In a talk at St. John Armenian Church of Milwaukee during its Feb. 27 observation of Vartanants, Dr. Levon Saryan provided the battle with its historical context, outlining the events that came before and after Avarayr.
The Armenian Church commemorates St. Sarkis the Warrior, his son Mardiros, and 14 faithful soldiers. This is a moveable feast that can occur between January 11 and February 16. Sarkis was a 4th century Roman soldier who became a Christian. He rose through the military ranks because of his valiant campaign on behalf of Emperor Constantine. With the accession of Emperor Julian…
One chilly evening, a father decided to take a walk to a nearby church. A few moments later, he heard the sound of small footsteps. He turned around, and there was his little boy, following him. The father asked, “How did you find out where I was?” The boy, with a bright smile, answered, “I just followed your steps in the snow.”
Over 2,000 years ago, our Lord Jesus Christ walked on this earth, and His steps left a trail that has changed the world forever. He walked through deserts and hillsides, through crowded cities and quiet gardens, and every step He took was a step of love, compassion, and obedience to God’s will. He showed us how to love the unlovable, how to forgive the unforgivable, and how to reach out to those who are hurting and lost.
Archbishop Shnork Kaloustian was a prolific and active leader of the Armenian Church, who served in different capacities from Jerusalem to America to Istanbul, where he was the 82th Armenian Patriarch of Turkey for the last 29 years of his life.
Arshag Kaloustian was born on September 27, 1913, in the village of Ighdel, in the region of Yozgat. His father was a victim of the genocide and most of his siblings also died in the period 1915–1923. Little Arshag changed various orphanages in the years 1922-1927, from the former American college of Talas (Kayseri) to the American orphanages of Nahr Ibrahim in Lebanon and of Nazaret in Palestine.
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