Clergy Corner
Father, Should I Get a Tattoo?
By V. Rev. Fr. Vasken Karayan

What prompted me to write about tattoos? Once a former Sunday School student had a big argument with his mother over tattoos. He was eager to obtain permission to ink a tattoo on his body. He asked me if tattoos are mentioned in the Bible. Instead of responding “YES” or “NO”, I simply said I don’t recall; but, I will find out. These urged me to research this subject..
(Click here for more)

Words to Live By
Check out our website to learn more about the Sundays of Lent and to read meditations and reflections to help guide you through your spiritual journey this Lenten season. I hope you are able to read it on a regular basis as you prepare for Easter.  Click here for more information.

Did You Know?
The Meaning of Lent
"Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And he fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he was hungry." (Matthew 4:12.)

This is the Biblical basis of the period called Lent, given to us to prepare for the Feast of Feasts, the Resurrection. Just as we need time to prepare for any great event in life, we need time to make ourselves ready to participate in the blessed and wondrous event commemorated by Easter.

Lent gives us the opportunity to:
-Renew our commitment to God
-Reflect on our lives and let them be directed by God
-Respond to Jesus' call for love and mercy toward all of God's children

Lent is a special time in the year when we guard against worldly distractions and make room for the Holy Spirit to fill us.  Click here to read more.

You're Kidding
Little Zachary
Author Unknown

Little Zachary was doing very badly in math. His parents had tried everything -- tutors, mentors, flash cards, special learning centers. Finally, in a last ditch effort, they took Zachary down and enrolled him in the Local Catholic school.

After the first day, little Zachary came home with a very serious look on his face. He didn't even kiss his mother hello. Instead, he went straight to his room and started studying. Books and papers were spread out all over the room and little Zachary was hard at work.

His mother was amazed. She called him down to dinner, and then, to her shock, the minute he was done, he marched back to his room without a word and began hitting the books as hard as before.

This went on for some time, day after day, while the mother tried to understand what made all the difference. Finally, little Zachary brought home his report card. He quietly laid it on the table, went up to his room and hit the books. With great trepidation, his Mom looked at it and to her great surprise, little Zachary got an "A" in math.

She could no longer hold her curiosity. She went to his room and said, "Son, what was it? Was it the nuns?" Little Zachary looked at her and shook his head, no. "Well, then," she replied, was it the books, the discipline, the structure, the uniforms? WHAT WAS IT ALREADY"

Little Zachary looked at her and said, "Well, on the first day of school when I saw that guy nailed to the plus sign, I knew they weren't fooling around."

Upcoming Events
March 24-26, Watervliet ACYOA Jrs. Retreat
April 1, Midwest Regional Lock-in, 7 p.m, Chicago, IL
April 7-8, Detroit ACYOA Retreat and Lock-in hosted by St. John Armenian Church in Southfield, MI
April 29, ACYOA Jrs. Spring Extravaganza, Fair Lawn, NJ
May 26–29, Hye M’rtsoom Watertown, MA
June 16-18, Father and Son Weekend at the Ararat Center (ages 14 and up)

St. Vartan Camp
June 27-July 1, Staff training
July 2-15, Session A
July 16-29, Session B
July 30-August 12, Session C

Hye Camp
July 30-August 5

St. Nersess Summer Conferences
June 13-17, Post-high school A
June 25–July 3, Deacon’s training
July 6–14, High school A
July 17–25, High school B
July 28–August 5, High school C
August 7–11, Junior high school
August 14–20, Post high school B

If you have an upcoming event you want posted in HYE-mail, e-mail me at: jenniferm@armeniandiocese.org.

Links
www.acyoa.org is the national website of the ACYOA. Learn about the history of the organization, find out about upcoming events, read press releases, view photos, and much more.

www.college301.org is a website for college kids to keep them connected to the church while away from home.

THANK YOU FOR MAKING OUR E-MAIL A SUCCESS!

Welcome back to HYE-mail, a monthly e-newsletter of the ACYOA Juniors sent out to young Armenian Orthodox Christians throughout the Eastern Diocese to help keep you connected to the Armenian Church.

Thank you for helping us continue to grow! If you know of anyone that might want to receive HYE-mail, let me know. I welcome your thoughts and ideas for upcoming HYE-mails. Please feel free to contact me about this or anything else. 

