National, International, Armenia, and Community News and Opinion

The Armenian Reporter | October 4, 2008 11
National
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 hands with Serge
Sargsian, the president of the Republic
of Armenia, the Catholicos
of All Armenians, 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, and finally,
the Catholicos and Supreme
Patriarch.
The clergy carried holy relics,
including the right hand of Saint
Gregory the Illuminator, the patron
saint of the Armenian Church
and 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 Armenian Patriarch
of Jerusalem was Archbishop
Nurhan Manoogian. The Armenian
Patriarch of Constantinople
was represented by Archbishop
Shahan Svajian.
The president of the Republic of
Nagorno Karabagh, Bako Sahakian,
as well as diplomats, ministers,
and other dignitaries were
also present.
Armenians from Etchmiadzin
and elsewhere in Armenia joined
perhaps two to three thousand
pilgrims from around the world
to witness the ceremony. They
congregated – and 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 and added, as was balsam.
Senior clergymen, including Archbishop
Khajag Barsamian, Primate
of the Eastern Diocese, and
Archbishop Hovnan Derderian,
Primate of the Western Diocese,
made their way to the Catholicos
and the cauldron and presented ingredients.
As a symbol of the unity of the
Armenian 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 Armenian Reporter.
He added that the muron “is the
symbol of the presence of the Holy
Sprit, the sign of the unity of the
Armenian Church, and it is the life
of the church.”
After the blessing, the time came
for the Catholicos to speak. All was
silent, and all were waiting to hear
what the pontiff was going to say.
The only sounds to be heard were
the rain falling on umbrellas and
raincoats, and, the occasional mobile
phone ringing.
“From the heights of heaven, holiness
descends once more today and
disperses blessing, grace, and exuberance
over our homeland, within
our souls, and throughout the whole
of Armenian life,” he said. “With
the prayerful participation of the
sons and 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, and thanks
to our all-provident God.”
He also spoke about mixing the
old and new oils and 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; and also mixed
the newly made muron of the Catholicosate
of the Great House of
Cilicia. We blessed it with our sacred
and cherished relics – with the
saving Cross of our Lord, the Holy
Lance, and the Holy Right Hand of
our Illuminator Pontiff,” the Catholicos
said.
When the ceremony was all
over, the Catholicos, the other
clergy, and 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 Armenia 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 Armenia and
is in her mid-twenties. She said,
“Each time a muron blessing is
held, more and more people
show up, of all ages. This means
our faith is spreading among our
people, wherever they might be
living.”
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