, rituals and execution, along with a healthy knowledge of the language, our pilgrims were well equipped to see, to be engaged, to perform and to gauge the presence of the Holy Spirit in their process of discernment.

After a stop in Vienna, where we received a guided tour of the Mekhitarist Brotherhood, a late night flight to Yerevan brought a tired-but-excited group of Armenian American youth to our spiritual and ancestral home. We settled into the dormitory of the Brotherhood of Etchmiadzin, where we lived and dined among the resident clergy and seminarians.

Each morning and evening, we attended Vespers or Morning Prayer at Holy Etchmiadzin Cathedral. Watching and hearing our Armenian seminarian hosts in their daily prayer services added new dimension and depth to our collective understanding of the Divine Liturgy. And as we got to know the seminarians better the dialogue and discussions became increasingly vibrant.

The Vehapar was instrumental in arranging visits to virtually every significant monastery, church, historic site, museum and monument in Armenia and Karabagh. We saw, touched and were touched by the centuries of Armenian history. We were warmly greeted by Bishops and Hayr Soorps; we learned the meaning of hyourasiroutyoun; we heard about ancient battles and how contemporary invaders inflicted pain and suffering on our church, our people and our homeland. We also heard from those who were challenged...who suffered and endured...who kept the faith and helped to pass it on.

We visited the Vazkenian Seminary at Lake Sevan, spending a full day with the seminarians and discussed, debated, exchanged...on theological as well as secular issues. We also had the opportunity to break out into small group sessions where we were able to engage seminary staff, faculty as well as students in rich dialogue--in Armenian and English. We sang and swam at Lake Sevan with newfound brothers. We all learned and discerned further.

Vehapar met with us several times, and speaking to us in both Armenian and English, he insisted on hearing our collective thoughts, questions, comments and concerns. It went well beyond the cursory and superficial. The questions were focused, germane and articulate and the answers were equally direct and without any sense of guile or holding back. Each pilgrim asked sensitive and intelligent questions relating to the many facets of the state of the Armenian Church in Armenia as well as the Diaspora. And quite quickly, it became obvious that the Vehapar was impressed with the depth and character of our youthful group of Pilgrims. He insisted we return.

After the intensive two-week pilgrimage, it seems inevitable that our pilgrims will remember, recollect, reflect and reinforce their faith.