I also wanted to give you a quick preview of next month's issue.  In it, we'll announce the results of the art contest we held earlier this year.

With Love and Prayers,
Jennifer E. Morris
Coordinator, Youth Outreach

JENNI'S JOURNAL -- CAMP PREP AND LENTEN RETREATS

Preparations for the upcoming camp season continue to keep me busy. If you haven’t registered yet, I hope you do so soon. Sessions are filling up quickly, and I don’t want you to miss out on an awesome summer. Want more details? Visit our website.

Are you interested in becoming a counselor-in-training or staff member at either Hye Camp or St. Vartan Camp, or do you know anyone who is? If so, please contact me to request an application or click here.

During this Lenten season, I have had the great experience of bringing ACYOA Jrs. together for a time of reflection, fellowship, and fun. We have spent our time together exploring the question, “What Influences Today’s Teen Culture?”

Young people from New Jersey gathered on Saturday (3/4) for a day-long retreat hosted by the St. Mary Church of Livingston, NJ. Last weekend, the New England Regional ACYOA Jrs. Retreat took place (3/17-3/19) near Concord, NH, with 27 participants spending the weekend together. Away from the noise of the outside world, we spent time in silence trying to listen to God.

The last of the Lenten retreat series will take place in Southfield, MI with the Detroit ACYOA Jrs. for a retreat and lock-in beginning Friday evening and concluding Saturday afternoon (4/7-4/8).

Well, that’s all for now. Please feel free to contact me if I can be of any help to you and your local ACYOA.

Click here to see photos from my recent trips!

IN YOUR WORDS

The following comments are from the New England Regional ACYOA Jrs. Retreat participants and chaperones. There were 27 participants representing six different parishes.

“If you’re feeling lost and alone…stop and listen. God will help you through. He’ll carry you through the rough times. In the end no matter what, He will always love you.”
-Danielle S.

“Having this be my first time at the retreat, I enjoyed it and thought it was a great experience for me. I reunited with old friends and had the opportunity to make more. I really enjoyed the discussions we had, and I learned so much from them.”
-Christina K.

“This weekend was a great way to talk about some things we don’t really get to discuss at home, it was a great experience that I’m grateful for.”
-Sevan J.

“It was my 1st time coming. I thought it was gonna be horrible….I walked away knowing it was a blast. I realized that if you don’t stop to look at the roses you never know how beautiful they are.”
-Nikki F.

“It’s a great wasyto get away from our crazy lives. The fact that we are in the middle of nowhere helps you get away, and it’s nice. Yeah, bonfires!”
-Mariah S.

“This is my religion, there are none other like it, without it I am nothing, with it I am given everything.”
-Tyler R.

“The retreat sparked surprisingly intriguing discussions and provoked thoughts that could rarely be ventured thinking of until brought up at the retreat. There are so many ways to view a situation; you have to see things from all angles before deciding on the path more preferable for you.”
-Val A.

“This retreat turned out to be a lot more interesting, fun and enlightening than I had expected. It was great to be here in an intimate, friendly group of people, some of whom I knew and some new, having genuinely deep discussions about life, faith, and friendships. This was one of the best experiences I’ve had with the ACYOA. I really enjoyed it and will not soon forget the things I learned.”
- Liana H.

“I have never been to something in which I’ve gotten so much out of.”
-Craig J.

“The weekend provided our younger ACYOA members a time to slow down and reflect on the importance of having a relationship with God. Our ACYOA members also had time to reflect on the choices they make on a daily basis. They were also reinforced in the knowledge that our church is there for them. Our priests, youth directors, and ACYOA alumni are great sources and should find a way into mentoring in their lives.”
-Steve Megrdichian, Youth Director, Providence, RI

“I was very moved by the spirit of open, honest sharing of these young people who could have done many other things this weekend but chose to participate in the retreat. I pray for our Lord’s continued guidance for each of them.”
-Rev. Fr. Krikor Sabounjian, Pastor, Framingham, MA

Do you have something to say? Are you willing to share your thoughts and ideas with your peers? I would love to have teens, like you, volunteer to share their thoughts and ideas. I am looking for short reflections, stories, vignettes, etc. to be published in next month's Hye-mail. E-mail me if you have an idea.

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