Worship

Supporting New Spiritual Leaders

Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Eastern Diocese, ordains Fr. Gomidas Zohrabian as a priest in early 2003.  Along with this priestly ordination, the Primate ordained young people in dozens of parishes as deacons, sub-deacons, and altar servers in 2003.

The heart of the church comes from the individuals who provide spiritual leadership, the priests, deacons, and lay ministers. In 2003, the Diocese saw the ordination of a new priest, several deacons and altar servers, and increases in students at St. Nersess Armenian Seminary in New Rochelle, NY.

In February 2003, Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Eastern Diocese, ordained Fr. Gomidas Zohrabian in New York City’s St. Vartan Cathedral. He was then confirmed as pastor to the St. George Church of Hartford, CT.

“During the singing of the uplifting hymns and the recitation of meaningful prayers, I became truly moved,” Fr. Gomidas said shortly after his ordination. “The Holy Spirit descended upon me, a humble person. It’s definitely a transformation, not only by receiving a new name, but by becoming a new creature. The old has passed away and the new has come.”

The Primate also ordained a number of individuals as deacons, sub-deacons, and acolytes in 2003, traveling to such places as: Greenfield, WI; Southfield, MI; Elberon, NJ; Charlotte, NC; Tenafly, NJ; Cambridge, MA; Fair Lawn, NJ; Troy, NY; Framingham, MA; Chelmsford, MA; Houston, TX; and Trumbull, CT.

“To me it is an indication, a turning point in life, where I think the kids are locked into the Armenian Church and their identity as Armenians. It’s an anchor to the Armenian community. I think these guys are with us and the church for their whole lives now,” said Cross Mooradian, whose two young sons were ordained as tbirs by the Primate at the St. John Church of Southfield, MI. “Without the church, without that anchor, they would be lost, adrift in American society with no particular identity, nothing special about them.”

The future spiritual leadership of the Diocese seems bright. St. Nersess Seminary is growing and expects several more students in the next few years. It is expanding its facilities to accommodate larger classes. It is a success attributed to the drive of the Seminary and its supporters, but also to the successful interplay of youth programs sponsored by the Diocese and local efforts of parishes.

“It’s not just the seminary’s role to recruit. The seminary is here to educate,” said Fr. Daniel Findikyan, dean of St. Nersess. “The church at the Diocesan level and the local level should promote men into the priesthood. The seminary isn’t going to sit by and fold its arms. We’re going to recruit, but recruitment is everybody’s responsibility.”