Return to the basics of Christianity

In his remarks to the delegates Friday morning, the Primate said he hoped the delegates would be “inspired by the Holy Spirit, and become truly unified in our efforts for this coming year.”

He spoke about the importance of building the future by strengthening the faith of young Armenians. To do so, he said, the Diocese was continuing its focus on building one sense of common spirit between home and church.

“We need to see more young men and women take an active part in the life of our church,” he said. “This is why we are continuing our work this year on the theme ‘Church and Home: One in Spirit,’ going deeper in the issue of home because this is where our children begin to learn and learn most. The home is the extension of the church.”

Speaking about the recent sociological study conducted throughout the Diocese, the Primate remarked that he has been thinking about its findings for the past few months.

“In the report we find that we are not doing a good enough job in preparing our youth to carry the flame of Christianity,” he said. “The report points especially the need to help parents guide parents with their children’s religious development. The report suggests that our members do not understand what the church is. Many have asked for and sought the wrong things from the church. We have failed to guide our members so they might have better expectations for the church. For too many, the church is seen as an institution, a social club, or even a cultural club, not the body of Christ. This is at the heart of the confusion about the church and her role and her mission.”

“We, as a church, need to help young parents to be better teachers of our faith, tradition, and culture,” he said. “We need to return to the basics and help parents raise their families upon the most solid foundation we have, Jesus Christ.”

He noted that there is more to do in helping members and our youth gain an understanding of the basic foundations of the Armenian Christian faith.

“We have not done enough, each one of us as leaders of the Armenian Church. Our church has many, many treasures, but too many remain hidden, unknown from our people and the world,” he said. “If they are hidden or unknown or are inaccessible to the Armenian Christians living in America our mission is very clear. We need to do a better job of sharing them. We are capable. We have the capacity and together we can let this flame shine.”

He noted that it is important to focus the Armenian Church on its Christianity. For example, he noted that most know the cultural aspects of the creation of the Armenian alphabet but do not think about the Christian faith which propelled the creation of the alphabet.

“The Armenian Christian light shines best and brightest when Jesus Christ is known and is placed at the very center of all our lives,” he said. “This has been the tradition of the Armenian people. For many, many centuries, until the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century when secularism from Europe came also to the life of the Armenian leadership, when it came to Russia creating communism. I want each and every one of you to know I see the report as an opportunity. There is nothing in that report that is beyond our capacity to make right.”

He noted that the Diocese has already reorganized its youth and education staff and hired new staff to help provide new tools and resources to parents to teach their children about Christ’s teachings.

“We are committed to new ideas and using the latest in technology and educational tools,” he said. “Together, with you, through our regional meetings and consultations with clergy and educators, we are thinking through what we do in a more deliberate way. We are confident in our agenda. At the heart of the study, however, lies an issue that reorganization, methodology, and technology cannot address. We have drifted away from our fundamentals, the basics of our faith.”

“We, as church leaders, must better equip parents to teach our children their faith, culture, and traditions. This must begin with the basics of faith and values. Parents are the primary teachers of their children,” he added. “This is the flame we must recommit ourselves to again. In making our flame ready for our young we need to be diligent in assuring that our parents know the basics. This must begin with the role Jesus Christ plays in our lives.”

He noted that parents must lead by their deeds, rather than their words.

“Parents need to lead by example, demonstrating the basics as often as possible. When parents pray, their children watch and learn to pray. When parents go to badarak, so does the family. And when parents model the Christian virtues of faith, hope, and charity, their children learn these too. Family is central to our Armenian Christian lives,” he said.

Telling a personal story to the delegates, he said his father prays throughout the day no matter what is going on. If he has guests, he goes to the corner and prays. One day, his four-year-old niece was visiting, and saw the Primate’s father praying and went next to him and began praying as well. The Primate asked his father how he learned to pray, and he spoke about the grandfather of the Primate’s mother, who prayed every day. By seeing that example, the Primate’s father was so impressed he began to pray

“I am sure each of you can recall how someone taught you and how you have carried these lessons throughout your life,” he said. “These lessons go beyond what you do; they form who we are. It’s not really the words we repeat, sometimes even without understanding the meaning. Incorporating our Armenian faith, culture, and tradition is part of who we are, whatever we are, and whatever we do. The question before us is this: What will we, as Armenian Christians living in the United States, do in teaching the basics of our identity as Armenian Christians.”

He noted that the key to teach the basics to the next generation is to give parents the tools to make the church an important part of their lives. It is important to note, he added, that being Armenian does not make one an Armenian Christian.

“We should not take this as a blind expression of the Armenian birthright. Because you are born an Armenian, you are not a member of the Armenian Church. You are a member of the Armenian Church when you pray and practice Christianity every day in your home, in your work, in society.”

He said that if parents go back to the basics, and transmit those essential truths to the youth, the Diocese can achieve its intent of making the Armenian Church significant in the lives of every Armenian family. It is bringing the Christian faith into the daily lives of families that will make that happen, he said.

“To me, of all the years I have served as your primate and of all the Assemblies I have spoken at, no Assembly has been more important than this; because nothing is more important to the Armenian Church and her continuing as a thriving Christian body than her connection to the homes of her members,” he said. “The study is not so much an obstacle as it is an opportunity to reflect on the past and create a vision for future. I believe we can meet the challenges we face and move forward, confident in our faith and confident in our future.”

“As we go forward from this Assembly, as part of returning to the basics, I encourage each and every one of you, without distinction, each and every one of you, including myself, to ask this question: Who is Christ? Look beyond the fundamental truth that he is the Savior of the world. Search your heart and consider this very basic question: Who is Jesus Christ to me? How do I live Christ in my life? How do I model Christ in my personal relationships with family, friends, coworkers, strangers? When we can answer this, then we will know the light and be able to pass the flame to our children,” the Primate added in conclusion.

Posted by Jake at May 4, 2007 09:27 AM