10 The <strong>Armenia</strong>n Reporter | October 4, 2008
The <strong>Armenia</strong>n Reporter | October 4, 2008 11 <strong>National</strong> Muron is blessed at Etchmiadzin in ancient ritual n Continued from page At 5 p.m., the bells of Etchmiadzin started ringing loudly. After shaking h<strong>and</strong>s with Serge Sargsian, the president of the Republic of <strong>Armenia</strong>, the Catholicos of All <strong>Armenia</strong>ns, Karekin II, took his place at the very end of a long procession. Toward the front of the procession were junior clergy, followed by more senior clergy, then bishops, then archbishops, <strong>and</strong> finally, the Catholicos <strong>and</strong> Supreme Patriarch. The clergy carried holy relics, including the right h<strong>and</strong> of Saint Gregory the Illuminator, the patron saint of the <strong>Armenia</strong>n Church <strong>and</strong> the first Catholicos. Bartholomew, the Ecumenical Patriarch, was present, as were other representatives of sister churches. Representing the Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia was Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, Prelate of the Eastern Prelacy. Representing the <strong>Armenia</strong>n Patriarch of Jerusalem was Archbishop Nurhan Manoogian. The <strong>Armenia</strong>n Patriarch of Constantinople was represented by Archbishop Shahan Svajian. The president of the Republic of Nagorno Karabagh, Bako Sahakian, as well as diplomats, ministers, <strong>and</strong> other dignitaries were also present. <strong>Armenia</strong>ns from Etchmiadzin <strong>and</strong> elsewhere in <strong>Armenia</strong> joined perhaps two to three thous<strong>and</strong> pilgrims from around the world to witness the ceremony. They congregated – <strong>and</strong> pushed forward – in a massive crowd waiting for the procession to come their way, so they may be blessed by the cross the Catholicos was holding. After the procession made its ways to the stage, the ceremony continued with the Lord’s Prayer. The Etchmiadzin choir sang enthusiastically, adding to the spiritual ambiance. The cauldron of pure olive oil was opened. Over 40 ingredients, many the essence of various flowers, were blessed <strong>and</strong> added, as was balsam. Senior clergymen, including Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Eastern Diocese, <strong>and</strong> Archbishop Hovnan Derderian, Primate of the Western Diocese, made their way to the Catholicos <strong>and</strong> the cauldron <strong>and</strong> presented ingredients. As a symbol of the unity of the <strong>Armenia</strong>n church, Archbishop Koriun Papian added newly blessed muron from the Cilician See. And then some of the old muron was added. “In the new blessing, the old muron is poured in so the tradition going back all the way to the first Catholicos, going back to the beginning, to Saint Gregory the Illuminator is kept,” Archbishop Barsamian told the <strong>Armenia</strong>n Reporter. He added that the muron “is the symbol of the presence of the Holy Sprit, the sign of the unity of the <strong>Armenia</strong>n Church, <strong>and</strong> it is the life of the church.” After the blessing, the time came for the Catholicos to speak. All was silent, <strong>and</strong> all were waiting to hear what the pontiff was going to say. The only sounds to be heard were the rain falling on umbrellas <strong>and</strong> raincoats, <strong>and</strong>, the occasional mobile phone ringing. “From the heights of heaven, holiness descends once more today <strong>and</strong> disperses blessing, grace, <strong>and</strong> exuberance over our homel<strong>and</strong>, within our souls, <strong>and</strong> throughout the whole of <strong>Armenia</strong>n life,” he said. “With the prayerful participation of the sons <strong>and</strong> daughters of our nation Scenes from the blessing of the Holy Muron. Above: Catholicos Karekin II with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. Photos: Photolure. dispersed throughout the world, we bless the Holy Muron according to the words granted from our Lord. Glory, unending praise, <strong>and</strong> thanks to our all-provident God.” He also spoke about mixing the old <strong>and</strong> new oils <strong>and</strong> the oil from the Great House of Cilicia. “We combined the previous muron, through which we transmit the oil blessed by our Lord from generation to generation; <strong>and</strong> also mixed the newly made muron of the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia. We blessed it with our sacred <strong>and</strong> cherished relics – with the saving Cross of our Lord, the Holy Lance, <strong>and</strong> the Holy Right H<strong>and</strong> of our Illuminator Pontiff,” the Catholicos said. When the ceremony was all over, the Catholicos, the other clergy, <strong>and</strong> the dignitaries left the grounds; people rushed forward to touch anything they could to the now-blessed cauldron that held the blessed muron. “I was fortunate to have my scarf touched to the Holy Muron,” said Nancy Arabian, a pilgrim from Tarzana, California. “Everyone wanted their scarves to be touched by the Holy Muron; I didn’t think I was going to make it out alive. This event was something that I wanted to witness all my life. I have heard the procedure from my parents. It was a very important pilgrimage for me” Archbishop Vicken Aykazian, who is based in Washington, said he believed the laity in <strong>Armenia</strong> has a great interest in religion, perhaps because such interest had been discouraged by the Communist Party in the Soviet era. “They are getting much closer to their religion,” Archbishop Aykazian said. One of the young people in attendance was Narine Hakobyan, who lives in <strong>Armenia</strong> <strong>and</strong> is in her mid-twenties. She said, “Each time a muron blessing is held, more <strong>and</strong> more people show up, of all ages. This means our faith is spreading among our people, wherever they might be living.” f
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