By David Luhrssen
GREENFIELD, Wis. — “It’s good to be back home,” said Rev. Tateos Abdalian, the celebrant and guest speaker for the 82nd anniversary celebration at St. John the Baptist Armenian Church.
The November 10 event was a special occasion for Abdalian and Milwaukee’s Armenian community. St. John was his first parish, the beginning of four decades of service in the Eastern Diocese. His years in Milwaukee were also a turning point for St. John, when he took the lead role in building the sanctuary that continues to be central to Armenian spiritual life in Milwaukee.
Abdalian’s sermon was a reminder to parishioners who knew him in the 1980s of his penetrating intelligence grounded in faith. He spoke of the power of silence, referencing the Book of Ecclesiastes 3:7, as a way to hear the voice of God in a world of noise and distraction. It’s a voice, he said, that we can hear “only if we learn to be quiet.” He encouraged the congregation to “Arrive early, before Liturgy, or stay afterward, sit quietly in the sanctuary, away from all noises and distractions, and hear God’s voice speak to you.”
After mass, a requiem service was conducted for all of St. John’s deceased priests, the godfathers of the parish and everyone instrumental in building the sanctuary.
Parish Council Chairman Lyle Dadian was master of ceremonies in the program that followed. Among the highlights was a slide show assembled by Don and Donny Rask from photo albums that provided a visual tour of St. John’s 82 years. The presentation began with black and white photos from St. John’s original home in West Allis and moved swiftly to Greenfield in 1970. Photos from the ‘70s and ‘80s were a reminder that the Badarak was celebrated in those years on the stage of the Culture Hall. There was no church building until the 1980s when Abdalian pushed for its construction.
