ECHMIADZIN — On January 05, on the Eve of the Feats of the Holy Nativity and Theophany of Our Lord Jesus Christ, under the presidency of His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; Candlelight Divine Liturgy was celebrated in the St. Gayane Monastery, which was attended by the members of the Brotherhood of the Mother See of Holy Echmiadzin; last Artsakh President Samvel Shahramanyan, Armenian statesmen and pilgrim Armenians.
The Celebrant was Bishop Vrtanes Abrahamyan, director of the Artsakh spiritual and cultural heritage office of the Mother See of Holy Echmiadzin.
Prior to the Divine Liturgy, an Evening Service was held and different Bible passages were read, then four Deacons of Mother See read the Prophecy of Daniel.
During the Divine Liturgy, the Catholicos reflected on the sacrament of the Feast and stated in part: “The miraculous Nativity of Jesus Christ was nothing but the re-proclamation of the divine Light of Lights order. God condescended to restore the broken harmony of creation and halt humanity’s descent back into chaos.
The Armenian people were one of the first to meet the divine true Light, because they still carried the memory and traces of the pre-created light in their subconscious sphere. Therefore, we called the spiritual renewal brought by Christ enlightenment, we called the apostles of our nation and the official first patriarch enlighteners, and we began to consider ourselves the Sons of Light.”
The Celebrant urged the faithful to look back on their past years and try to shed light on the darkness of their inner concerns and uncertainty.
