Armenian Apostolic Holy Church The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin

On November 21, His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; the sacrament of ordination and consecration of priests was offered in the St. Gregory the Illuminator Mother Cathedral of Yerevan. During the Divine Liturgy, His Grace Bishop Anushavan Jamkochyan, Dean of the Theological Faculty of Yerevan State University and Dean of the St. Gregory the Illuminator Cathedral in Yerevan; ordained 11 deacons to the priesthood.

During the Divine Liturgy, His Grace Bishop Anushavan consecrated the new priests with Holy Chrism (Muron) and gave them new names. Deacon Ishkhan Gevorgyan was renamed Fr. Trdat, Deacon Avetik Nahapetyan was renamed Fr. Tiran, Deacon Sasun Ashughbabyan was renamed Fr. Nerses, Deacon Vachagan Dokholyan was renamed Fr. Husik, Deacon Hmayak Karapetyan was renamed Fr. Aram, Deacon Tigran Simonyan was renamed Fr. Artavazd, Deacon Narek Hakobyan was renamed Fr. Sepouh, Deacon Sevak Hakobyan was renamed Fr. Tigran, Deacon Gevorg Gevorgyan was renamed Fr. Maghakia, Deacon Arshak Hakobyan was renamed Fr. Artashes, and Deacon Benik Hovhannisyan was renamed Fr. Hovhan.

At the end of the ordination ceremony, the newly ordained priests conveyed their first blessings to the attendees. Then, His Grace Bishop Anushavan, reflecting on the importance of the priesthood in his sermon, stated in part: ““Put off your shoes from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” (Exodus 3:5). It is this Divine call that has brought us all to this sacred place at different times. Centuries ago, Prophet Moses heard these Divine words, when trying to get closer to the incombustible raspberry tree. Today, these words are addressed to You from the Divine Altar, from the Lantern of the Illuminator radiating on it. Look at that light through the eyes of a Pastor, as Moses looked at the incombustible raspberry tree, and you will hear that voice from there: “Put off your shoes from your feet, that have walked in the dust of this world; be cleansed from the mud of this world; as the place where you stand; where you have made an oath of loyalty and humility; from where you should bring comfort and convey the Holy Communion to our faithful: It is a sacred country, a sacred land””.

Referring to the responsible mission of the Priests, His Grace Bishop Anushavan stated; “Being a servant of the Divine word is not limited to words. It has much joy and sweetness, as well as bitterness and difficulty. Becoming an Apostle of Christ is not limited to what is happening now, and to be anointed. Throughout your service, you should strive to become a devoted preacher, a humble servant of our Church, to be worthy of the calling of the true Apostle of the people, that are mournful and lost by external and internal challenges”.
Then, addressing the newly ordained Priests, His Grace Bishop Anushavan conveyed his best wishes to them; “Dear Priests, I want you to always be bright, always be productive, so that when people look at you, they do not see you through your words, but see Christ, see the Illuminator, see Mesrop Mashtots, see those Saints and heroes, who sacrificed their lives so that the nation would always be glorious; and be "servants without shame", be a temple of God and have a service, that our Mother See will intensify its spiritual radiance in the lives of all our people, forever”.

In the conclusion, His Grace Bishop Anushavan prayed to God once again, asking that the Heavenly Lord Bless the newly ordained Priests, our Mother Church and Fatherland with His Graces.

Then, the Brotherhood of the Mother See and the Clergy, ascended to the Holy Altar, to congratulate the newly ordained priests and kiss their anointed foreheads and hands.

The newly ordained 11 priests will follow the traditional 40-day seclusion period of fasting in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, and will be appointed to serve in different Dioceses and Institutions of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church.